Archive for the ‘Church life’ Tag
Your Highest Goal: Making Love the Center of the Christian Life
Love is arguably the word most used—and with the widest range of definitions in our culture. From song lyrics to Valentine’s Day celebrations, everyone talks about love, yet defining it proves surprisingly difficult. Ask a room full of people what love means, and you’re likely to get answers “all over the map.”
Yet Scripture makes it clear that love is not a vague or optional idea. The word love appears repeatedly throughout the Gospels—78 times in total, with a striking concentration in John chapters 13–17. These are Jesus’ own words, spoken at the most intimate moment with His disciples. From the very beginning, John tells us that God’s love entered the world through Jesus (John 1:17). When Jesus is asked to identify the greatest commandment, He responds that loving God fully and loving our neighbour as ourselves sums up the entire Law and the Prophets (Matthew 22:38–40). Later, He gives His disciples a “new command”: to love one another as He has loved them—declaring that this love will be the defining mark of His followers (John 13:33–34).
Clearly, love sits at the very heart of apprenticeship to Jesus.
The apostles understood this as well. The letters of the New Testament use the word love over 170 times. In addressing the Corinthian church’s understanding of spiritual gifts, Paul makes a striking statement: “Make love your highest goal” (1 Corinthians 14:1). He devotes an entire chapter—1 Corinthians 13—to explaining that love is the foundation for all the work of the Holy Spirit. Without love, even the most impressive spiritual activity amounts to nothing.
Because love is so central to Jesus’ teaching and the life of the Church, this new series sets out to go deeper—not only to understand what love is, but to learn how we can become people who are genuinely characterised by it.
One challenge we face is that most modern definitions of love focus on feelings and emotions—things we cannot control or command. As Dharius Daniels in his book “re-Presenting Jesus “observes, “feelings can be managed but not commanded“. This creates a problem, because Jesus does command us to love, and to love in the way He loves (John 15:17). That means love as Jesus demonstrated must be more than emotion; it must be something visible, intentional, and embodied.
The New Testament most often uses the Greek word agape to describe God’s love. Rather than defining it abstractly, the best way to understand agape is by looking at the life of Jesus Himself. Over the coming weeks, this series will do exactly that—examining how Jesus lives out love, using 1 Corinthians 13:4–6 as a lens through which to observe His actions and character.
To help frame this journey, a working definition of love—drawn from Jesus’ life and the wisdom of Scripture—has been introduced and will remain visible throughout the series, open to refinement as we continue learning together. Agape-To make an absolute priority of, and to work relentlessly for, the absolute best for another person(s) without expecting a return
To launch this exploration, the sermon concludes in an unusual way: with a story. Stories often reveal truth more powerfully than explanations, and few modern writers capture the lived reality of love better than Bob Goff. The opening story from his book Love Does offers a compelling picture of what it looks like when love moves beyond words and becomes action—a fitting invitation into a series devoted to making love our highest goal.
Healing: Living with Faith, Mystery, and Courage
Few subjects stir as much emotion in the church as healing. Because sickness touches every life, the gift of healing feels deeply personal and often painful. It raises hope—but also questions, disappointment, and mystery. Yet healing cannot be ignored. Scripture places it at the very heart of God’s story and the church’s mission.
Healing appears throughout the Bible, from God’s self-revelation as healer in the Old Testament to the ministry of Jesus in the New. The Gospels are filled with accounts of Jesus healing the sick, but Luke 10 is especially striking. There, Jesus commissions not just the Twelve, but seventy-two unnamed disciples to heal the sick and proclaim the nearness of God’s Kingdom. This wider sending points to healing as a normal part of the church’s everyday witness, not a rare or elite activity.
Yet the difficult question remains: if healing is part of God’s Kingdom, why doesn’t everyone get healed? This question has troubled believers throughout history and is closely tied to the broader mystery of unanswered prayer. Jesus consistently linked healing to the coming of the Kingdom of God—a Kingdom that is both “now and not yet.” In Eden, there was no sickness; in the New Creation, there will be none again. The healings we see today are glimpses—tastes—of what is to come. They are signs of God’s future breaking into the present, even while we still live in a broken world.
