Joseph and Immanuel

This post is another one of my sermons – this one preached just before Christmas at our church. It’s based on Matthew 1:18-25, the story of Joseph’s reaction to Mary’s pregnancy and the angelic visitor. There is lots that could be said, both about Joseph, and about the names the baby will have, but here is where I focused:

Silent Night. Holy Night. All is calm, all is bright. I love the carol – but it sounds so peaceful and calm, and well, slightly unrealistic. And then there is the reality that our world feels very far from the calmness of that carol – which brings to mind another rendition of the carol that you might know. It’s from Simon and Garfunkel, and it’s the carol set with the news headlines in the background. 

In the 1960s that was the vietnam war, racial tension and various other issues – but it’s not difficult to imagine a similar set of headlines for today: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Israel’s attacks on Gaza, China’s threats in the Pacific – the list could go on. 

The question is: do those ongoing traumatic headlines destroy the reality of the carol? Does the darkness of this world mean Christmas is a nice idea without any real power? What use is this message in a world of such darkness?

Well we’ll see this morning that it makes all the difference in the world. That we have a God who rescues us, and comes to be with us. 

His rescue and his presence mean we do not need to fear to step forward with him in whatever situation we find ourselves, in the midst of our ordinary lives.

Today’s story wraps up the gift of God’s salvation and God’s presence in the story of an ordinary couple living in the midst of times much like ours – full of darkness, full of wicked rulers and people struggling under tyranny, and people struggling just to make ends meet. 

We’ll start with the first part of the wrapping in Matthew 1:18-19 – please have the bibles open in front of you. 

This passage comes at the end of the long list of names at the start of Matthew’s gospel which form Matthew’s introduction to the story of how Jesus came. The names remind us that Jesus is the son of David, the son of Abraham and of God’s promises to Israel.

God’s people at this point were waiting for the promised Son of David, a King like David who would give them freedom from their enemies. They lived under the rule of the Romans – Herod, King of Judea ruled as a Roman king, giving allegiance to Caesar as his overlord, keeping a wary eye on any who might be seen as a messiah. 

It was a tense time to be a Jew – waiting, longing for deliverance and freedom – yet fearing the next reinforcement of Roman rule. We might expect God’s next move to be in the palaces of the mighty. The Jews of Jesus’ day would have expected some kind of mighty act of God’s power. 

And yet God’s deliverance begins with an ordinary engaged couple in an ordinary small town. Joseph is a carpenter, maybe originally from Bethlehem finding work in Nazareth to ply his trade – perhaps just starting out on his own. 

Mary and Joseph are likely young – their families would have likely arranged the marriage – perhaps Joseph had noticed Mary, but maybe it was entirely set up. He would have been a bit older than her, but we don’t know how much older – we know he fades out of the story – and isn’t mentioned later on in the gospels – but all that might mean is that he got ill and died young. We just aren’t told. 

They are engaged to be married. That means all the arrangements for the wedding had been made, the families had agreed how it would all work, and for a period of time the couple were promised to each other, but still lived separately – to break off the engagement was to divorce. 

No doubt Joseph was looking forward to the day of the wedding, to life with his bride, and to the family line continuing. But into this happy expectation comes the realisation that all is not well. Mary is pregnant. And he is not the father. We don’t know how he knows of the pregnancy. Does he know directly from Mary? Has she gone directly to explain? Or, perhaps more likely, has he found out via the families? Has news reached him via an aunt, or a cousin? Has he just been told that Mary has gone out of town to Elizabeth, her miraculously pregnant older cousin? 

We don’t know what Joseph knows – just that stark, unarguable reality: she is pregnant, and he is not the father. He is a “righteous” man – a law upholding man, one who wants to do the right thing. And he also is a compassionate man – he doesn’t want to drag her into the public square, and shame her as an adulteress. So a quiet divorce is the way forward – perhaps he can simply let her stay with her cousin, safely out of the way until a child is born and something worked out with the father – whoever he might be. Unless the father is married to someone else. Then that would truly be messy – but surely Mary would never do that? 

Joseph’s world is upside down, his mind in turmoil. His thoughts racing. Into this confusion and turmoil in this night comes a dream. 

In this dream the angel says: Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. To take Mary as his wife is to take on some disgrace – it will be obvious the baby has come too soon. His reputation as righteous will be over – or else the whispers that he has been cheated on and is weak will grow. He has reputational damage to fear. He has how Mary thinks about him to fear – does she really love another rather than him? 

So to not fear he needs to heed the words of the angel: do not be afraid. Do not be afraid to take Mary. And as we look at what the angel says, we will see two key reasons not to be afraid in the names Jesus is given. Jesus, and Immanuel.

To us names might not seem that important or indeed accurate. For example my names are: Mark – warlike, Paul – little, Arnold – “eagle power” – so a small, but powerful warrior maybe?! But in the bible the meanings of names tell us a lot about the people involved (e.g. Jacob = grasper).  And Jesus means “Yahweh (the Hebrew’s name for God) rescues,” and Immanuel means “God is with us”

So first of all: do not be afraid because Jesus rescues

Joseph is told not to be afraid because the baby is no ordinary child. The baby is from the Holy Spirit, and the baby is to be called Jesus. 

Jesus, which means Yahweh rescues –the name Yahweh was revealed to Moses when God rescued the Israelites out of Egypt, fulfilling his promise to Abraham. It is the covenant name of God, the name of the God who makes and keeps his promises to his people. The baby is to be called Jesus because he will rescue his people from their sins.

It is not simply that God will rescue his people – although that is true. But Jesus will rescue his people. Matthew is telling us that Jesus is in reality not simply God’s rescuer, or even God’s king – but is God himself. Jesus is God come to rescue his people. 

But he is not simply a rescuer from their oppressors. He hasn’t come to overthrow the Romans as the Jews were hoping. No, Jesus comes to rescue his people from their sins. 

Why did God’s people in Matthew’s day – and why do we today need to be rescued from our sin? 

Well, the story of God’s people in the OT is a story of repeated deliverances followed by falling back into sin, and facing the consequences of those sins and the punishment for those sins. It seems they could be delivered from a horrible situation – like slavery in Egypt, but much more was needed to get the wrong patterns of life out of them. God’s people need a way to be delivered not simply from external oppressors but from sin.

And the same is true for us?  How often do we excuse wrong patterns in our life – of deeds, words or behaviour by an “if only.” If only such and such a circumstance changed I wouldn’t do such and such a sin? It would be much easier to be patient if I didn’t have to work for a boss like that! I could be so much less angry if my children didn’t argue back, or if my spouse just understood what I wanted them to do and did it.

Then sometimes perhaps the circumstances do change, we get a different job but still get impatient. We still get angry. We still snap at others. We still create the same kind of relational issues. 

Our deepest problem is not the external circumstances, but the sin that lives in our hearts. The sin that doesn’t simply drag down our own well being and our relationships with others, but which keeps us from God, which leads to our separation from God and being cut off from his restoration of all things in the future. We, like God’s people then, need a way to be rescued from sin.

And that  is what Jesus comes to do – by his death on the cross he will take away God’s anger at our sin, and open the way for us to come back to God – if we will put our trust in him. He will rescue his people from their sin – all who trust in what he has done. But, as Jesus’ words later in Matthew will remind us, for those who refuse to welcome this newborn king into their lives there is no salvation, only final exclusion from all that is good and right when Jesus returns to reign – as we’ve learnt in the parables of Jesus in recent family services.

When we hear this name “Jesus” we need to remember all this – he is called this because he is God who came down to rescue us from our deepest problem – sin. And so there is no need to be afraid. But there is a deeper reason not to be afraid in the next part of Matthew’s story:

Do not be afraid: God is with you – 22-23

This, we will see, is even more amazing than God’s desire to rescue us.  And to see this we have to see the story that Isaiah told, that Matthew shows Jesus fulfilling.  Which is why I wanted to have the Isaiah reading too – and why the people who put the lectionary together included this reading for us. 

Because when Matthew quotes OT passages and says that Jesus fulfilled them he isn’t taking those words from the OT and twisting them to fit his story. No. What he is doing is reminding his readers that Jesus’ story fulfills the OT story of Israel and by quoting these verses from Isaiah he reminds his Jewish Christian readers of the whole section that those words in Isaiah 7 are a part of. 

Maybe think of it like this. If we hear the words “We shall fight them on the beaches” we don’t just think of a battle on a beach – we think of the whole wartime spirit of defiance against tyranny and for freedom that Churchill’s wartime speeches conjure up.

To understand this Emmanuel reference properly we need to go back to Isaiah’s prophecy.  In that reading Isaiah was talking to King Ahaz – a king of Judah who worshipped idols and feared invasion from two kingdoms to his north. Despite that God had not given up on Judah and gave Ahaz a sign to encourage him to trust in God – and also to act as a warning. 

The sign is that a virgin will be with child and give birth to a son Immanuel – and before that child is old enough to be accountable for their actions the kingdoms opposed to Ahaz will be removed. In Isaiah’s context that simply means someone who is a young woman is about to become pregnant and have a child. The child will be called Immanuel – God is with us – to remind Ahaz and Judah that God is with his people. 

Furthermore the story does not stop there. In Isaiah 8 Isaiah has a son, and we wonder could this be the one? Is this Immanuel? Isaiah’s son is given a different name – “Quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil” – which is related to the fact that God is going to judge the kingdoms to the north by Assyria. But in Isaiah’s prophecy God makes it clear that judgement will go on to  Judah – and the prophecy of judgement against God’s people finishes with a cry of: “Immanuel” – God is with us. 

Because if God’s people won’t trust in God, then God’s presence stops being a comfort and becomes a sign of judgment. If we won’t trust God, then God being with us is dangerous. But, the prophecy continues, if we do trust God then no plan formed against us can stop him – and again finishes with a cry of  “God is with us – Immanuel” 

Then Isaiah’s prophecy goes on to talk of an end to darkness. In famous words from Isaiah 9 we read of a child to be born who will be Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God. What starts off as a simple prophecy of a child who gives a timeframe for God’s judgement becomes a prophecy of a child who will dispel darkness and reign as God on David’s throne. 

In Isaiah these ideas all belong together, so when Matthew tells us Jesus fulfills these words about a virgin being with child he wants us to think of this whole sequence, and how Jesus brings out the whole meaning of it.

Jesus is the child born of a virgin. Jesus is the child who not only is a sign of God’s presence, but in himself is God with us. Jesus is the one by whom we stand or fall. 

