We will see Him

Paul has done two things very well up to this point in the letter: he has taught the Ephesians some good theology and he has prayed for them. Now he gets to the really practical stuff.  He tells them what to do in order to become who they are in Christ.  It's harder than you think.   Read  Ephesians 4:1-6  now and see if you agree. He introduces his practical help as more than just good advice - he urges them, literally implores them to listen and to do what he says. "I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received." Eph 4:1. How do we live a life worthy of the calling we've received? And what is this calling?   This calling is what we've seen in Eph 2:5: "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions."  We were dead but now with Christ we are called to lif...

We must admit that we are all easily overwhelmed by things that are 'unknown' or 'unknowable'. Seeing all the computer screens at a stock trader's desk overwhelms me or being asked to bake anything other than a jacket potato freaks me out. I'd be the first to admit that I 'lack confidence in the kitchen...', while Stephanie can balance a child on her hip, teaches another to read and dry the tears of another - all while she is preparing a Nigel Slater dinner complete with freshly cut parsley and artistic sauce patterns! As you read Paul's prayer here in Ephesians 3:14-21 you can't help to see how much confidence he has in the presence of the God that is both knowable and unknowable! 'Knowable' because the mystery of the Gospel and it's consequences has been revealed in Christ. But 'unknown' because it surpasses knowledge - God's grace (Eph 2:7) and love (Eph 3:18), Paul says is way too big to understand, comprehend or ...

When we started the church a few years ago we knocked on people's doors throughout our community, asking a simple question: "If we were going to start a new church in this area, how can the church serve you and the rest of the community?". The overwhelming answer was: "You can serve us best by not starting a church in this area..." Probably at the root of this response there was a fear that a church will bring further division to an already fragmented society. It might even be that some of the respondents were believers who became tired of the church and decided that they would practice their faith on their own. To some extent Paul speaks to this response in Ephesians 3:1-13. Read it and see if you agree. Paul starts with the statement that he is a prisoner of Christ for their sake. He was in fact a prisoner of Nero, but Paul says he is a prisoner of Christ because he preached Christ's Gospel not only to the Jewish people (something the Roman empire toler...

This is not the easiest of Biblical passages, but once understood it gives you the grandest of visions for what the church is and who you are as a believer. Before you read it, let me just give you this piece of context. Christianity is rooted in the Bible, which is a redemptive historical narrative - a story ("non-fiction!" I can hear my 6 year-old son shout!) of how God came to save his people. The main group of characters in the unfolding of this redemptive story is the family of Abraham who later became the people known as 'Israel'. In the Old Testament you can see how God dealt with his people Israel, especially how he cared for them, how he rebuked them and how he frequently forgave them and saved them from dire calamity. Those that were not part of Israel were spoken of as the 'gentiles' - and the Jewish laws made it possible for them to join God's people - but always kept at a bit of a distance (gentiles could only go to certain parts of the tem...

I must say, Eph 2:1-10 is one of my favourites! John Stott says about it: "Paul first plumbs to the depths of pessimism about humankind and then rises to the heights of optimism about God." Take a moment and read the passage now. Did you see how desperate the situation looks in verse 1 to 3? We almost want to argue with Paul at this point that the Ephesians couldn't have been that bad?! But before we can come up for them he says to us: "All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts." It's then that we realise that Paul has been speaking to us all along, "As for you, you were dead in your transgressions..." At this point we need to be careful not to dismiss what Paul is saying as ridiculous hyperbole. He means what he says literally. Without God we are dead - perhaps not physically or mentally, or in terms of personality - but in the sphere which matters most...

Do you struggle to maintain a consistent life of prayer? Why? I suspect the answer for most of us is that we secretly, perhaps thoughtlessly still think that we can provide all the power we need to live the Christian life: "God helped me to become a believer but from here on it's up to me to grow!". Just read Ephesians 1:15-23 and see how wrong you are... Paul prays that the believers in Ephesus wouldn't make the same mistake of thinking they can live the Christian life in their own strength. You must notice the significance if this: Paul is practicing what he is preaching while he is preaching to them! He is after all praying for them that they will know that their power can only come from the God to whom he is praying! And as proof of God's power Paul wants them to go back to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They must look at the events around Christ's death and resurrection and see afresh that God is ready to work in them as he worked "in Christ whe...

