Summer 2005 Schedule

Schedule for the summer of 2005

July 5th to 7th - Summer School, Metropolitan Tabernacle London
July 10th to 16th - Summer School, Wycliffe Hall Oxford

July 24th to 30th - Summer School, Cardiff Institute for Contemporary Christianity

Move out of Southbourne house

Aug 7th to Sept 11th - Australia

Move into Ringwood house

Sept 19th to 23rd - Summer School, London Institute for Contemporary Christianity

As I am sure you can see, its going to be both a busy and relaxing summer!! But I shall endeavour to stay in touch. If you want info about the type of Summer school, you can click on the required place and the appropriate website will open in a new window...

Year Chapel Sermon

Who! What! Why?

1. who you are!

Colossians 3:1-4
v1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
v2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
v3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
v4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

a. v3 - you died - past tense
b. v1 - raised with Christ - present tense
c. v3 - your life is now hidden with Christ - present tense
e. v4 - Christ, who is your life - present tense
e. v4 - appear with him in glory. - future tense

Remember you are His ambassadors as well as ambassadors of the College, even during vacation time!

2. what you do!

2 Timothy 4:5 - But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.

a. Be steady - keep your head in all situations. We do this by reading God's word and praying. The more we do it, the more we want to do it. The less we do it, less we feel like doing it, even though we should be doing it. Keep reading Christian books to expand your thinking yet keeping your doctrine and faith pure.
b. Persevere - endure suffering & hardship. It comes to us all. Paul was at the point of being martyred. Tradition tells us he was beheaded soon after this letter was written. Revelation 21:4 - He will take your head in His hands and wipe away your tears...
c. Evangelise - We are not all called to be evangelists, but we are all called to spread the good news of Jesus. When waking up in the morning, as part of your prayers ask for opportunities to arise where you can share your faith with others. People really are interested in discussing religion and in particular about your point of view and why you are at a bible college.
d. Work - do your duty - God wants you fulfil your chosen ministry - whether that is youth work, kids work, family work etc. It may or may not be successful, but God is not interested in that - He requires faithfulness to Himself, and "success" will surely follow if we are faithful to Him.

3. why you do it!

2 Timothy 4:8 - Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

v8 crown of righteousness, our award and reward. This is our prime motivation. God declaring us righteous so that we may live with Him forever and ever and ever (Rev 21:1-4).

Revelation 21:1-4
v1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
v2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
v3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
v4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

Remember...

It maybe vacation time from College, but not vacation time to stop remembering

who you are!
what you do!
why you do it!

Dave G Roberts 28/06/2005

LICC - Word for the Week - At arm's length

People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. Luke 18:15

Children in general, and babies in particular, are sometimes seen as inappropriate and out of place in an adult world. They are embarrassing, make a lot of noise and demand attention and responses we have either never learnt or have long forgotten. They distract us from serious conversation and make us lose our place. In the office, on the rush hour train or in the seminar we are irritated; we expect them to be kept to certain times and places where those of us who live seriously involved and important lives can briefly enter a softer world.

Human societies are practised at deciding certain groups are inappropriate or in the wrong place – women in pulpits, mothers and babies on trains, the elderly, certain ethnic groups, the disabled, the homeless. They may challenge our sense of identity or demand extra consideration in a very busy world. There are a fair number of churches that, in all but their written notices, give the impression that children are inappropriate attenders at Sunday worship.

Inappropriate? Absolutely not, said Jesus. They are to be encouraged – let the mothers bring them right into the centre of the group. The disciples, I trust, were really embarrassed as Jesus held and blessed these babies and children.

But this wasn’t just a rather touching interlude. Jesus was still teaching even as he held them. The children were not only welcomed for their own sakes, but also to back up his statement that the truth of the matter is unless we receive the Kingdom of God ‘like a little child’, we will never enter it. So we had better look hard at the children we know and meet; we had better welcome them and begin to learn the lessons that God wants us to learn from them. No pretence? Lack of guile? Simplicity? Innocent trust? Lack of self-importance? If we can learn some lessons from an unexpected source, then we may learn to look differently at other groups, or individuals, we tend to ignore or exclude.

Margaret Killingray

so another year completed...

No more lectures...
All essays/assignments completed...
Holidays to plan...
Plenty of coffee to imbibe...Time for music and dance...

'Earthy evangelist' changes US climate

Europe's environmental activists are not renowned for their faith in the power of prayer. But in the run-up to the G8 summit they should put their hands together for the Rev Richard Cizik. One of America's senior evangelical leaders, the lanky Virginian preacher is an unlikely ally of the Greens given the Christian Right's reputation for being in lockstep with the White House.

The Bush administration is famously sceptical over global warming and greenhouse gas emissions and notoriously cosy with big business, especially the oil companies. Mr Cizik is, however, in the vanguard of a striking new movement: evangelicals prodding President George W Bush to take action on global warming. And his stance cannot easily be dismissed as radical nonsense, as the Green cause is traditionally mocked by the Right. He is the Washington representative for the National Association of Evangelicals, America's largest evangelical group. With 30 million members, the NAE is possibly the most powerful voting bloc in the country.

