YOUR WILL BE DONE!

Posted on 01/11/2013 | Leave a comment

When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”   Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Matthew 8:1-3

When asked, on this unique occasion whether it was his will to heal the man with leprosy, Jesus had no hesitation in declaring “I am willing.” And then he doesn’t even pray for the guy, and the man is healed!

Isn’t it striking that the Son of Man never prayed with the words if it be your will and he never taught his disciples to end their petitions with any such phrase! Believers sometimes pray, tacking on these words in resignation, asking with a sigh of doubt: Lord, if it’s your will … We seem to do this often when praying for someone’s healing.

Sure, he taught them (and us) that their praying must always be undergirded by three most important petitions:

Your name be hallowed

Your kingdom come

Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven

And then he suggests a series of petitions and undoubtedly these are the will of God for us.

The first believers did not appear to ask the Father in any sheepish manner. Look at their approach in their recorded prayers in Acts. The author of The Letter to the Hebrews frequently tells his readers to ask boldly, persistently. The will of the Father must be done – absolutely!

It’s a fact that we believers do not ask the Father, like tentatively, for things such as

Lord, if it’s your will, give me love for others

Lord, if it’s your will, I will give thanks

Lord, if it’s your will, I will follow your ways

In fact these are things we do not ever need to ask for! Rather we give thanks. Again, it is absurd to sincerely pray …

Lord, if it’s your will, make me a disciple of Jesus

Lord, if it’s your will, let me serve you to your glory

Lord, if it’s your will, let me share my wealth with others

Lord, if it’s your will, teach me to bear witness about Jesus

There are things we do not even need to pray about. Just do them! And there are things we do need to pray for. We are promised wisdom from the Lord. The apostle Paul declares that we (note the plural) have the mind of Christ. When we do not know how to pray, Paul instructs us to pray in the spirit with the Helper’s help (Romans 8:26): the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. So in the spirit we are enabled to pray “Your will be done, for sure!”

But if Jesus has instructed his disciples, taught them what he expects, what he commands, is it not unbelief or procrastination or maybe disobedience, when we trot out that little formula, if it be your will?  Are we wanting to have two dollars each way?

What are the commands of Jesus? Receive the Holy Spirit.  Make disciples. Teach the things I have commanded you. Be in the world but not of it. Preach the good news. Heal the sick. Drive out demons. Be my witnesses. Do the works that I have done.

He gave his followers a commission and he expects us, his disciples, to carry it out. Do we really have to pray about whether to get involved with these? To do these things?

We look around us and we grieve that his will is not being done. Ought not this observation charge us with a holy indignation, a desire to confront the powers that pretend to rule the world, the minds of men?  And declare firmly “Your will be done! And we will do it!”

Then perhaps we can act with renewed minds and with sure confidence as the disciples did, as recorded in the gospel accounts and later in the Acts of the Apostles.

Think of a little child asking her father for good things, things that parents are expected to do for their children. What child asks a parent with if it is your will? Then we may ask with confidence and expect to receive, knowing the things of the Kingdom are the will of God. For sure.

“Your will be done! Here! Today!”

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Doubt doubt

Posted on 23/10/2013 | 2 comments

The writers of the New Testament speak from a position of certainty otherwise they would not have written what they did, or faced death and suffering for what they believed and fearlessly proclaimed. O.K. They did not have all the answers. They faced dilemmas and paradoxes. But look at the certainty of the writer at the end of John’s gospel account and also the opening words of his first letter (1 John).

Perhaps we need to clarify what we mean by “certainty” or rather “the need (quest) for certainty”. The unbelieving world must be challenged, head on, with certainty—uncertainty will silence us—challenged, with hope, as the biblical texts mean hope, that is certainty: a sure and certain hope rather than a mere desire or wish.