If Jesus is with us, then nothing can ultimately harm us. Jesus is the one who dispels the darkness and gloom, and who brings in the light of God’s rule. Jesus is the true Son of David who rules as no merely human king can.  Jesus brings out the fulness of what Isaiah points to. Isaiah himself could only look on and wonder at how the fulness of what he was talking about would come to be – but Jesus shows us how it all fits together in him.

Jesus is God with us. God come among us. This is the news of Christmas. This is the fundamental reason for Jesus coming. Because God has not given up on his creation. The whole story of the Bible is about how God wants to live with his people – but the sin of his people means that they cannot bear his presence. 

Jesus comes to deal with our sin, so that he can live among us. He comes by his Spirit now to live with us – and one day he will come again to put everything wrong right, to make everything sad come untrue and to give us new life with him on this earth restored and made new. 

Immanuel means that God has not given up on this place. He has not abandoned us here and now. It means that above all else God wants to be with us. He wants to be with me and he wants to be with you. Salvation is not about simply avoiding judgement and being lifted out of the mess that this world is so often in. Salvation is about God coming down into the mess to be with us as he goes about his work of clearing up this mess and as he calls us to join him in that work.

Immanuel means that God becomes one of us, so that we might become like him. Our lives matter to him. The daily choices we make matter. The stuff we make and create things from matters. Our jobs, our families, our gardens, our kitchens, our workshops – all of these things matter to God.

And so we come back to Joseph and his obedience. We come back to the wrapping of ordinary life.  If God had just wanted to save us he could have just appeared. He could have bypassed Joseph. He could have done it some other way. But God wanted to be with us. God wanted us to save us so that we could know him. And so God had to experience the whole of our lives. And so he needed Joseph to step up and play his part.

Joseph wakes up from the dream and he has to decide. Will he trust the angel? Will he give way to fear? Joseph is a righteous man. He knows his law. He knows the OT stories. He knows the family tree we’ve read and he knows the stories of: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth & Bathsheba – to the ways in which two of them were mistreated by men – and the way in which Ruth in particular was protected and cherished by Boaz. Joseph is being given a choice. Will he join Boaz as a man of strength, who uses his strength to protect and nurture? 

Sometimes in the Christmas story we miss this particular challenge. The challenge to men of how we will behave. Of how we will use strength. The Herods of our day seem to dominate. And men seem to become either Herods, or Herod followers – those who enable wrong to be done and covered up. In the midst of such men comes the example of Joseph. The example of using strength to protect and cherish and keep safe. Throughout this story – read on into chapter 2, Joseph – like Boaz before him – is the protector for mother and baby. He obeys God and adopts the baby as his own. 

He takes Mary as his wife. He chooses a way that would lead to comment. The marriage comes forward and everyone knows that there is a child on the way. “Righteous” Joseph, perhaps not quite so good now in everyone’s eyes. 

And he doesn’t have sex with Mary until the baby is born. I think we’re told this to emphasize that Joseph knows that it isn’t about him at this point. Mary is pregnant – with the Son of God – and it needs to be absolutely clear to Mary and Joseph that the child is God’s child. 

And yet the child is also Joseph’s because when the child is born Joseph names him Jesus – Joseph chooses the name. Joseph is adopting this child as his. Jesus was a Son of David because Joseph chose to include him. 

God’s salvation plan comes to us, not with a huge fanfare. Not with a mighty army. Not with an impressive king, but with one young man wrestling with his future, hearing in a dream, and stepping forward in obedience. And that’s how he carries on working. Jesus’ plan to bring salvation to the nations, to bring God’s presence to all peoples, is worked out at the end of Matthew’s gospel in his disciples going and teaching all nations to obey – and knowing that Jesus is with them as they do that. 

This Christmas there are no doubt any number of ways we need to obey God in our lives. And there are any number of ways we might fear to do what he wants. Fear can stop us doing something out of the ordinary. Fear can stop us from obeying the next step. 

God’s call is not to be afraid. God’s call is to remember that Jesus has come to save us from our sin, and God’s call is to remember that Jesus is God with us. There is no need to let fear have the last word – instead we step forward in faith, trusting God’s promise and looking to work with him in the restoration of this world. 

Living under the Blessing

It’s a while since we’ve blogged, but I (Mark) wanted to start again – and so I thought I’d put up my sermon on Genesis 26 from July. It’s a slightly odd passage – which is reflected in my introduction. So it may be worth just looking up the passage alongside reading this post. This was the first of 3 sermons I preached within about 4 weeks. Each from a different type of genre of Scripture – and each with its own set of challenges. This one was especially hard to structure and get a grip on. But I think an important passage to tackle because it is in a part of Genesis so often neglected. Here it is:

“Thanks be to God” we just said. 

I suspect this is one of those bible readings where we say those words with some degree of puzzlement.  So let’s pray

So what was that passage all about?  What difference does it make to me? By the end of the sermon we’re going to see that ultimately it makes all the difference in the world. We’re going to see that God’s promise in the passage we just read gives us vital reassurance in a world of danger, conflict and lack of resources that God gives perfect provision for our needs, protection from danger and peace in the midst of conflict.

But I’m guessing that may not be obvious.  We read about Isaac, we read words of promise, we read of Isaac’s lies. We read about wells, and some kind of fighting over wells, and then peace and God’s promise once more. But last week weren’t we hearing about Jacob and Esau?  What happened to them? Why back to Isaac? And how does this fit with Abraham’s life? And what possible difference can it make to me? 

So, before diving into this passage let’s remind ourselves of who is involved in these stories in Genesis. Here is Abraham’s family tree. Genesis is structured around these stories. Notice the names in bold. Remember back in Genesis 12 we heard God’s promise to Abraham, that through his descendants the whole earth would be blessed. 

Remember how we heard of the promise of the birth of Isaac – the one who would inherit the promise to Abraham and his barren wife, Sarah. We’ve seen how Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son, to whom the promises had been made.

Then we saw how a wife was found for Isaac,  and then how he prayed for his wife, who had no children and they had twins. We’ve seen how Esau traded away the birthright  for a bowl of lentil stew – and we’ll see more of how that story plays out next week. 

The other thing that is worth doing before we dive into the passage itself is to look at where they come from. This reminds us of the journey’s involved. Abraham – Ur-Haran-Canaan-Egypt-Canaan Isaac – Canaan Jacob – Canaan-Haran-Canaan-Egypt

Notice that Isaac is the one who basically stays where he is  – he moves around southern Canaan – but not really very far. In the passage today he goes from Gerar to Beersheba – which is only around 17 miles (compared to 200 miles down the coast to Egypt or 400 to Haran, or 1000 to Ur).

Think also about the stories Isaac features in – he’s nearly sacrificed, a wife is found for him – and in the next chapter he’s manipulated into blessing Jacob – he’s not very active. 

This chapter today, chapter 26, is the only chapter where Isaac is the main focus. But, as we remembered before it comes sandwiched in between two stories about Jacob and Esau. This “sandwich” idea is that one that comes up in Genesis elsewhere. It is a way of drawing our attention to something that we might otherwise miss. 

The clue to explain why this story is here is the end of the last chapter.  “And Esau despised his birthright” I think this chapter, chapter 26 makes clear exactly what Esau despised. It explains what he missed out on. And what he missed out on is what it means to live under God’s promise. 

Today we will focus on exactly this – we’ll look at God’s growing promise, at the fear that stops us enjoying the promise, and the benefits of provisions, protection and peace that the promise brings. 

First: God’s Growing Promise

Notice how the chapter begins reminding us of the previous story that involved Abraham and Abimelech – we don’t really know whether this is the same king (tribal chief), or whether Abimelech is a kind of title (it means “my father is king” – so could easily be a common name in a royal household. The story teller wants to tell us that this is a similar sort of story – but it is unique – it is ‘besides’ the other one.  

God gives Isaac the same promise that he gave Abraham – descendents who would live in the land, descendants who would bring blessing to the nations. But what does that have to do with us? Look at these verses on the screen. I’ve put “descendents” and “offspring” in bold because they translate the same Hebrew word which literally means “seed.” It’s used of crops, but its also used of people’s children and descendants – and can be used collectively of a group, or of a single individual. 

Paul in Galatians highlights the singular nature of the “seed” to say that the ultimate fulfilment of these passages in Genesis is Christ. 

Christ is the seed of Abraham – and any who have faith in God become “seed” of Abraham and heirs of the promise too. 

It is Christ who inherits the land – and the land  that Christ is to receive is the whole earth renewed and restored to what it should be. The land was only ever a picture of a restored creation – so we look forward to that reality to come. A quick way to summarise the way the Bible works from Genesis 12 onwards is this diagram – next slide.

At the top we see God calling Abraham, then Isaac then Jacob – that’s Genesis 12-50 – this family is the kingdom of God in miniature. 

Then God’s kingdom grows – Exodus – God’s people grow numerous. God keeps his promise, and God brings them to the land – David and Solomon. God’s people at peace in the land. Then it all goes wrong and the people end up in exile. Then Jesus comes, and lives out all that Israel should be, and calls Gentiles to join a renewed and rebuilt Israel that will fill the whole earth, and one day be part of a renewed world.

That is the promise that Isaac receives. And in the rest of the chapter we’ll see what it looks like to live out life under that promise. We’ll start with a threat to the promise, and then move on to look at God’s provision for people who live under his promise.

The Threat to the Promise

This is where we see the fear that stops us enjoying the promise. In this part of the story we see Isaac beginning to obey God by staying in the land, but quickly going wrong when he is asked about Rebekah. If you remember the story of Abraham and Sarah in a similar situation you will remember that Abraham pre-plans his strategy of claiming that his wife is actually his sister. Isaac on the other hand is caught in the moment. Suddenly fearing what the men around him might do, he claims Rebekah is his sister.  Somehow this was obviously a way for him to be in less danger.

Isaac gives way to fear. All that God has promised him becomes as nothing compared to the fear of what may happen to him in that moment.  So often that is true for us. So often we choose sin because we are afraid. 

Here the deception goes on for a while – and Isaac and Rebekah are able to snatch moments alone – but this time they are spotted by Abimelek from a window – “caressing” – or it could indeed be “laughing” – the word is the same one that Isaac’s name comes from. Isaac is living out of his nature. 

Abimelek confronts Isaac, and Isaac explains his reasoning – and Abimelek’s reaction demonstrates that Isaac’s fear was entirely unnecessary. It’s striking that Abimelek doesn’t punish Isaac, but instead protects him, and Rebekah. 

We wonder if Isaac would have been better off just being open from the start – and I’m sure many of us can think of situations where we’ve maybe not been completely  straightforward at the start but where our fear proves to have been unnecessary. 