"It is," Mr Cizik concedes, "a head-turner." But, he points out, there are two pressing reasons for evangelicals to lobby for the environment: first, the Bible enjoins man to look after what God created; second, the poor may be the first to suffer from climate change.

"When we die and each one of us meets our maker, He is not going to say, 'How did I create the world?' He is going to say, 'What did you do with what I created?' And why do I know that? Because Genesis 2:15 says we are stewards in charge of creation 'to watch over it carefully'. How can you 'love your neighbour as yourself' if you are willing to let millions be subject to flooding and droughts caused by greenhouse gases which we, Americans, are responsible for?"

Nicknamed the "earthy evangelist", Mr Cizik has to tread carefully. His comments have provoked outrage from some Right-wing congressmen and church leaders. The NAE position is heresy to many in the White House, which has close links to major corporations. A senior aide, who previously worked as a lobbyist for the oil industry, recently resigned after rewriting government papers to play down the threat of global warming. Inevitably he went to work for Exxon Mobil, the oil company.

Ted Haggard, the NAE president and senior pastor of the giant New Life Church, in Colorado Springs, the evangelical capital of America, takes part in a telephone conference call with the White House every Monday, but he does not force his views on the presidency. "I've never brought it up. . . I think they've read about it. . . and they are very respectful." He also distances himself from environmentalists. "I do not return their calls. We are not their allies."

Mr Cizik, who now drives a hybrid Toyota Prius car, is more critical about the role of the oil companies. After years of reflection he decided at a conference in Oxford in 2002 that the science linking global warming to greenhouse gases was incontrovertible. He says only "genuine contrarians" and "those on the payroll of multi-billion-dollar corporations who have vested interest in taking no action" dispute it now. After persuading prominent evangelicals to endorse a sweeping document, For the Health of the Nations, that talks ambiguously of the need to "protect God's creation" he is trying to gain support for a statement on global warming. The new environmental drive is prompting a reappraisal of the Christian Right, as it becomes clear that the stereotype of them as a unified army is inaccurate.

Mr Cizik is confident that the mood in the pews is far more "green" than in the pulpits. Senior officials in Brussels see the conversion of some of the American religious Right to the cause of fighting climate change as one of several indications that public opinion in America is changing rapidly. EU officials admit that the Kyoto protocol is dead, as far as America is concerned. But they are increasingly optimistic that talks could begin on some form of post-2012 global climate treaty arrangement that would include America, and possibly China and India, within a year or two.

editorial@telegraph-usa.com

LICC - Word for the Week - Being whole

word for the week - being whole

Which is easier: to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.' He said to the paralysed man, 'I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.' Luke 5:23,24

Jesus sat teaching in a house packed out with very serious men - teachers of the law from far and wide as well as his disciples. Then down through the roof above their heads a paralysed man lying helpless on a mat was lowered down to lie at Jesus' feet. A desperate man with determined friends, definitely not bothered with the serious teaching and discussion going on. Jesus simply said to him, 'Friend, your sins are forgiven'. A tense moment had become even tenser - the shock of blasphemy, a horrified intake of breath, silence, and all of them thinking, 'Who can forgive sins but God alone?'. And what was in the minds of the helpless man and his friends? Is
that all they had come for, just forgiveness!

A friend of mine spent some time on a ward at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, because someone else had fallen asleep at the wheel of a car. A number of the other young men on the ward had paralysed themselves - and sometimes hurt or killed others - because they had been drunk driving cars or motorbikes, or leaping into swimming pools. Perhaps this paralysed man in
front of Jesus faced the same kind of double anguish of remorse, regret and guilt about his own condition and that of others. What kind of healing did he need most?

Finding even the beginnings of forgiveness, peace of mind and conscience, can be far more crucial for our 'health', our wholeness and well-being, than having our various physical or social needs met. Jesus knew this damaged man's heart and his desperate need, as well as the hearts of those watching. So he demonstrated his authority for all to see and told him to get up and go
home.Sometimes we have to ask ourselves what kind of healing we, and others, need. And sometimes we need to seek out those who have hurt us to offer forgiveness so that they too can begin to find healing from the Lord who knows all and forgives all.

Margaret Killingray

LICC - Word for the Week - It's not fair

word for the week - it's not fair

But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, 'Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help.' Luke 10:40

Work at home or away offers us many opportunities to indulge in resentment. There is always something to complain about, if we look hard enough. Jesus stopped off in the house of Martha and Mary and triggered a classic domestic row.

Actually some of us would rather bustle than sit and listen to challenging teaching; rather do the washing up than produce an arresting paragraph; rather be a postman than a poet. There is stress in thinking, having to shape articles for tight schedules, or work on designs or lesson plans. There is something restful in deleting files, emptying the dishwasher, or in any of the other daily tasks that can be done without thinking. But while doing the washing up or sorting out the stationery cupboard, we want others to notice us and feel bad that they are not helping. Self-righteousness comes too easily to some of us.