This tension helps us hold hope and honesty together. Healing sometimes happens, and when it does, it serves as a taste of God’s coming restoration. When it does not, we remain in the mystery of the “not yet.” Even Jesus’ own ministry reflects this tension—most notably at the pool of Bethesda, where only one person was healed.
Jesus healed in many different ways: with a word, a touch, at a distance, even in stages. The common thread was simplicity and authority. He did not use elaborate prayers or perform rituals; he simply said “be healed”. Healing, as one pastor put it, is a profoundly “Jesusie” thing to do.
So why don’t we see it more often today? One reason may be fear—fear of failure, fear of disappointment, fear of trying and not seeing results. Yet Scripture gives us no permission to opt out. While we must accept the mystery, we are still invited to participate.
Healing remains part of the Spirit’s work through the church. Living faithfully in the “not yet” means being willing to try, to pray, and to trust God with the outcome. As followers of Jesus, we are called not just to believe in “Jesus-like” things—but to dare to do them.
Some weeks ago we looked at the subject of discernment. In this sermon we revisit this gift and explore it further through real-life stories, biblical examples, and practical guidance for the life of the church. Discernment is a unique spiritual gift—one acknowledged by both cessationists and continuationists—perhaps because it sits at the very heart of hearing and obeying the Word of God.
While wisdom and prophecy are vital, they are not the same as discernment. Some of the things God calls us to may appear unwise on the surface, and Scripture reminds us to “test the spirits” (1 John 4:1). These realities point clearly to our need for discernment: the ability to recognise what truly is—or is not—the will of God.
When Discernment Is Needed
Two church stories helped illustrate this. One involved the difficult question of whether a church should remain open; the other asked whether two churches should close and allow a new church to be born. In both cases, the issue was not opinion, strategy, or common sense, but a single, defining question: What is God’s will?
Because of that, discernment could not be rushed or handled individually. It required:
• Community – everyone was involved in seeking God together
• Preparation – time set aside for prayer and fasting
• Clearing the ground – laying aside biases, cultural expectations, and personal preferences
• A “prayer of indifference” – a willingness to accept God’s answer, whatever it might be
Only once that central question was answered could the church move on to the “how.”
Discernment vs. Guidance
In the process of forming a new church, working groups explored issues such as a name and a statement of faith. This stage was not discernment but guidance—a sharing of ideas, perspectives, and opinions. Discernment came later, when the community gathered again, prayed, fasted, and asked whether these proposals truly reflected God’s will.
In both major decisions, God gave a clear and confirming “yes.”
Discernment in Scripture
Scripture shows the same patterns at work. In 2 Samuel 16, David refuses to act on cultural instinct or human advice during Absalom’s rebellion. Instead of reacting, he waits to discern what God is wanting him to do. By contrast, Absalom assumes that wise-sounding counsel must be God’s will—and the result is disaster.
In Acts 21, Paul hears repeated prophecies warning him about his journey to Jerusalem. Rather than rejecting them, he discerns their true purpose: not instructions to stop, but warnings to prepare him for what he already knows God has called him to do. Discernment allows Paul to honour the prophetic voices without being led off course.
What We Learn About Discernment
From these stories and passages, several key principles emerge:
• Discernment is needed when we must decide whether a specific action is God’s will, whether we are indeed recognizing Gods voice.
• It is practiced in community, not in isolation
• It requires intentional preparation, perhaps through prayer and fasting, in order to clear out the noise and be able to hear God’d voice
• God is gracious and faithful to confirm His will in different ways.Even when we are unsure, we can trust God to guide, correct, and reassure us
Ultimately, the gift of discernment helps us listen more carefully, act more faithfully, and walk more confidently in obedience to God—especially in moments of uncertainty, transition, and new beginnings.
I know I have not written for quite some time. This is, at least partly, because I don’t want to burden those kind enough to read my musings with anything that does not seem to have real importance (at least to me!!). I am writing today because I believe that at New Life we have just begun one of the most important preaching series since I became pastor some sixteen years ago. When COV!D -19 broke upon us and we were unable to meet together in church I was convinced at a very early stage that this was going to result in a profound and much-needed change in the church. This was not to cast any unnecessary aspersions on the past but to recognize what many have said: “What got you here will not get you where you are going.” Since that time many of my prayers have been focused on the request that the Father show us what that change was to look like and how we could join Him in bringing the change about.