For the next 12 days I would like to read with you through Paul's letter to the Ephesians. It is sometimes called the Gospel of the church since it moves you beyond your individual salvation to seeing God's salvation of his people, his church. For those of you that want to dig deeper, I can recommend John Stott's Bible Study guide on Ephesians, whose headings I will follow as we read through Ephesians. Read Ephesians 1:1-14 Paul is writing this letter to the saints in Ephesus. This is important for two reasons. First - Paul is under house arrest, probably handcuffed to a Roman soldier while he writes of these extraordinary blessings. Second - Paul is not writing to an individual. He is writing to the gathered church, an entire community. So when you here him speak to 'you', remember that he is speaking to a plural 'you', the church. In verse 3 he opens up the letter with an amazing statement. "[God] has blessed us (the church) in the heavenly ...

I get that a lot. People who listen to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and ask - 'If I get to go to heaven not because of what I did but because of what Jesus Christ did in my place, why do I still need to struggle and fight and discipline myself to do good? If it doesn't earn me heaven, why be good?'. Glen Scrivener over at Christ the Truth has a list of clever counter questions, challenging the assumptions underlying this response. In a nutshell he says what you're really saying when you ask this question is: 'Sin is what really gives meaning an joy to my life. I can't imagine life without my life-giving sin. The life with Christ is going to stifling and difficult.' Perhaps that is why we don't easily get the Gospel. Jesus is not scaring us into heaven saying: "My yoke is hard, but hell is harder!". No! - the Gospel is something completely different. It is not scare mongering but the ultimate love story. Christ that comes to us, pursues and ...

I was shocked to find out on my return from vacation that Christopher Hitchens, the British born, Oxford educated journalist and author has died of cancer. He was a veraciously intelligent atheist - sometimes described as God's most outspoken critic. Now in the light of yesterday's post about the reality of God's eternal judgment it might be worth asking how a Christian should feel about the death of Hitch, as he was known. Does God delight in the death of those the reject him? God's word and Christ's life argues against this. In Ezekiel 18:23 God asks this rhetorical question: "Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?". In 2 Peter 3:9 we read: "The Lord is... patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." Furthermore, the Bible describes everyone, including you and me as wicked and sinful in Romans...

Yesterday the court convicted two men of killing the 18 year old Stephen Lawrence in a racist attack in South London. Bringing the men to justice took longer than Lawrence's brief life - 18 years, 8 months and 12 days! It must have been a huge relief for his parents - Doreen and Neville whom have waited a very long time for justice to finally be done. What about you - are you longing for justice to be done in your life? Have someone committed an injustice against you or someone you love and does it seem like they are constantly getting away with it? Like Asaph who wrote Psalm 73 one could doubt whether God is good if evil constantly gets off the hook. It might even be the reason you resist Christianity in the first place. In Psalm 73 God tells Asaph to come and meet with Him and allow God to show him the end of those that are not safely hidden through faith in Christ. God gives him this message to strengthen him and to live in an unjust world with the certain knowledge tha...

It's the first workday of the new year and the holidays seem to have disappeared like the fog. Your mind is focused on getting through this day, or this week - the last thing on your mind is 'eternity'. But let me help you to see that eternity is what you were made for. As you look at yourself at the beginning of the year you see things that you would like to change - perhaps live more healthily and exercise. As you look at our city you see many things that you would like to fix - poverty, injustice, public transport.... As you look at your place of work or study - again you see thing's that's wrong, that needs to fixed or changed. This desire to make things better, to rid yourself and the world of brokenness, hurt, disease and illnesses is part of your DNA. The Bible tells us that we were made in the image of God. God is the one that don't only have the desire to make things new, but in and through Christ he is doing it at the moment. To realise that you w...