I am not sure what Jesus meant by telling Martha, 'Only one thing is needed'. Did he mean that she was 'making a meal' of the meal and should settle for bread and cheese? Or did he mean that she, like Mary, should be making the most of his time with them, listening and learning? Kitchens, like the poor, are always with us. It is hard to hear the gentlest of rebukes when feeling hard done by. Did Martha change from self-righteous indignation to reproved humility, stop the unnecessary bustling and take her place at his feet? May we all be open to rebuke from the Lord, as well as from others. And may we recognise in ourselves the desire to make others feel uncomfortable.

Margaret Killingray

LICC - Connecting with culture - clone town Britain

connecting with culture - clone town Britain

Pity those poor souls who live in Exeter. It’s an attractive city, with a pretty cathedral green and pleasant quayside. But, according to the New Economics Foundation (NEF), it is also Britain’s number one ‘clone town’.

According to an NEF report this week, ‘a clone town is a place where the individuality of high-street shops has been replaced by a monochrome strip of global and national chains, somewhere that could easily be mistaken for dozens of bland town centres across the country.’

Based on a national survey, it found that 42 per cent of British towns could be classified as clone towns, with a further 26 per cent on the cusp. Exeter, for example, has only one independent store on its high street.

But does any of this matter? And why, in particular, should Christians be bothered?

There are a number of reasons, some more obvious than others. The quality of relationships is central to the kingdom of God but the commercial centralisation that creates clone-towns can disfigure those relationships by treating individuals as economic units rather than full human beings.

In a similar way, biblical teaching articulates a principle of ‘subsidiarity’, in which political and social power is decentralised so that communities themselves (rather than distant clone-store-owning shareholders or business executives) run their own affairs.

Perhaps most subtly, the biblical vision of wholeness celebrates variety, with ecological, ethnic and cultural diversity being one of life’s glories. In the words of Jonathan Sacks, ‘the unity of God is to be found in the diversity of creation.’

Not only does the massive concentration of retail power in the UK and the clone towns it breeds drain money from local economies and dry up the relational glue provided by genuinely local shops, but it also bleeds the variety from creation, leaving the world a drabber, more sterile place.

None of this is to suggest that those who work for ubiquitous chain stores are particularly sinful, or that small town shopkeepers, so mercilessly satirised in The League of Gentlemen, are particularly saintly.

It is, however, to say that we need to change our shopping habits and campaign for the kind of policy solutions outlined in the NEF report – a moratorium on takeovers, local retail planning laws, community land trusts – if we wish to enjoy, in Louis MacNeice’s words, ‘the drunkenness of things being various’.

Nick Spencer

LICC - word for the week - If it's mine, I want it....

word for the week - if it’s mine, I want it

Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’ Jesus replied, ‘Friend, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?’ Then he said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.’ Luke 12:13,14

So, you have a comfortable contract with a large handout when you leave. The company hasn’t done too well, profits and dividends are down, some expansion has been ill judged and several thousand are to be made redundant. You have to go. Will you decide that the handout may be your due, but you’re not going to take it? Or will you tell us the money is yours by right and that’s the end of it?

And then there’s the UK rebate from the EU – in the contract, due by right, but much has happened in 20 years – new countries, different economic priorities and needs – and ‘we’ve got it, we’ll keep it’ doesn’t sound like a moral neighbour-loving response. Will it be politically damaging in the UK to make some concessions? Perhaps some will understand that taking all we can get does not contribute to peaceful coexistence.

So what makes a man keep some of his brother’s inheritance? And what makes the brother think that Jesus will support the demand for his rights and his due? Be on your guard against greed – all kinds of greed, even for the pound of flesh. I suppose the man in the crowd had a right to a share in the inheritance his brother was holding. In all this the echoes of childhood reverberate – it’s not fair – it’s my turn – she’s got more than me. Are we greedy for our rightful share, our due – for every penny of it? Greedy for our rights to be acknowledged?

Jesus ‘being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing’ (Philippians 2:5,6). Until we learn the art of not insisting on our share, we will not know what may result – knock-on generosities, heart-warming goodwill, and above all a deeper understanding of the incarnation and the cross. ‘Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; your life does not consist in the abundance of your possessions.’ It may indeed be the richer for not acquiring some of them in the first place!

Margaret Killingray

3rd term reflection

Pastoral visits continued including a couple by myself. I am aware of others but am more comfortable visiting those I know. I shall endeavour to change this and by God's grace and His Spirit I shall.

The other day over lunch, a fellow student told me how after paying £10 for a visa, instead of the usual £30, he received the visa and a cheque for £20 as they claim he overpaid them. I suggested he sent the cheque back and tell them of their error, but he was reluctant to do so and chose not to. I think that is wrong and told him and he accepted my opinion with good grace.

Dave

Time for some personal input...

The next few posts will be a combination of sermons preached & class presentations, done by myself. I would love comments, particularly by Wednesday 8th June. This is to add to my college portfolio.


Dave / EB

Revelation 2vv1-7 - St James 20th May 2005

Revelation 2

v1. "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands:
v2. I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.
v3. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.
v4. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.
v5. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
v6. But you have this in your favour: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
v7. He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

First love/crush… Miss Hudson.

Schoolgirls letter to her mother - its all about perspective.

