Category Archives: Christ’s sufficiency

I am enough…because I belong

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How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard.. for there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life for evermore.

(Ps 133)

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.

(Rom 12.4-6)

For we were all baptised by one Spirit into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free…The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!”…On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable…God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honour to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.

(1 Cor 12.13,21-23,24-26)

When people are saved by faith, made new in Christ and come into God’s family, they do not suddenly become different people. Instead, what happens is that their essential and unique qualities – weaknesses and strengths, gifts and limitations – are all brought into the community where they belong and thus find purpose, fulfillment and support. As creatures made in the image of God, we are formed for community and relationship, not independence. We are not made to be sufficient of ourselves, but to be needy! Is that not a huge relief?! It certainly is to me; to find that I am right to long for others to share burdens, to rejoice in the skills and gifts of those who tackle jobs which I am not fit for, to celebrate that when we serve one another, God is glorified, we are blessed, and his will is done! I am enough, because I belong to the family of God, and so I face nothing alone. I rejoice in my dependance.

God crafted each of us to play our own specific role, and no other. I have received my own specially chosen bouquet of graces or gifts from my heavenly Father, and I can rest in his appointing. The devil may tempt me with comparisons, so that I become discontent with my own graces, and envy those which are more spectacular or apparently more useful. But I cling to God’s promise that I am enough, that he delights in the complete package and simply desires that I make myself available to the rest of the Body of Christ, since who and what I am belongs to them. I withhold my gifts and graces to their detriment… I may be called to be the equivalent of some small or unseen part of the body – but since God has appointed me to the task, I seek to be content..Some of us may be feet, but others must be veins, kidneys or lungs, otherwise, where is the body!!

I am fully known by God – whose perfect love is in no way diminished by my past, present or future. He has known the end from the beginning, and set his heart upon me – I am accepted and he delights in me as his child. I am enough, because he is my Father, and his perfect love asks nothing of me in return. I do not need the approval of others, because the God of the universe, the greatest and most glorious being has called me his beloved daughter, and brought me home to live with him. I delight in being fully known, and can in turn give myself to others because my heart is secure in him.

I am enough because I am renewed daily through the spirit dwelling within me. As I continue to trust in Christ for salvation, and receive forgiveness and mercy in every time of need, I live and labour in the strength which God gives me. Because I am completely forgiven, I am enough – I have nothing to earn, nothing to prove, and nothing to boast about. My sufficiency is Christ’s and I can rejoice in being daily his debtor for all that I need.

God’s plan for his children in salvation is perfect, and we can be sure that he will carry it to completion. We can rest in the sufficiency of his provision for everything we need, and in the wisdom which puts us into a community where we are designed to thrive. God’s purpose for us as unique parts of the body of believers should bring an end to comparisons. Instead we live a life of mutual love, interest in and celebration of God’s beauty in each person. I am called to be 100% who I am for the good of my brethren – I am here for them, and they for me, and together, we are enough.

The heaviness of holiness

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For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. All the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendour and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary….Worship the Lord in the splendour of his holiness; tremble before him all the earth..then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the Lord, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his truth.

(Ps 96.4-6, 9,12&13)

This is what the Lord says to the house of Israel: “Seek me and live;..Seek the Lord and live…Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. Hate evil, love good…Woe to you who long for the day of the Lord! Why do you long for the day of the Lord? That day will be darkness, not light…I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them…but let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never failing stream!

(Am 5.4,6,14&15,18,21,22&24)

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

(Rom 3.21-24)

Jesus grew up in a devout Jewish family, with the traditions of temple worship, synagogue teaching, and the books of what we call the Old Testament were his only scripture. We forget this at our peril, and if we avoid studying these books because they make us uncomfortable, or if we claim that we don’t need them in order to understand the gospel, we are in danger of developing a very innaccurate understanding of God. Jesus was not ashamed of the God revealed in the Old Testament(He called him “Father”), he did not dismiss the narratives, or set aside the wisdom and the prophets. In fact, he claimed that these scriptures foretold his coming and that he was their fulfillment.

