Opting out

Over the past few months I’ve been troubled and saddened by the actions of a friend. She hasn’t done anything to me, but she has left our church, moved towns and moved into a live-in relationship with her boyfriend. To people who are non-Christians, this may seem like a very normal occurrence, nothing to worry about. To those of us who are committed Christians and know the Bible, we see things from a very different perspective.

My friend was not a young woman and had experienced considerable pain in the area of romantic relationships prior to this one. She appeared to be really dedicated in her faith, knowledge of scripture and involvement in church life. She was involved in ministry to others.  Yet she had a longing to be involved in a romantic relationship. I probably wasn’t the only one of her friends who cautioned her to consider what she was doing.  

I write this with no sense of smugness. I feel deeply grieved in this case not only for the person concerned, but because I know this is not an unfamiliar scenario in churches. More and more the church is capitulating to the world’s standards, instead of being the standard bearer. People adopt other lifestyles at the expense of their faith. Marriages that you thought were rock solid fall apart. We wonder, if my faith was tested, would I fail ? Would I give in to temptation? Would I know how to resist? Are there Christian friends that I could turn to, talk to, be honest with?

The whole realm of sexuality touches such deep human emotions that it is an area which drags so many people, within the church and beyond it, into seemingly attractive relationships that lead to misery and destruction. Our western culture is so completely saturated with sexual messages that promote lifestyles contrary to what God has laid down as the foundation for happiness in the Bible – one man, one woman, committed for life in a marriage relationship. Celibacy is no longer promoted as a viable option, nor is there much validation for those who through choice or circumstances remain single throughout their lives.  Restrictions on sexual “freedom” have been cited as one of the main barriers for young people committing their lives to Christ.

You can’t expect people who don’t know God’s standards to apply them. When it comes to people in the church, however, there should be an understanding of what God teaches, and why. Christians must consider what they believe, and why, in relation to a number of social issues which impact on Christian witness to the world:
Is it alright for couples to live together before marriage?

Should the church accept homosexual relationships and marriage?

Should the church accept divorce? Can divorced people remarry ?

What is meant by promiscuity? Adultery? Fornication? Faithfulness?

And what is meant by true love? Does it ever involve sacrifice of one’s self including one’s desires? Shouldn’t love forgo pleasure that leads to pain? Shouldn’t love consider the other person’s standing with God, even at the expense of a personal relationship?

I don’t know what will happen to my friend’s earthly relationships, but I do hope that she will find afresh a deep and lasting dependency on God and know the reality of His love that yearns to be utmost in her life.  May He bless and keep her and draw her to Himself. 

The God of Reason

 ^“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord” Isaiah 1:18

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” 1 Peter 3:15

Recently at my home group we had a short discussion about whether it was appropriate to sometimes flip open the Bible, expecting God to speak to us through it. My answer to this is yes, and no. Randomly flipping open the Bible might bring a much needed piece of advice or inspiration from God, or it might result in reading a long list of genealogies or measurements of the temple.

There is nothing in the Bible that is not good, or beneficial. God would not harm anyone through the practice of opening it willy- nilly, but I think it’s far more important to read it systematically and purposefully. When you regularly read the Bible and know its contents, you can open it with understanding and read passages which will give strength and direction according to your particular needs or those of others.

I tend to shy away from randomness when it comes to God. Let’s face it, many new age occult practices have a high degree of randomness attached- toss a bundle of sticks and see how they fall; pull cards out of a pack and they will reveal your destiny.  False Gods of false religions are capricious, playing with people like pawns and their religious practices revolve around repetitious efforts to please or appease them.

No so the true God of the Bible. He is the God of love and compassion as well as justice. His word gives us His precepts, upon which whole civilizations have been constructed.  His word clearly defines the reasons for the human condition of sinfulness and how mankind can come into right relationship with Him again – only through His Son, Jesus Christ.   We see the results in the changed lives of those who commit themselves to Christ.

Such is God’s love for us that He did not leave us alone when Jesus ascended to Heaven, but sent His Holy Spirit to be with us, indwelling the Christian, providing counsel and encouragement. God’s Holy Spirit has been much misrepresented through the extremism of some churches, but it is real, operating in the lives of Christians, sometimes miraculously, sometimes more quietly.
Through prayer we are told to bring our needs and requests to God. When God says, come let us reason together, He means just that. He is not, as one secular song lyrics suggest, watching us from a distance. He's with us. He loves to have us talk with Him, and He answers in many various ways. The Bible records Jacob wrestling with God, and some of us do that on occasion. The Psalms contain many passages of lament and pleading with God. as well as joy and wonder.  Through prayer we can talk to God about what we want to do with the resources he has given us, our talents and desires and dreams.  We can talk to God about anything- fears, temptations, problems and more, and know that He hears and cares.