The speaker : Lord Jesus Christ

Revelation 1:12-16 - I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone "like a son of man," dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around 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.

Both these passages speak of Jesus in the fullness of His post-resurrected glory, although these mere words cannot do ultimate justice to Him. He is our speaker here, commanding John to write. Jesus is not aloof, impersonal and distant. He knows intimately about His church and His people. Nothing is secret to Him. See v1 where he walks around.

The angel : The angel mentioned in v1 could also mean messenger or it could mean a guardian angel or a saint. As with much of Revelation and the figurative language, there is no certainty as to what is meant.

The author : There is much debate as to the author of the Book of Revelation. Most attribute it to the Apostle John, and that is who I believe wrote it.

Ephesus : Ephesus was located on the coast, and was a transportation hub and an administrative and commercial centre. It was home to the temple of Diana, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and as such was a centre of mystical cult worship. There was also 6 temples set up for worship of Roman emperors such was its importance.
We know a lot about the church of Ephesus from the New Testament. It was established by Paul on his third missionary journey, and it was from this church that Paul called the elders of Ephesus to meet him at Miletus when he was on his way to Jerusalem (Acts 20:16f). Tradition tells us, that Ephesus became the residence of the Apostle John both before and after his exile, that he was their bishop. So if tradition is right on this aspect, then can you imagine the sense of excitement built up in the Ephesian congregation. John has sent us a letter. Our John. What does it say? Quick. Hurry up and read it. Boy, were they in for a shock.

1. Commendations

The Lord Jesus is always gracious and here he commends the church. He sees the work being done by the church in Ephesus. They work hard (v2). They tirelessly persevere through hardships (v3). Their doctrine, teaching and belief system is orthodox and correct. They tolerate neither evil or the men who perpetrate evil (v2, 6). They use discernment when required (v2). The Ephesian church had refused to allow apostasy and immorality to go on in the church. They exercised church discipline when
men refused to respond to God‘s Word. Most of his sermons were based on one thing - “love”. Love Christ and love one another.

2. Forsaken & forgotten

The church in Ephesus was orthodox in theology, practice, and service, yet something was missing which, if not corrected, would ruin their light-bearing capacity. They no longer have their “first love” (v.7), it has been left behind. Again, many people have a theory about what this love is. Is it their love of Christ? Is it their love of others? I personally think its both, and the reason I say this is because loving Christ involves loving others, just as loving others truly depends on loving Christ. They have also forgotten something. The local church is married to Christ, but there is always the danger of that love growing cold. Like Martha, we can be so busy working for Jesus that we have no time to love Him. Christ is more concerned about what we do with Him than for Him. Labour is no substitute for love. To the public, the Ephesian church was successful; to Christ,
it had fallen.

3. Counsel

For all its outward appearances, the church of Ephesus was super-spiritual. However, they were guilty of something that is not necessarily seen outwardly. Jesus sees the heart, and in the Ephesian church, He did not see love. So Jesus tells them to do three things in which to restore their marriage.

a. Remember (v5a) : Reflect, go back and recall the past. Jesus is saying, remember the way it used to be in your relationship with Me. This process of looking back is also a call to recognize one’s true condition. We can’t very well confess sin if we don’t clearly see it for what it is. Has our Christian life lost some of its excitement and joy? Are we finding our Christian work rather boring and dull, even to the point of drudgery? Have we lost the joy of the Lord, if so, it is because we have left the position of devotion and occupation with Christ.

b. Repent (v5b): Recognize one‘s previous decision, opinion, or condition as wrong, and to accept and move towards a new and right path in its place. Repentance includes confession of sin with a view to stopping the bad behaviour so it can be replaced with what was right.

c. Repeat (v5b): Jesus commands them, “Do the things you did at first.” Go back to when you first turned to me and repeat them. As well as continuing to work for me, it would include such things as honest confession of sin, prayer, Bible study, reading, meditation, memorization, fellowship with believers, being occupied with Christ and refocusing all of our life on Him, the faith rest life, reckoning on our position in Christ, etc. In your dealings with people, have an attitude of love as well as service.

4. Challenge (v5c): After the commendations, then the counsel, comes the challenge. If they refuse to remember, repent and repeat, the church will be destroyed. There zeal is again commended in v6, but that is not enough. They must love again. Love Christ and love their neighbours. For without love, your survival as a church is dependent. Did the Ephesian church listen? Well today, there is neither church nor city, so apparently they didn’t.

5. Overcomers (v7): for the individual that overcomes. For the individual that remembers, repents and repeats, there is the promise of everlasting life (v7)


6. Situation today

We live in times when churches are closing and congregations are dwindling. Yet not all are. Some churches are thriving and growing. Those churches that close or are facing dwindling congregations, are they churches that have forgotten their first love? Are they so efficient and zealous for God, that they have forgotten to love their neighbours and therefore by proxy forgotten to love Jesus. Or are they churches that declare love for their neighbours yet neglect to love Jesus by following His commands. No wonder there are churches in decline if they don’t love, they are writ for destruction if the church of Ephesus is anything to go by. Two months ago, in The Times they had a report about churches and church growth. The study showed that those churches where the Word of God was faithfully preached and actively showing love to others, there was a steady increase in congregational growth. However, it also showed that the churches that were closing or had dwindling congregations, were those that didn’t take God’s word seriously and were therefore neglecting their love for Christ.