Our housegroup is currently studying the prophetic words given to Amos, a short book, full of grievous warnings of judgement to come on the nation of Israel. In fact, they would shortly be invaded, their rulers captured, and would never exist again as a distinct entity – the end had come. At the time when Amos spoke, they were enjoying political prominence and economic prosperity – but there was a huge gulf between rich and poor, and the religious systems were approving, rather than challenging this situation. The elite were secure and scornful of the threat which Amos described, deaf to repeated entreaties to see through their worldly security to their real danger in the eyes of a holy God. Their religious observances made them feel safe, but through the prophet, God speaks of his abhorrence and anger at their behaviour.

This message recurs through the narratives and prophetic books, as God calls out to his people to remember that their hope lies in him and not in rituals, good deeds, and an abundance of religious laws and observances. God longs for their hearts to be devoted to him, to be truly Lord of their lives – so that good deeds flow as a part of their worship and obedience, not in order to earn his favour.

The truth is that God’s holiness is a burden too great to be borne by fallen humanity. Our innate sinfulness makes it impossible for us to be devoted to him as he desires – and the Old Testament bears witness to this as the covenant people repeatedly fall into idol worship and rebellion, or legalistic and superficial adherence to God. But all through the stories and prophecies, it is clear that when people recognise their sinfulness, realise how completely it alienates them from God who alone gives them hope, they throw themselves upon his mercy, and by faith depend upon him for salvation. This is the faith which Abraham displayed in trusting that God would fulfill the promise – that faith which was credited to him as righteousness.

The message of the Old Testament is that humanity needs a saviour, one who can deal with their sin, and transform them to live as God’s people ought to live – creating in them new hearts and transforming their minds by his power so that we can begin to live truly as companions of a holy God. We need a saviour to bear the proper wrath of holiness against sin, to see that justice is done, so that God can welcome us into his presence and call us his own.

The prophets call us to a profound awareness of our own sin and helplessness; they magnify the holiness of God until it is a great weight which threatens to destroy us. And so they greatly glorify our Lord Jesus, who in his life, death and resurrection opened the only way by which sinful humanity can enter into the awesome presence of the Almighty. Let us rejoice in the one who came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, and give him all our praise!

 

Living with imperfections..

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“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me..When..you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways…I will hold you accountable for his blood..Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! ‘”

(Ezek 33.7&8,11)

“Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. for I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God..”

(Acts 20.26&27)

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection…Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on…Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me, put it into practice.

(Phil 3.10&12, 4.9)

Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith…

(Heb 13.7)

The apostle Paul is revealed through his words – recorded in the book of Acts, and in his pastoral letters to churches and leaders – as a passionate evangelist and church planter, consumed with one desire – to make Christ known across the ancient world. His single-minded pursuit of this goal took him through dreadful suffering and persecution, and enriched his life as he saw God transforming lives through the preaching of the gospel.

Paul was urgent, earnest, and fully aware of the responsibility which God had laid upon him – to call the wicked to repentance and faith through Christ. In his powerful final address to his beloved friends in Ephesus, he declares himself ‘innocent’, a watchman who had fulfilled his calling and warned of the coming judgement and present offer of salvation. No one could accuse him of withholding good news from them; their guilt would be on their own heads for rejecting God’s grace.

Paul knew that he was not perfect, indeed he refers on several occasions to his ongoing weakness and struggle. But, it is not that which defined his ministry, it was his tenacious obedience, and total dependence upon Christ for salvation and acceptance with God. When Paul invites his readers to imitate him, it is not because everything in his life was holy and without fault. Rather it is because he knows it is not, and he has sought on every occasion to model how the believer should conduct themselves in light of that knowledge.

As redeemed sinners, we are free from the fear of sin because we have full forgiveness whenever we need it, and the burden of guilt is taken from us. Our sin no longer defines us, and cannot hinder God in the working out of his purposes. We are on the winning side and although our enemy is powerful, our captain is victorious and our very struggles are – by his grace – working out for our blessing and his glory.

