Category Archives: Christ’s sufficiency

It doesn’t have to be complicated…

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Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good”, I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a charlatan.

What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law” man so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine”, but is lived by faith in the Son of God, who love me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing relationship would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace.

(Gal 2.17-21: the Message)

My minister is currently teaching us from the letter of the apostle Paul to the Galatians, a time of preparation as our congregation enters into a period of disruption, challenge and opportunity through building and renovation works which will – God willing – create a more useful, welcoming, and mission-oriented space for the future. Paul’s overriding concern in this letter is to convince the churches in Galatia that they are in danger of falling into error – the error of depending on something other than or as well as, the saving life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the offer of salvation by faith in him alone. He passionately argues for the grace of God as the sole means by which we receive salvation, demonstrating to the church that to continue to observe the Old Testament laws and practices of Judaism is to say that Jesus is not enough.

The settling of this argument in the early days of the church was crucial in freeing the gospel to reach around the world, making disciples in every nation, and at the same time creating one body unified around faith in Christ. Our shared faith is what unites us, not our dress codes, modes of praise, order of public worship, use of musical instruments, types of seating or church architecture. In every land and in every age, the church needs to be alert to the very real danger of holding onto things which were good and valuable in their time, but are now obstacles to the gospel, keeping people at a distance.

Are there things in our church culture which make faith in Jesus look complicated? Are we talking and living in ways which make Christianity sound like a secret society with its own language? Are we so busy pleasing one another, and maintaining traditions which no longer serve the gospel that we have not noticed the mission field on our doorstep? And are we so besotted with our own ways of doing things that we would rather see our churches close than give them up?

Yes, it is painful to let go of traditions in our church which connect us to those who have gone before. Yes, it feels strange to do things differently, modernising our language and relaxing our dress codes. But think a moment… we as God’s people are called to go and find the lost in his name. Jesus said to his disciples, ‘if you love me, you will keep my commands..’ and then, ‘Go and make disciples’. What does it say about our love for Jesus, when our traditions matter to us more than taking his love to the world for which he died?

Our message, good news about Jesus Christ is not complicated – although it is profound in its implications! We have to share the love of God for his world, love which moved him to do for us what we desperately need, and are unable to do for ourselves. As we stop trying to please God, and instead accept that Jesus has provided the way for us to be with God, we enter the freedom which every human being is born to know.

Heavenly Father, hear our prayer as we confess that we so easily complicate and confuse the gospel with our own ways of doing things, and make it hard for people to see the truth. Simplify our thinking, so that we hold fast to grace, to your faithfulness, to the all-sufficient work of Christ. Help us to recognise and reject all those things which muddle and hold us back from proclaiming the gospel clearly. May we never be the cause of anyone failing to meet Jesus by our insistence on tradition or church culture.

Let us humbly and eagerly look to share Christ with your hurting world, for his glory, and in his name we pray, Amen.

Rock solid… I fall, it holds me.

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Hail to the Lord’s anointed; great David’s greater Son!
Hail, in the time appointed, His reign on earth begun!
He comes to break oppression, to set the captive free,
To take away transgressions, and rule in equity.

He comes, with succour* speedy, to those who suffer wrong:
To help the poor and needy, and bid the weak be strong:
To give them songs for sighing, their darkness turned to light,
Whose souls, condemned and dying, were precious in His sight.

O’er every foe victorious, He on His throne shall rest;
From age to age more glorious, all blessing and all-blest.
The tide of time shall never His covenant remove;
His name shall stand for ever His changeless name of love.

(J Montgomery, 1771-1854, * denotes comfort and help)

Hear my cry, O God: listen to my prayer.

From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe.

I long to dwell in your tent for ever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings. For you have heard my vows, O God; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.

(Ps 61.1-5)

Faith.. is the art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted, in spite of your changing moods…. This rebellion of your moods against your real self is going to come anyway. That is why faith is such a necessary virtue; unless you teach your moods “Where they get off”, you can never be either a sound Christian or even a sound atheist, but just a creature dithering to and fro, with its beliefs really dependent on the weather and the state of its digestion. Consequently one must train the habit of faith.

(CS Lewis, Mere Christianity, Ch 12, 1952: Geoffrey Bles)

I have written before about the challenge of dealing with the gulf between the truth of our state as God’s beloved, rescued and adopted children, and our daily life with all its challenges and the deafening noise of our physical world continually drowning out everything else. Well, these past few days have brought a renewed sense of that divide, to the point where I feel almost like two different people!