The “new atheists” appear certain that there is no God, certain that science explains everything, certain that people who believe are ignorant or unintelligent. Richard Dawkins and his ilk make absurd leaps of faith. Never mind that many eminent scientists are believers. Do the unbelievers look for the evidence? Or are they like the marketers of harmful and toxic products –cigarettes is only one example—who live in constant denial of evidence, like flat earthers, like Holocaust deniers, shouting down all other voices. Fundamentalists of the highest order.

The “enlightenment and its sister, western modernity” have removed certainty and replaced it with doubt about the Biblical world view! About everything. Enlightenment philosophers are responsible for so much cynicism and doubt in the West today, seen in the media, in film, art, philosophy, etc.

So what do the scripture writers say is the opposite of faith? Unbelief!  Of course there are many matters which are uncertain. There are paradoxes for us to wonder about and ponder. And if we rush to be dogmatic about some things we too become rabid fundamentalists. There are notable examples of mystery and we must live with these like the Hebrews did, follow their good example and stop trying to have all the answers. There is sometimes no one right answer.

The secret things belong to the Lord our God but the things that are revealed belong to us and out children forever. Deut 29:29.

We people of faith have so much more than mere probability! We have boundless possibility! By faith. Faith in the God who is really there. It has been wisely said that probability breeds uncertainty while possibility gives birth to faith, hearing the promises, the plans, the purposes of the Almighty Lord of Hosts for us, the objects of his eternal love. Certainty.

Tread sensitively everywhere? Tiptoe around sensitive, politicly correct issues? No. No. Shout! Rather tread boldly. Boldly proclaim the mighty salvation through the gospel of Jesus, boldly ask and receive, boldly keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking, boldly believe even against all the odds.

In the Gospel story, Peter wants to walk on water like Jesus. At Jesus’ word “come on Peter”, over the side of the boat he goes, boldly. Until he suddenly takes his eyes of the object and source of his faith, and sinks! Doubt rather than mere uncertainty. Maybe, what I, and many of my brothers and sisters in Jesus have to turn against, is doubt rather than uncertainty.

We all have our times of doubt. This is borne out time and time again in the testimony of countless believers and also the biblical stories of real men and women, stories which never attempt to white-out their failures.

In the real world, you are indeed certain, not doubting, of many matters. You know without a shadow of doubt, your birth date, the names of your family members and friends, children. And many of you, and me, have decided to depend on Him that we shall remain faithful unto Him till the end.

As the apostle Paul wrote to his rep, Titus,

We are filled with hope, as we wait for the glorious return of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ. He gave himself to rescue us from everything that is evil and to make our hearts pure. (Titus 2:12-13)

And he wrote in his second letter to Timothy

Because of this, I suffer also these things: yet I am not ashamed; for I know him whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to guard that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12)

And in his letter to the Romans

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” (Romans 1:16)

We could go on … and on.  This kind of faith sounds like ‘certainty’ to me. Like he said to Thomas (here feel my hands and side!) and the two travellers to Emmaus (O you slow of heart to believe all the prophets!) –doubt is the opposite of certainty. We, like them, are called to believe based on good evidence. As for unessential matters, we can’t be certain, but one day we will find out. We have the good news! We have the advantage!

If we are going to doubt anything, let’s doubt the efficacy of unbelief, let’s doubt the crippling undermining of faith. We do not have time for uncertainty about the essentials, about what is revealed, it would cripple us, it would silence us.

Let us not be silenced. Go tell it on the mountain! Good news.

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JESUS’ AUTHORITY AND US

Posted on 30/09/2013 | Leave a comment

The Word of God has authority, it is not mere truth. Jesus’ words had authority for his listeners. He speaks truth with authority to us today just as he spoke then. Because he speaks with the authority of his Father, the Living God, we must take his words seriously. If we do not heed them there are consequences.

Truth goes nowhere if not acted upon, if not followed through. Truth is given freely to Jesus’ disciples for a reason, to produce obedience of faith, turning, action. Truth demands a response from us. God always initiates truth –  it is not from man. And we must respond. Jesus actually lived this out and taught his followers to do the same. If he acted in this way, must not we do the same?