Conclusion

Where is St James today? Do we want it to be like the Church of Ephesus? Why do you do the things you do for the church? Is it motivated out of love for Christ and for others? Or is it motivated out of some vain self satisfying glory and duty?
Let us all, each one of us, remember, repent and repeat, as we go about in our service for God. By no means stop what you are doing for Him, but go about it even more fervently with a love that is reminiscent of your first love of Him. Don’t treat Jesus as a “first crush”, easily forgotten. That is not what He requests. He requests we treat him as a “first love”, showing that in our adoration of Him and in our love for all those around us. Let us pray.

Remember who you are - Col 3vv1-4

This is the preach I did for Homiletics on 22nd April, 2005.

It is the pulpit copy I used including

unspoken annotations & highlighted actions...

New International Version

v1. Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.

v2. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

v3. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.

v4. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

The Message

v1. So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides.

v2. Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ--that's where the action is. See things from his perspective.

v3. Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life--even though invisible to spectators--is with Christ in God. He is your life.

v4. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you'll show up, too--the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.

Contemporary English Version

v1. You have been raised to life with Christ. Now set your heart on what is in heaven, where Christ rules at God's right side.

v2. Think about what is up there, not about what is here on earth.

v3. You died, which means that your life is hidden with Christ, who sits beside God.

v4. Christ gives meaning to your life, and when he appears, you will also appear with him in glory.

Homiletics Preach 22/04/2005

CHECK TIME!!

Intro - Remember who you are!!

About two years ago, I slipped into a coma on a Saturday evening. But that story is a bit of a bore and not really important. After a couple of days in hospital, I woke up and there was a face of a pretty woman peering down at me, smiling and asking “Do you remember who you are?” My response was “Of course I do!! But who are you, and what have you done with my wife”. And that is the same for us as Christians. If we are listening, we are constantly being reminded by God the Holy Spirit of our status before God if we are His children. The Holy Spirit is always there behind us reminding us, that we are now His children and not His enemy, and therefore to stop living as if we were His enemy. In these verses, Paul reminds us of our identity.

• Memory problems - essays... constantly getting lost on the way to Tesco...

• As christians our identity is Christ. Two volunteers...

• Passports...

Remember who you are...

• High School motto "Industria vincit omnia" - "Hard work conquers everything"... Drummed into us at morning assemblies...

• Moorlands in our first term - the local community know us, so remember who you are.

This morning we are going to look at primarly our new identity and the five facts about our Christian identity...

Doctrine and morality

What we believe, is intrinsically caught up with how we behave. When at end of the 19^th century and beginning of the last century, the church started questioning again the central core of our beliefs about Jesus, that was the beginning of a long slide into moral decay. If the synods back then had stamped out doctrinal decay, then the synods today would not be discussing the moral decay within the church today and whether it is right or not. If the 5 facts before us in these 4 verses weren't watered down by the church itself back then and in some segments now, then perhaps we wouldnt be asking the moral questions that are now being asked of us.

1. What are we to do with this Jesus if we claim to be his followers and in relationship with him?

These five things are fact. They are neither hypothesis or theory. They are not merely symbolic. They are existant facts about us. We are not marked as Christians because we go to Church regularly, though its a good idea if we do. We are not marked as Christians because we were baptised, though I hope we are. We are not marked as Christians because we go to a Bible College, though its a good place to be, and none better than Moorlands. We are marked as Christians, not because of any outwardly visible mark, but here Paul tells us what marks us out as Christians.

a. We died with Christ (3a). READ OUT THE VERSE!! Paul expounds this fully in his letter to the Romans. Jesus not only died for us, but we died with Him. Christ not only died for sin, but died unto sin to break its power. Through the work of the Holy Spirit we are in Christ. We died with Christ. We can conquer our old sinful nature if we want to. Our new identity is Christ and we have died with Him. You have died with Christ.

b. We are raised with Christ (1a). READ OUT THE VERSE!! Just as we died with Christ, we are also raised with Christ. It is a fact that we are raised with Him and we rule with him, seated at the right hand of the Father. Our new identity is Christ and we have been raised with Him. You have been raised with Christ.

c. We live with Christ (4a). READ OUT THE VERSE!! As Christian people, Jesus is our life and our eternal life, is Jesus. We are dead to sin, yet alive to Christ. Our new identity is Christ and we live with Him. You live with Christ.

d. We are hidden with Christ (3b). READ OUT THE VERSE!! For those of you who like a good mystery, here is one for you. We are hidden with Him!! We no longer belong to this world, but we belong to Christ. We are hidden with him in heaven. That is not to say we are to neglect our earthly duties and responsibilities, but that our motives and strengths come from heaven. Our new identity is Christ and it is hidden with Him. You are hidden with Christ.

e. We will be glorified with Christ (4b). READ OUT THE VERSE!! When Christ comes again, we will see Him face to face. When Christ comes again, He will take us home. We shall enter eternal glory. So, we will not be hidden with Christ perpetually because when Christ is revealed in glory, we too shall be revealed in glory. We already have some of this glory, but one day the full extent of this glorification will be revealed. Our new identity is Christ, and we will be glorifed with Him when He comes to take us home... You will be glorified with Christ when He comes again in glory.