-by Steve Mills Our American readers will be familiar with the phrase 'do the math' which means sit down and do the sums and it will all make sense. But what happens when you can't do the math or maths as we say over here? That's the thing about the incarnation you can't do the math, when you write it down on paper it doesn't all work out nice and neatly. Jesus Christ; 100% God, 100% Man, how does that work? Well I hope that as we have been pondering over the mystery of the incarnation, we can see it's impossible to figure it all out. The incarnation is the great mystery of our faith! To be honest, what we believe is pretty crazy stuff, and so we shouldn't be surprised if at Christmas time people around us think we are completely bonkers. In fact it would probably be worrying if they didn't, because then maybe we too would have missed the point about the incomprehensible mystery of God becoming Man – which is the true miracle of Christmas. I think ...

-by Steve Mills If like me you are glad that the X factor is over for another year, you must wonder why it captures the public imagination on such a large scale year after year? I guess we are all looking for that something special, someone a bit out of the ordinary someone who we can see rise to fame and fortune. Don't get me wrong John the Baptist was odd but he certainly had the X factor. Every year on the X factor there is always some unusual character who is a little bit weird but the public keep voting for them to come back next week. John was certainly pulling in the crowds, he was a great public speaker and Luke tells us, that the whole area was rushing out to see who this eccentric man was and what he had to say. John was certainly winning the battle in the TV ratings so to speak. But while John might have had the equivalent of the preacher's X factor this wasn't enough! And John was under no illusion about this, he knew that as powerful as his ministry was and w...

-by Steve Mills There seem to be an endless number of TV shows on at the moment, giving you advice about how to get ready for Christmas day. Most of them are about cooking and making sure you get everything right for the big meal! The cardinal sin at this time of the year seems to be over cooking the poor turkey! Well as we saw yesterday God's man to prepare the way for Christmas was John the Baptist. From what we know of his diet he was no celebrity chef! But what was John's step by step guide to preparing for Christmas and the arrival of Jesus the Son of God? Well John sums it up in one word 'Repent.' Unsurprisingly for John it's not exactly the most Christmasy of words. But as we know John wasn't one for compromising. Repentance has at its heart the idea of a complete turn around in the way that we think and act. It's a complete U turn, from relying and trusting in ourselves to transferring all of that reliance and trust to Jesus. It's easy for us t...

-by Steve Mills You won't hear much about John the Baptist in the run up to Christmas. He doesn't feature on the Christmas cards, there aren't any inflatable figures in suburban gardens, no cute kids get to dress up as John the Baptist in the school nativity play. John the Baptist doesn't seem to fit with the Christmas spirit, his in your face message is not very politically correct and hardly in line with the season of goodwill and cheer. In fact he is a little bit like that annoying relative that you really hope won't be able to make it to lunch on Christmas day! He's always going on about the end of the world, he never dresses appropriately and he insists on eating a bizarre diet of locusts and wild honey. However, nobody was more excited about Christmas than John the Baptist. He had been waiting his whole life for the coming of Jesus. Before he was even born he was marked out in his mother's womb for this job. For Luke it's essential that you meet ...

-by Steve Mills I read an interesting piece in the Metro the other day (for those outside London the Metro is the free newspaper distributed to commuters on their morning journey into London, let's just say it's not high brow journalism!) Anyway, this story was of a more unusual wish list a young girl had written to Santa! The thirteen year old girl warns Father Christmas that he will be killed if he fails to deliver at least two of her long list of gifts, which include a Blackberry phone and the real life Justin Bieber. The letter goes on to state that she will hunt down Old Nick's reindeer so she can cook them and serve them to homeless people on Christmas day. The note ends, remember two of these or you die! Remarkably her mother who found the letter said 'When I first found the letter I thought it was funny, now I think I'd better get her what she wants. The last thing I want is for her to kill Santa!' It's an extreme piece of journalism I know and obvi...

-by Steve Mills The more we linger around the manger at Bethlehem and ponder what it might mean for God to become man, the more we realise the incredible implications of the incarnation – God becoming man. Too often we speed straight past the incarnation to get to the cross, to emphasize that Jesus came to die. Now it's never a bad thing to want to get to the cross! But the Gospels don't start there, even Mark's fast paced account that is so keen to get to the cross tells us about Jesus' life. Jesus didn't just come to die he also came to live. He came to show us how to live, how to live life to the full. If we pause at the manager and give ourselves the chance we will see the incredible implications for humanity that Jesus affirmed when he took on human flesh. Sometimes we can be a bit uptight about all this and I am reminded of the children's nativity scene where there was a big towering cross looming over the fragile manager scene, traumatising the newly bor...