Jesus’ first disciples were taught truth from the one who IS truth in human form, the one who is the word of God in human dress. They were able to grasp only so much of this truth as they followed him all around Galilee and Judah, Israel. But it was after the events of the resurrection of Jesus from death and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, that they began to appreciate more fully the profound implications of his truth and we have the historical book we call The Acts of the Apostles which records how they actually put it into practice. They obeyed because Jesus’ words continued to have authority.

If we keep on seeking truth, soaking it up, even digesting it, storing it away in our hard disc, keeping it filed and catalogued –how can that be good? Our minds can be full, stimulated even, but our hearts remain cold. Truth can be shelved, put where is does not challenge us, so we live in denial. Cognitive dissonance.

He said to his disciples, freely you have received— freely give. We cannot keep his truth to ourselves. We must share, give, tell. Shout.

The word of God is living, active, extremely sharp, having great power in its effects. God never wants his word to return to him empty. It has a purpose, a telos. It has authority. It must not be hidden away. The world desperately needs to hear.

The Pharisees had much truth to proclaim God’s truth to people in Jesus’ day but Jesus had authority in his “truly, truly” words, his teaching. He spoke not just for people to hear and applaud but for people to obey.

Beloved, we must beware of just storing up God’s wrath for ourselves in grabbing truth, becoming an expert, showing off our knowledge, but not acting on it. Some teachers of truth teach but do not expect hearers to act on it either.

Jesus sternly warned his hearers in the parable of the two house builders and the two different foundations, sand or rock (Mat 7:24-27). Both hear exactly the same words of Jesus but the builders on rock are those who obey Jesus’ words. The builders on sand are those who hear but do not obey Jesus’ words.

Again, in the sheep and goats parable (Mat 25:31-46), the only difference between them was what they did and didn’t do about Jesus’ commands to care for even the least of his humble brothers and sisters, his disciples (see Mat 10:42 and the whole passage).

Jesus even offended his mother and brothers once by declaring that “my true family members are the ones who do my Father’s will.” (Mat 12:46-50)

If we do not act on his words, are we not despising his words?

Worship of the Father must be worship in spirit and truth (John 4:12). He did not say true worship is worship of truth. Truth is a gift from the Giver and we must love the Giver not the gift.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life—he is very truth personified in human form, pictured in the Gospels as truth totally mobile, walking around among men full of grace and truth … For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. (John 1:14-17)

There’s the difference! Knowledge of the law failed to produce righteousness. But Jesus not only lived the truth, he is the truth. He speaks with authority and people are transformed when they choose him.

We must not stockpile truth like money in a bank. The manna God sent daily, and not eaten on that day, went rotten for the Israelites in the desert wanderings. It was not allowed to be kept and worshipped. Truth is to be shared.

Surely the real issue is to live by every authoritative, dynamic word that proceeds straight from the mouth of God, not out of some memory bank? His mercies are new every day.

Freely you have received, freely give!

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IDIOTIC ELECTION

Posted on 19/09/2013 | 4 comments
Article in the Guardian by Alex White, 18 Sept 2013.
Major donors to the Liberal Party prior to the 2013 election, according to the Australian Electoral Commission include mining company Santos ($227,880), Clive Palmer’s Minerology ($459,900), nickel miners Minara Resources ($358,000) and Mincor Resources ($120,000), Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group ($50,000), and oil giant Chevron ($28,500).

Read the whole compelling article ..   http://www.theguardian.com/environment/southern-crossroads/2013/sep/18/tony-abbott-abolish-carbon-price

Oh Australian voters! You have just made the same mistake as the policies of the two major political parties : short-term thinking; never mind the world being made unfit for the little ones growing up and destined to be burdened to fix the unthinkable mess; just think of the next year or two; just have lots of comfortable fun, material security, empty prosperity from filthy, polluting, 19th Century technology for tomorrow?

Well, tomorrow we die, don’t we? Someone else can fix it all. And yair, let’s not think of what we will say to the Judge of all, how we will justify ourselves for our gross selfishness, our greed, our love of me, me wife, me home, me car, us four, no more. Let’s just go on living in Fantasy Land.