And yet we may also wonder about Isaac getting away with it. He lies for self protection, like his father before him. Yet he gets away with it – or seems to. But if we read on in the story we see Rebekah and Jacob combining to deceive Isaac to get the blessing. Then we see Jacob in turn deceived by his children over the fate of Joseph. The family pattern continues. Isaac’s sin comes back on him

Yet none of this causes God to give up on the family. God starts with the mess of where we are right now. He doesn’t wait for us to be perfect, but he calls us to change – which is why he says to Isaac later in this chapter  “Do not be afraid”. 

The first thing we should note about living under God’s promise is that it means we don’t need to be afraid. And as we look at the rest of this passage we’ll see that work out in three distinct ways:

The first reason we don’t need to be afraid is that people who live under God’s promise see God’s provision

Look at v12-14 – Isaac plants crops and reaps a huge harvest. Isaac becomes rich and his wealth grows. He has so many flocks and herds that he is envied by the Philistines. 

So does that mean that I’m going to see my salary double, a new car on the drive and all my financial worries over?  Are people going to walk down Scotland Road, see the car on the drive and wonder where that wealth all came from – or will we be set up with a 6 bedroom house in the country?

Well, maybe – but that’s not what the Bible encourages us to expect. We need to remember what I said a few minutes ago about the big picture of the story of the Bible. In this story today Isaac lives out a life that is a picture of what Israel are meant to enjoy in the land, and what we can enjoy in Christ now, and in the life to come.  

And then we come to the NT – and we see that God’s people are now scattered all over the world, looking forward to a time when that world is made new. The full fulfillment of these riches will be seen when Jesus returns – but for now we are already – Paul says in Ephesians – blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 

Fundamentally that is the blessing of having God living among us by his Spirit and sharing that blessing with others. That blessing does have material impacts – but on Christians as a worldwide community – think of Acts and the way the Christians shared all their possessions. 

Think of Paul collecting money from the Gentile Christians for the Jewish Christians in Rome. Both locally and globally Christians are to share their wealth. We are to remember that we serve a God who is generous and who does not lack resources

While I may not get that new car, and all my financial issues may not dissolve away. I am still to remember that God is generous and gives in many and different ways – 

often through Christian brothers and sisters. When we make decisions as a church we need to trust the God who is generous beyond our imagining – and come to him to ask for our needs. There is no problem for God in financing our re-ordering – he isn’t short of money. 

We always need to be responsible with what we have – but we also need to remember that we don’t live in a world where there is a lack of resources or serve a God who is unwilling to give. We live in a world of abundance, serving a generous God – and so we need to be ready to trust our God. Isaac’s story reminds us of the generosity of our God.

As we go on in the story we see that Isaac meets with envy, and as the story plays out we see that 

People who live under God’s promise receive God’s protection from danger

Now we move on to the wells. The Philistines envy him – so they fill in the wells his father had dug before. That’s like turning off the water supply to your house. And in a climate where water really matters. So Isaac goes to the valley of gerar and settles, and reopens the wells. 

He then moves on for his servants to dig new wells – but the first two still meet with opposition – notice the names of the wells mean “dispute” and “opposition” – then finally the well is called “room” because no-one objects and God has now given them the space they need to flourish in the land. 

These names matter – they tell the story of opposition in the land, and then of God’s provision of space, of protection in the land. It’s a reality that is reinforced by God’s promise to him at Beersheba where God speaks the promise again.


Then Isaac worships God, and pitches his tent – and his servants dig a well. As we go on in the passage we see that this well is called Shibah – “oath” or “promise” – and the town is called “well of the promise”. 

God’s promise means that God’s people are protected. Isaac is given room to be fruitful in the land. God gives us room to work with him in sharing his good news. Room to be fruitful. As a church sometimes it can feel a bit like we are just re-digging wells. Doing the same thing – showing up in the same way – and just not seeing any results. 

Yet, we should keep doing what we know we should – praying together, listening to God’s word, worshipping because we know that God is at work. It might feel like we are just getting rid of rubbish – but at any moment we might strike water. At any moment God’s living water may come, and the work will have been worth it. 

Or maybe prayer is like that – praying for those people who just don’t seem to respond. Don’t stop. Who knows – maybe this is the week that we’ll see the water come. 

God’s protection of his people is so that we dig the wells now. It isn’t complete physical safety now – but it is the promise of complete security to come – and enough security now to play our part in God’s mission.

Because ultimately Living under God’s promise means enjoying God’s peace in the midst of conflict

Finally this story resolves – from the conflict around the wells, and the envy and the sending Isaac away we now come to Abimelech and his commander coming to make peace with Isaac. As they (or their predecessors) did with Abraham, so they now do with Isaac. They make a treaty and they go in peace. 

Peace is always a blessing for God’s people. In the days of Solomon the book of kings describes how the people enjoy peace. Jesus brings peace when he comes. Not simply a truce in hostilities, but peace between God, and peace between people. 

As people who enjoy God’s blessing we look to share that peace with others – in so far as we can. Within our church community we should be at peace with others. 

If we hold grudges or harbour resentment we need to let go of these things – and where they have led us to words or actions that have done someone else down we need to say sorry to them, and allow God to bring his peace into our lives.

Of course even for Isaac this wasn’t a perfect peace in this life – notice the end of the chapter how Esau’s wives are a source of grief to him and Rebekah. This side of eternity there will always be things that marr the peace we should have. 

But the blessings Isaac has in this chapter foreshadow the blessings that we enjoy with God now in part – and one day will enjoy with him forever. 

Right now we need to trust God’s promise, hear his reassurance not to be afraid 

because he is the God who provides, the God who protects and the God who gives peace. 

Grace and Effort: 2 Peter 1:1-11

I preached a few weeks ago on 2 Peter 1:1-11, and I often put up my sermons, afterwards. In this case it is harder to do exactly as I managed to give myself enough time to write my sermon out, then to take notes on it, and then to write out enough prompts to enable me to deliver the key material, but without needing a full script, which I can tend to rely on too much.

But I think it is a really important passage in a very important letter whose message we need more than ever today. The text of 2 Peter 1:1-11 offers a description of all we need, guidance on how to live for God and the certainty of welcome into Jesus’ presence. It is a rich feast set before us by one of Jesus’ closest earthly friends, one of those who spent most time with Jesus in his earthly ministry.

[Footnote: I decided not to go into anything about authorship of 2 Peter. This wasn’t part of a series on 2 Peter – if it had been I might have said something. Most scholars would dispute that Peter wrote 2 Peter – mostly on the grounds that the Greek is obscure, and not how a Galilean fisherman would write, and that lots of material in chapter 2 seems to be borrowed from Jude, and that the early church was slow to accept this letter in the canon. I’d argue that its more than likely Peter wrote his letter with the help of others, so maybe the actual vocabulary reflects that of those he worked with, and that there is no reason he couldn’t have used some of Jude’s material (or vice versa), and that in any case that material is used differently in 2 Peter. Also Peter makes quite a lot in the second half of chapter 1 of being an eyewitness so it seems really unlikely that we are meant to see this as a letter by someone else. I don’t think any of the arguments mean we shouldn’t read this letter as Scripture, by an eyewitness of the events – but I also didn’t think that the most beneficial use of 25 minutes on a Sunday morning is rehearsing the arguments when there is so much else in the passage to think through. On the other hand I’m always more than happy though to deal with people’s questions on that separately – indeed I think people desperately need the space to ask questions about this sort of thing and other challenges to faith. So, back to the sermon.]

Peter writes as he faces execution, likely under Nero. He’s writing from Rome, from prison. And he writes to a church under pressure. Pressure from externals – the Empire, and its demands for total loyalty to Caesar. Pressure internally – from teachers bringing in ideas from Greek philosophy, leading to them scoffing at the idea of Christ’s second coming, and patterns of life from the lifestyles of those around – arguing that Christians didn’t need to take personal holiness quite so seriously. We can read how Peter responds to these in chapter 2.

[Second footnote: obviously that’s oversimplifying the false teachers somewhat – but I think from the letter that it is a reasonable summary.]

In the light of these pressures on the church Peter’s message is clear. The church needs to be ready for Jesus’ return (ch 3), to hold steady in the faith they have been taught (ch 2) and to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus already given to them (ch 1).

[Third footnote: I heard a sermon once on the end of 2 Peter which had the headings: Ready, Steady, Grow – clearly it stuck with me. I think it works though as a good summary of the letter as a whole.]

Peter unpacks how that growth works in the first chapter. Look with me at 1 Peter 1:1-2

[Fourth footnote. I think “look with me” and similar phrases are important – what matters is not what I think but what the text says – people need to see that preachers are making the text clear – and if we aren’t, they are free to ignore us.]

Peter is writing to Christians, to those who are trusting in Jesus, and he reminds them that the faith that they have is of the same value as that of the apostles. They are not second class Christians. Neither are we. If today we are trusting in Jesus we have the same standing with God that the apostles did. And as those who trust in Jesus we have grace and peace in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus.

In this first section of his letter Peter explains how this grace and peace become ours. He tells us three things we need to know:

God’s power gives us everything we need for life and godliness. (v3-4)
We have to make every effort to build our characters on this faith (v5-7)
If we do we will have fruitfulness, stability and the certainty of eternity (v8-11)

At this point I also reassured people that my first point was a bit longer than the other two.

First of all: God’s power gives us everything we need for life and godliness. (v3-4)

These verses here are so rich that we need to let each phrase sink in and add its contribution to their meaning.
His divine power – the power that created the universe and raised Jesus from the dead
Has given us – it is a gift, and we do not earn it
Everything we need – this gift is lavish and generous, giving us all the resources we need
For life and godliness – for pleasing him.

But it is easy to wonder about this. Easy to say to Peter:
Really?
Have you seen my diary this week – does it look I have been given the time I need for all this?
Have you seen my bank balance – does it really look like I have the resources?
And as for my energy – do I really have all it takes?

And yet Peter does not write out of comfort. He is in prison in Rome under Nero. He doesn’t write to comfort. Some in the church are well off, it is true, but many are not. Some are even slaves. And all are under pressure. This is not provision for our comfort, but for our needs, and our needs in serving Jesus. And it is not written to us each as individuals. It is written to us – to the community of believers – we together have all we need, and so we need to work out ways we can share the time, money and energy we have been given with those who have less.

And this divine provision comes through our knowledge of the one who calls us. This knowing is not simply knowing a set of facts about Jesus, it is a personal knowledge. It is the same sort of knowledge that we have of a family member, or a close friend. We can know Jesus, the one who calls us.