On the one hand, there is the person I am when I sit quietly with my bible, or manage to take time to walk and pray, sharing my thoughts and life, my concerns and joys with my Father; then there is the other person, whose self-centred thoughts and preoccupations are entirely fixated on personal matters, as if this life were all there is. The former knows in some small measure, that she matters and that she is loved, and that there is hope and peace in Jesus. The latter knows only that she is continually failing to be the person she ought to be – in relationships and in responsibilities – and every day begins with the dread recitation of what must be done, and the knowledge of her impending failure to do the right things as well as they should and could be done.

As Lewis would observe, I have not mastered the art of mastering my moods!! Instead, they master me, and especially the dominant torment of self-doubt, which takes the truth of my indwelling imperfection and sin, and magnifies it to a crippling burden.

In these painful days, my only sure refuge is the towering shadow of the cross, the sacrificial loving of my Saviour, and his promise to come again and make all things new. I must preach the gospel to myself, and beg for the aid of Christ by his Spirit, to deliver me from this nauseating self-centredness, to see and love others and above all to see and love Jesus more. For this reason, I was recently encouraged as I sang the great hymn which I have quoted in part above – it has nothing to do with my moods, and everything to do with truth, with the unchanging nature of God the Father of our Lord Jesus, and his purposes to make all things new, unifying and perfecting creation and the church. I am a small part of that purpose, and no matter how I may perceive what I do, the reality of what God IS doing does not change. I desperately need to get that truth in the front of my mind day-by-day, in order to master the moods which would otherwise master me.

Almighty God, Father of my Lord Jesus, have mercy on your children as we struggle to hold faithfully to the truth of what you are doing, and have made us. Help us to resist the enemy of our souls and to detect his lies even when they are clothed in piety and dusted with grains of truth. Deliver us and protect us from the evil one, who longs to bind us, powerless and fruitless, in our own dark thoughts and self-pity. Make us more worthy of your name, and more full of Jesus, for His name’s sake and for our blessing, Amen.

Us…. and them!

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I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead, he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic*church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen

(the Apostles’ creed: *signifies worldwide or universal)

I [therefore], a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

There is one body and one Spirit – just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call – one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

(Eph 4.1-6)

In the last week, I have worshipped in three very different contexts – a’reformed’ presbyterian church, an Anglican cathedral, and an Anglican church plant in a primary school. Three very different styles of building, of music, of clerical clothing; and in each one I was welcomed, spiritually nourished and refreshed, and glad to lift my voice with my neighbours in praise and in prayer. And then today I had a conversation with a dear friend who was expressing the sense of unease she feels in attending a church belonging to a denomination that appears to embrace and endorse a very wide spectrum of belief about God’s word, and as a result includes people who believe very different things from what she feels to be true. I get it; I am in that same denomination! But we were reflecting on the fact that Jesus never mentioned denominations! They are a human construct, and as such deeply flawed, reflecting humanity’s narrowness, judgemental tendencies, and fondness for defining itself by excluding others. There is no such thing as the perfect church…..

So what are we called to be as members of these flawed institutions? Paul makes it clear that our goal should remain the same – pursuing unity around the completed work of Christ who is our peace with God and with one another through his saving work and the forgiveness which he has achieved for us. We are to unite around the truth revealed in Scripture – that we worship one Lord, and belong to one body; we are animated by one Spirit, and share one faith.

The Apostles’ creed, which I have included in full above, is a tremendous aid to focussing our minds on that one faith – it sets out the core beliefs of the church down the centuries, and reminds us what really matters, and what must be held fast. There will inevitably be things which believers disagree about, but Paul is exhorting his readers to concentrate on the important things, and to sit lightly to the lesser ones. If a church – whether a local one, or an entire denomination – denies these core beliefs, that is a different matter, and must be challenged.

So as a believer in a local church in a messy denomination, where boundaries are unclear, I give thanks that this creed remains core to our identity, and I want to work as a member of my local church to help my fellow believers to grow in confidence in these core truths, and to share them with those who do not yet know Jesus in all his saving love and power. It is not fitting that we should spend all our energies judging and condemning those in other churches for not being like us! Our society is already sick of, and disillusioned by, the multiple divisions which have marred the church down the years, and it is dishonouring to Christ as Lord, and to the unifying energies of the Spirit to promote further division.