How shall we escape the hell we are creating for ourselves, the wrath we are storing up against us? There is more than just one inconvenient truth. There is a much more critical inconvenient reality.  And it is roaring towards us fast, unstoppable.

There is only one Teacher, one Guide, one Saviour, one Father, one Name to call upon, one Way out, one righteous Governor.

And that is the good news.

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THE POWER OF AUTHORITY

Posted on 16/09/2013 | Leave a comment

As we said, law-enforcers have authority because that has been given them by a higher power – the elected government. Their words carry the weight of the law because, it is not their words which they speak but the words of the law of the land to which they also are subject. This gives them authority. To step out away from being under that authority, would mean dismissal or legal action or even worse.

This kind of authority was what the many crowds throughout all Israel recognised in Jesus’ teaching. This man was different to all who had come before. Matthew’s text tells us that the crowds were amazed – the original word has the sense of being taken out of themselves, giving us our word ecstatic.

Now, there was this Roman soldier, who saw Jesus’ authority, recognising it because of his own position. As a Roman centurion he was in command of about 100 men who were expected to obey his word without question in a chain of command from foot soldier right up to the highest general and to Caesar. See what Matthew says about this when Jesus offered to come and heal his dangerously ill servant:

The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”  When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. ….. Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment. Mat 8:5-13

The Centurion understood authority. He knew Jesus’ word would be all that would be required. Just a word! Unseen. Remote. The soldier shifts his obedience from Caesar to Jesus. Extraordinary for a Roman! He did so because Jesus himself was seen to be under authority – under the authority of his unseen Father.

The various denomination heads were flabbergasted by Jesus’ authority. They kept demanding of him by what authority he taught and acted. This happened when he upset the commercial activities in the temple complex and in many other scenarios. They were provoked by Jesus’ authority. And Pilate, trying to cross examine Jesus at his mock trial must have been shocked to hear this bound, vulnerable prisoner say to him “you have no authority over me unless it is given you by my Father!”

We can do nothing in the Kingdom of God unless we too come under authority – the authority of Jesus. Under his authority we can proclaim the gospel and heal the sick and even raise the dead. Disciples are coming under this authority today all over the world. Amazing things are taking place through Jesus’ followers, following their obedience to his commands. They are experiencing his authority, daily.

This is what it means to be a disciple, to be under that authority.

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TRUTH AND AUTHORITY

Posted on 12/09/2013 | 2 comments

When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. (Mat 7:28-29)

Matthew ends Jesus’ great discourse out on the hillside with these words which immediately follow Jesus’ parable of the two house builders and their building foundation — see my last posting. Hearers were amazed at his authority.

We have often seen these words: GREAT IS TRUTH AND MIGHTY ABOVE ALL THINGS.

Yet, maybe there is indeed something greater than truth, beyond truth even. I speak of authority. We know that law-enforcers must have more than the truth of the law to command our submission. They must have authority. The airport worker with the ping-pong bats in his hands has authority over the aircraft captain in berthing the plane in the terminal.

What unexpected, out-of-this-world claims this man, Jesus, makes upon his hearers! How they must have struggled with his words. Yet they could not deny the authority of the words he spoke. His words were deadly serious and reached right down into the deepest recesses of their lives. They were utterly compelling, relevant, so different from the meticulous rules and regulations of religious heavies. And they were accompanied by his gracious acts of deliverance from unseen, enslaving powers by hundreds, possibly thousands of works of healing, even raising people from death.

And then the ultimate: though certainly dead, murdered by his religious enemies, and buried with such tight Roman security measures, Jesus came roaring back to glorious life, God confirming his authority.

Even the opposing rulers and leaders had to admit “No man ever spoke like this man!”

Come now, what measly excuses do you come up with to ignore the stupendous demands he makes upon the very core of your existence? Or how do you rationalise away the pointy ends of his shocking words?