-by Steve Mills From reading the Old Testament it was clear that God would have to come himself to save us, but have you ever wondered why God had to become a man? Surely there was an easier way for God to save us? Couldn't he have come as some kind of Superman impervious to all the inconveniencies of living in a fallen world, or as some kind of modified angel or heavenly being? Well we are touching on one of the great questions. There are a lot of ways to answer the question, which is why although a hard question it's a great one to ask. Something that struck me only recently was that the Son of God chose to become man and even to be born a man so that we could get to know Him better. Why spend 33 years on this earth with all its heartaches and problems? Well God wanted us to know Him better. He could have given us a dazzling display of His glory but to be honest it would have been too much for us to bear. I remember a professor once saying that God had to write the whole of t...

-by Steve Mills Last Sunday in church we looked at the account of Jesus' birth in Luke 2. One of the things that struck me from Kruger's sermon was Mary's response to the remarkable events. Luke writes 'But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart' In the previous verse Luke tells us about the shepherd's response that they spread the word about what they had seen and everyone was amazed by their story. However, it seems by using the word 'But' Luke wants to contrast Mary's response to that of the shepherds. While the response of the shepherds was perfectly natural we don't hear about them again or the people they told. But Mary treasured all these things going over and over them in her heart. One writer points out that pondering it is not so much a weighing up as allowing matters not fully understood to reside in one's depths where they can be treasured and quietly reflected on. When a boat or ship was entering shal...

- by Steve Mills I was interested to hear on the news this morning that the nicknamed 'God particle', hailed as the holy grail of physics, may have been glimpsed for the first time. The Higgs boson particle is regarded, by those who know about such things - as the key to understanding the universe. I can't tell you anymore than that, as I know even less about science than I do about theology. However, it seems we have an insatiable desire to find out the origins of our universe, the big questions never really go away, which is no bad thing. One article states 'The Higgs is a sub-atomic particle that is predicted to exist, but has not yet been seen.' I've been in many lengthy debates about the existence of God into the small hours of the morning, and my more generous atheist friends, while having sympathy for my views, just have to conclude there is not enough evidence. Well Christmas is the time when God decided to settle the debate. Bible No one has ever seen ...

It's easy to think that Christmas is all about us? I should know because at this moment I am looking everywhere for a thoughtful gift for Stephanie, my wife. And rather than thinking of something that will bring real joy to her heart, I'm thinking of her reaction and appreciation of me in light of the gift that I get her. I'm only now realising that my 'giving' is actually very self-centered... So what is the real Christmas spirit if it is not giving gifts? I think Phillipians 2 holds the key to this answer. It is not as tangible as a gift, but far more transformative if understood correctly. Bible Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. Philippians 2:4-6 Christ-centered ...

In a poem called Christmas Sir John Betjeman (CBE, 1906 – 1984), an English poet, writer and broadcaster tries to show how all the christmas cheer pales in comparison to the reality of God becoming man (you can read the whole poem here). And London shops on Christmas Eve Are strung with silver bells and flowers As hurrying clerks the City leave To pigeon-haunted classic towers, And marbled clouds go scudding by The many-steepled London sky.... And is it true? and is it true? The most tremendous tale of all, Seen in a stained-glass window's hue, A Baby in an ox's stall? The Maker of the stars and sea Become a Child on earth for me? ... No love that in a family dwells, No carolling in frosty air, Nor all the steeple-shaking bells Can with this single Truth compare - That God was Man in Palestine And lives to-day in Bread and Wine.* Bible I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, we want to ask tha...

I'm just getting ready now to leave for lunch at the Houses of Parliament in central London. With the Queen this is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom where decisions are made that affects the rest of us. Many of us might be dismayed by our political leaders and their lack of financial prudency, effectivity and disunity. Far from putting us in a position to judge them, they only serve to remind us that we really need a better government - one that is wise, powerful, everlasting and glorious. Over the festive season you might hear the words from Isaiah 9:6 read at church services. Compare this promise to our current government and long with me for the coming of the Prince of Peace. Bible For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, we want to pray for all the governments of the world, ...