God’s word clearly teaches ways of living in right relationships – with God, with our specific marriage partner, and with our fellow humans. It affirms that people are born with free choice, capable of great things as well as evil ones. It discusses the highest levels of human ethics – e.g. forgiveness, faithfulness, temptation. 

The Bible affirms the wonder of all created things on earth and in heaven. It contains glorious passages describing the beauty of the natural world and the majesty of heaven. The heavens do not operate randomly. The stars appear in their patterns and courses. The trees and plants display amazing intricacy in their life cycles. Animals reproduce after their kind. The Bible accurately records history of the times in which it was written – accuracy frequently confirmed by archaeological discoveries.

Far from being “blind faith” Christianity affirms the highest levels of humanity.  Far from being restrictive, it opens a doorway into a whole realm of relationship and growth. It encourages us to be our best, achieve our best and most of all to receive the best things that our loving Father God has for us.

I am never ashamed to call myself a Christian. I hope more and more that God will give me the ability to answer those who want to know the reasons for my faith in Him. 

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Easter Sunday, the most joyful day in the Christian year - even better than Christmas Day! That day we celebrate Christ's birth, but today, after the solemnity of Good Friday, we rejoice in Christ's resurrection. For death was not the end. Satan could not hold our Lord in its grip. Jesus had stamped His authority over all things - in Heaven and hell.
Jesus' followers, who had spent days in despair, thinking that Jesus was dead and gone, were hidden together, wondering what would become of themselves. Would they be hunted down and put to death? Peter, who had promised Jesus that he would follow Him anywhere, had already denied knowing Jesus three times.
The women who had been with Jesus went to His tomb to anoint his body. It was there that they found the stone which had been placed at the tomb's entrance rolled back. The tomb was empty.
Jesus appeared, first to Mary Magdalene, then to His disciples and many others. How amazing it would have been! It was proof that everything that Jesus has foretold them was true.
Jesus demonstrated by his return His great love for His disciples.
He spent time in fellowship with them. He told them what He wanted them to do - to wait for His ascension into Heaven and to wait for Him to send His Holy Spirit to be with them. When they had received God's Holy Spirit they would be witnesses for Christ - in Jerusalem, Judea and to the ends of the earth, as Christ's followers are still doing in various ways today.

The resurrection is the promise of hope and eternal life with Christ. No other god bears scars. No other god died and rose again. No other god promises a personal relationship of love.

Throughout the world, in the face of opposition and hatred, cynicism and apathy, the Christian message has rung true through the centuries, and will forever remain:

"Christ is risen!"
"He is risen indeed!"

My King wore a thorny crown

The King of the world, Creator of the universe, hung stripped and beaten, dying on a cross.

On His head, a crown of thorns, place there by those who mocked and scorned him. 

When we look back in the Biblical book of Genesis, we see the reason for Christ’s suffering. Adam and Eve, the first humans, who were given free choice to obey God or choose evil, chose evil. As a punishment, God pronounced that they and through them, their descendants, would be banished from their life in Eden- a life of relationship with God.  There would be suffering and enmity between people. Death and disease would afflict them. Even the physical earth which provided food would be cursed with thistles and thorns. Humankind was forced to toil for its sustenance.

Yet so great was God’s love that He provided another chance. He gave His Son Jesus, His perfect Son, who came to earth in human form to teach us of His Father’s love. Through Jesus we can come back into relationship with God. The Bible tells us that there is no other way through which we can find forgiveness and faith, except through repentance and commitment to Jesus Christ.

On the cross, Jesus bore all the sin of this world, for all time. He was crowned with a symbol of the cursed nature of our physical earth. But that was not the end of the story, for He rose, triumphant over sin and death. He wears not a crown of thorns, but a royal diadem, seated forever in His throne on high, a crown of life, more precious than the diamond encrusted crowns of earthly monarchs.

Every human born into this world has a sinful nature. If we choose to commit our lives to Jesus we are blessed with His gift of a second birth, a new life in Christ, and the infilling of His Holy Spirit to be our earthly counsellor and guide until we join Christ forever in heaven.

Praise be to God, our Father, maker of heaven and earth, and Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.     

“Crown him with many crowns,
the Lamb upon his throne,
Hark! how the heavenly anthem drowns
all music but its own.
Awake, my soul, and sing
of him who died for thee,
and hail him as thy matchless King
through all eternity.

Crown him the Lord of life,
who triumphed o'er the grave,
and rose victorious in the strife
for those he came to save.
His glories now we sing,
who died, and rose on high,
who died, eternal life to bring,
and lives that death may die. “

(“Crown Him with Many Crowns”,  verses 1&2, lyrics by Matthew Bridges and Godfrey Thring)