Our problem, in reading these stories, is twofold.  Firstly, the images and pictures don’t mean much in our world.  We aren’t farmers, or there isn’t a temple, or our weddings are conducted differently.  They don’t connect with us, in the way they would have done in first century Israel.  Secondly, the stories themselves are so familiar to us, that they lose their impact.  We have heard them so often, listened to explanations, or sometimes they have been incorporated into popular culture (eg. the Good Samaritan), and the surprise is gone, and with it the uncomfortable feelings that might just persuade us to act, to do something, to step out of the status quo.

So when Jesus said…

Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.  (Mt 5:23-24)

…his original hearers would have understood exactly what he was saying.  And they would have been shocked, surprised, and possibly annoyed.  But we don’t necessarily ‘get it’ because we don’t have a temple, offer animals as sacrifices, nor know the geography of the land in which they lived.

Jesus was speaking in Galilee, some 80 miles from Jerusalem, where the temple was and gifts were offered.  So, says Jesus, if you people of Galilee are in Jerusalem, about to offer some gift as a freewill offering to God in the temple, and you remember someone who is offended with you, you are angry with, and your relationship is distanced or broken down, then you leave your animal with the priest, and go home.  Go back to Galilee (where almost certainly this offended person would reside).  Walk those 80 miles, to go meet with that person, to try to be reconciled with him.  That would be around 3 days travel, just to get back to Galilee.  Then another 3 days back to Jerusalem to offer you gift.  Oh, and another 3 days travel to return home again.

That is to say nothing about the gift.  Gifts in those days weren’t nice presents wrapped in colourful paper, with a bow on.  No, gifts offered at the altar were mostly animals: birds, lambs etc.  What were they supposed to do with this gift?  What happens if they returned a week later to find the gift had gone?  Walked off?  Flown away?  Been used by someone else?

Why didn’t Jesus just say, if you remember you have a broken relationship, well offer your gift and then rush back to build a bridge with your friend or neighbour who is offended?

I think Jesus didn’t say that because it wouldn’t have communicated how important building bridges in relationships is to Jesus.  I think Jesus didn’t say that because it would have left his hearers nodding wisely in agreement, but not doing anything about their wronged brothers.  I think Jesus didn’t say that because it wouldn’t have motivated his hearers to make that incredibly hard journey to reach out to someone to try to resolve differences.

So Jesus invited his hearers to take an incredibly difficult 80 mile journey home, to build a bridge in a broken relationship, and then another 80 miles back again to offer their gift at the altar.  So really this post should be have the title:  A one hundred and sixty mile journey to build a bridge!

When Isaiah spoke this oracle, the Assyrian Empire had already destroyed and taken into captivity the northern Kingdom of Israel, and was threatening the southern Kingdom of Judah.  The year is probably 701BC, and Hezekiah is King of Judah, although he isn’t mentioned in this passage.  While he was in general a good king, the leaders of Judah had decided that the only way to stop the superior might of the Assyrian armies was to form an alliance with Egypt who would protect them (vs. 1-5).

This alliance was not a equal partnership as we might think of two nations forming today.  The only way to get Egypt’s help was to buy it – to cart over the Negev desert that separates Judah and Egypt some of the national wealth to secure the military help of Egypt (vs 6).

A reasonable response you might think.  But along comes Isaiah and says that this is not a plan that the Lord is happy with, nor one that they consulted Him about (vs 1&2).  In fact it will only end in their disgrace and shame (vs. 3-5), because Egypt is utterly useless, as the Lord calls them “Rahab the Do-Nothing”.  (vs 7)

[Click on “read rest of entry” to finish article…]

The imagery might be lost on us, but Rahab was a well known mythical monster in ancient days, powerful yet chaotic.  But the Lord says Egypt is like this mythical monster who sits around, and does absolutely nothing to help!  So why invest your national wealth into this alliance when it will be utterly useless in protecting you from the Assyrians?

This alliance, having been formed without the Lord, means that Judah keep God at arms length.  They want to prophets to say nice things to them, things that confirm the choices they have made.  They don’t want Isaiah to come along and confront them with the “Holy One of God” (vs. 10-11).  This alliances stops them praying, and keeps God away.

Finally in this oracle, the Lord pronounces his verdict on the outcome of this alliance:  it is like a wall (that separates Judah from the Lord) that gives an illusion of protection and security, but in reality is bulging, cracked and will come crashing down, just like a piece of pottery will smash if it dropped on a rock.  Nothing will remain.  The effect will be devastating.

So what might this mean for us today?  We don’t form alliances with other nations, but what do we form alliances with, that give us an illusion of security and wellbeing?   On Sunday, we built a wall (of cardboard boxes) and together we all came up with ideas on what alliances we might form today.  Ranging from work, to food, to success, to national identity, the wall was filled with lots of things that we can form an alliance with, that seems to give us some sense of security or wellbeing.

We invest in these alliances: our time, energy, emotional energy, thinking, and sometimes money, to demand a return from the object of our alliance.  Most of the things we form alliances with are not bad in themselves.  In fact they are good, but somehow along the way, the relationship we form is twisted.  For example, with work, God has given us work for us to contribute to the world around us.  Work is a good thing.  But sometimes the relationship we form with work becomes unhealthy and we are driven to find our identity, a source of self worth, and security from our work.  No longer is the work something that serves us, but we start serving the work, in our desperate need for what it gives us.