God, our Father Almighty, your children confess their judgemental and critical spirit with shame and contrition. We have dishonoured you, and broken the bond of peace which our Lord Jesus, your Son, won for us by his death.

Grant us the humility and gentleness to bear with one another in love; let us be so eager to love our brothers and sisters that we sit lightly to those things which we disagree on, and rejoice in the shared foundations of our faith. May we be slow to judge, and quick to forgive, remembering how you forgive us.

May we walk in a manner worthy of those for whom Jesus died, and rose again, and who will be raised in turn to share his glory – how surprised we will be to meet some people there whom we have dismissed – and how surprised they may be to see us!! In the name of Jesus, to whom we owe it all, Amen.

I asked… He answered

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I call with all my heart; answer me, O Lord, and I will obey your decrees.

I call out to you; save me and I will keep your statutes. I rise before dawn and cry for help; I have put my hope in your word. My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promises.

Hear my voice in accordance with your love; preserve my life, O Lord, according to your laws. Those who devise wicked schemes are near, but they are far from your law.

Yet you are near, O Lord, and all your commands are true. Long ago I learned from your statues that you established them to last for ever.

(Ps 119.145-152)

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

(Jas 1.2-5)

In facing our trials, we long for wisdom – and it is God’s delight as Father to provide all that we need. His purpose for us is to be mature and complete, as James says, lacking nothing that is required to make us Christ-like in every way. And his purpose is informed by his love, that compassionate, relentless, clear-sighted love which while grieving over our trials, yet rejoices in their effectiveness in shaping us.

When I find myself in a period of trial – and actually we are in this season most of the time in some way or another aren’t we?! – what I desire most is wisdom to know how I ought to be conducting myself, in order that the suffering might be fruitful and honouring to God. I don’t want to waste these things which – when fully surrendered to God – are for my transformation according to his will and for his glory. I want to remain teachable, humble, and hungry for the deep work of the Holy Spirit which will result in maturity of faith and fruitfulness in witness. And so I ask…. Lord, what do you want me to be doing in these days? What should I be thinking, reading, listening to?

I have found, time after time, that it is through his body, the church, that God answers this question most directly. As I share my situation, my fellow pilgrims share the ways that God has comforted and strengthened them; their own ‘go-to’ readings, or perhaps particular talks which  – by the miracles of technology – I may hear for myself many years after they were first delivered. I firmly believe that to deny my fellow believers the truth about my situation is to deny myself many opportunities for God to reach me with healing from his word! We know that our own physical bodies are a miracle of constant inter-communication, so that when all is going as it should, all the right resources are made available to any part in need of healing. Is not the church also a body, meant to function in this practical way? If I deny my need, keep it secret and think I must only tell my Father, then I deny others the opportunity to serve and bless me. I love to help others, why should I not then allow them to help me?!

Once again, it is my testimony that the church is pointing me to the Saviour, to the word, to the truth which alone can anchor and heal me. I need to grow in love, and the best way to do this is to make a choice about what I read, think and listen to – there are good things which of themselves are not helpful just now. In the same way as a patient might pursue a particular diet for a season, in order to aid healing and strength, so also I am required to discipline my actions and the influences to which I am exposed. Last Sunday, the song which concluded the morning service was a modern adaptation of an old favourite, and one which perfectly summed up this discipline. I quote a few lines here, and commend the full version to you!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace

Jesus, to You we lift our eyes
Jesus, our glory and our prize
We adore You, behold You, our Saviour ever true
Oh Jesus, we turn our eyes to You

Turn your eyes to the heavens
Our King will return for His own
Every knee will bow, every tongue will shout,
‘All glory to Jesus alone!’

(Sovereign Grace Music, 2019)

Honestly…?

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I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord; “Lord, save me!”

The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the unwary; when I was brought low, he saved me. Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.

(Ps 116.1-7)

One of [the Pharisees], an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment.

(Matt 22.36-38)

The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

(1Tim 1:5)

I believe that we are called to be honest with one another as fellow pilgrims, and that by doing so, we actually support one another in our journey of faith through a life which will bring many challenges as well and joys. I know for myself that I desperately need to be honest in my relationships, and that where I feel I cannot share, I also feel I cannot truly love.