When the writer to the Hebrews invites the reader to imitate their leaders, it is faith which is mentioned, not perfect lives. What is faith? It is the assurance of things not seen – our promised eternal life at home in glory, our future perfection and the full realisation of the sanctifying work of Christ in us. Faith is depending upon God’s promises, and basing our lives on the truth of what he says about us – forgiven, justified, adopted, beloved, glorious. This kind of faith does not pretend that there is no sin left, nor is it obsessed by the fear of sin, but rather it knows the quickest way to the Father’s side, to the mercy-seat, to the fresh cleansing fountain of forgiveness and the strength of Christ in us to resist temptation and if we fall, to get up in confidence that God is with us and we can keep going.

This is how we live with imperfections, by imitating Paul and others who have taught and modelled the christian life for us – as a persevering, a dogged and cheerful obedience which knows that we are not earning salvation, but living in it. This side of death, we cannot know complete freedom from our weaknesses, and from the pain of sin in the world. But we can live free from fear of those things, because Christ has conquered them, has promised that none of them can separate us from him nor prevent the completion of his work.

God grant us a burning desire to be holy for him, total dependance on Christ’s saving work and the Holy Spirit’s power so that as we press on, we will indeed be changed increasingly into the likeness of our glorious captain, to whom be all the praise and honour!

 

Surely, he is worthy!

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“Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other….Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, ‘ In the Lord alone are deliverance and strength’.”

(Isa 45.22-24)

..Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the  name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

(Phil 2.9-11)

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation….”to the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.”

(Rev 3.14&21)

Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?..”See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll…Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the centre of the throne….Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!

(Rev 5.2,5&6, 12)

When I am all at sea, bewildered, afraid and anxious, it is a joy to spend time simply considering the names and titles which Jesus receives in the bible. What comfort it is, to let the authority of his office anchor and settle me; when I choose to hold onto the truth about him against all the tossing and troubling storms of life.

There is simply no one like Jesus. All the most admirable and exalted human beings who ever lived cannot hold a candle to him. Their moral purity, or creativity; their passionate commitment and faithfulness to a cause; their achievements in leadership or development; their victories in war and their statesmanship in peace…all are so much dross when compared with my Lord Jesus.

He is the author of creation, and he will pronounce the great Amen which winds it all up and inaugurates the glorious day of new creating, when God will come to dwell with his perfected people at last, and all the joyous merriment of the ages will be released in the bridal feast and great adventure which our eternal life promises.

He alone is utterly true, and can testify faithfully to us about the God who is clothed in majesty beyond our penetration, and from whose gaze we shrink because he is so pure and holy. In Jesus, and in him alone, we learn what God is – love. Not the saccharine, indulgent variety, but the searing, sacrificial, relentlessly pursuing variety, which knows and sees the need of the beloved, and will stop at nothing to achieve it. Only this Divine lover could give his beloved what was most desperately needed – new life, forgiveness for sin, and the glorious assurance of being utterly accepted and celebrated forever.

As another calendar year begins, the human story of the world around continues to be dominated by fear, greed, pain and darkness – the fruits of the truth about human hearts. No philosophy, education, social strategy or economic prosperity will ever change the truth about the human heart – it takes God to make the heart new, and in this alone lies our hope. So in the beginning of 2020, as the church prevaricates, neglects the gospel and lacks the vision and passion to act, I rejoice that Jesus is at work completing what was begun on the cross.

I may not see the work, but it is there. I may live in an increasingly troubled, and godless society, where an ever higher price is being paid in human pain for the ‘freedom’ to choose life without God. But my faithful and true witness remains; the ruler of creation is not mocked by the pomposity of human pride and achievement. The ‘Amen’ will make all things new and whole, and I cannot fall from his strong hand.