That phrase “the one who calls us” highlights that our belonging to Jesus does not come from ourselves. We do not belong to Jesus because we thought it was a good idea. We receive this gift of faith, this divine power, because Jesus calls us. Elsewhere in the NT John writes, we love because he first loved us.

And this calling comes through Jesus’ own glory and goodness. Not only is this provision for us not our idea, but additionally it is not earned by us, or merited by anything in us. It comes by God’s decision, and out of God’s sheer glory and goodness.

God’s glory can be seen as everything that makes God to be God. He is the creator, he has power to do whatever he wants, he knows everything, he is with us in whatever way he chooses to be with us. His goodness reassures us that each of those things is used in a good way. God never sins. God never makes a mistake. God is always sharing his goodness with us. God is the glorious creator, but he is also the God who delights to share that glory with us.

It is through that glory and goodness that God gives his great and precious promises. We are all hearing a lot of promises when we switch on the news right now [I preached this on the Saturday before the election] – and we’ll see in the coming weeks and months and years how much merit those promises have. They might fail because our leaders do not have the power to follow through on the promise, or because our leaders do not want to follow through.

God’s promises will never fail. God has all the power he needs to keep every promise he has ever made. God is good, and so he will never choose to break a promise. His promises are made to enable us to be sharers in his divine nature. To become like Jesus – the serpent tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and said they would become like God. The way of the serpent was to encourage us to declare independence from God, to choose right and wrong for ourselves. The way of Jesus is to become like him by trusting in God’s promise and by submitting to what he says about right and wrong.

By doing this we can escape the corruption of the world, which is obvious in the news, but which comes through our evil desires – or perhaps, just through our misdirected desires for what is good that have become more important than God. Comfort, security, wealth, popularity, respect… Each of those can be overwhelming. We cannot do this on our own. We need a rescuer. We need the life of God planted in us to save us.

All this comes to us in Jesus. And it changes us. Which bring us to the next part of this passage:
We need to make every effort to build our characters on our faith: 5-7
Make every effort. We need to hear this clearly. You see God’s grace does not mean we sit back and do nothing. Grace is not the opposite of effort. God’s grace gives us all we need – but God’s grace requires us to make a response in the work of making our characters more like Jesus.

We are required to add to our faith, or even by means of our faith [NB, I just mentioned this in passing, but I like this idea that we develop these characteristics from the other characteristics – Michael Green in his IVP Tyndale commentary mentions the idea that rather than “add to our faith” it is “by means of our faith”] these different characteristics that Peter lists here. This is the response of the heart to God’s power at work in our lives. Making every effort does not mean we do it by our own power and strength.

I saw an illustration of what I am trying to say when walking in the Lake’s recently, along a mountain ridge. Turning a corner I saw around 20 or so para-gliders in the air. I also saw one on the ground on the side of the hill. If he had tried to flap his arms he would never have become airborne. We cannot fly on our own. He had a parachute. He had controls for it. What he needed to do was arrange the parachute and controls in the way that would catch the wind. And then he soared. If he had done nothing the parachute would have billowed, but he would not have flown. All the power for the flight came from the air. But he needed to make every effort to catch the wind. And so it is with us in the life of faith.

And so we are to add goodness or excellence – this is the same word used to describe God in v3-4. We are to be seek to do what is best and right in each and every situation.

To do that we need to know what is right and wrong, and how to do that. And in the rest of 2 Peter 1 Peter makes clear that the way we know that is through the apostolic witness to Jesus – which is our New Testament, and the Scriptures of the Jews – our Old Testament. We have our Bibles. We have unparalleled access to them – multiple translations, and multiple ways to read or listen to them. So we need to make sure we are reading them.

And then we will need self control to help us use that knowledge in the right way. Self control is hard. I was driving along the bypass the other day, through the roadworks where the previous 60 limit is now a 30. It feels so slow. It requires constant attention to your speed, and to making sure that you are not getting carried away. I don’t know where the area of self control is most pressing for you. Is it when you are behind the wheel? Is it to do with gossip? Is it alcohol? Whatever it is, we need to focus to make sure that we are making every effort to be self controlled.

To do that we will need perseverance. We will need to be patient. We will need to endure. Apparently it takes 30 days for a habit to form. But we need to be willing to keep at it. Because some of this is just plain hard work. Some of it hurts. Obedience is costly – and each of us will know that in different areas, and some perhaps especially in some particular part of our lives.

So we need to be godly. We need godliness. We need to acknowledge God’s rule, and show his goodness in our lives. This character needs to be consciously dependent on God and his power, not simply good for its own sake.

As we do that we must show brotherly kindness – the type of love we have for family and friends naturally, and then love – the sort of love that looks outward to those who we do not naturally love.

But I wonder why Peter doesn’t just say “to faith, add love” – isn’t love all we really need? We hear plenty of voices inside and outside the church telling us just that. But I think what Peter is saying is that love is the culmination of all this character work. Love needs these characteristics to be in place for us to truly love.

You see a lot of the time it is obvious how to be loving. It’s like the mountain walk I did the other week. Where I could see the whole route, and barely needed a map. But sometimes it is not obvious how to love well. Sometimes it is like those days in the mountains when the cloud comes down and we don’t know if that path leads safely off the mountain, or straight to crags and a steep drop. We need a compass and a map. The rest of these aspects of our character: knowledge, self control, perseverance, and the rest all act as compass and map for our love – pointing us in the right direction, and showing us what loving Jesus’ way really looks like.

Which leads us to the final point.

If we do these things the result will be that we have fruitfulness, stability and certainty of eternity – 8-11

This is the motive for our action. That we not be unfruitful or ineffective in our knowledge of Jesus. We need to make sure that the knowledge of Jesus is not simply in our heads. If we don’t make every effort, then, Peter says, we are shortsighted and blind – perhaps we have even chosen not to see [again, a suggestion from Michael Green in Tyndale IVP commentary] – we have moved from the bath back to the mud. In 2 Peter 2:20-22 Peter spells out the horror of this. He speaks not just of wallowing in mud after being cleansed from the dirt of sin, but of a dog returning to its vomit. And that is supposed to be a horrible picture. Sin is disgusting. To be cleansed from sin is absolutely vital.

If we are trusting in Jesus today, then we have been cleansed from our sin and we need to live in line with that cleansing. We are to be eager to make our calling and our election sure. We’ve heard what it means to be called. Peter adds another word. Election. Election is all about choice. On Thursday we make our choice. Perhaps reluctantly we vote for who will lead us.

In the Bible we don’t get the vote. God is the King (and whoever wins earthly elections, we need to remember that God is still King). In the Bible God makes the choice. And election in the Bible is all about God’s choice of you in his Son. God has chosen you. If today you trust in Jesus you can know that God has chosen you and set his love on you.

We can’t make that reality any more sure than it is. But we can experience that reality in our hearts more and more each day. Peter’s point here is that to have that knowledge, that assurance we need to seek this kind of a life. To be eager to make our calling sure by making every effort to develop the character that pleases God. If we do that then we will not finally fall and we will be sure of a rich welcome into Jesus’ eternal kingdom.

One day we will all see Jesus face to face. Seeing him face to face and hearing him welcome us in with those words: “well done, good and faithful servant”. That will be worth all the pain that endurance causes us now. That will be worth all the effort now. To see his face. To hear his “well done.” That is worth more than anything anyone else can offer.

It isn’t about perfection. It isn’t about getting it right all the time. We will stumble. But as those who trust the promise we know the one who picks us up and gives us the power to keep going. We can have the assurance that John Newton, the author of Amazing Grace had. Remember his story – he started life as a slave trader, before becoming a Christian and then encouraging others in their lives of faith – including those fighting the slave trade. He wrote these words to a friend:

I was ashamed when I began to seek Him;
I am more ashamed now;
and I expect to be most of all ashamed when He shall appear to destroy my last enemy. But, oh! I may rejoice in him, to think that He will not be ashamed of me.

Those who trust in Jesus can live with this knowledge, and it transforms our outlook on everything. We have all we need. We know what we need to do. And we know the welcome that awaits.

So, as Peter finishes this letter: grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

John 11: The Resurrection and the Life

In the second half of the story Jesus arrives in Bethany. He finds Lazarus dead, and friends gathered with Mary and Martha. We see the conversation unfold as follows:

17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.

21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

Martha comes out, while Mary stays at home, and confronts Jesus. She knows that Jesus could, and indeed would, have saved her brother – however, she also knows that Jesus can ask God for anything and receive it. Her statement is an implied demand for action. She knows Jesus has the power, and implicitly she asks him to act.

Jesus’ answer is straightforward at one level. “Your brother will rise again.” Martha, though already believes this – as a 1st century devout Jew, she believes in the resurrection of the dead, as a real, physical, future event. The “last day” will come, and the dead will be raised. But that knowledge does not help here at this moment, standing by the gravestone of her brother, knowing he is gone and she and her sister must face the future without him.

So Jesus continues the conversation. He is the resurrection and the life. The resurrection is not simply an abstract future concept. Rather Jesus himself is this event. In himself he sums up all that it means to live, and to be raised. He is the source of life, and the way to certainty in regard to the resurrection is to believe in him.

The challenge to Martha is: does she believe this? Will she trust in Jesus. Her is a declaration of faith. She does believe that Jesus is the coming Messiah – God’s anointed king, who comes to bring God’s life to the world. And yet, we are still standing outside Mary and Martha’s house. Lazarus is still in the grave. And Mary has not even been able to come outside to see Jesus.

28 After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29 When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.

“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.

35 Jesus wept.

36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”

37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

Martha decides it is time to make sure Mary sees Jesus. So Mary goes to meet Jesus. She falls at his feet and says exactly the same thing as Martha did – although in the Greek text the word order is slightly different for Mary’s speech. I’m not sure if this is significant or not, although maybe the word order in Mary’s speech is slightly less ‘normal’ and might be a way of indicating the intense emotions Mary is feeling.

Certainly the emphasis is on Mary’s weeping. While Martha’s challenge has been direct and very obvious – perhaps even angry, Mary’s challenge is through tears. When Jesus sees her pain and that of the mourners he is deeply moved in spirit and troubled. The wording is strong. This scene, and the emotions of these people move Jesus – the word for “moved in spirit” can in other contexts have the idea of rebuke, even anger. Jesus sees the scene and he feels turmoil within at the impact death has on his friends.

When Jesus sees the tears he asks the mourners where the body is. And Jesus weeps. The shortest verse in the Bible. But vital to get hold of in our hearts. When we experience the pain and suffering of this broken world we need to know that Jesus weeps. In our suffering and pain, the God of all creation steps in and weeps with us.

