THE NAKED PREACHER

The prize jewel at the heart of the gospel is forgiveness.

Forgive us, we are taught to pray in the same way we forgive others.

‘Use the same measure we use, Lord.’ is our plea.

So how much attention do we give to that measure? How committed are we to forgiving others?

There are many Biblical examples of commitment to forgiveness. Our recent studies with Joseph have helped us. Joseph’s brothers had sold him into slavery, they had only stopped short of killing him by God’s intervention.

22 years later the guilty brothers stand before Joseph who now has the power of life and death over them!!

⁴ Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! ⁵ And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.

Genesis 45 v 4-5

So thoroughly had Joseph forgiven his brothers he didn’t even want them to feel distressed or angry with themselves!! That is an impressive measure of forgiveness.

Jesus gives us the ultimate example of forgiveness. His crucifixion was winning freedom even for those killing him, even as they killed him. His words

Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.

Luke 23 v 34

Demonstrates to all the centrality and power of forgiveness.

Not, as I think was intended by this video, ‘HOW SMALL ARE YOU?!!” Rather ‘HOW BIG IS GOD?!!”

famine?

Back in January we started a sermon series based on the story of Joseph.

This week, as we near the end of the series, we turn to the famine. Joseph was to provide salvation from the effects of this catastrophe. God had long been preparing Joseph for the moment he would be thrust from the prison into the palace. He goes from prisoner to prime minister in the most dramatic rags to riches story in history.

Joseph, of course, has no idea this is about to happen. As far as he knows there could be many more years of obscurity ahead.

His decision to be faithful in the privacy of his prison cell saved many thousands of lives. He also provided food for his own family and kept God’s people and the promise of a messiah alive.

Decisions made in private can have global effects!!

We have the privilege of having our lives woven into God’s plan to rescue mankind from an eternity without Him. We can feel, like Joseph must have felt at times, abandoned by God and rejected by men. The danger when we feel like that is we can abandon our walk with God and sin, making poor decisions based on bad motivations.

Our government is in the midst of the worst crisis in generations the cause has been bad moral choices made in private. For generations the families of these disgraced MPs will suffer the consequences.

The famine we face is not a lack of food but rather a famine of truth, righteousness and love. God continues to prepare his people to participate in His great rescue mission. Our private decisions continue to have global consequences.

Jenson Button wins in Monaco 2009

This week I had the privilege of addressing our town council. My slot came directly after a presentation to a number of high school students who were being awarded for a variety of achievements.

Having planned to speak on the title of this post I quickly adjusted my introduction.

I recently watched Jenson Button running through the streets of Monaco, celebrating another GP victory. I also witnessed the historic French Open win for Roger Federer. As we get older success becomes harder to measure, I have noticed that people stopped giving me certificates some years ago.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

1 Corinthians 9 v 24-25

The writer to the Hebrews reminds us that Jesus also had a measure of success which lead him all the way to the cross.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12 v 2

So what is this that Paul is encouraging us to strain for and that motivated Jesus?

It is the joy of doing God’s will. This demonstrated most completely by Jesus in the sacrificial service of others.

This then is success.

When motivated by these things I am freed; from the need to please others, from the tyranny of the urgent, from a worldly desire to be noticed or to dominate my peers.

One of my sons, and I’m not telling you which one, struggles with mistakes. He makes as many as anyone else but has difficulty accepting responsibility for them. As we mature in our faith it’s vital we get used to being wrong.

It’s a fundamental of the gospel that we’re wrong and that it’s our responsibility. The wonder is that once we’ve accepted our hopelessness Jesus steps in and redeems us.

This redemption should permeate the church, allowing graciously for mistakes and errors while giving the space for repentance and restoration. This is the rich soil that allows for friendship and spiritual growth.

Trouble comes when we hide our mistakes or worse blame others for them. No-one is really fooled and personal integrity suffers.