And what reason are you going to give your Judge in the End why you have ignored these words as they come down to us in century 21 with undiminished force, though two millennia have come and gone? Time in this respect has stood still. He has not changed and his words have not changed. Neither has out humanness changed, our failure to find peace on earth, to master our own human natures, to do good the way we should, to honour our Maker.

He meant what he said and he said what he meant. God has not spoken since with such conviction, as he did in his only-son. Those of us who love history can easily demonstrate the unbroken links back to the time and place of these spoken and lived-out words. That’s history.

Are you like the religious leaders who condemned the best man who ever lived? Some said he was mad, or possessed by demonic forces. Do you honestly believe such a judgment can fit this unique life lived out before thousands of people? Neither can the conclusion others came to that he was a deceiver continually and deliberately misleading his hearers to join his pathway of error into virtual suicide, throwing away their lives for a lie.

Jesus calls on his hearers—and that includes you, dear reader—to not only hear his words but to obey them. In fact, to merely hear his words and not obey them is to invite disaster in your life. It is not enough to acknowledge the truth of these words or to applaud them as great teaching, amazing wisdom, admiring him patronisingly as some great teacher.

Do you call yourself a Christian? A believer? A follower? You will be destroyed if you merely accept his truth but not his authority to govern you. Sitting on some virtual fence won’t do – there is simply none to sit on. To not turn is to remain unturned.

His truth is one thing. His authority to command our attention and our obedience is quite another.

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Posted on 04/09/2013 | Leave a comment

ARE YOU WISE OR FOOLISH?

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it“. Matthew 7:24-27

This teaching of Jesus to his 12 disciples, with a much larger crowd listening, immediately follows his recorded words that we looked at a few days ago. This continues the serious theme of doing what the Father wants. We noted then there will be shocked and aghast people at the End, at the judgment. Will you be one?

In this simple parable Jesus shocks us now with the stark truth: it is not how much we know or remember of his teaching, but whether we put his teaching into practice. That is the difference represented by these two different foundations.

As one who has designed many houses, I can say with the greatest conviction that the foundation on which we build a house is of first importance. It will mean the difference between security and habitability against total failure leading to complete demolition of the structure.

Let’s do a bit of foundational risk assessment.

What risks are you taking by continuing to build your life on an inadequate foundation? What is your foundation? Is it how much you understand, how great is your Bible knowledge, how much doctrine you have learned? your correct world view? loyalty to a system of doctrines or your aligned party?

If so, your foundation is critically faulty. If so, our Lord calls you foolish. You are fooling around with religion, with ideas. You faith is a waste of time. Living a lie, a fantasy. It will not be sustainable when difficulties arise, when the End comes.

A foundation for a house can appear to be sound but if the kind of ground for building is not assessed and taken into account in foundation design, disaster is ahead. Your “Christian life” may look nice to those around you, even admired and copied. But is it founded on the solid rock of not only knowing, but loving and keeping Jesus’ words? Thank, God he shows us what he wants—his perfect design.

Better surely to have a little understanding of Jesus commands and actually be keeping them than to have floor to ceiling libraries of well read volumes and knowledge but then continue to be unmoved to obey. Foolishness.

Maybe you are trusting in a doctrine, say, once saved, always saved. But there is absolutely no doctrine that can save you. Only to follow Jesus as his loving disciple will save you. This is the clear message of Jesus to would-be followers.

We will not be saved by our works, but neither will we be saved without them.

There are two critical issues here. First, we must be aware of Jesus’ commands, his words, not our assumptions of what he meant, or words of another, of others, of dogmatic decrees by minders, and these occupying our attention and energy? Doing stuff that does not conform to his plans and specifications?

Here’s a good question: Just what are the commands of Jesus? Just what does he demand of his followers?

Second issue. Are we lovers of him and his words so that we actually do them?

So we better examine ourselves, to see whether we are in the faith. 2 Cor 13:5

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IN MY NAME?

Posted on 27/08/2013 | 7 comments

A couple of days ago we looked at this sobering passage that follows. Let us listen further to Jesus!