Yet, the challenge of v37 is stark. Jesus weeps, and that is all very well. But if he really is who he says he is, then why on earth does he not keep Lazarus from dying?Why does he not heal our loved one? Why does he not stop that conflict? Why does he not bring reconciliation? Why did he allow that earthquake? Why? A God who is upset at suffering, and a God who sympathises in suffering is good – and better than a callous unmoved serene remote deity – but if he cannot do anything about it, then what use is he?

Reflect on the story so far. Jesus’ disciples have been confused by his actions. Jesus’ friends are now on their way to the tomb of Lazarus. Jesus after a confusing delay has affirmed that Lazarus will rise again – but Martha seems to think he refers simply to the last day.

Mary has wept before her Lord, and Mary has seen Jesus’ tears. The mourners have seen Jesus’ tears. They have seen Jesus anger and sorrow at the effect of death. They know he has done miracles. But if he can do miracles, then why in this case did he not? The story continues…

38 Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. 39 “Take away the stone,” he said.

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”

40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

Once again we are told of Jesus’ inner turmoil. Then the reality of death is reinforced. Lazarus is in the cave. The stone is across the entrance. But Jesus says “Take away the stone.” Martha, confirming her characterisation as the one concerned for practicalities, points out that there will be a bad smell. Jesus ignores that concern and address the heart issue of belief. If she believes, she will see the glory of God.

Note. Not “if she believes he will raise Lazarus.” No, Lazarus is about to be raised, and Martha’s unbelief does not affect that at all. Jesus is not one of the cruel “healers” we sometimes see who would leave someone blaming their own lack of faith for their still unhealed state. No, Jesus heals out of grace, and out of love. But if Martha is to see God’s glory in this miracle then she must believe. Seeing is not believing in John’s gospel. Instead, believing is seeing.

The stone is taken away, and Jesus prays. His prayer is a short of one of thanks to God – so that the people will know Jesus has taken this to his father. And then comes the voice of command. “Lazarus, come out!” And Lazarus – the dead man – comes out alive. Because Jesus is the Word of God that spoke creation into life. And he speaks once more and a dead man comes out from the tomb.

This miracles prefigures what will happen on the last day. When Jesus speaks and destroys the evil one with a word from his mouth. When Jesus speaks and every storm is stilled. Every miracle of Jesus points forward to that day. There is no explanation given for the evil that we see. We do not know the ‘why’ of very many things that befall us.

Yet we live knowing Jesus is the resurrection and the life. That if we believe we will see. We know that Jesus cares deeply about the sorrow. We know Jesus has the power to deal with it, and one day will. And yet we do not know when, and we do not why he choose to let so much suffering linger.

What this story does is give us the things we know in the midst of this lack of knowledge and deep concern. Jesus cares, and has power. We can go to other parts of the bible and find the words that we can say to God in the times of suffering. The Psalms, the book of Job, Lamentations, and many other places contain words that express the cry of God’s people “How long O Lord?” The book of Revelation has the saints crying “How long O Lord?” We cry and we call out for relief.

In the midst of the difficulties we know Jesus hears us, and we know the Spirit, given at Pentecost, lives in us and groans with us, in groans too deep for words at the reality of living in a broken world. We live now in an almost unbearable tension of a world that is not readily explainable – a world in which, with us, we have a good God who hears us and feels our pain – and yet who waits to act to fully deal with the brokenness. We have a God who holds, and who we can hold on to. A God who is with us, even when the darkness seems more real and stronger. I think is summed up in this Rich Mullins song:

“And I know that it would not hurt any less, even if it could be explained.” The mystery of this is real. The joy of a Sunday like Pentecost is that we remember the giving of the Spirit, of God’s life going to all nations, and of the very sense of God’s presence with us now. And yet the gift of the Spirit does not remove this tension. Rather it helps us keep going now in the midst of the tension. Sometimes tangibly we sense God’s presence in the dark and are reassured. But sometimes we can’t see, sometimes he doesn’t provide tangible comfort in the here and now. And in these gospel stories of Jesus miracles we are given glimpses of the confusion that even those who knew Jesus in the flesh knew at different points. From that confusion we can be encouraged to hold on to the one who is holding us.

Ultimately it is not our faith that wins the battle. It is the faith of the one who went to the cross for us. Who died, but who strode forth from the grave victorious. Who ascended and lives to intercede for us and to pour out his life into the world. It is him we trust, and him we seek. It is his life and what his life means to a world of death that we seek to show by the power of his life giving Spirit this day.

Jesus: when we don’t get it

In our home group church we ending up looking at John 11 last week. This is the story of Lazarus’ death, and Jesus raising him from the dead. It is a story though, that doesn’t go quite as we might expect, and certainly not as his disciples expect. Here are the first verses of the story in John.

11 Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) 3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, 7 and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”

The family of Lazarus, Martha and Mary are mentioned elsewhere, and in other gospels also – and the similarity in portrayal of the sisters between Luke and John, despite their different styles is one good argument in favour of the authenticity of the gospel accounts. They are clearly supporters of Jesus’ ministry, whom Jesus visited on a number of occasions and Lazarus, along with Martha and Mary is loved by Jesus.

It is that detail that struck me when I read the passage out. Look at v5-6 again:

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick he stayed where he was two more days.

Notice that word. So. Lazarus is Jesus’ friend. Lazarus is sick, sick enough for word to be sent to Jesus. Jesus has the power to heal him. But, Jesus stays where he was for two more days – long enough, we will discover for Lazarus to die. Jesus loves this family. He loves Lazarus, and he loves his sisters. But because he loves them, he stays where he is. He doesn’t do anything they might want.

We’ll see how the story unfolds and how this makes sense. But I think it is worth pausing and reflecting on this reality. Jesus’ love is not immediately understandable or demonstrated. His love is true. His power is real. But he doesn’t use that love or power to solve the problem in any way that makes sense to his friends.

As I thought about that I thought how often I think Jesus could show up and demonstrate his love and power in a meaningful way. Perhaps by providing full healing from a sickness. Perhaps by straightening out a vicious spiral of thoughts someone suffers from. Perhaps by depositing £500 or so extra into the bank every so often. Perhaps by convincing people of his reality in a way that means they choose to believe in him.

So many different ways we want Jesus to act. And yet he doesn’t. In John 11 it is his love that means he chooses not to act in the way that his friends want him to. We can’t conclude from looking at our lives or our world that Jesus doesn’t care – even if we can’t see what he is doing.

In this story in John’s gospel, having delayed initially, he confuses his friends still more by the decision to then go – this is how they react:

8 “But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”

9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. 10 It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”

11 After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” 13 Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.

14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”

16 Then Thomas (also known as Didymus[a]) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

His disciples don’t seem quite concerned about Lazarus at this point – rather they are worried about how the Jews (John’s shorthand either for the Jewish leaders, or specifically the people who live in Judea, rather than Galilee where Jesus comes from) will act towards them. The disciples remember how these people wanted to kill Jesus. But now Jesus is heading back to danger.

And Jesus words in v9-10 don’t seem to explain his reasoning in any kind of immediately understandable way. They seem more like a generic parable of light, bringing understanding, and darkness leading to stumbling. He follows those words by explaining that he is going to wake Lazarus up from sleep. The disciples don’t understand these words either. If he sleeps, he will recover.

Then Jesus speaks plainly (sort of), as he explains that Lazarus is dead, but that he is glad for their sake, that he was not there so that they may believe. Somehow Jesus’ absence from being with Lazarus will lead to the disciples belief. And so now Jesus calls the disciples to go with him.

Thomas’ reply seems somehow a fitting climax to this somewhat confusing conversation. If Jesus is going back to those who wanted to stone him then the disciples should go to, and die with him. Here Thomas somehow both lives up to the “doubting Thomas” name he has been stuck with, and yet displays great courage. When we don’t hear the tone of voice it is hard to hear if this is whispered courage or ironic resignation.

But either way his words bring us to the hinge of the story. The ‘cliff-hanger’. Jesus loves Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Jesus has the power to heal. But he delayed long enough that Lazarus would die. So now Jesus heads back to danger, and back to his friend, and somehow Jesus is calling his disciples to follow so that they will see something that will cause them to believe.

At this point to a character within the story it looks like Jesus has callously neglected his friends whom he loves in Bethany, and that now while it is too late to be any use he is heading to Bethany, where he will meet people who want to kill him – and so he risks pulling more friends into danger.

We’ll see how resolution comes as the chapter continues. But for now we can place ourselves with the disciples journeying to death, or with Mary and Martha weeping as they wonder what Jesus is really up to. Life is like being in this story very often. We cannot see the end from the beginning. Sometimes situations happen where hope seems to desert us.

And it feels like these situations get bigger. They happen to those we love fiercely who we would do anything to help. We love them, so we would stop the hurt. We love them so we would fix the pain. That accentuates our confusion and hurt at the God who could stop the pain with a word.

Yet Jesus stays. Jesus waits. Jesus confuses. All while, we are told in this story, Jesus loves, and Jesus has the power. God is good. God is sovereign. Evil rampages. This chapter is one story encapsulating the age old problem of suffering.

I want to look more at how the end of the chapter encourages those of us who live in the midst of these baffling verses in John 11. But I want to say now that this story encourages all of us to face the reality of life in this world. There is no sugarcoating or quick fix. Lazarus is dead. And yet Jesus is on the move. And Jesus loves.

Generous Creator

I (Mark) have been trying to write something for a while now. This is evidenced by a lot of half started blog posts. But I also needed to write a sermon for last Sunday where I preached at a friends church. This was the first sermon in a series on stewardship – and I was asked to focus on the goodness of God in creation, common grace and knowing him. Psalm 104 and John 17:1-5 were read before the sermon.

What I said went roughly like this:

Let us pray: Father, as we listen together to your word, help us to open our hearts to receive what you have to say to us, and may we let it change us.

In everything we do as Christians, and perhaps especially in this area of stewardship – of how we think about our money, and make use of resources we need to begin with God, and make sure our understanding of him is correct. 

Jesus told a story about two sons – the younger outward rebel who goes away, taking his Father’s inheritance, and the elder conformist who stays at home. Then at the end of the story, when the younger son comes to his senses and returns to a Father’s welcome the older brother criticizes his brother for his wastefulness, and reveals his own attitude when he says to his Father who has just welcomed the younger son with a feast “for all these years, I’ve been serving you, and never disobeying your orders and you never gave me so much as a goat…” The older brother in that story is the lost brother at the end – and he is lost because he has the wrong attitude to how he sees himself and to how he sees the Father in relation to him. 

