While preparing for Holy Spirit Day (Pentecost or Whitsun) I made a fascinating discovery. We think of the Spirit as being full of living power. But so is holiness. The two go well together.
In Isaiah chapter 6 God reaches the prophet Isaiah with intense holy energy. He is exalted on His throne and His royal garments fill the Temple. There are fearsome beings around Him praising Him as "Holy, holy, holy" and "Almighty" and announcing that the whole earth is full of His glory. The entrances to the Temple shake and the building is filled with smoke. Isaiah cowers in terror and one of the beings touches his mouth with a burning coal! Isaiah comes to no harm. In fact good comes out of it, because his guilt is taken away and his sin dealt with. God says He will have to be just as drastic in dealing with Isaiah's people. They will have to be pruned like a tree being cut down to a stump.
Many Christians don't remember often enough that the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit. You cannot meet Him in all His righteous power without feeling small. It is only when you have that reverence for Him and for His saving work in Jesus that He can do you good.
I've now almost completed my first month as Pastor of Bethany Evangelical Church in Leigh. I rejoice in God's saving mercy and His equipping of me, and not only me but also many gifted people at the church. With a sense of encouragement and gratitude, I praise God for His holiness and faithfulness.
Saturday, 11 June 2011
Saturday, 28 May 2011
New place, old dependence
Just when God's people seemed most settled, God made them live in temporary accommodation! This is the challenge of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The gathering in of the harvest in Old Testament times was marked by a seven-day festival. It was the glad celebration of the fact that the Israelites were now in the land God had promised them. No more wandering as nomads from place to place, pasture to pasture. They were now in their own land. They could till the ground to their heart's content and expect to be around to benefit from the crops it produced.
In the midst of this very celebration came God's instruction: "Live in booths for seven days … so that your descendants will know that I made the Israelites live in booths when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God" (Leviticus 23:42-43).
This taught the Israelites always to remember that they were dependent on God – an important lesson for all of us to learn. I've learned it afresh as I have migrated from Worcester to Leigh to take up my role as pastor at Bethany. I have had to depend on a number of people for practical help. To my relief, and to their credit, they have given this readily and cheerfully.
People ask, "Are you beginning to feel settled?" The answer is, happily, yes – I am beginning to feel settled already. But I should never become too settled. I am a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus tells His disciples to follow Him – not stop with Him in one place, but follow where He leads. Typically, disciples would fall in behind their chosen rabbi as he moved from place to place, listening carefully, picking up the pearls of wisdom that he uttered.
Maybe the disciples were not always sure where Jesus was going, but they followed Him anyway: He had words of eternal life to share with them (John 6:68). In the end it became very clear that He was heading for Jerusalem, a scene of crisis where He would die and rise again. Still they followed. They would not regret it.
Thank you for your interest in my progress as I move to a new chapter in my life's heavenward journey. I look forward to it. Right now I have just one question for you:
Are you ready to follow?
The gathering in of the harvest in Old Testament times was marked by a seven-day festival. It was the glad celebration of the fact that the Israelites were now in the land God had promised them. No more wandering as nomads from place to place, pasture to pasture. They were now in their own land. They could till the ground to their heart's content and expect to be around to benefit from the crops it produced.
In the midst of this very celebration came God's instruction: "Live in booths for seven days … so that your descendants will know that I made the Israelites live in booths when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God" (Leviticus 23:42-43).
This taught the Israelites always to remember that they were dependent on God – an important lesson for all of us to learn. I've learned it afresh as I have migrated from Worcester to Leigh to take up my role as pastor at Bethany. I have had to depend on a number of people for practical help. To my relief, and to their credit, they have given this readily and cheerfully.
People ask, "Are you beginning to feel settled?" The answer is, happily, yes – I am beginning to feel settled already. But I should never become too settled. I am a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus tells His disciples to follow Him – not stop with Him in one place, but follow where He leads. Typically, disciples would fall in behind their chosen rabbi as he moved from place to place, listening carefully, picking up the pearls of wisdom that he uttered.