In this season, where I am floundering and failing, and unable to make a true judgement of my own thoughts, motives and actions, the opportunity to share, and to receive the loving acceptance and true observation of others is an anchor and a blessed comfort to me. Only my heavenly Father sees my heart, mind and deepest motivations, but my fellow pilgrims can tell me if they see obvious sin, rebellion and can also reassure me as to goodness. If others whom I know to be godly, mature and loving believers are able to recognise something of worth in me, then I may be comforted!

I am therefore so thankful for the blessed acceptance and kindness which I received recently from the fellowship of my bible study group – women who don’t really know me, but whose hearts are full of the love of Christ and who seek him.

I am profoundly thankful that I have the example of the psalmists in praying with complete honesty, in casting themselves completely and consistently upon the care of God – taking him at his word and claiming his love, compassion, provision, protection and all other good and necessary things. My Father knows, absolutely knows me, and longs for my honest surrender and offering up of all my confusion, distress and uncertainty.

I am profoundly relieved to know that I am secure upon the foundation which is Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour whose complete saving work for me is the only grounds of my security and hope. I could, and do, wish that after all the years of God’s investment in my life, I were a more worthy testament to his goodness.. instead of a building fit for a king, I remain a mere collection of rubble and bricks, with the faintest outline of a structure and no glory to speak of! But my foundation is Christ, and he will not fail me; I am his precious charge and will never be abandoned.

Oh Father, I don’t know what I need; I can’t trust my own understanding or discern the reality of my heart and motivation. I don’t want to stay stuck in this fruitless, stunted condition, a rebuke to the gospel and cause for shame. But I don’t know what to do. In your mercy, be my help and send me the aid that you know I need – let me recognise and embrace it, finding comfort, courage and growing in godliness.

It is only in being filled with love for you that I have any hope for meaning and purpose and joy in the life which remains to me. My zeal is so feeble, and my love so faint – it seems to have little power to hold me in the darkness, and I seem fruitless. I am afraid to ask to love you more, afraid that you might answer through more trials, through pain and suffering. I am ashamed of this fear, but it is very real.

Have mercy on your fearful child, she trembles to ask great things of you, fearing the cost. Forgive her fear, her doubt, and make her love you more – for Jesus’ sake, Amen.

‘Tis mystery all….

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I cannot tell, why he whom angels worship should set his love upon the sons of men, 
Or why as shepherd he should seek the wanderers, to bring them back, they know not how nor when.
But this I know, that he was born of Mary when Bethlehems' manger was his only home, and that he lived at Nazareth and laboured; 
And so the Saviour, Saviour of the world has come.

I cannot tell, how silently he suffered as with his peace he graced this place of tears,
Nor how his heart upon the cross was broken, the crown of pain to three and thirty years.
But this I know, he heals the broken-hearted and stays our sin and calms our lurking fear, and lifts the burden from the heavy laden;
For still the Saviour, Saviour of the world is here.
(W.Y. Fullerton, 1857-1932)

How we struggle to live with mystery, with the impenetrable and apparently irreconcilable truths which lie at the heart of God’s revelation of His character, purposes and presence with his people in their brokenness and pain. I continue to find this difficult, and expect that no matter how long I am granted to live before I go home to glory, I will always wrestle with it. And is that not fitting, and right?! What kind of God would we have if we could fathom his nature and make sense of all his doings? No God at all, and certainly not the one we so desperately need!

I have come to terms with the fact that I will always be baffled, and left to wonder at all that is so utterly beyond me – and sometimes, I can join with the psalmist and be at peace with that unknowing. At other times, it grates, and I have to learn all over again that I am limited, created and as yet unfinished – and only God who is good and just and perfectly loving can make sense of all that happens.

And so, as I remember the events of Palm Sunday, and the coming of Messiah to Jerusalem, lowly and riding on a donkey while crowds cheered to welcome him, acclaiming a coming king, I take comfort from the fact that Jesus’ own followers were completely confused about what was happening, and why Jesus was behaving as he did! Human imagination is limited and we readily ascribe to the actions of others a meaning which suits our world view and desires – the crowds (and some disciples) were looking for deliverance from Roman rule, for a military leader, and although Jesus had consistently stepped away from any such role, yet they couldn’t see past it.