He sees himself as a servant, not a son, 

and he sees the Father as stingy to him and not generous. 

As we think about money and how we use it, and what our priorities are as individuals and as a church we need to know that the Father is generous in his creation of an ordered and beautiful world, and in bringing us to know him so that we can delight in him and so enjoy being sent back into the world as his children with the same mission Jesus had of turning people back to God by showing and telling them what this God is like, that we are prepared to give everything for this.

So this morning, we are going to look in a sense at the whole sweep of the Biblical story, and see that in it the God who made everything speaks to each of us, and calls us to join him in his work in this world. 

And so this morning we’re just going to focus on those two things:

  • God is generous and not stingy – so trust him
  • We are children of the Father and not oppressed servants – so delight to know him and work with him on his mission

As we do that I’m going to read slightly more scripture than you might get in an average sermon – because I want us to see how in fact God speaks to us by interpreting himself to us (all quotes from NIV 2011). 

First of all: 

God is generous and not stingy – so trust him

We start this by looking at creation at the wonder, diversity and goodness of all that God has made. Just a few verses from those first chapters of Genesis will set the scene for this.

3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.

Then skipping on to the 5th and 6th days

 20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. 24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

And in the next chapter

8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. 

Are you getting the idea here? God produces an abundance of creatures – the seas are filled with all sorts of amazing creatures. The land is filled you cannot miss the sheer variety and technicolor wonder of God’s creation. Take a walk in the Lake District mountains. Just take a drive along the A66. Since moving up here I’ve been astonished how every single time I drive into the Lakes it is a different view. The colours change, the contrast of cloud and mountain means they look different every single time. Sometimes towering and vast, sometimes rugged and challenging – sometimes crisp, clear and warmly inviting. But each time is different. Because God lavishes colour and diversity on his creation. 

Not only does he give us this beautiful world – he gives us the ability to live well within it and care for it.

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

God places people in his world “to work it and take care of it”. 

Biblical theologians have commented that Genesis 1 has a structure that would remind its original readers of accounts of temple building. The culmination of such stories is the place of the “image” or “idol” of the god in the temple. 

In God’s creation story, God is the temple builder, and the only image of God is people. No created or sculpted object can represent God – only people, made to show him to the world, and made to rule over the world for him. 

This is the job people have as those made in God’s image. We live in a beautiful and ordered world, and we need to look after it, and each other – as fellow image bearers. 

Scientists, engineers, doctors, teachers can all do their work because God creates an ordered world. 

Artists, poets and painters can all show us more of the beauty we see all around us. Scientists and artists alike can reflect God’s image and help us show God to others.

And it isn’t as if God’s generosity stops at making this beautiful world so that he then steps back and stops doing anything. No, moment by moment God is the one who sustains this world, and who rules this world. Which is why we read Psalm 104 earlier.

Psalm 104:10-15

10 He makes springs pour water into the ravines;
    it flows between the mountains.
11 They give water to all the beasts of the field;
    the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 The birds of the sky nest by the waters;
    they sing among the branches.
13 He waters the mountains from his upper chambers;
    the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work.
14 He makes grass grow for the cattle,
    and plants for people to cultivate—
    bringing forth food from the earth:
15 wine that gladdens human hearts,
    oil to make their faces shine,
    and bread that sustains their hearts.

The water cycle works because God sustains it. 

God gives the rain that provides water for animals and for plants. 

It is God who provides food, and the gifts of wine, oil and bread – simple realities – to make the sustaining needs of life enjoyable, and yet signs of God’s bounty and generosity. 

All of this comes from God:

Psalm 24

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it,
    the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it on the seas
    and established it on the waters.

There is nothing that God does not have, there is nothing that God needs – Psalm 50:

9 I have no need of a bull from your stall
    or of goats from your pens,
10 for every animal of the forest is mine,
    and the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird in the mountains,
    and the insects in the fields are mine.
12 If I were hungry I would not tell you,
    for the world is mine, and all that is in it.

As we think about the idea of stewardship we need these ideas firmly in our minds. God is a generous giver who has unlimited resources. God powers the universe. Minute by minute we exist because God wants us to. 

Resources are not a problem for this God.

Jesus brings this home to us more vividly still:

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? . . . 
So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Here I shared the story of how, at the start of my PhD journey, having recently been gifted a car, the car needed repair work. The bill was around £90 – and that money was needed for the month. When I got back from the garage an envelope was waiting in our post box with £90 in it. And that happened at various points in the PhD journey, thanks to a generous anonymous giver.

And still today I worry about how the month’s money is going to stretch. You would think I would learn. But I don’t. Each month I look at our funds and I wonder how it is all going to stretch, and how money is to be provided. But God provides – sometimes through wisdom to spend money well, sometimes through unexpected gifts, sometimes through unexpected relief from expense. The point is not my faith – thank goodness – the point is His faithfulness. 

That works corporately too. There are so many challenges for churches today to think about how to spend money well and wisely – so many different ways and places that money could be spent – and yet maybe a shrinking pool of people giving. 

The question is: do we believe that the God who created the universe and who moment by moment holds us in his hand is giving us the resources we need or not. We need to settle in our hearts the reality of this generous God – and trust him.

But we all know that for all this talk of a generous God and a beautiful creation there is a problem. The writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 8 where the writer talks about how people are made with honour and glory, and the way things should be:

“What are people that you are mindful of them,
    a son of man that you care for him?

You made them a little[a] lower than the angels;
    you crowned them with glory and honor
 and put everything under their feet.”[b][c]

Then the writer to the Hebrews says this:

In putting everything under them,[d] God left nothing that is not subject to them.[e] Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them.[f] 9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death,so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

We do not see everything subject – things fall apart, disasters happen. People let us down. We do not see the wonder of a world ruled as it should be. I don’t think it takes long to establish this point. Just read the news. 

But we see Jesus – the perfect image of God, tasting death for everyone. And this brings us to our second section where we look at the difference this death makes for us.

Here’s where we see that:
We are children of the Father, not oppressed servants, so we delight in him, and join his mission.

We heard John 17:1-5 read to us earlier.

“Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.

Here, as the end of his earthly life and ministry draws near Jesus prays to his Father. There is so much in John 17 we could draw out. But notice here the sandwich of the passage.  v1 and v4-5 talk about the glory that Jesus and the Father give to each other, while the central verses speak of Jesus’ gift of eternal life to all who the Father has given him – and of the reality that this life consists in knowing the Father, and knowing Jesus.

Here we have the trinity in action in the interaction of Father and Son. The Father gives glory to the Son, while the Son gives glory to the Father. Glory is a shorthand for all the goodness that makes God, God. To glorify someone is to show how utterly good and wonderful they are.

In John’s gospel Jesus is shown to be utterly glorious by going to the cross. The moment of supreme glorification is his death in our place as the passover lamb, slain for us – Jesus’ supreme authority and godlikeness is shown in his supreme sacrifice for us.  The Father’s supreme godlikeness and wonder is shown in his giving of the Son for us.  Trusters in Jesus are kept by the work of the Father and Son. 

The Father gives Jesus all authority, so that he gives eternal life to all the Father has given him. All this is gift. Gift of Father to Son, and of Son to humans.  You and I, human beings, people who have rejected God can know him as our Father, simply by trusting in Jesus. That is the vital thing – elsewhere in John when asked about the work God requires Jesus answers simply that it is to believe in the one God has sent – i.e. in Jesus.

And when we read on in Jesus’ prayer we read these astonishing words that I would not dare to believe were they not written here for us: 


20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

have loved them even as you have loved me.

We need to reflect on those words, and let them penetrate our hearts – we need to let the reality of that gift sink in deep. To delight in God, and love the Father as Jesus loves him. This is the foundation of everything and it is as people who know this reality in our hearts that mean we carry on the mission of Jesus in this world. On that first Easter Sunday John tells us of these words of the risen Christ:

21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 

Loved with the same love that the Father has for the Son we are sent into the world by the same Father as part of the same mission. 

We need to remember both of these things. We can only play our part in God’s mission as we remember we are loved by the Father, and as we allow that love to change how we think.

Being part of Jesus’ mission means that we show what Jesus is like to a world that needs to see. It means also that we show how the Father intends his children to live. We live out the image of God – being part of Jesus’ mission does not deny this humanity – it enables us to live as more fully human in God’s world – as the children we were created to be. 

We are not taken out of the world – but we go back into the world empowered for life – to show what it looks like to live in this world with God as our ruler, in the world he has generously given us. Being a Christian means we show what it means to follow Jesus in each and every area of life God has placed us.

And so we must go back to our workplaces, our families, our communities knowing that all we do truly matters, and that in all of it we can signpost people to God’s rule and God’s ways. 

As  you think together about church life and the resources you need to do the things God has called you to here in this part of Carlisle to show people the reality of who God is and explain what he is like you need to remember that God is the generous creator who made an ordered and beautiful world, that people are created in his image to be treated with dignity and care, and that the supreme thing we were made for is to know God and enjoy him forever.

So everything we do together should fit into that, and signposting people to the reality of the kingdom that is coming. 

Our children have all really enjoyed a book series called “The Green Ember” – the main characters are rabbits, and they live in a wood where a great tragedy has occurred due to a traitor’s actions.  Small groups of rabbits who remain true to their ideals and who live and look forward to the day when the wood will be mended and whole again group together. One of the main characters, Heather is hearing the story teller of the community, Mrs Weaver,  explain how the resistance and restoration will happen.

“There are secret citadels, though only a few, which have kept alive a hope of invading and retaking the Great Wood. I wish them well, and part of my sewing and mending goes to support them. But there’s another kind of mending that must be done. This place is full of farmers, artists, carpenters, midwives, cooks, poets, healers, singers, smiths, weavers— workers of all kinds. We’re all doing our part.”
“But what good will all that do?” Heather asked. “Shouldn’t everyone fight for the Great Wood—for King Jupiter’s cause?”
“Sure we should,” Mrs. Weaver said. “In a sense. Some must bear arms and that is their calling. But this,” she motioned back to the mountain behind her, “this is a place dedicated to the reasons why some must fight. Here we anticipate the Mended Wood, the Great Wood healed. Those painters are seeing what is not yet but we hope will be. They are really seeing, but it’s a different kind of sight. They anticipate the Mended Wood. So do all in this community, in our various ways. We sing about it. We paint it. We make crutches and soups and have gardens and weddings and babies. This is a place out of time. A window into the past and the future world. We are heralds, you see, my dear, saying what will surely come. And we prepare with all our might, to be ready when once again we are free.”