These five events... These five facts cover all three tenses in time - past, present and future... In the past, we died and were raised with Christ. In the present, we live with Christ and we are hidden with Him. In the future, when He comes again, we will be glorified with Him.

And because we share in Jesus’ death, resurrection and future glorification, we are to stop sinning. We are to stop thinking about ways in which to sin. This is what Paul says in verse 5. Our feet are to be in this world, but our minds are to be with Jesus, focussing on ways in which to serve Him, day in and day out. Look at the list of things we are to put to death in verses 5-10. That list is not conclusive. Don’t sin is the message, and yet we continue to do so…

I long for perfection. I yearn it. Even when as a child, being dragged up irreligiously, I longed to be perfect. Yet, every time I succumb to temptation and therefore disobey God and sin, I forget who I am. I forget my new identity. I forget that I am a child of the Living God. I forget that I have died with Christ. I forget that I have been raised with Him. I forget that I live in Him. I forget that I am hidden in Him. I forget that one day He is coming again and that I, Dave Roberts, will be glorified with Him. When we sin, it is as if I am telling the Holy Spirit to rack off and leave me alone... Instead we should be telling our three enemies to rack off... Tell old hairy legs Satan to depart from you. Tell the world to rack off. Tell your old nature, that it is dead and you have a new nature to which you seek to serve.

By keeping our minds and hearts set upon Him, talk to yourself. Talking to yourself is actually a sign of maturity. Tell yourself these five facts to help you in your Christian life. You have died with Christ. You have been raised with Christ. You live with Christ. You are hidden in Christ. You will be glorified with Christ. Paul elsewhere in his other letters, says "Have you forgotten who you are?" Immerse yourself in the Bible.

Steinbeck - "obsalescent religion." Travels with Charley.

2. Jesus - fully human.

That Jesus was a man is not really disputed. Scripture says that he was born of a woman which in itself tells us that prenatally he was nurtured and formed in the womb as any other male baby was and is. His genealogical line is given. He grew into manhood as any young Jewish boy did. With his humanity, he exhibited normal human emotions such as love, weeping, sadness, anger and anguish. Jesus ate and drank. He had a body and a soul. He undertook the baptism of John, just as others had done. Jesus grew tired, he slept & perspired. Religiously, he worshipped as a Jew. Jesus died, just as all mortal people do. He was human in every way that we are - physically, mentally and emotionally. The only exception is that he was sinless. His humanity is beyond question, though unlike us, he was sinless.

Jesus needed to be fully human for various reasons.

a. so that his death could sacrificially atone for us.

b. so that he can empathize and pray for us.

c. Jesus exhibited true and perfect humanity.

d. due to his perfect humanity, Jesus is to be our example to follow.

e. true human nature is good.

f. Jesus shows that while God is transcendent, He is not so far removed from us that He can’t interact with his creation.

3. Jesus’ deity

Jesus’ deity and the Incarnation are central and basic teaching of historic Christianity as it is central to God’s eternal plan of salvation. God’s salvation plan for humans involved triumphant victory over sin, death and the grave. However no person could be found that was eligible or capable to do this. Because of this, God stepped into human history, so that this victory could be achieved. This God-man would be fully human, so as to live every facet of humanity, including suffering and death. This God-man would also need to remain fully God, so as to defeat sin, death and the grave. Jesus, being sinless (Heb.4:15), was this God-man, consisting as he was of two complete natures, the God nature and the human nature.

Anselm the church father, observed that God had formed Adam without mother and father and had formed Eve without mother and father but from a man. So he could certainly form Jesus, without the usual sexual reproduction process, from a woman.

Recapitulation

• Remember who you are.

• Remember your identity.

• Remember you have died with Christ,

• Remember you have been raised with Christ.

• Remember you have new life in Christ - NOW!!.

• Remember you are hidden with Christ - NOW!!.

• Remember you will be glorified with Christ when He comes again.

Conclusion

Therefore let us conclude. We are to focus our minds on Him for heavenly reasons. We are to let heaven fill our thoughts. In another translation, verse 2 reads “habitually set your mind on things above”.

Jesus was fully-god and fully-man. It is this Jesus we claim to follow. Be assured of your identity. Remember who you are. Stop sinning and remember who you are - a child of the living God. Cast off all that hinders your Christian growth. Live for Him and make a difference in a world that is dying without knowledge of Him. Most of all, as a motivation to aspire to live a perfect life in honour of Him - remember who you are, and I dont mean just your name!! Remember....