As the week unfolded, Jesus would continue to confound expectations, and many would be disappointed in his failure to fit their mould of what Messiah would be like. As a result, by the Friday morning, they were ready – in their resentment at his behaviour and the pain of dashed hopes – to call for his death at the instigation of the priests. This was none of Jesus’ doing, it all arose from their blindness to the much bigger picture of what Messiah would be and do, of God’s purpose to bring salvation to all humankind through this one perfect sacrifice, defeating the power of evil and inaugurating the heavenly kingdom among us. I must not judge those crowds for their narrow vision – I would very probably have fallen into the same trap, and indeed, the scripture clearly states that in our rebellion against God, we have all rejected the Messiah and brought about his death for our sakes. It was for me, for you that Jesus embarked upon this path of suffering and death.

Almighty God, and everlasting Father, I confess before you today that the mystery of Jesus’ suffering and death – your plan for salvation – is great, and I cannot comprehend it. I confess that sometimes I am ashamed at my limited understanding, and even afraid to share the gospel in case others mock me for making a connection between Jesus’ death over 2000 years ago, and our lives today. Forgive me Lord, and let me be bold to say what I DO know, and what you have mercifully made real in my life because of faith in Jesus. 

For this I know, You have healed my broken heart and given me joy; You have made me whole and delivered me from the power of shame; Your voice of love and your arms of tender care have never failed me; Your presence is my life and my hope is in you alone.

Let me then rejoice in the mystery of salvation, and throw myself unhesitatingly into the security of your loving purpose. There is no need to understand, only the glorious reality of living in what was achieved by my Saviour, good news to be shared with all who will hear it! 

All glory, praise and honour to Jesus Christ, my Lord, Amen!

Yes, but….

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Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(Matt 5.3-10)

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death…. You .. are not controlled by the sinful nature but by the Spirit.. and he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who lives in you.. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children… in the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

(Rom 8. 1&2,8,11,15&16)

One of the most wonderful things about being a believer in Jesus, a follower of the Master and precious to Him, is that we are fully equipped against our old accusing enemy, the Satan who continually desires to distract, disable and drag down God’s people by asking, “Did God really say?”

It is a favourite ruse of our enemy to whisper so closely in our ears that we mistake his words for our own, and are thrown into distress and confusion! And when the whispers are telling half-truths, they are even harder to differentiate from the actual glorious reality of God’s true words about us. This situation calls for wisdom, and also humility: wisdom to weigh the words before we react to them; and humility to recognise that any assault by our enemy necessitates an immediate call for help from our great and victorious elder brother, Jesus. God has promised that He will always be with us, and that He is greater than our enemy – that implacable foe is losing; every day, in every way, he is losing ground to the true King of Kings. In Jesus, we find all the help that we need – his peace, his all-sufficient atonement for sin, his wisdom and his power to keep us and bring us safe home to glory.

As I contemplated this, I wondered whether we sometimes make it easier than it should be for our enemy to mislead us. When a soldier takes their eye off their commanding officer, off the goal and off the instructions which they have received, it is much easier for their enemy to take them unawares, to injure and disarm them. As a follower of Jesus, I have a clear view of my commander – in – chief, and I know what he has called me to do. But sometimes I get confused about how to work it out in practice, and then I hear that insidious whisper that turns my attention inward, away from Jesus and towards my own weakness, errors and disobedience.

If my focus is on the ways that I remain prone to sin – that weakness which will only finally pass when my mortal body is destroyed – then I am playing into my enemy’s hand, and he can tie me up in knots of regret, unproductive mourning over my state, and unhealthy self-preoccupation. Yes, it is true that sin is going to remain part of my life until I die… BUT, that is not the whole truth!

The bigger picture, the full and glorious truth is that I am completely forgiven, and that an incredible, abundant, merciful love has paid completely for all that I will ever get wrong, and I am free to live without guilt or shame. The accuser cannot use my past or my current failures as means to bind me in the darkness – Christ’s death and resurrection has broken that power.

Heavenly Father, I rejoice today in your grace and mercy. I stand in Christ alone, the object of your redeeming love, and praise you.

I choose to focus not on my sin, and all the negativity which so readily drags my eyes from Jesus. I choose to focus on your love and abounding goodness, shown to me for His sake. Let my theme not be of my own weakness and failure, but Jesus’ beauty and power. When I am aware of letting you down, may I not fall into misery, or self-condemnation, but rather turn that awareness into an eager embracing of your grace; into praise for my sufficient Lord and Saviour, and into joyous abandonment to his loving care. To His Name be all the glory, Amen!

Free indeed….

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For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow, ….. sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we can serve the living God?