In all our work – in all our worship – we anticipate what is yet to come.  We are a people out of time. We are a window of what was, and what is to come. And in all our lives – including our use of the resources God has given us we should reflect that reality, of a God who is that good. That should be our prayer for this church in this city, and for Christians across this city. 

That closed the sermon. But I finish this blog post by saying that it was one of the hardest sermons I’ve preached. Part of the reason it was so hard is that there was so much to leave out because the implications of the generosity of God are staggering and all-changing – and because there was so much I wanted to say about how Christians so often fail to grasp parts of this – and because I can think of times in my life when damage has been done to me or others because of the failure to grasp these things. I wanted to be able to say more. But some of those things make me angry and I didn’t want to inflict my rants on people who didn’t deserve them. In a future blog post or two I don’t exactly want to rant, but I do want to expand a bit more on some of the implications of this reality that God is utterly good and generous for all of life, and how that needs to change the way we think of how our faith and life interact.

The Vineyard

It is so easy to gloss over the gospels, thinking we know the big picture; Jesus’ birth, death and resurrection with a sprinkling of parables and teachings. Yet I am struck time and again as I am journeying through the gospel of Matthew how rich it is and how much there is to take and reflect on and allow it to shape how I live. Yes the gospel is to repent and believe, but in that believing there is much working out and transformation to take place in the way I am a wife, a parent, a friend, a member of church, a work colleague. The gospel is so much more than just about sins forgiven. It is about all of life, all of my life, all of each of our lives.

As with the fig tree the other week, I had my own take on the parable of the vineyard in Matthew 21:33 that needed the Holy Spirit’s illumination and my eyes lifted up. I knew that the landowner is to be God and in no way do I condone how the tenant farmers treat the servants or son, but I had to be honest and admit that I felt sympathy with them. The landowner had rented it out to them (NIV) and then went away; then requested the harvest at harvest time. It brought to mind the children’s story of the hen who asks for the help of other animals to gather, mill and bake the bread. Everyone had their excuses and yet were ready to eat the bread. Part of me rankled with the landowner. If he wanted the harvest then maybe he should have stayed and taken care of the vineyard in the first place.

I was brought up short at the end in v41 where Jesus’ audience reply that new tenants would give the landowner his share of the crop. There was an expectation that the landowner was to get a share of the harvest. He had not sold the farmers the vineyard, He had rented to it them and with that there were expectations of what was to happen at the harvest. The tenant farmers though had different ideas. They had replaced stewardship of that which belongs to another with outright ownership. They had decided what their reward was and had cut others out.

As I considered this then in light of church and church leadership I was reminded that the church is not ours but God’s. If it was of us, it would not have survived the past 2000 years. For all its imperfections and outright wrongs and evils by those in it, the church itself is still of God and is still God’s way of reaching the nations. As believers we do not get to own the church but become tenants (fishers of people), stewards of that which is God’s. We need to hold the harvest with open hands not closed fists. The harvest is people coming to faith, not in our leadership, teaching, programs and community but people coming to faith in the risen Christ.

For those of us in church our inheritance, our reward is not in the harvest, in healthy bank accounts, and thriving ministries and reputation but in Christ. As Paul says in Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.“

We cannot stop there though. We have to heed all the parable and as well as saying that the landowner will get his share from new farmers, he will bring those farmers who have killed and harmed others to a wretched end. (NIV) In Luke 12 we read of Jesus saying that to those whom much has been given much will be expected. Sobering words for those of us who have been entrusted with the stewardship of His church. There is a reason Paul calls us to keep our eyes on Christ, to press on to the goal that God has called us onward to. If we do that it helps us not grab the harvest for ourselves. It enables us to be generous and to share and lift others up. It enables to gospel to be seen and lives transformed by the risen Christ.

The harvest

The Fig Tree

Leadership, mercy and Good Friday

I am steadily working my way through the Matthew’s Gospel and Holy Week is just not long enough to soak in all that happens in that week and all that Jesus shows us and teaches us. I hadn’t started a reading plan that would neatly bring me to Palm Sunday in the scriptures and in our calendar, that is how it worked out. It is Good Friday and I am not there yet in my readings. I have been continually struck throughout the gospel of the contrasts Matthew draws out for us between the way of Jesus and ourselves. Time and again we see Jesus act in ways that turn our ways upside down. Time and again Jesus offers and extends to us a different way of being, of interacting, of seeing others, of leadership. Not just in the beatitudes but throughout His ministry, He is constantly calling us to a different way of being. He extends grace, mercy and compassion time and time again and when He shows us God’s righteous wrath He demonstrates that on a fig tree; Matthew 21:18-20, rather than on anyone of us, for whom it would be too much to bear. I have often struggled with that passage but reading Matthew Henry’s commentary this week on it gave me reason to thank Jesus for His mercy for us, rather than feel pity for the tree. Then on Good Friday He took that one step further, knowing that we could not bear the wrath and took it on Himself. He took the punishment of sin and fruitlessness and offered Himself up on a cross.

Just before the cursing of the fig tree, Jesus was talking to His disciples about leadership and rulers. Jesus contrasts what it means to lead as one of His disciples and other leaders. Jesus calls those who follow Him to be servants. Authority may be given to those of us who lead, that does not mean we use it as a whip. As Paul says in 1 Cor 10, just because it is permissible does not mean it is beneficial. Our actions must be for the good of all, not ourselves. This is true in any position of leadership or authority; be it at home, school, church, or work place. We lead because we long to see others flourish and grow. As parents we long for our children to grow, to mature; as with teachers and our hope would be that is the same elsewhere, especially in churches. We are not leading to build our kingdom here on earth, but to see God’s Kingdom come. I remember working in an administrative role within a ministry organisation. Another colleague and I used to laugh and say our job would be so much easier if we didn’t have to work with people, especially people who were not administratively strong. The truth though is we were one body, working for God’s Kingdom and each playing to our strengths and calling and that meant we navigated administrative tasks that took longer than we thought if paperwork and planning was done the way we wanted it done, as our way made logical, sensible sense at least to ourselves, so that those whose strength was coming alongside people and doing outreach could do those things.

Mark then shared with me this morning from a book called ‘Covenant & Conversation – A weekly reading of the Jewish Bible by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks. The passage fitted in with all that I have been reading and pondering recently around leadership. It is rooted around Exodus 4 and the conversation Moses has with God about whether the people will listen to him. I want to share a couple of brief sections from the commentary on this chapter. (pg 31 of the book).

“This is an extraordinary passage. Moses, it now becomes clear, was entitled to have doubts about his own worthiness for the task. What he was not entitled to do was to have doubts about the people. In fact, his doubts were amply justified. The people were fractious…Time and again during the wilderness years they complained, sinned, and wanted to return to Egypt…. Yet God reprimanded him; indeed punished him, by making his hand leprous.”

He then goes on to say,

“What matters is not whether they believe in you, but whether you believe in them. Unless you believe in them, you cannot lead in the way a prophet must lead. You must identity with them and have faith in them, seeing not only their surface vaults but also their underlying virtues. Otherwise. you will be no better than a detached intellectual – and that is the beginning of the end. . If you do not believe in the people, eventually you will not even believe in God. You will thing yourself superior to them, and that is a corruption of the soul.”

God punishing Moses is a humbling reminder to all of us with any authority be at home, work place or church. We are there for the people, for the other, and we are to love them with the compassion, grace and mercy and patience that Jesus gives us all. Moses wasn’t wrong in his assessment of the people but that didn’t stop God turning his hand leprous and in His mercy healing it as well. I can say my children should know better about a certain action or behaviour, I can say, shout, scream at them, ‘have I not asked you/told you once, a hundred times already’, but I am called to love them and so because I fail, because I have screamed and shouted I am thankful that the gospel is big enough for it all and I can go to them, humbly and repentant. I am called to believe in my children, to believe they can do it, they can grow and mature and I am called to draw that out of them with love, grace and mercy and extend to them that which I receive in the cross. I may be in the right, but it is to no ones benefit if I use my authority as a parent to control. There is another way and Jesus shows us it time after time, because where God is slow to anger we are slow to learn.

This Good Friday may we remember that Jesus showed God’s wrath by cursing a fig tree, and then going to the cross. He did not place the burden on another person. This Good Friday may we remember that we are called to serve and in serving Jesus took the wrath of God on Himself. If we seek to lead, let us remember that Jesus, our King, carried the heaviest of burdens so we did not need to. And in knowing that can we reach out and lift a burden from others, so as one body we can celebrate Resurrection Sunday?

As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12

https://www.eden.co.uk/christian-books/bible-study/bible-commentaries/old-testament-bible-commentaries/covenant-and-conversation

2024: Resolving Grace

I want to write more in 2024. This post was sparked by our morning family bible reading this week. We read these words in Exodus 36:

8 All those who were skilled among the workers made the tabernacle with ten curtains of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn, with cherubim woven into them by expert hands. 9 All the curtains were the same size—twenty-eight cubits long and four cubits wide. 10 They joined five of the curtains together and did the same with the other five. 11 Then they made loops of blue material along the edge of the end curtain in one set, and the same was done with the end curtain in the other set. 12 They also made fifty loops on one curtain and fifty loops on the end curtain of the other set, with the loops opposite each other. 13 Then they made fifty gold clasps and used them to fasten the two sets of curtains together so that the tabernacle was a unit.

It goes on, and at first sight that may not look like the most exciting of bible readings. Especially as it is a near repeat of these words in Exodus 26:

 “Make the tabernacle with ten curtains of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn, with cherubim woven into them by a skilled worker. 2 All the curtains are to be the same size—twenty-eight cubits long and four cubits wide. 3 Join five of the curtains together, and do the same with the other five. 4 Make loops of blue material along the edge of the end curtain in one set, and do the same with the end curtain in the other set. 5 Make fifty loops on one curtain and fifty loops on the end curtain of the other set, with the loops opposite each other. 6 Then make fifty gold clasps and use them to fasten the curtains together so that the tabernacle is a unit.

You can play spot the difference if you like – but the differences are tiny. And chapters 35-40 of Exodus go on like this, repeating the same detail of Exodus 25-31. In Exodus 25-31 we get the detail of how the Israelites are to construct the tabernacle, and in Exodus 35-40 we get the details of how they did in fact construct the tabernacle. And each time, more or less, the details match. Take the bronze altar for example:

Exodus 27 gives the instructions:

“Build an altar of acacia wood, three cubits high; it is to be square, five cubits long and five cubits wide. 2 Make a horn at each of the four corners, so that the horns and the altar are of one piece, and overlay the altar with bronze. 3 Make all its utensils of bronze—its pots to remove the ashes, and its shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks and firepans. 4 Make a grating for it, a bronze network, and make a bronze ring at each of the four corners of the network. 5 Put it under the ledge of the altar so that it is halfway up the altar. 6 Make poles of acacia wood for the altar and overlay them with bronze. 7 The poles are to be inserted into the rings so they will be on two sides of the altar when it is carried. 8 Make the altar hollow, out of boards. It is to be made just as you were shown on the mountain.