I am certainly still on that prayerful path but I do believe that coming to a deeper and richer understanding of what it means to be an apprentice (disciple) of Jesus is foundational to us moving forward. In last Sunday’s sermon I shared this quote from Ronald Rolheiser which I think summarizes the challenge before us
We’ve always found it easiest to ignore the truth as long as we never stop moving. In the fall of humanity, we mastered the art of hurry. “And so we end up as good people, but as people who are not very deep: not bad, just busy; not immoral, just distracted; not lacking in soul, just preoccupied; not disdaining depth, just never doing the things to get us there,” Ronald Rolheiser.
When we read how Jesus invited a ramshackle group to follow him and think about how that invitation applies to us, do we really understand the journey that He invited them, and now us, to begin? In his book “Invitation to a Journey” Robert Mulholland says this:
I do not know what your perception of Christian discipleship might be, but much contemporary Christian spirituality tends to view the spiritual life as a static possession rather than a dynamic and ever-developing growth toward wholeness in the image of Christ.
Robert Mulholland
As we study this together ( and we have only just begun) we are seeing that Jesus’ invitation to follow is motivated by His unconditional love for us but as with all invitations we are free to decline. The invitation to follow is rooted in the remarkable Jewish education system. This link takes you to some brilliant teaching on what it meant to be a disciple in Jesus’s day. I encourage you to take the time to listen because it will open your eyes as it did mine to what it meant when we said yes to following Jesus.
However, this is a journey that will last a lifetime. How do we begin? When we have taken the first step of recognizing our sin (the decision to decide for ourselves what is right or wrong) and have accepted the forgiveness purchased for us by Jesus on the cross we must begin to be with Jesus and get to know him. Here is an exercise that you might try to begin the process of getting to know him
Think about your closest friend or spouse and ask yourself how did I get to know them. Try and detail the process as far as you are able and preferably write it down. Then ask how your life of walking with Jesus compares to this and what has helped/hindered you from getting to know Him. Come up with one thing you might do now to help get to know Him better. To make this stick share it with someone you trust and ask them to keep you accountable.
I saw a striking post on face book posing the question if our professional sports stars are not essential why are they our heroes and why do they get paid so much? Interesting thought, but surely a more interesting one is about those largely unknown people who have suddenly become our heroes. The grocery clerks, healthcare aids, teacher/Moms and so many others. These people and many others like them have been plummeted into the front line where there is real danger and the need to work harder than ever.
One of our church family posted this wonderful prayer for these unsung heroes and in case you missed it I wanted to share it with you. The question is how can we make sure that these people each of whom has a name, who were serving us faithfully before this crisis are not taken for granted in the future?
Bless the merciful
A Sunday Blessing
By: Sarah Bessey
March 29, 2020
Oh, God. Bless the merciful. Bless them.
Bless the hospital chaplains who are crying and praying in trauma rooms with the scared and the hurting. Bless the doctors and the nurses, the janitors and the lunch ladies, the front-line workers and behind the scenes faithful ones during this terrible time. Bless the ones in the nursing homes with lonely seniors, putting themselves at risk to keep caring for the vulnerable. Bless the families on the other side of the window glass with phones, smiling and waving and holding up signs of love to their elders. Bless the vulnerable and at-risk and those who open their doors to them even in the midst of a pandemic. Bless the scared kids and the adults who notice them.
Bless the ones who cry too much and feel too much. Bless the wounded healers.
Bless the kind ones, who speak words of life and gentleness. Bless the benefit-of-the-doubt givers, the one-more-chance lavishers. Bless the comforters and the kleenex-passers. Bless the walkers-in-another’s-shoes. Bless the wheelchair pushers. Bless the ones there waiting after the chips fall, and the edifice crumbles, and the truth comes out. Bless them for their grace for both the flyers and the thud-ers, for the fury and the glory. Bless the ones baking bread and leaving it on doorsteps for the parents they can’t risk seeing. Bless the ones who serve without fanfare or book deals or media attention. Bless the ones who love vulnerable children, day after day after day. Bless the ones who are lonely and alone, who are isolated and vulnerable, who are struggling to breathe.