For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with hands.. but into heaven itself, so that he might now appear in the presence of God for us. He did not do this to offer himself many times, as the high priest enters the sanctuary yearly with the blood of another. Otherwise he would have had to suffer many times since the foundation of the world. But now he has appeared one time, at the end of the ages, for the removal of sin by the sacrifice of himself.

(Heb 9.13&14, 24&25)

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

(Rom 1.16&17)

It is hard to explain the liberation which comes to a believer as they grow into an ever fuller understanding of what the gospel has actually achieved for them. For some people, there may be dramatic deliverances from addictions or burdens; for others, the changes will be gradual and almost imperceptible.. but all of us can look back with profound thanksgiving and say with John Newton, “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be and by the grace of God I am what I am.” (quoted in The Christian Spectator, vol 3, 1821).

The foundation and motive power of this change is Jesus Christ, our Saviour, Redeemer, and great High Priest. It is as the work of Christ in all its multifaceted beauty is worked into our lives by the indwelling of the Spirit that we see change happening. The gospel has the power to overturn all our prejudices; to break down all our barriers; to pour the cleansing flood of forgiveness and love through all our fractured relationships and transform every aspect of our lives. As we catch glimpses of this power at work – observing with wonder and joy how God is changing us deep within – we are further motivated to cling closer, to ask for deeper healing and enabling, to trust and act more boldly in Jesus’ name.

The once-for-all-ness of Jesus’ sacrifice is particularly powerful to me at this time, as I am learning to live free from the power of shame and guilt. This is what Jesus died to do for me – to deliver me from these twin slave-masters who will render believers powerless to love and live for Christ if they get a chance. But because Jesus’ death was a sufficient once-for-all sacrifice, breaking the power of sin (and guilt and death) over me, then I need not be ashamed anymore of sin when it happens. My Lord delights to remind me, whenever I present myself stained and bruised from another bout with the remnant of sin, that he has paid the price and that I do him honour when I come needing his cleansing, encouraging and the embrace of love to set me back on the path of joyful obedience.

His patience with me will never run out; I need never fear that I have been ‘too much’ for the divine temper – even just writing this makes it clear what a ridiculous notion that is. And yet, for how many years has that twisted notion been simmering away in the background of my mind? How many times have I ended up mired in doubt, wallowing in self-pity and needless gloom, when my Lord is beseeching me to come close without fear and be comforted?

What good cause I have as a believer, to boast in Jesus and in the glorious work which God has done through him for all who will accept it! I want to be so proud of the gospel, of my Jesus, that there is no room for shame anymore. My need of the gospel is in itself another cause to glorify God – and not a cause for shame, but for rejoicing in the abundance of divine provision.

Heavenly Father, how marvellous it is to know the power of your redeeming love in Christ Jesus our Lord; to know it day by day as the very breath and power of life in me. How glorious to recognise the power of that gospel at work in my life, setting me free from guilt and shame so that I run to you in my every need, with the childlike confidence which comes from being loved and accepted absolutely.

O let my life continue to be shaped by your patient and loving care; let me be more and more preoccupied with the beauty and power of Jesus, more proud of my Saviour and eager to share him with those around me, so that shame and guilt never again exert any hold over my mind and heart. For his name’s sake, Amen.

What kind of pilgrim?

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As for God, his way is perfect. The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he causes me to stand on the heights.

(Ps 18.30-33)

Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.”..

Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs… And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk in that way;… But only the redeemed will walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them.

(Isa 35.3&4,6-8,10)

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

(Matt 7.13&14)

“I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.”

(Jn 14.6)

I was privileged on a recent holiday to spend 3 days walking in the Italian Alps, to be immersed in the glory of creation and slowed right down to that moment-by-moment focus which deeply refreshes the spirit. Sometimes the path wound through trees, by fast flowing icy streams, gently climbing or descending so that I could relax and enjoy the view, take in the scents and sounds. At other times, the conditions were so demanding that every step was a matter of careful deliberation, of balance and of courage – ‘Don’t look down, just move slowly, don’t think about how loose all these stones are.. ‘ This was a regular internal conversation!