 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ Mat 7:21—23

Notice the repetition of in my name. Repetition shows Jesus is stressing something important. How often do you hear that something was done in Jesus’ name as if that legitimises it, the decision. Mark well this scary word from Jesus. Let us beware of doing stuff not planted by the Father, or worse, upon which we are subtly relying to enter the Kingdom of God. There may be a sub-text to “my ministry” by which we store up credits for the End. Instead we may be storing up wrath for ourselves.

Jesus tells us frequently to ask for things in my name. This is a gracious promise and privilege for his disciples. But this is not a formula to stick at the end of our prayers as if that would move God to answer us. In Jesus’ name means we ask as if Jesus is asking, our requests matching his requests, our cries intertwined with his. We ask with the mind of Christ. Our askings must come out of a profound relationship with him. We must know him. Otherwise we may take the name of the Lord in vain.

Jesus warns us here that the things we do in his name must arise from a loving relationship with him. If not, we may hear the dreadful word of rejection and the charge of lawlessness (=unrighteousness).

Can you think of anything more horrifying after years of labouring for what we think is his Kingdom to hear those terrifying words ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Can you imagine the protests? “But look at what I have done in your name! I have pastored churches in your name. I have written books in your name. I have lectured theology in your name.” But defence will be useless. Only one thing is needed: turning from running our own lives, knowing him. Now.

Well-meaning people may decide what are the right things to do. They decide what they will do, but with no reference to what the Father wants. “But I prayed about it” is a plea that will not be acceptable. There is no point in us running his show and asking “Lord please bless what we are doing”.

Politicians may declare “we will decide who comes to our nation and the circumstances under which they arrive”. This is the way of human thinking, the way of the kingdoms of this world: I will decide where I go and what I do and how I do it. Who has authority to decide, is the issue. It was this which ignited faith in the Roman centurion recognising Jesus’ authority and submitting to it. (Mat 8:9-10)

“Then who Lord, will see the Kingdom?”—the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. The will of God has to be heard and not just assumed to be what suits you or your organisation. It is his government, not yours. You are to take your place as his partner not his advisor. So, what to decide? We do the Father’s will by deciding to listen to his voice, then acting on it. Obedience not sacrifice! Jesus’ methodology consisted of his relationship with the Father. That must be our way also.

How serious this is! His Kingdom is utterly counter intuitive. The government is upon his shoulders, not ours. It is his Kingdom, not ours. And we will experience it only through our relationship with him.

Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart.

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NOT EVERYONE!

Posted on 25/08/2013 | 1 comment

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ Mat 7:21—23

Countless things have been done and are still done in Jesus’ name. Some things were the most devilish and evil actions ever done. Think of the witch-hunts, inquisitions, religious wars, forced “conversions”—I think you understand. (Thank God we do not have to defend Christianity). Then there are the dreadful mistakes men have made with guilt-laden teaching, false prophecies, disunity, and the like. (Thank God we do not have to defend the Church).

Let us listen to Jesus!

First, not everyone who says Lord, Lord. NOT EVERYONE. Not even those who do supernatural acts in his name. Not even those who perform miracles in his name.

These maybe include well-meaning people. They decide what are the right things to do—they prophesy, work miracles, drive out demons. Or maybe they decide to build mega-churches or mini-churches. Perhaps they decide to be missionaries, or simply help people. Perhaps they decide to be pastors or evangelists, to conduct services, to preach. They decide. They do not ask Jesus. They do not hear Jesus. They think that prayer offered in the name of Jesus carries an automatic guarantee of acting in the will of God. “But I prayed about it!”

They act on their own volition as if that is OK. But apparently that is not OK. But in the Father’s eyes these are workers of lawlessness. The Kingdom of Heaven is counter-human thought.

Then who Lord? the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

The will of God has to be heard and acted upon. It cannot be assumed. It cannot be inherited from our mentors or leaders or fav authors. The will of God, his Jesus’ movement, his government, is done by the Father deciding what he will do and then showing us, the disciples of Jesus, what that is, so that we do it. It is a matter of obedience. That was the methodology of Jesus. That must be our way. Jesus.