Christ the King - Revelation 21

Originally preached at St James Poole 21st November 2004

“Christ the King”

INTRODUCTION

I am sure you are as aware as I am that next Sunday is the beginning of the Church year, when we as Christians commence Advent. Secondly if you are not aware, Christmas is coming. Harrods opened their Christmas shop back in August and all the shops have had their Christmas decorations up for some time now. It is a time where the Church and our community celebrate Jesus Christs‘ first coming, as a baby. The community like to think of Jesus as a baby, because a baby can be controlled. Somewhat. Though that is coming from the perspective of somebody who has never had children!!! Society in general, is comfortable with leaving Jesus as a baby. However, Jesus is not a baby now, He is King and what a King. He is coming again, not as a baby this time, but as King and judge. Both ideas are affirmed by Jeremiah and John.

I would like to do two things this evening. Firstly, to give a very brief overview of Revelation 11 and then progress to the end of Revelation and give just three brief vignettes into what the reward is that John writes about in verse 18.

1. CHRIST’S REIGN

Have you ever wondered what the book of Revelation was all about?

The writer is the Apostle John, now approaching 100 years of age and he is almost blind. John was in exile on Patmos, put there by the Romans due to his witness for Jesus. There was open persecution of Christians at the time. This is the same John, who was the apostle Jesus loved. John saw Jesus walk on the water. He seen and heard Jesus command a storm to cease! He saw Jesus weeping. He saw Jesus in righteous anger clearing the Temple courts. He seen Jesus heal the sick, raise the dead and cast out demons. He had his feet washed by Jesus. He saw Jesus transfigured. He saw Jesus torn and bloody on the cross as He died broken and alone. John surveyed the empty tomb. He saw Christ risen again and ascend into the heavens, glorified.

The book of Revelation itself, is the book where we see the bride of Christ consummated in marriage to the King; finally joined with Jesus as One. In Revelation, God’s programme of salvation, starting all the way back in Genesis, comes to fruition and God’s holy and majestic name is vindicated before all creation. Here Jesus is seen as King, in all His glory, to judge the earth and to rule it with righteousness. The verses that were helpfully read to us tonight, sum up the first eleven chapters. Christ is King!! But what will His reign be like?

Look at verse 17 and 18 of Revelation 11 with me. (READ verse 17 & 18) There we see that Jesus’ reign will be all-encompassing and universal. It will take over from all human governments. There will be no more dictatorships or democracies. We will be in an eternal theocracy where Jesus rules and reigns. This theocracy will be decisive and righteous. There will be no shilly-shallying when it comes to judging of those who have never trusted in Him and there will be great reward for those who live a life, trusting and obeying Him now.

But what is this reward for those who love Him?? Turn with me please to the back of your Bibles to Chapter 21.

2. PREPARED PLACE

Jesus promised us “I am going to build a place for you“ (John 14:1-4) One of the most beautiful buildings in the world is the Taj Mahal in India. It was built by a Muslim emperor in memory of his wife, of whom he had known 19 years. It took 20,000 workers a day over 21 years to complete, at a cost equivalent today of about two billion pounds. Now if a pagan Indian prince, can make this beautiful building for somebody he had known for only 19 years, how much more beautiful than that, is our new home in heaven going to be. Jesus has been working on it for almost 2000 years to this point in time!! Heaven is a beautiful place, prepared for you and me, to live forever and ever with our King! It is for you!
At the moment, I live in Christchurch and my wife Youngmi, temporarily lives in our London flat. After a three hour drive on a Friday, I get home to London and when I arrive, I know I am expected and loved. Youngmi has my favourite meal prepared. The heating is on and the proverbial pipe and slippers are ready. Everything I like, that makes it a home for me, is done for me! After my first week down here, I returned back there, and was showered with balloons and all manner of things, because I was expected and she loves me!!
Similarly, when we get to heaven, Jesus has prepared a place for those of us who love Him, trust Him and obey Him as King. Our King is waiting for us! He is expecting us, wanting to lavish His love upon us. We know He loves us now, but that is only in part. When we are with Him eternally, we shall have the full picture of Jesus. He is with us now in Spirit, but then we shall be with Him physically and face to face. Heaven is a prepared place of majestic beauty. John portrays his visions for us, building up layer upon layer of words, as a painter painting a painting. Laying on the colours, layer upon layer until finally the painting is finished.

3. PURITY (v.1-4)

Heaven is a prepared place. Secondly, it is a pure place. We all suffer in some way. For myself in the recent past, I have suffered a brain haemorrhage and I have lost three days, I will never regain. I continue to take medication for blood pressure and hypothyroidism in the morning and in the evening I take anti-convulsants. I take so many pills I rattle when I walk. With the medication, come all manner of side effects. I find it difficult doing certain activities. Sometimes my entire body aches and groans in protest at my actions. We suffer, don’t we. My father died 10 years ago from a misdiagnosed hiatus hernia. My mother suffers with arthritis and hyperthyroidism. One of my brothers suffer with clinical depression. A lady I know back in London, Pam, is sleeping in her front room because her leg is so swollen she cant get up her stairs to her bedroom. We suffer don’t we?
One day soon, we will have perfect bodies and full health. We only have to look at the news on TV or read the papers to see global suffering. When our King returns, there will be no more terrorism, missiles, guns, wars or bombs. No more will man’s inhumanity to man be allowed. No more torture, rapes, muggings or robberies. No more poverty or famine. No more religion, idols or icons. No more gossip, fornication, adultery, lying or debauchery. No more cowardice. No more pain. No more death. No more suffering. No more sin.