Maybe the disciples were not always sure where Jesus was going, but they followed Him anyway: He had words of eternal life to share with them (John 6:68). In the end it became very clear that He was heading for Jerusalem, a scene of crisis where He would die and rise again. Still they followed. They would not regret it.
Thank you for your interest in my progress as I move to a new chapter in my life's heavenward journey. I look forward to it. Right now I have just one question for you:
Are you ready to follow?
Monday, 9 May 2011
An irrational thought
This morning I had a completely irrational thought. Here I am on Monday, with a virtually empty diary for the next 3 days. Moving day is Thursday. I shall be on the go from early Thursday morning till late in the evening. If only I could spread the hectic activity of Thursday over four days instead of one, to make it less manic!
Of course, that is totally silly. Moving day is moving day. The van is booked for that day. The keys get collected that day. My squad of kind helpers and the letting agents have that day, and no other, in their diaries. I cannot do half the move one day and half the next - at least, not without putting a lot of people to unnecessary trouble.
In Ecclesiastes chapter 3 we read, "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven". One day is right for being born and another is right for dying. One day is right for planting and another for uprooting, and so on. Someone once spoke on the radio about Indian weddings. In the West people plan, prepare and make bookings months in advance. In the Indian culture nothing happens for ages. Then suddenly everyone decides that the right time has come. Everything falls into place in a frantic last-minute rush. It can be a disaster, but most of the time it works out wonderfully well!
In the gospels we read that Jesus would not do certain things because His time had not yet come. Then "just at the right time ... Christ died for the ungodly". If Jesus was wise about the timing of such an important event, I must be wise in accepting the right timing for my move and the longed for start at my new church, Bethany Evangelical Church in Leigh. Thursday, and not before, is moving day. Saturday, and not before, is my induction and a week today, and not before, is the starting day of my employment. Let me not even think of stretching or squeezing time.
Of course, that is totally silly. Moving day is moving day. The van is booked for that day. The keys get collected that day. My squad of kind helpers and the letting agents have that day, and no other, in their diaries. I cannot do half the move one day and half the next - at least, not without putting a lot of people to unnecessary trouble.
In Ecclesiastes chapter 3 we read, "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven". One day is right for being born and another is right for dying. One day is right for planting and another for uprooting, and so on. Someone once spoke on the radio about Indian weddings. In the West people plan, prepare and make bookings months in advance. In the Indian culture nothing happens for ages. Then suddenly everyone decides that the right time has come. Everything falls into place in a frantic last-minute rush. It can be a disaster, but most of the time it works out wonderfully well!
In the gospels we read that Jesus would not do certain things because His time had not yet come. Then "just at the right time ... Christ died for the ungodly". If Jesus was wise about the timing of such an important event, I must be wise in accepting the right timing for my move and the longed for start at my new church, Bethany Evangelical Church in Leigh. Thursday, and not before, is moving day. Saturday, and not before, is my induction and a week today, and not before, is the starting day of my employment. Let me not even think of stretching or squeezing time.
Saturday, 23 April 2011
Joy cometh in the morning
Yesterday, Good Friday, I was attending a special service at the church in Malvern which I have been attending. Someone quoted from Psalm 30 verse 5: "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning". I thought how fitting this was. The apparent temporary setback of Good Friday's crucifixion is followed by the joy of Easter's resurrection.
The Christian has some reasons to weep. The state of the world is an obvious one. But he or she has many more reasons to be glad. "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy" (Psalm 126:5).
Of course, we can't expect to feel in our spirits all the time the joy that Christ gives. We do a disservice to fellow Christians if we tell them they must always look happy. Sure, it is perhaps easier for me to be happy now than when I was stuck not knowing what the future would hold. It is exciting now to be planning my move up north and the start of a new pastorate. But that doesn't make me immune to downbeat moments if things go wrong at times.
When I was at school we used to sing a children's hymn by Lizette Reese, "Glad that I live am I". It put in simple words what life is like from a child's point of view. One verse went,
After the sun the rain,
after the rain the sun,
this is the way of life,
till the work be done.