I had brought a book to read at night – choosing ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ by John Bunyan, and finding that although the language feels alien, yet the truth it portrays is as powerful as ever, and was reinforced by my daily experience. And as I thought about all the different characters whom Bunyan introduces, I wondered what kind of pilgrim I am? As a child, reading ‘Little Pilgrim’s Progress’ (by Helen L Taylor, 1947), I found myself identifying strongly with Much-Afraid, a young woman much oppressed by her many fears. And I have to confess that she remains the pilgrim with whom I feel most connected – how our fears and doubts can hold us back from the joyous, confident and steady progress which is our Lord’s calling, and for which He has made such ample provision!

The testimony of scripture is that our pilgrimage as God’s beloved, redeemed people is indeed abundantly provided for – we as followers of Jesus, are called followers of the Way, and he has defeated every foe that we may encounter on that road. His victory is ours, and his strength, wisdom and joy are also ours to appreciate and live by on our journey. He is both our journey’s end, and also the means by which we travel; and since he knows the path which we take, nothing surprises or takes him unawares. He has called us and brought us safely through the narrow gate onto the path which is the Way of holiness – his holiness, not ours – and no matter whether we pass through green valleys and by clear refreshing streams, or toil over high and exposed mountain passes, yet we go in his company, by his strength, and with our eternal home awaiting us.

If, at some of the most exposed and dangerous parts of our walk, I had allowed fear to take hold of my mind, then I would have been in even greater danger! Fear doesn’t solve the problem, or make it go away, it only paralyses and postpones the ordeal… When I chose to trust my guide, to trust that there was a path where none seemed visible, and to step out – quite literally at one point over the edge – in faith, then I found the way open before me. What a marvellous picture of our journey in faith this is; to recognise the fear, to name it, and then to put my trust in my guide, the Way himself, and to step forward and – trembling at times, tearful at times – tread the path a little nearer home.

May our great guide, our Master and the Victor over all that might frighten us into immobility on the Way, continue to inspire us to follow his leading, depending on his strength, and giving him the glory as we travel homewards!

Am I calling God a liar?

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“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws,, you will be my people and I will be your God.”

(Ez 36.25-28)

Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout aloud O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The Lord has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy. The Lord, the King of Israel is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say…’The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing’

(Zeph 3.15-17)

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

(1 Pet 2.9)

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight… In [Christ] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

(Eph 1.3,4&8,9)

As Jesus-believers, we are warned not to think too much of ourselves, to be wary of arrogance, false pride, a ‘holier-than-thou’ attitude to our neighbours. The whole thrust of the gospel is that of ourselves, we are helpless and dead in our sins, and it is only God’s grace which can deliver and transform us – we have nothing to boast about for ourselves! Rather, our boast is in our Lord and Saviour, in his power, and beauty and love and sacrifice. BUT, there is a place for a proper pride, a genuine assurance in who we are as God’s beloved children, and that is what I want to think about today.

The word of God is absolutely emphatic in its description of those who are saved by faith – we are now alive with divine life; we are purified by the blood of Jesus; we are God’s priestly people, and have free access into His holy presence. We are beloved, accepted, rejoiced over with singing – all the time and forevermore. It may not look like it to the watching world, but our glory is – like Christ’s – hidden from their eyes until his return when it will be revealed in full. We are as believers what God always intended us to be, and we must never be ashamed of that, nor misrepresent it. What God has called good, we must not dishonour by calling bad, shameful or unworthy.

Our awareness of the sin which will persist until we die must not be allowed to overshadow the reality of what grace has done in our lives, and of what God says is true about us. If I insist on dwelling on and bemoaning sin – which God has completely forgiven in Christ – then I am turning my back on God’s grace and insulting him. He does not continually condemn his children, why should we do so? A false humility, an insistence on our unworthiness and refusal to recognise what Christ has accomplished for us is not a good witness. It is a trap of the evil one, a false self-righteousness, when we refuse to live in the joyous freedom of those whose sins are completely forgiven. Yes, we are sinners, BUT we are forgiven and reborn into new life, and to deny this by living with an attitude of resigned embattling against sin is to call our God a liar, to deny the completeness of Christ’s work on the cross. May we be spared such shameful folly!

Almighty God, Holy and Good and altogether worthy of all praise, I thank you today for the power of Christ to save, to re-birth and make new. I rejoice in what you tell me is true about myself as your beloved child; I accept your word as the only real source of truth and stand proudly as your daughter, a royal princess and priestess of the good news. O let me never dishonour or misrepresent your grace by failing to live in the freedom which that blood won for me on the cross! For the glory of Jesus my Lord, Amen.