Knowing Jesus? This is how we know Jesus : by hearing and obeying his Father, our Father. It is friendship with the Father and his Son. It is the fellowship of the Holy Spirit living within our mortal bodies who constantly draws our attention to Jesus.

Ignore this at your peril. Man, how serious this is! The Kingdom of God is counter intuitive. It is not as we are inclined to see things, to think. It is a wisdom from above, not from below.

Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart. Turn around.

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JESUS, AND er, WELL, HELL

Posted on 18/08/2013 | 5 comments

Rob Bell in his popular book teaches that the idea of the punishment of unrepentant sinners in Hell keeps people from coming to Jesus. That is an unsettling thought, but on closer look, it falls in upon itself.  Jesus spoke very clearly about Hell, using language that can only be described as explicit. He warned of “him who can destroy both soul and body in Hell (Hades).”

Really, how could Jesus agree with sending anyone to Hell?

Actually, Jesus mostly had religious professionals in his sights! It is always important to thoroughly examine the context of Jesus’ sayings. Sometimes we are asked to explain to a critical person about hell. We don’t want to stop all arguments, to cut off all possible means of communication. It is wise to leave the implications, the mysterious details, to Jesus. Better to quote him saying ‘I did not come into the world to condemn the world but to save …..’ The bottom line of the good news of the Kingdom is that God is good and his generosity freely given to all.

So do his references to Hell really stop people from following Jesus? Well, the record shows otherwise. Everywhere he went he was met by crowds, in their thousands, from all over Israel and beyond Israel’s borders. And it did not inhibit the astounding revolution across the Roman world under the apostolic proclamation.

However, why would the authors of the New Testament books include the hard words of Jesus knowing that these would inhibit people’s following Jesus?

Life is serious. Death is serious. What happens after death and judgment that is surely coming, is of immense importance. Unless we are playing Russian roulette with our future and that of others. As the IVF Illustrated Bible Dictionary, vol 2 says “Nothing must be allowed to detract from Jesus’ warnings re the terrible reality of God’s judgments in the world to come.”

In the end if we stumble over this word of Jesus what else will we reject? Anything else which seems hard to take? There are heaps of difficult things said. We miss the Kingdom of God because we want our way, our truth, our life. Our facts. Our beliefs.

“Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” Mat 11:6

The authors of the New Testament documents did not keep back the hard sayings of Jesus, though they must have been tempted. This surely indicates their authenticity. We have to take the whole Jesus, not just the parts we like. If we only take the parts we like, then we appoint ourselves as the ultimate authority.

Following Jesus can only be authentic if you actually follow him, in obedience. Otherwise you are merely setting your own philosophy above Jesus’ living words which he heard from the Father.

You may not like what you hear. Are you going to reject other things he says because they don’t suit you? This issue goes to the very heart of many of Jesus’ living words from God. e.g.,

“For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” Mat 6:14-15

Pretty plain, right? Or did the authors get their reporting wrong? Or this, similarly:

 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Mat 7:1-2

John’s Gospel will say the same as the three others. Paul and the other writers say the same too.

Of course, God is a Lover, the very source of love. He is kind and good to all:

“He makes his sun rise on people whether they are good or evil. He lets rain fall on them whether they are just or unjust”  Mat 5:45 (GW)

Yet he alarms us with words like this:

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? Mark 8:36

“But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’  So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” Luke 12:20-21

In Jesus, we do not hear the voice of one who brings a gospel of compromise, of wishy-washy, ear-tickling, men-pleasing words. Who would serve a god like that, in whom justice has no meaning? No. This is the living God who made everything and to whom we must all one day, give an account.

 “…… our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered to us …. We are far too easily pleased”  C.S.Lewis, The Weight of Glory

Man, this is serious. Much more serious than we like to think. Dare we trivialise the words of Jesus?

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