That, I would suggest, is half the story. Life on earth is indeed a series of ups and downs. Without Christ it is just rain followed by sun followed by rain followed by sun and, in the end, no more sun. But if you receive new, resurrection life with Christ, this earth's ups and downs turn out to be just the curtain-raiser to a glorious life of joy and peace.
The Christian has some reasons to weep. The state of the world is an obvious one. But he or she has many more reasons to be glad. "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy" (Psalm 126:5).
Of course, we can't expect to feel in our spirits all the time the joy that Christ gives. We do a disservice to fellow Christians if we tell them they must always look happy. Sure, it is perhaps easier for me to be happy now than when I was stuck not knowing what the future would hold. It is exciting now to be planning my move up north and the start of a new pastorate. But that doesn't make me immune to downbeat moments if things go wrong at times.
When I was at school we used to sing a children's hymn by Lizette Reese, "Glad that I live am I". It put in simple words what life is like from a child's point of view. One verse went,
After the sun the rain,
after the rain the sun,
this is the way of life,
till the work be done.
That, I would suggest, is half the story. Life on earth is indeed a series of ups and downs. Without Christ it is just rain followed by sun followed by rain followed by sun and, in the end, no more sun. But if you receive new, resurrection life with Christ, this earth's ups and downs turn out to be just the curtain-raiser to a glorious life of joy and peace.
Tuesday, 5 April 2011
"Someone's hired me at last!"
During the Middle Ages, a German troubadour finally found a wealthy patron to give him a steady income after waiting in vain for possible sponsors. He wrote a poem in celebration. The first line, roughly translated, went:
"Someone's hired me at last, O all the world, someone's hired me at last!"
It wasn't a very poetic thing for a poet to write. It isn't a very spiritual thing for a pastor to say. Yet it expresses the sense of joy and relief that the waiting is over. A week ago today, Bethany Evangelical Church in Leigh, Greater Manchester, found reasons to take me on as pastor where others had found reasons to brush me aside. Many would expect my response to be a solemn religious phrase like "I accept the call". Yet all I can say is how thrilled I am at seeing God's sheer grace at work!
Soon, God willing, I will have a new status. I shall need to alter my details on this blog. No longer shall I be "freelance", but a serving pastor in an actual church setting. My address, my employment position and much else besides will be different.
It remains to be seen whether the experiences of recent months and years will cause me to approach the work differently from the way I did it in the past. Every true pastor, indeed every genuine Christian, hopes to learn and grow. We are the sum total of our past experiences but are also affected by the brand new things that God is doing in and through us. The voice from God's throne declares, "Behold, I am making all things new" (Revelation 21:5 ESV). May new things rejoice the heart of the church where I am appointed, too.
"Someone's hired me at last, O all the world, someone's hired me at last!"
It wasn't a very poetic thing for a poet to write. It isn't a very spiritual thing for a pastor to say. Yet it expresses the sense of joy and relief that the waiting is over. A week ago today, Bethany Evangelical Church in Leigh, Greater Manchester, found reasons to take me on as pastor where others had found reasons to brush me aside. Many would expect my response to be a solemn religious phrase like "I accept the call". Yet all I can say is how thrilled I am at seeing God's sheer grace at work!
Soon, God willing, I will have a new status. I shall need to alter my details on this blog. No longer shall I be "freelance", but a serving pastor in an actual church setting. My address, my employment position and much else besides will be different.
It remains to be seen whether the experiences of recent months and years will cause me to approach the work differently from the way I did it in the past. Every true pastor, indeed every genuine Christian, hopes to learn and grow. We are the sum total of our past experiences but are also affected by the brand new things that God is doing in and through us. The voice from God's throne declares, "Behold, I am making all things new" (Revelation 21:5 ESV). May new things rejoice the heart of the church where I am appointed, too.