Praise the Prince of Peace

Praise the Wonderful Counsellor

Praise the Son of the Most High

Praise the Resurrection and the Life

Praise the Light of the World

Praise the Friend of Sinners

Praise the Great High Priest

Praise Immanuel, God with us!

A sure and certain hope!

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Jesus said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms.” Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations…You are witnesses of these things.”

(Luke 24.44-48)

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

(John 20.19&20)

Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him…God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear….therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.

(Acts 2.22-24,32,33&36)

On the eve of Passover, as darkness fell, the city of Jerusalem returned to the business of preparation and observance of the coming feast, a great time of rejoicing and remembering God’s deliverance of the people from Egypt – when many signs and miracles had accredited Moses as God’s servant and they had trusted for deliverance.

The Pharisees and leaders of the religious community were hugely relieved that the trouble with Jesus of Nazareth was over just in time; the body was gone – it didn’t really matter where, there could be no doubts that he was dead because Roman executioners couldn’t risk getting it wrong. The people would forget soon enough, and be content to return to the routines of temple worship, of looking back to God’s faithfulness in the past, and looking ahead to the Christ, the Messiah who was yet to come in power to save them from Rome…

But life would never return to the old ways, because in the quiet tomb, out of sight and in the mystery of God’s power, the Messiah whom the people had so utterly failed to recognise – in spite of the signs and wonders he had done – was not to remain dead, his body would never decay and be gathered into a jar of dry bones for storage…

On the morning of the first day of the week, something happened in that forgotten corner of the city, something utterly outside human comprehension, when the eternal divine erupted into the temporal and earthly, and a dead man breathed again, walked again, talked again! In a body utterly transformed and yet immediately recognisable, he encountered his dearest friends and blew apart their grief, engulfing them in a joy and excitement beyond anything they could have imagined. He that was dead, now lived! The grave had been no more than a resting place for him, and now he was alive – more fully alive than anyone they had ever known.

I sometimes catch a hint of that incredible experience, can almost sense the wonder and the shattering power of realisation, as the women and men who knew Jesus so well held his hands, heard his voice and saw the love and joy and exultation in his eyes as he shared with them the victory which he had realised so completely.

I think we hear that sense of triumph in Peter’s words in Acts as he laid out with brutal clarity for the crowds at Pentecost just what God was doing when Jesus died. This life, this death and above all this resurrection were all God’s doing; in them the eternal plan for redemption was fulfilled. All the signs and wonders had been from God, showing that He was about to achieve a deliverance far greater than that of the Exodus, by means not of slaughtered lambs, but the sacrificial death of the perfect Lamb, the promised Messiah.

This life, death and resurrection are our sure and certain hope for the one deliverance we need – from our own sin and the penalty which it requires. The testimony of the disciples, so carefully recorded for us, is our foundation for belief, and on that we rest.

Today, I rejoice that my Lord lives; that the grave could never hold him; and because of him, I too may live. He has triumphantly completed his work, and I have everything I need. One day I too will know the resurrection power and exultation of a new and perfect body, but even now I can rejoice in the glory and power and mercy of my God, prostrate in wonder and love and soaked through with deep gladness and thanksgiving.

Hallelujah, Christ is risen!

The mercy which is grace..

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For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

(1 Cor 15.9&10)

As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain

(2Cor 6.1)

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgement, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you….We each have different gifts according to the grace given us. 

(Rom 12.3&6)

If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness..He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

(2 Cor 11.30 & 12.9&10)

I have been thinking about how as redeemed, yet still imperfect, followers of Jesus, we are called to live with our own particular package of time, talents and opportunities. Being naturally of a pessimistic turn of mind, I concentrate too much on the things which I get wrong, the many ways I fail to live in a God-honouring way, hurting others and causing myself endless trouble. I am aware that this is in itself unhelpful, and makes me easy prey to the devil’s wiles.