And Exodus 38, the construction:

38 They built the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood, three cubits high; it was square, five cubits long and five cubits wide.2 They made a horn at each of the four corners, so that the horns and the altar were of one piece, and they overlaid the altar with bronze. 3 They made all its utensils of bronze—its pots, shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks and firepans. 4 They made a grating for the altar, a bronze network, to be under its ledge, halfway up the altar. 5 They cast bronze rings to hold the poles for the four corners of the bronze grating. 6 They made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with bronze. 7 They inserted the poles into the rings so they would be on the sides of the altar for carrying it. They made it hollow, out of boards.

Exodus 39 summarizes it like this:
42 The Israelites had done all the work just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 43 Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.

As a modern reader it is tempting to ask the question. Why not just say Exodus 39:42-43? Why do we get all this detail. There are a number of different aspects to the answer. The aspect that struck me is that the details of the tabernacle construction are given after the Israelites apostasy in worshipping the golden calf, and Moses’ intercession for them, and the renewing of the covenant.

God has indicated that he forgives Israel – Exodus 34:9-10 – but the assurance of that forgiveness comes in the very practical, almost mundane world of Exodus 35-40. God’s forgiveness is shown by the way that the Israelites are allowed to build the tabernacle – which is how God will come to live among his people – just in the way that they were instructed before they had sinned.

Exodus 33-34 have had God talking about his grace and mercy. The chapters of tabernacle construction show us that grace and mercy in action. God’s grace forgives their sin, and gives them a completely clean start. That started back in Exodus 34 when God tells Moses to bring up 2 new tablets in place of the ones “you broke” because he is going to renew the covenant. It was the people who broke the covenant – God did not.

God’s grace is shown in that he does not change the plan for how he will live with his people. He will still give them a tabernacle which represents his presence with them. He will still provide a means for their sins to be forgiven and for a holy God to live in the midst of a sinful people. That grace has not changed. And it is shown all the way through Exodus 35-40 because at each stage we can turn back to the original plan and see that God is still committed to that plan despite his people’s sin.

So each moment of that tabernacle construction in all its painstaking detail and in all its intricate design whispers to the Israelites and to us of God’s forgiving grace. So we should read these chapters of Exodus and each time we see a detailed instruction, and then its exact fulfillment we should rejoice in the grace of God that enables that to happen. In the gifting of God to give the people and resources for the construction, and in the grace of God to give the chance for a new start after the falling away at the golden calf. That is quite a lot of reminders of God’s grace if we take the time to see it.

Somehow in my head this has dovetailed quite nicely with the bedtime reading for our youngest at the moment. Somehow they haven’t yet had all the Narnia stories, so we’re catching up and have just finished the Silver Chair. In the Silver Chair, the two human children, Jill and Eustuce, are given a task by Aslan. They need to remember and follow four signs to rescue the lost prince.

They constantly mess the signs up. They are distracted by promises of comfort and ease. They don’t follow as they should. None of the first three signs are followed as they should be. And yet they do get the chance to complete the quest. They do reach the fourth sign, and they do rescue the lost prince. Right at the end, out of Narnia and briefly in Aslan’s country Jill sees Aslan, and filled with shame at their misfollowing of the instructions have this encounter:
“Then the Lion drew them towards him with his eyes, and bent down and touched their pale faces with his tongue, and said: ‘Think of that no more. I will not always be scolding. You have done the work for which I sent you into Narnia.’”

We follow a gracious God. A God who forgives our sins and who weaves our failings into his plans. We live in a world that seems to have largely forgotten grace and forgiveness. But we have a God who gives grace without limits. Who gives forgiveness to all who turn back. We have a God who came to live among us. Who chose to live with us. And who chose the cross for us.

A God who picks up the pieces of our broken lives to give us a fresh chance. So for 2024 whatever New Years Resolutions we may or may not have made. Whatever the hopes and fears that we have for our year, the key resolution we should have is to remember that God is a God of all grace. When our resolutions and desires and hopes and schemes for self improvement lie in tatters, lets remember that God is a God of grace who stoops down to pick up the tattered pieces caused by our folly to weave them into a new start, to give fresh hope and to set us back on the way with him.

I’m going to close with a lengthy quote from John Newton – the slave trader turned clergyman best known for the hymn Amazing Grace – his insights into the Christian life are always worth reading – I think he really understood and grasped God’s grace, and it seems from all we know that this understanding was reflected in his pastoral care for his congregation and many friends who he wrote letters to. This quote is from one of those letters:

At my first setting out, indeed, I thought to be better, and to feel myself better from year to year; I expected by degrees to attain everything which I then comprised in my idea of a godly Christian. I thought my grain of grace, by much diligence and careful improvement, would, in time, amount to a pound; that pound, in a farther space of time, to a talent; and then I hoped to increase from one talent to many; so that, supposing the Lord should spare me a number of years, I pleased myself with the thought of dying rich in grace.

But, alas! these my golden expectations have been like South-Sea dreams! I have lived hitherto a poor sinner, and I believe I shall die one! Have I then gained nothing by waiting upon the Lord? Yes, I have gained, that which I once would rather have been without, such accumulated proofs of the deceitfulness and desperate wickedness of my heart, as I hope, by the Lord’s blessing, has, in some measure, taught me to know what I mean, when I say, “Behold I am vile!”

And, in connection with this, I have gained such experience of the wisdom, power, and compassion of my Redeemer; the need, the worth, of his blood, righteousness, attention, and intercession; the glory that he displays in pardoning iniquity and sin and passing by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage—that my soul cannot but cry out, “Who is a God like unto you!” Thus, if I have any lower thoughts of myself, Eze. 16:63, and any higher thoughts of him than I had twenty years ago, I have reason to be thankful. Every grain of this experience is worth mountains of gold. And if, by his mercy, I shall yet sink more in my own esteem, and he will be pleased to rise still more glorious to my eyes, and more precious to my heart—I expect it will be much in the same way.

I was ashamed when I began to seek him;
I am more ashamed now;
and I expect to be most of all ashamed when he shall appear to destroy my last enemy.
But, oh! I may rejoice in him,
to think that he will not be ashamed of me.

John Newton

May that last line sink deeply into our hearts this year. May we live by that grace, out of that grace and in that grace in all our relationships and in all our activities this year.

The Dangerous Invitation

At bedtime a few years ago I was reading the Chronicles of Narnia to the boys.  I love these books and I love that they love them too.  We’ve reached the Last Battle chapter 1, and I was struck by this exchange:

“All the same, Shift,” said Puzzle, “even if the skin only belonged to a dumb, wild lion, oughtn’t we to give it a decent burial? I mean, aren’t all lions rather—well, rather solemn. Because of you know Who. Don’t you see?”

“Don’t you start getting ideas into your head, Puzzle,” said Shift. “Because, you know, thinking isn’t your strong point. We’ll make this skin into a fine warm winter coat for you.”

“Oh, I don’t think I’d like that,” said the Donkey. “It would look—I mean, the other Beasts might think—that is to say, I shouldn’t feel——”

“What are you talking about?” said Shift, scratching himself the wrong way up as Apes do.

“I don’t think it would be respectful to the Great Lion, to Aslan himself, if an ass like me went about dressed up in a lionskin,” said Puzzle.

“Now don’t stand arguing, please,” said Shift. “What does an ass like you know about things of that sort? You know you’re no good at thinking, Puzzle, so why don’t you let me do your thinking for you?

It contains perhaps the most dangerous invitation imaginable:

“Why don’t you let me do your thinking for you?”

It is an appealing invitation in a time of uncertainty and chaos politically.  Why not turn our country over to a strong leader who can answer our questions simply?  So said Europe in the 1930s – and the danger in times of turmoil is that we will do so again.

It is an appealing invitation in a church where pressure from society grows ever stronger.  Why not just let the world do our thinking for us and tell us what right and wrong are?  Why not just let scholars and important leaders decide what should happen?

It is appealing when we don’t know what we should do next.  Why not just let someone else do our thinking for us and fit in with the expected?

“Why don’t you let me do your thinking for you?”

It is a dangerous invitation because it conceals a half truth – of course we need each other. Of course we can’t do our thinking alone.  But we can never leave our thinking completely to others.  We need to use our brains.

This is a fundamental part of my faith – and I don’t say that just because I spent 3 years working on a PhD. No, it is fundamental for every Christian. We cannot let our thinking be done for us.

Put at its simplest I believe God has spoken.

We have his words in the Bible.  Words of life.  Words that are, at times hard.  Words that are, at times difficult.  But words that do give life.  Words that bring us to Jesus. Words that show us how and why to live the life he wants.

We get the benefit of life with God when we read those words.  When we let them seep into our skin and bones.  When we let them enter our hearts and penetrate deep within.  When we sit and wrestle with a passage that we find hard.  When we don’t give up on our quest to understand.  When we think.  When we love God with our minds and don’t give up.

If we shortcut the process by skipping on reading God’s Word and engaging with it for ourselves then we make ourselves vulnerable to false teachers and prophets inside the church, and to beastly political leaders outside the church who promise us various versions of heaven now.

Reading God’s Word and wrestling with it for ourselves means we  will be ready for a world now where pain and heartache are real.  We will be ready for a world where some things just don’t make sense at all.

We will know that in the midst of the pain and the heartache, of the confusion and the tears that there is a God of faithful love who holds us and is remaking us, and this broken world, into something as unimaginably glorious to us right now as a 400 year old oak tree is to an acorn.

I’m going to finish this blog post with possibly the most important sentence Rob Bell has ever written.  It was on the back cover of the copy of Velvet Elvis I had at some point.  It makes the point very well.

We have to test everything.I thank God for anybody anywhere who is pointing people to the mysteries of God. But those people would all tell you to think long and hard about what they are saying and doing and creating. Test it. Probe it. Do that to this book. Don’t swallow it uncritically. Think about it. Wrestle with it. Just because I’m a Christian and I’m trying to articulate a Christian worldview doesn’t mean I’ve got it nailed. I’m contributing to the discussion. God has spoken, and the rest is commentary, right?

Rob Bell