1. admit our mistakes

2. freely forgive

3. learn from them

4. grow

AMEN

I turn 40 in a couple of weeks. Unfortunately I don’t have sufficient funds to bag myself a sports car and embark on a full blown mid-life crisis. Instead I’ve taken a few moments to reflect on my 40 years and started swimming a few lengths a couple of times a week.

On reflection I think, as a ‘younger’ man the fear of failure was the single most restricting aspect of my life. It can be absolutely paralysing, you’ll know if you’ve ever suffered from it yourself.

The thing about failing is that it’s very common and if treated correctly can be a source of encouragement and character development.

There are some great examples from history.

Abraham Lincoln’s first business as the owner of a dry goods store was a flop. He was later appointed postmaster in his township and had the worst efficiency record in the United States.

Harry Truman opened a hat and shirt shop at age 35 that went bankrupt after just two years. Truman worked 15 years to pay off the debt.

The bible helps us here:

Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Romans 5 v 3-5

It is on this character, hand in hand with the hope it produces that God builds.

So rather than allowing the fear of failure to cripple you, accept it with humility and grow in character and hope.

This year we have witnessed the death of a God. Not a particularly common event as it happens.

On our arrival back from South Africa in 2003 we were stunned by how the UK and presumably the US as well had become addicted to money. Every other advert on the TV was offering jaw-dropping sums for loan. Even more sickening was the appearance of a whole range of TV shows offering to sell your family heirloom’s for ‘cash’. It seemed to us that the whole country had been reduced to it’s base value in pounds and pence. Even people’s homes were no longer homes but cash-cows to be milked to death for money. The God of money or Mammon as the bible calls it was alive, well and ‘kicking ass’ in the western world.

2008 saw this god die. This is the fate of all gods, who are no gods at all.

The issue I want you to think about today is that with the death of this god our attention can be drawn away form the real issues facing humanity.

People (outside of Christ) are in far deeper trouble than a credit crunch, however severe. If you don’t think this statement is true you don’t understand the gospel!

We have a once-in-a-life-time opportunity to restore the church and build the Kingdom of God, serving both our own generation and many to come. To be side-tracked at this point, to be consumed by our inability to be consumers would be a foolish error.

Our commission and our great God are alive and ready for action. Be a good soldier and fight!!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS

With everyone trying to match the right present with the right person I thought I’d step in and help by recommending a book for Christmas.

Tim Keller’s excellent new book ‘The Prodigal God’ is, and I don’t say this lightly, probably the best book I have read this year. He looks at the parable of the lost son and considers that both sons in the story were equally lost. The younger lost, in the traditional sense, the older son lost in the religious, Pharisaical sense.

Note that it was the older brother that didn’t appear at the feast at the end of the story..

Buy the book, give it as a gift, read it yourself.

buy it here

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Ephesians 4 1-6

The gospel, when preached properly, attracts people from all walks of life. It crosses national and cultural boarders with ease, it is unhindered by economic downturns or tremendous wealth. It, therefore, causes us, who are deeply influenced by all these things, real and pressing problems.

We like people who are ‘like us’, we are naturally suspicious of people who are not ‘like us’. In my experience the band of people we might consider to actually be ‘like us’, is very narrow indeed.

Jesus had no problem loving and leading all kinds of diverse characters. Think, for a moment, about His disciples. Matthew was a tax collector, Simon was a zealot. These two groups not only wouldn’t have mixed, they hated each other, passionately. Yet there they are both following Jesus.

Paul recognises this and calls on Christians to be united.

be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit

Ephesians 4 v 3

The NIV renders this verse ‘make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit’

We are also given instructions as to how this might be achieved.

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love

Ephesians 4 v 1

To maintain unity in the midst of diversity what is required is that we clothe ourselves with humility and gentleness. We go back to our own salvation to find what is required in our relationship with others.

1. How were you received by Jesus?
2. What was given that you might be included in Jesus great victory?
3. He has made a family of you who were is enemies.
4. He chooses to remember your sins no more.
5. He redeems your foolishness and rewards you for His faithfulness.

Go and do the same - unity will follow you wherever you go.