There is perhaps an opposite danger, where a believer might be so confident in their salvation, presuming upon forgiveness, that they become insensitive to their sins and indolent in their service. So what resources are made available to us as believers in this “inbetween” period as we wait and work in our fallen world, with our frail bodies and still shadowed personalities? There are many possible answers, but grace seems to be the most common when the apostles are writing to exhort and encourage their new congregations.

We find the word ‘grace’ being used in two particular ways by the apostles. Firstly, in the sense that we have once and for all received grace in the gift of salvation – we are forgiven, justified, promised eternal life, and adoption into God’s family. Secondly, in the sense of a continual supply of something that we need just as much as we need the air we breathe and the food we eat – a daily necessity which makes life possible and even enjoyable. Our supply of the second depends upon the first – it is only grace-saved sinners who are promised daily-graces in this special way from God.

Each new day is a fresh opportunity for believers to serve and glorify God; and each day, in some way, we all fail to do this perfectly. This is where that daily grace is essential – the fresh forgiveness, the fresh encouragement, the renewed sense of God’s love for us and above all the reminder that our salvation is not dependent upon our performance as believers any more than it was upon our failures as sinners.

Only God can achieve all his purposes, in our lives, in the places where we live and work and witness. We are privileged to see sometimes that we have played a part in that work – but we must never think and act as if by our failures we have in any way made life difficult for God, or caused trouble that he had not expected. It is our stubborn, pervasive pride that makes us think that anything depended upon us, that we mattered in that sense. Only God is big enough to handle the complexities of life, and it should be a relief to us to surrender to his sovereignty and accept his gracious offer to be his partners in some small way.

Thanks be to our good and gracious God, who takes broken people and makes them whole, who weaves all their earnest yet clumsy efforts together into his own work to realise the coming of the kingdom of his son. May that daily grace which meets every need and covers every failure, be also the inspiration for our highest aspirations and most persevering labour, so that our God is glorified and in our weakness, seen to triumph all the more..

It’s all about him..

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Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth…I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

(Ps 57.5,9-11)

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations….” This is what God the Lord says- the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people and life to those who walk on it: “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness..I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.

(Isa 42.1,5-8)

After Jesus said this, he looked towards heaven and prayed: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life; that they may know you, the only true God

(Jn 17.1-3)

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sin, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven

(Heb 1.2&3)

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep..Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet..when he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.

(1Cor 15.20,24,25&28)

Recently I was privileged to be among a gathering addressed by one of the most eminent and respected christian scholars of the last fifty years, and was particularly struck by some comments he made regarding God’s stated aim throughout scripture – to be glorified in all creation. Why, he asked, should we worship God and give him the pre-eminent place? Firstly, because unlike every other being – human or spirit – he is good, powerful, perfect, holy and just, in ways that we cannot begin to conceive. But secondly, because “the universe is made that way”!

All creation – springing from the heart and word of God – has a fundamental principle upon which it is founded, namely that God is supreme, and everything will operate perfectly, in its right place, only when that principle is observed. When humanity rebelled and tore God from the throne of their lives, we violated that founding principle and have been paying the price ever since – all creation became and remains indeed out of balance, unstable, and flawed.

The gospel of Jesus Christ, the good news which comes to us through his life, death and resurrection, is not some sticking plaster remedy for our rebellion, nor some panacea for its bad side-effects. The idea that Jesus died solely for our benefit, to make us happy and to solve our personal problems is a sorry misrepresentation of the magnificent truth. Jesus came to restore order to the universe, to make it possible for EVERYTHING that has ever existed to be in a right relation to God once again. Only by defeating sin and death on the cross, paying the price for our rebellion, could that fundamental imbalance be addressed. But by doing this, Jesus has drawn us into a narrative of unimaginable breadth and majesty – our small lives are now transformed into part of this rising crescendo, this relentless march towards the day when we shall see Christ in all his glory laying everything at his father’s feet.

Until then, we catch only glimpses of what is to come, we hear echoes and distorted chords of the triumph song. But on that day, we will be part of the perfect song which rises for ever in fitting praise to the God who is utterly worthy; we will know ourselves part of a new earth and new heaven which are flawless, and in a perfect submission to God from which springs eternal life of a quality and intensity which we cannot now imagine.