It's early morning and I am in London's Christmas headquarters... Where could it be? Well, it depends on your view of what Christmas is all about. Of course I am in Oxford street and it is buzzing with Christmas jingles, scuffling shoppers and advertisements for 'the perfect gift', 'the remedy for over-indulgence' and gingerbread eggnog latte (which isn't nearly as nice as it sounds). There is a certain amount of excitement to this... probably brought on by the decorations and music. But one needs to ask - 'Is this it?'. Although Christmas is celebrated as a special time to remember Jesus' birth the Bible maintains that Christianity is supposed to be far simpler. Christians get an opportunity to remember Jesus' birth, life, death and resurrection almost from moment to moment. It is not the gifts or the jingles or the lights that reminds us but it is something in sharp contrast to all this cheerfulness... it's our own sin. Bible Pa...

John Lewis, a large department store here in the UK currently runs an advertisement called 'The Long Wait'. It is about a boy that can't wait for Christmas day to arrive - desperately wishing time by. As he waits you see him watching the clock - either impatiently bouncing his knee or staring out the window, or aimlessly sitting in a swing as the season changes. Then finally the day before Chris mas arrives. His parents looks perplexed as the boy gobbles up his dinner, runs to his bedroom, jumps into bed and presses his eyes shut. In the next scene warm light floods the room as he wakes up. He gets up, walks straight past the presents everyone thought he couldn't wait to receive. As he opens his cupboard he takes out a frumpled box, obviously wrapped by him. As he makes his way to his parents room you finally understand why he was so impatient - he couldn't wait to give his gift. As the scene closes you see his satisfied smile... Bible As soon as Jesus was ...

Last night we had our annual Community Carols by Candlelight event with the theme - 'The most surprising gift of them all'. It was a more than a success - it was in itself a very surprising gift by God to a little church that has been labouring to bring the Gospel to Central South East London for nearly 5 years now. Perhaps you can remember our surprise last year when 120 people showed up. It was double the amount we expected back then. Well, this year we were completely surprised when we didn't only have to add a couple of extra chairs, we had to add every chair we could fit into the room! After that people had to stand by the sides, others on the floor, others outside! Our guesstimate is that between 250-300 people showed up! It's only this morning that it struck me that God applied the theme of the sermon on us as a church. You see, we are all reluctant to accept Christianity as a gift based relationship and constantly try to push it back to a work based relig...

At the moment our children are driving us mad with their excitement over Christmas. There is a single minded devotion to this certain event in the future where they will swim in the sea (we've shown them pictures of Campsbay), see their Grandparents in 'Africa', and open presents under a Christmas tree. It's still such a long time away but hardly an hour passes without a reference to the above. This giddy excitement that children have for Christmas is something that should mark our lives today - not over Christmas but for something far more transformative - Christ's return. The Bible holds it out as an event that will certainly take place - an event that will far surpass our wildest expectations, especially in it's power to bring life where there is death. In the Apostle Paul's first letter to the Corinthians (15) he teaches them about this resurrection of believers at Christ's second coming: Bible "But Christ has indeed been raised from t...

I can't tell you how sorry I am that I didn't grow up with an Advent calendar! Every day, from around the 27 of November (or 1 December) to the 24th of December children would wake up to open a small 'door' on their Advent calendars to find a piece of chocolate. It might be a great for children, but as a parent I can assure you that it's no fun trying to contain hyper kids before you had your first cup of coffee! Except for the chocolate, Advent actually comes from the Latin word 'adventus' which the Romans used to speak of the 'visit' or 'coming' of an important dignitary. The equivalent in Greek, the language of the Bible's New Testament is the term 'parousia' (it is used 24 times in the New Testament). This 'visit' or 'coming' of an important dignitary isn't simply a note in the diary but it is already having a significant impact on a town or village before this person comes - things are prepared, the ...