Friday, 25 March 2011
Right on cue
In idle moments I spend time admiring the way a computer can predict the rising and setting of sun, moon and planets. I have several programs which perform this feat. You simply tell the program where you are in the world and ask it when and where the sun will set at your location. It gives a time of day and a point on the compass. Lo and behold, the sun sets - at the right place and right on cue. What a well-ordered solar system we live in!
You can also make the program predict events in the skies hundreds of years in the future, or back-track to the past. The writers warn you that, the further away you get in time, the less accurate the program will be, since things happen which change the maths. A huge earthquake such as the recent one in Japan, or a massive volcanic eruption, can slow the earth's spin by a fraction of a second. This can put the calculations out considerably over the course of time.
With all man's cleverness, he cannot predict or control the unexpected. It is time to admit our limits. God challenged Job in ancient times about the starry heavens:
"Can you bind the beautiful Pleiades? Can you loose the cords of Orion? Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set up God's dominion over the earth?" (Job 38:31-33 NIV)
The most we can do is to think God's thoughts after Him. After all, who could ever predict that He would send His own Son, His very self, to die for sins that we had done and rise again to give us life?
You can also make the program predict events in the skies hundreds of years in the future, or back-track to the past. The writers warn you that, the further away you get in time, the less accurate the program will be, since things happen which change the maths. A huge earthquake such as the recent one in Japan, or a massive volcanic eruption, can slow the earth's spin by a fraction of a second. This can put the calculations out considerably over the course of time.
With all man's cleverness, he cannot predict or control the unexpected. It is time to admit our limits. God challenged Job in ancient times about the starry heavens:
"Can you bind the beautiful Pleiades? Can you loose the cords of Orion? Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set up God's dominion over the earth?" (Job 38:31-33 NIV)
The most we can do is to think God's thoughts after Him. After all, who could ever predict that He would send His own Son, His very self, to die for sins that we had done and rise again to give us life?
Friday, 11 March 2011
Goodbyes
This morning an experience came upon me suddenly and found me little prepared: the first of what will doubtless be many goodbyes. I visited my dentist and realised that by the time of my next routine appointment I shall almost certainly not be in this area any more. (My immediate destination is not yet clear.)
Kind words and good wishes were exchanged and I left the surgery with an emotional pang. Sure, I am as keen as mustard to move on to new beginnings. Yet it still comes hard when you put a distance between yourself and folks who have proved friendly, encouraging, supportive.
One benefit of living with a family is that you can go home and tell someone straight away how you are feeling. My kind host remarked helpfully, "You may have said 'goodbye' to some people, but soon you will be saying 'hello' to others." He talked about a country he knows well where there is a strong tradition of hospitality and guests are always well looked after. When it is time to go, the custom is that you say your farewells and depart without a backward glance. There is always some new household somewhere that will soon give you the same generous welcome.
How touched I was! This reminds me of Jesus' teaching about the preparations going on in heaven to say "hello" to us.
"In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:2-3 NIV). The last and perhaps most difficult farewell is when we say goodbye to this life. But for those who trust in Jesus and whose real home is heaven, there are preparations already going on and people gathering, just waiting to say "hello".
Kind words and good wishes were exchanged and I left the surgery with an emotional pang. Sure, I am as keen as mustard to move on to new beginnings. Yet it still comes hard when you put a distance between yourself and folks who have proved friendly, encouraging, supportive.
One benefit of living with a family is that you can go home and tell someone straight away how you are feeling. My kind host remarked helpfully, "You may have said 'goodbye' to some people, but soon you will be saying 'hello' to others." He talked about a country he knows well where there is a strong tradition of hospitality and guests are always well looked after. When it is time to go, the custom is that you say your farewells and depart without a backward glance. There is always some new household somewhere that will soon give you the same generous welcome.
How touched I was! This reminds me of Jesus' teaching about the preparations going on in heaven to say "hello" to us.
"In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:2-3 NIV). The last and perhaps most difficult farewell is when we say goodbye to this life. But for those who trust in Jesus and whose real home is heaven, there are preparations already going on and people gathering, just waiting to say "hello".
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