May God, in his mercy, continually raise our eyes to this vision of perfection so that we might see all that happens to us in that light – what does it do for the kingdom, for his glory? When trials come, let us seek to glorify him and see His name lifted high through them. When others look at our lives, may the question on their lips be “Who is this Jesus, who is the God whom you call upon? ”

Let us be all about him…

a profound simplicity..

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The Word became flesh and dwelt among us..John saw Jesus coming towards him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world..I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.”

(Jn 1.14,29&34)

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry…

(Jn 6.35)

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life….I tell you the truth,..before Abraham was born, I am!”

(Jn 8.12&58)

“I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved…I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep..I know my sheep and my sheep know me.

(Jn 10.9,11&14)

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” “Yes, Lord, “she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the son of God, who was to come into the world.”

(Jn 11.25-27)

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me….I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener..I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

(Jn 15.1&5)

“Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever…Behold, I am coming soon..I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End…I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star

(Rev 1.17&18; 22.12&13,16)

There is only one name, given among humankind, by which salvation may be received; only one source of real life, full forgiveness, and hope for eternity. That name is Jesus, the one named because he would save his people from their sins. We need look no further. He alone is qualified to save; and he alone is sufficient to save. It is all very simple, and yet also profoundly magnificent and mysterious beyond our comprehension..

Throughout the account by the apostle John of the life of Jesus, the writer is at pains to draw attention to the uniqueness and sufficiency of this saviour, this Messiah or Christ. As I was reading part of the account, it struck me afresh just how comprehensive those claims are. This is both the offence and the glory of the gospel – that we need look no further; and that all other earnest human endeavours to reach God or to find meaning in life without him, are doomed to failure. While we must be sensitive in sharing the truth about Jesus, we must never suggest that he is “A way, A truth, A path of life”. He has not left us that option, but at every opportunity, claims exclusive status and power.

Jesus of Nazareth, the carpenter, living under Roman rule over 2000 years ago, claimed that he was THE one and only, and called for a response. Many heard and rejected him, but to those who accepted the staggering idea that this man was God’s anointed redeemer, and was God-made-flesh come to deal forever with all that separated the Creator from his beloved children, to them was given life eternal and in this world an undying hope. Nothing else is asked of those who hear that call to respond – simply believe that what he says is true, and receive it for yourself.

How readily we look for ways to earn or deserve such a gift; and how foolish we are in striving. When will we accept that we can NEVER earn it, and that is the wonder and glory of the good news – that we do not need to! All has been done, and in Christ I am at rest, an adored and adopted daughter, with nothing to fear, no need to be troubled by my ongoing failures and sins. All is covered, and by grace all is working together for my blessing and God’s glory.

Let me dwell upon these words until I am full to overflowing with thankfulness for the supreme sufficiency of my Lord, until words fail me to express the wonder and awe which fill my mind when I consider how he meets all my needs, and goes beyond, to show delight in who I am.

From the depths…to the heights

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Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord; O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy. If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning…O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.

(Ps 130.1-7)

I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven. As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till he shows us his mercy.

(Ps 123.1&2)

Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! AMEN!

I turned round …and saw someone “like a son of man”, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash round his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said:”Do not be afraid. I am the first and the last. I am the living one; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever!

(Rev 1.7,12-18)

When I am drowning in sorrow; when I sing my way through songs of longing at church, with tears streaming down my face and no one notices or comforts me; when I wake each day to pick up the same heavy load of seemingly insoluble difficulty; Lord, let me then preach your word to my spirit. I WILL lift my eyes to you; I WILL fix my gaze upon your face: I WILL put my faith in your love and mercy, and trust that even in this dark pit, you have not abandoned me.