I'm never quite sure if I'm a fan of Christmas or not. On the one hand I really enjoy the parties, the presents and the special atmosphere - but on the other hand I'm not sure I enjoy the way Christianity is being warped and changed to fit into this 'happy time'. One example for me is the way Christmas cards presents Jesus' birth as this romantic, cozy scene in a manger while totally missing the point. This is after all the start of God's humble service to us when the King of creation is born into a shed with only an animal's feeding troth as a cot. Although we can get in wrong over Christmas it really is a happy time - but for completely different reasons than we might think. Jesus' life started in a manger and ended on a cross - suffering and dying to pay for our sins. So it is the season to be jolly but for the ugly bussiness of our sins being delt with by his death... and resurrection. And for this reason we want to celebrate this time of...

In closing this week's roundup of blogs that could benefit your soul I want to introduce the following three. The first one is 'The Gospel Coalition Blog'. As the name says, it's a coalition of ministers that is concerned for the clear and effective ministry of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In their words: "We have committed ourselves to invigorating churches with new hope and compelling joy based on the promises received by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone". The bloggers that contribute to this site is all worth checking out from time to time (as well as a academic journal under the name ofThemelios) Then Reformation21, is an alliance of ministers that are eager to see confessional reformed churches worship and live biblically while actively engaging with their culture. Although this is an American site there are two British contributors that really crack me up - Paul Levy and Carl Trueman. The last one is a new one some friends in church r...

The next blog I want to introduce is that of Tim Challies, a Canadian Christian writer who started blogging daily in October 2003. His site, www.challies.com is very useful to get a bird's eye view of what is going on in Christianity since he collates articles from all over the web, but that is also the problem. His material basically focuses on Canada and North America which might be of limited interest to most of you. A regular feature of his blog which I've always enjoyed is 'Reading Christian Classics Together', where he would summarize a chapter and invite comments and discussion on that chapter of a particularly useful book. Here is one. (With a group of others Challies also runs a site that reviews books called Discerning Reader. Have a look, especially at his review of The Shack) But since his links to other articles are so useful, let me link to one that speaks of the biggest danger of reading too many blogs... 'Are you an internet busy body?'...

Another great blog is managed by a Brazilian friend, René Breuel who is planting a new church in Rome! The blog has a huge variety of thoughtful Christian contributors who manages to engage with non-christians on different issues. If anything, the articles teach me how to talk about the Gospel with my non-believing friends. My favourite post so far was one by René called 'Thank God we have bodies'. Here he responds to the idea popularised by Elizabeth Gilbert's 'Eat Pray Love', that spiritual bliss should be what we should aspire to reach: The most material of religions, as William Temple described it, considers that God created this world and called it good. He fashioned matter and delighted in it. He became a man himself, someone whose first miracle was to turn water into wine. Jesus experienced death, as every other human does, and when he rose back to life, he came not as an immaterial ghost, but as a true body, with nail marks in his hands. Heaven ...

The next week I want to introduce you to some useful blogs on the internet. The first one gives you a short Gospel quote everyday - either from the Bible or from a Christian writer: www.firstimportance.org My favourite is this one by John Stott: What looks like (and indeed was) the defeat of Goodness by evil is also, and more certainly, the defeat of evil by Goodness. Overcome there, he was himself overcoming. Crushed by the ruthless power of Rome, he was himself crushing the serpent's head (Gn 3:15). The victim was the victor, and the cross is still the throne from which he rules the world. — John Stott, The Cross of Christ The owners of this blogs says: "We've all spent far too much time looking inward instead of upward (Col 3:1), only to futility and despair. This blog was born out of our own need to live each day in the good of the gospel." Prayer Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for the Gospel and the means you have given us to spread it. Please help us to li...

In the hit romantic comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the frumpy and 'unsuccessful' Toula Portokalos (Nia Vardalos) falls in love with the very attractive Ian Miller (John Corbett), who to her surprise feels the same way. In a stunning scene on the Toronto Harbourfront bridge Toula sceptically questions Ian's interest in her, a 'Greek girl with side-burns since the age of four'. Trying to convince her of his feelings towards her he rolls of a list of her interesting characteristics, among them calling her 'beautiful'. Astonished Toula interrupts him - 'Did you just say I'm beautiful?', at which point Ian leans over and kisses her. This for me is a fitting illustration of the wonder and astonishment a Christian should feel towards God. If you truly understand how sinful and loved you are at once - then I believe you are starting to 'get' Christianity. We are utterly unacceptable to God - arrogantly thinking that we can oust the King o...