Bless the ones who lavish grace and bandage wounds and figure out how to make ventilators in factories. Bless the ones who intubate and the ones who are crying in the stairwell, overwhelmed by caring. Bless them for they give dignity to the rest of us. Bless them because they see us and they love us anyway.
Bless them for standing in our thin places between too-much and not-enough, the places where our hearts are breaking and our fears are manifesting and we are so scared and so alone. Bless them for being the ones that show up in the fault lines to hold our hands and pray and weep with those who weep.
Bless them for their patience, for their uncanny ability to just keep going, for their ability to be present instead of checking out for something less demanding. Bless them for long days on their feet in uncomfortable PPE gear, sweaty and exhausted and filled with mercy for us anyway. Bless them for their determination in the face of suffering, for the patience in the teeth of our it’s-going-to-get-worse predictions, and their faith in our story.
Bless them for their heart to ease the suffering, to smooth the edges, widen the roads. Bless them for their cups of cold water, and their plates of food, for their prison visiting, for their preemie-baby hat knitting, for the signs in the windows saying “thank you, essential workers!” decorated with stickers and glitter. Bless them for the healing work of their gifts. Bless them when they smell of salt tears and someone else’s sh** and our unwashed bodies. Bless the funeral workers and the priests who have run out of words. Bless the journalists and politicians who are wise and merciful, the public health officials and the sign language interpreters. Bless the site preppers and the cleaners. Bless the merciful because they are so often the only glimpse of goodness.
Bless the merciful as they carry our own burdens with us; we cannot know how low they are bowed with the grief of the whole world groaning for healing and hope even as they keep moving forward. Bless them in their anger. Bless them in their frustrations. Bless them in their fears. Bless them in their exhaustion. Bless them when they are overwhelmed and want to quit. Bless their sleep and their rising.
Bless the ones who care for the ageing and the dying, for those making the way a bit smoother for the families left behind. Bless the ones who hold the hands of the poor and broken and you and me. Bless the ones running right towards the hurting with their hands outstretched.
At the end of all this may we bless them with rest and gratitude, with compassionate and generous policies and pay, with just systems and actions. At the end of all this, may they know they were our heroes not in spite of their weakness and humanity and moments of breaking but because of them. At the end of this, may we value love and mercy.
Bless them because it takes more courage and strength to be merciful, compassionate, and kind than we could have ever imagined. May they find love and strength, courage and compassion at their rock bottom.
At our church we are beginning an extensive discussion of our values. This was prompted by a podcast from Craig Groeschel, along with the realization that 2017 will be our 10th birthday. This significant milestone provides a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the past and look to the future. Our observations of our church currently indicate that it is a healthy and an interesting and exciting place, one where we can confidently invite others. However we recognize that we are, for the most part, “insiders” and so biased. In addition we lack clarity on the “why” of our current perceived well being, hence the need to articulate, not just the values we would like to have, but more importantly the one others would identify in our activities and behaviors.
In the course of this discussion we listed ” service” as an important value. As I thought about this I wondered if “service” alone was sufficient to express our value. After all multitudes of people , people of faith and no faith would say that serving others and community involvement was important to them and for everyone service is often hard, inconvenient and even painful.
However if we list “service” as a value for our church family perhaps we need to dig a little deeper to describe the uniqueness of Christian service. As I pondered this I remembered that Jesus himself said the he came “not to be served but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 This struck me in a new way with the emphasis on the first and last parts “not to be served” and “give his life …”. If we are to follow our Savior’s example then the special qualities of our service are not what, we do but how and why we do it. In seeking “ not to be served” and ” to give” we act solely in response to the amazing sacrifice of love made for us by Jesus. We do this joyfully and at the expense of our our own wants and desires because, once again, this was the pattern that He gave us.