When I look around at my community and my country and see congregations growing old and dying; when I see preachers and pastors burning out under loads of unrealistic expectation; when I see church members sitting so lightly to their calling or so weighed down by life that they have no time or energy to invest in growing in their faith and in community with their fellow believers; Lord, let me then preach your word to my spirit. I WILL lift my eyes to your throne; I WILL fix my gaze upon the glory of the risen one: I WILL put my faith in your power and sovereignty, in your plan to bring all things together under the Lordship of my precious Jesus, and in the truth that your love for this broken world – for those who choose to reject you, for those who think that they know you but do not – that love is inextinguishable.

Forgive me Lord, that I fall into despair so easily; my spirit is not strong. Forgive me Lord, that I let my eyes fall down into the darkness around me so easily; my vision is not clear. Forgive me Lord, that I can’t seem to live day by day in the joyful reality of your saving presence with me, and of your inexorable power at work in the world around me; my feet are not strong to stay on the path.

Thank you, that the truth about you does not change, and that when I make the effort to look up, to look towards the throne, there I see not some impersonal, eternally distant being, but my Lord. I see one who in glory bears his scars in a recognisable body, one who speaks my language, and who knows and cares about everything which happens to me.

Restore in me, the hope of your salvation; restore in me, the reality of sin forgiven and guilt removed; restore in me, the wellspring of your love that I might live out that love to those around me.

Restore in your church, a conviction of your love and power to save; restore in your church, a passion to share the transforming truth of sin forgiven and lives restored; restore in your church, a love which transcends denominational boundaries, which sets aside differences in tradition for the sake of serving a glorified and risen Lord.

Have mercy upon us Lord, that we might have the inexpressible joy of seeing men and women across our land coming into the light of your love, and the privilege of serving alongside them in your name. Amen, so let it be!

 

Who are you cheering on?

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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…I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe….I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fulness of God.

Now to him  who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

(Eph 1. 2&3, 17-19; 3.16-21)

What a blessing it is to have friends who share scripture with us, who put God’s word into our hands and minds to encourage, challenge and strengthen us. I received the final verse in this quote recently, from a friend who has known many challenges, and has walked with God through great darkness, but whose continuing faith is a wonderful testimony to God’s power to keep his children at their weakest and most vulnerable.

The whole letter of Paul to the church at Ephesus is massively encouraging – try reading it aloud to yourself, and see if you don’t end up quite overwhelmed with the magnitude of the blessings being poured out on you as the beloved child of an amazing God! It can be a terrific antidote to our small vision of the world, to the very real discouragements and problems which we as individuals, as a church, and as a nation, are facing, to look behind the scenes and be reminded of the great dramatic narrative which is unfolding.

Therefore – as Paul often says – we can take these words and use them not only to encourage ourselves, and one another, but also in praying for one another..If the apostle in writing to christians who were small in number, facing possible persecution on many fronts, and with little political clout to protect them, can write prayers which don’t touch on any of those issues, then we need to learn from him.

How often do we focus on physical needs, the issues of safety and organisation when praying for missionaries and friends? We pray for our children’s health, their education and employment prospects; we pray for good weather for particular occasions, and for job interviews to work out in the way we want. Our God is not in the business of doing our bidding, no matter how holy we think our desires are. He is the untameable, unknowable, all-powerful and utterly holy one, and he is in the business of making his people holy, and of making known his ‘manifold wisdom to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms’ through the church.

Let us learn from the apostle, so that in our prayers for one another we put the important things first – the work of God by his Spirit in his people, that they might show forth his glory. This may mean suffering and loss, it may also mean triumph and fulfilled hopes. Let us not dictate to God how things need to be worked out, but in committing the details to him,  trust that his will is good and perfect and that he has more than enough power to achieve it.

Dear friends, I pray that we might be made strong through the indwelling Spirit, walking each day with our ever-present Saviour, and putting down ever deeper roots into his inexhaustible love. May we grow in that love for one another, so that the church of our Lord Jesus Christ might increasingly be a demonstration of the infinite wisdom of a just, holy, loving and merciful God