A recent article entitled 'Rise of the the Super Rich' (Shortlist.com) captures the arrogance with which so many of the world's richest people are cruising through the financial turmoil: "'Occupy' what you like, protesters: it won't make any difference to the mega-rich. As the world drowns under a wave of austerity and poverty, they are boarding their gilded mega-yachts and heading full-steam to the bank, spraying the salty seawater of decadence into the eyes of the common man as they go." This doesn't only cause problems for people who claim to have no religion, but also for Bible believers. In Psalm 73 Asaph sums up the mood of believers when they sometimes see the apparent wealth, health and prosperity of unbelievers. Psalm 73:2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. 5 They are f...

I've asked and I have been asked this question many times. The question of hypocrisy. Perhaps the first place to start is to say that not everyone who claims to be a Christian is a Christian. Where you could be born into a Jewish family you've got to be born again into Christ's family. So no one can make themselves a Christian - you can try to look like one, walk like one or talk like one, but unless the Holy Spirit has shown you you're sin and Christ's death as the sufficient sacrifice for your sin - you cannot be a Christian merely by trying. Secondly, in Newman's (2004) words "salvation doesn't mean perfection". Somehow the idea exists that Christians claim to be perfect, while exactly the opposite is true. It's probably the only religion where the requirement for membership is to admit not only imperfection but corruption and sin! But the Christian life is a journey where we become more and more like Christ over time. "We have ...

This is what a banner says that the Occupy London protesters have put up outside St. Paul's Cathedral. In an article in the Guardian the Rev. Richard Coles cleverly answers this question simply with: "Not what we want". And this is another example of how questions can help believers to share the Gospel. For all the simplicity of the Gospel, the answers to some of our questions aren't always predictable or safe. There is always a surprising, even paradoxical answer to some of our most basic questions. As the Rev. Coles reflected on the PR disaster created by the way St Paul's Cathedral handled the protesters he said: "Christianity began with a PR disaster, on a hill outside Jerusalem. Out of it came unimaginable possibilities for new life and the transformation of the world, not in spite of the disaster but because of it." In some way, the Lord Jesus was pointing the same out to the man we read about yesterday (Matthew 19). He asked: "Good teac...

I will resume with the Heidelberg Catechism next week - let's look at ways to share the Gospel this week. Bible As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 18 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good—except God alone. Mark 10:17,18 • It's difficult to not sound judgemental, intolerant or preachy when you have an opportunity to share the Gospel with friends or colleagues. • Jesus' own strategy in sharing the Gospel was marked by the questions he asked. In fact, Jesus' normal way of answering a question was with a question. • Today this strategy works well - especially in a postmodern world where everyone believes they are entitled to 'their truth'. • Newman (Questioning Evangelism) has a good example of this using a question that can easily come up in the conversations: "Don't you think tha...

Heidelberg Catechism Q 26: What do you believe when you say: "I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth?" A. That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who of nothing made heaven and earth with all that in them is,[1] who likewise upholds, and governs the same by His eternal counsel and providence,[2] is for the sake of Christ, His Son, my God and my Father,[3] in whom I so trust as to have no doubt that He will provide me with all things necessary for body and soul;[4] and further, that whatever evil He sends upon me in this troubled life, He will turn to my good;[5] for He is able to do it, being Almighty God,[6] and willing also, being a faithful Father.[7] Bible "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into ba...

God is one nature in three persons, the Trinity - exactly who we need to be saved. The Father chooses believers to be his children, Jesus Christ pays for our sin so that we can become his children and his Holy Spirit works in us to live, act and think as people who now are his children. Heidelberg Catechism Q 24: How are the creed (was in yesterday's email) divided? A. Into three parts: the first is of God the Father and our creation; the second, of God the Son and our redemption; the third, of God the Holy Spirit and our sanctification.[1] Q 25: Since there is but one Divine Being,[1] why do you speak of three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? A: Because God has so revealed Himself in His Word,,[2] that these three distinct persons are the one, true, eternal God. Bible After Jesus rose from the grave he appeared to his disciples saying: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the ...