This is important because it provides a distinct contrast to what Lyons and Kinnaman (Good Faith – Being a Christian when Society thinks you are Irrelevant and Extreme) describe as the “new morality of self fulfillment.” Tragically the prevailing cultural values are leaking into the Christian community. Recent research indicates that more than 60% of “practicing Christians” agree with statements that “the highest goals in life are to enjoy it as much a possible’ and ” to be fulfilled in life you should pursue the things you desire most.” Serving others can fall within either of these objectives. However as Christians we are called to serve because He served and sacrificed for us. To do so we must frequently and joyfully set aside our own desires. So how then should we express the value of service in a way that is uniquely applicable to followers of Jesus… any suggestions?
A while ago someone I respect asked me if, given my emphatically stated position on keeping politics out of the church, I thought a pastor had any responsibility in advising their congregations on their involvement in the political process. This caused me to think very carefully over recent months and to read fairly widely on the subject of Christians in culture and the public square. The current electoral season has generated a rash of blogs, articles and podcasts on the subject and as a consequence I have reached the conclusion that I should share four principles I believe are firmly based in scripture and that people might find helpful:
1 God is still in charge! Presidents, Prime Ministers, politicians, pastors and the rest of us come and go but God remains entirely and eternally in control. His plan remains unchanged, as it has through the ages, and nothing can deviate Him from its fulfillment.
2 The phrase ” lesser of two evils” is not found or implied anywhere in scripture (to my knowledge). The Bible is clear that all forms of evil come from the forces of darkness and are to be resisted Ephesians 6:10-12. James 4:7
3. The scripture is full of applicable principles and I trust you will search them prayerfully as you ponder these things. In this context I want to share just one:
Know, O people, the Lord has told you what is good,
and this is what he requires of you:
to do what is right, to love mercy,
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8
4. The fact that someone comes to a different conclusion than you about the application of these, and other biblical principles, does not mean they are bad people neither does it call their relationship with Jesus into question. By God’s grace you will share heaven with many of them, and remember, when the time comes, we will stand before almighty God alone!
I am aware I have on many occasions expressed my relief at not having to make political choices since I am not s citizen. However I have no wish to use this as an excuse not to think and pray for each of you as you think and pray about the choices you must make. To finish I return to where I started, remember, in politics, as in every other aspect of life, God is still in charge and He always will be!
When responding to the recent tragedies in Paris the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, was asked if incidents like this caused him to doubt God. He replied ‘ Of course!” Shock! Horror! the most senior clergyman (pastor) in the Church of England admits to doubting God, how can this be? Well, guess what, Justin Welby along with every other bishop, church leader, pastor, or whatever term you prefer, is a human being just like every member of the churches they serve. The simple fact that, however strong our faith, we cannot prove the existence of The Almighty. His own word tells us that“my [God] thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” Isaiah 55:8-9 This leaves us in a place where there is so much we do not and cannot know. However we are naturally and inexorably dragged into the place where we grapple for proof, understanding and logical explanations when they simply are not there. Is it surprising therefore that we are drawn to ask if God really does exist? Is that somehow wrong, especially for those who profess faith? Do those doubts and the painful wrestling with things that God does render us unbelievers?
I think not. One of the first books of the bible to be written was about a guy called Job who was on the receiving end of a series of events that would have caused anyone to doubt the existence of any God, let alone one who cared about him. To add insult to injury, he had friends who sensitively shared that really it was all his fault! Through all his battle and doubt about God’s behavior, Job refused to conclude that He did not exist. In the end God does not commend him for those doubts but with understanding and grace simply points out that He is indeed God and so by very definition will not be comprehensible to mere humans. However Jobs dogged refusal to surrender results in Gods blessing, and the admonition of those friends that sought to undermine His faith. I have no doubt the the archbishop, while having the courage to share that he too has doubts at times, will similarly hang on tho his faith in an incomprehensible but truly amazing God. And I trust that he has friends who, rather than discouraging him from faith, will stand beside him and encourage him. I pray that each of us also will have those who will walk through the dark times with us and build us up rather that cast us down.