Suffering of any kind leaves some sort of scar or mark. Do you have scars? Physical, emotional or mental scars due to sickness, somebody else sinning against you or as a result of your own sins? Scars come as a result of human life. Much like a house that has lovingly lived in. Scratches in the paintwork. Dents and knocks in the wood. Our human bodies are the same, yet… Yet, one day they will be gone!! Vanished!! A pure body you will have!! And I will have! No need for annoying spectacles. There will be no Specsavers or Stannah stair-lifts in heaven!! No more wheelchairs. No more walking sticks or frames. No more hearing-aids. No more braces or dentures. No more doctors or dentists!! Perfection attained and it is to the glory of God and His majestic doing, that this will occur. Do you believe it? Do you live it?

Are you suffering today from sickness? Are you suffering today because of somebody else?? Well one day, one glorious day, all suffering will be banished for those of us who love Him. Read with me verse 4, “God will wipe away our tears. There will be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying and no more pain, for former things have passed away.” Take that verse to heart. What a glorious day it will be for those of us who love Him now. God Himself, with our face in His hands, wiping away our tears… It will be a place where we will live the fruit of the spirit eternally. A place where “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Gal.5:22-23) are both permanent and universal. That is part of our King’s manifesto. What a day, that will be!! We will enter those gates, thanking Jesus, looking back at how we suffered. Not only medically, but also for His sake under persecution. We will be able to say with Jeremiah and John “It was worth it all. The sufferings I endured and overcame for the sake of Jesus, was all worth it, so as to be here eternally and living with our King.”

4. PEARLY GATES (v.21)

Heaven is prepared for us and it is a pure place. Lastly we enter through giant gates of pearl. Do you know how a pearl is formed? When an oyster gets an irritating grain of sand within its shell, it covers the grain of sand over with layers of mother-of-pearl until the irritation and the suffering is no longer felt. Now what do you think the suffering was that created these giant pearls that are the gates (v21)? I think they are to remind us of the cross and the suffering and pain that Jesus endured. People denigrate the cross. I have had people say that “the cross doesn’t matter” and “your religion is as good as mine thank you very much.” Others state “that all religions lead to heaven”. However, the very gates of heaven tells us that these things are wrong. They tell us that it is only through the cross, that we get to pass through and enjoy heaven in worship and service of God. Only through the pain, the agony and the suffering that Jesus endured, culminating in His death as He cried out “My God! My God! Why have You forsaken me?” Our King Himself has suffered for us, so that we may enjoy His company forever and ever, if we only trust and obey Him now and place our faith in Him while we are here in this our temporal home on earth. We know in part now, but then we will know in full.

This makes the sins that we commit while we are here on earth trying to follow Him, even more serious. Sometimes we take a rather blasé attitude to sin. We excuse it as only a minor thing and of no consequence. Each time we sin as believers, it is as if we are spitting in the very face of Jesus. Our desire should be, to be Jesus and to be like Him. I long to be perfect. When I make a mistake and sin, I cry out in frustration to be perfect now! However, I also know that God is taking off my rough edges to continue making me purer, more like His Son and our King, under the power and direction of the Holy Spirit.
I won’t be entering heaven because I am Australian and showing my Australian passport. Although I consider that a very close second. You won’t even be able to claim your entry into heaven by showing your British passport, let alone as a member of the European community. No… we can only enter heaven, our new home, through the cross. When we first decided for Jesus and turned over our lives to Him, that is when our eternal life with Him commenced.

CONCLUSION

Be encouraged, heaven is for you if you are trusting and obeying Jesus and have Him as Lord of your life! Remember. Whatever your attitude and how you judge Jesus now, is how He will judge you when He returns! Are you following Him and treating Him with respect and reverence? If you aren’t, then it isn’t too late to change your mind and then the reward of eternal living in heaven will be yours! Are you suffering? Suffering will soon be gone. When you sin against God, keep a short account and ask for forgiveness as soon as you recognise that you have sinned and the Holy Spirit has convicted you of it.
We yearn to be with our King for ever and ever. Yet, we are to keep one part of our mind on Heaven and the other on the responsible work we have been set to do, here on earth. We are not to be so heavenly minded, that we are of no earthly use. Conversely, we are not to be so earth bound, that we are not tied to King Jesus in our eternal home.
Go tell somebody. Won’t you go tell somebody this week, this message. Heaven is a great big place, and there will be room for everybody in this town, this county, this nation and this world to enter through one of those twelve gates! Go and share this good news with somebody this very week, so that there may be somebody in that magnificent City, because you told them.
Christ is our King of Righteousness. Trust Him and live a life worthy of Him. Look for His coming! Be expectant, the King is coming back for us soon! Critics of the church sneer “Where is your God?“ and “The end of the Church is surely near”. They are so impatient!! Well… our God will appear soon. He is coming back as King of Righteousness, judging evil and rejecting those who reject Him whilst rewarding those who patiently trust and obey Him.