No, this has nothing to do with football or any other sport for that matter. These thoughts came to me as I read an article about cinema’s (movie theatres) in England banning a commercial, prepared by the Church of England. In the short clip a number of different people participate in a recitation of the Lord’s prayer. The commercial, which was scheduled to have played before the new Star wars movie, received the approval of every regulatory body during its production. Nevertheless, I learned from an article in Britain’s Daily Mail that, at the last minute, the permission was withdrawn on the basis that ” it might offend some people.” The ban has prompted a cacophony of protest from every quarter, including from none other than Richard Dawkins, declaring the action to be ridiculous. But their actions are perfectly consistent with, what seems to be, our rampant culture of offense. One state university has proposed a resolution the every student has the right not to be offended. But where does all this end? It matters very little whether it is a cup in Starbucks or a cross on Mount Davidson some believe they have the right to declare offense and as a consequence have the offending item removed. Often the christian community are active participants as we wave banners and shout our protest at some movie or other media pontification. But isn’t a significant amount of what we now define as “offense” what we used to call disagreement or even dislike? Has anyone ever suggested that it was even desirable to “like” or “agree” with everyone and everything? I am not for one moment suggesting that there are not situations when it is right to express offense and ask or even demand change. But shouldn’t this be limited to occasions when an individual, their faith, race or culture is insulted or in some way denigrated? We cannot permit each other to take offense at a persons right to be who they are, have their beliefs and express them. If we continue to permit people to suggest they have a right protest offense at anything that they see or hear that reflects a belief other than their own I suggest we are on the way to a society that will eventually be entirely devoid of meaning. Perhaps it is that very trend in our culture that we should take every opportunity, not to be offended by, but to resist in every way we can.
” Your opinion matters” or so I am told by all sorts of people who want me to fill in surveys or answer questions. But does it, really, and if so who to and why? As election season gets closer and closer the question will be asked more and more often. Of course to those looking for your vote or seeking to obtain it, your opinion is very important. Opinions are very important to those who want to sell us things, whether or not we want or need them. Consequently my opinion actually only matters to those who want something from me (except perhaps my close friends and family). Since our society is littered with people wanting others to buy, vote, or something similar, it is easy to get a false sense of the importance our opinions! This is exacerbated as our culture gives increasing priority to the rights of the individual and is decreasingly interested in truth. Ah, there you have it, truth, not your truth , my truth or any similar oxymoron, simply truth. The problem is that truth has, by definition, to be independent of any individual’s or group’s opinion.
If we really mean “you are entitled to your opinion” or that “your opinion matters” it must be said without the unspoken caveat that agreement with me is a pre-requisite. To require such agreement implies that “my opinion” has been exalted to the realm of truth. Politics is one of the best examples of this. Most thinking people have a broadly similar picture of the problems we face, but when it comes solutions, there are as many opinions as there are people. When our favorite sports team is losing, every fan has an opinion as to what the coach should do to solve the problems. In each case the opinions are sincerely held and supported by their own selection of evidence. When we are able to identify what are “opinions” and hold them as such, some of our most vitriolic arguments lose much of their bitterness. Does this means these opinions have no value? Certainly not, because it is by listening, respectfully, to what other people think that we learn (and maybe even change!)
As a Christian, recognizing the difference between opinion and truth is of great importance. Dr Albert Mohler has articulated what he calls “Tier One Issues.” These are matters held to be truths fundamental to our Christian faith. They include such things as such as the divinity of Jesus, along with his death and resurrection The fact that salvation is by faith alone in the redemption made available by that death and resurrection is truth we hold not to be subject in any way to opinions. This is the gospel! Other issues such as, the gifts of the spirit, baptismal practice and such, are subject to different opinions over biblical interpretation. Respect for such differences means that they should not be used to question the validity of another’s faith.
So do our opinions matter? Of course, because by listening to each others perspectives we learn and grow. It is however important to remember when sharing opinions, that ours have the same value as anyone else’s, whether in politics sport, religion or any other subject. However when it comes to what we hold to be truth, we must be able to explain why we hold them to be truth, not yours, mine, or indeed anyone else’s, simply truth that can be absolutely depended upon!
From the Zebra Bag 