The Lord offers us a way out from these alliances.  A way of taking down the wall, brick by brick, before it collapses.  It isn’t easy, nor quick.  But it is possible.  And to hear more about this, you will have to come to Community Church on Sunday 11th …

It has often been thus.  Even in the days of Israel, keeping God at arms length served their purposes.  Isaiah parodied their response:

Give us no more visions of what is right!
       Tell us pleasant things,
       prophesy illusions.

Leave this way,
       get off this path,
       and stop confronting us
       with the Holy One of Israel!

(Isa 30:10-11)

This almost seems an unbelievable response.  How can it be possible for God’s people to prefer to keep God away?  Is it possible that we, too, don’t want God to come too close?  Could a lack of prayer highlight a far deeper problem about our trust in God?

The Prodigal Son is an incredibly well known story (Luke 15:11-32).  But often the focus is on the younger son, who leaves home with his inheritance from his not-yet-dead Father, squanders it, and returns to find and experience the grace and kindness of the Father.

What is less often looked at is the older son, who stays at home all the time, working hard on the family estate, faultless in so many ways, and yet we discover in the story that he is every bit as lost as his younger brother.   We first get a hint of this, when the welcome home party for the younger son is in full swing, and the older son returns home.  Instead of entering into the house, he stays outside asking a servant what is going on.  Then angrily he confronts his Father with all the simmering resentment under the surface of his heart, due to his perceived lack of appreciation for all his hard work and the unfairness of the treatment of his brother.

The self-righteousness of the older brother is harder to see in our own hearts than the blatant rebellion of the younger son.  We can do all the right stuff.  Outwardly, we can seem a good Christian.  We can attend church; always helping out; serving; teaching; praying with others; bringing friends to church etc.  But we are doing all this out of duty.  We can even pray regularly.  But our prayer seems to revolve around the work we are doing.  The Father seems more like a boss, who is directing the work, than a loving dad who enjoys hanging out with his sons.

And deep in our hearts, the situation is even more desperate, when we find a moment to stop the activity to reflect on its condition.  We find we resent the success of others, even someone secretly hoping for others downfall or comeuppance.  The joy of others new found faith or simplistic versions of faith annoy us.  Occasionally the anger and resentment bubbles out, but mostly we keep it under control by business and noise and not stopping.

For if we stopped, we would be confronted with the hardness and darkness of our own heart.  We would be confronted by our own anger and jealousy.  We would be confronted by own lostness.  And we might also be confronted by the irresistible love of the Father, wooing us back home.

Why don’t we pray?  Because it is sometime just too scary to stop all the activity and to be confronted with ourselves, alone with God.

Let me tell you a story I told last Sunday at church.  My sabbatical was in two parts.  The first a course and holiday.  The second part was 11 weeks, based at home, but with no emails, tasks, things to organise, sermons to preach, people to see, things to plan etc.  The focus was prayer, scripture reflection, study, reading and personal reflection.

The first few days of this eleven week period I sorted out my out-of-control inbox, cleared and sorted piles of paperwork, and drafted a daily and weekly plan of prayer, reading and study for these 11 weeks.  By the end of the third day, the one thing I hadn’t done, was the very thing I was there to do: pray.  Nor open my Bible.

One of the things I learnt from this, is that time is rarely the reason why I don’t pray.  Desire is.

But I learnt something deeper from this story.  It revealed something about my heart.  I learnt about some of the searching questions I have about God and myself, which rarely punctuate my consciousness, but when other things are stripped away they were glaringly obviously to me.

This Sunday at Community Church, I will talk about uncovering some of the deep questions, and how bringing them to the surface can reveal why we don’t pray.

The second part of Sunday’s Sermon was Mary and Martha (Lk 10:38-42).

Martha and Mary are found in other gospel stories, principally in John 11 and 12.  We see them as part of the community of Jesus, his friends and as people who trust him.  Martha shows remarkable faith in Jesus, when her brother Lazarus died.  Mary’s grief moves Jesus to action.  Mary shows huge devotion to Jesus in anointing his feet.  Martha gets a meal ready for the disciples, and there is no hint that wasn’t appreciated.

If it wasn’t for this passage in Luke’s gospel, Martha wouldn’t have the bad press she has got in church circles.

In fact, when you start delving in this passage, she seems as though she is a good disciple of Jesus too.  Perhaps we need to revisit the dualistic interpretations of this passage, that seem to force us to choose between the serving Martha or contemplative Mary?

Martha “received” Jesus, as he was travelling with his disciples.  This word had been used earlier in Lk 10, when the 72 were sent out in pairs without money.  People who “received” them, gave them food to eat, a place to stay, but also identified with Jesus and his mission.  So Martha’s action was much more than opening her home to Jesus.  It was identifying with the mission of Jesus, showing her to be an important member of Jesus’ community.

Martha was however “distracted” by all the “preparations that had to be made” (NIV).  Other Bible translations make the ‘interpretation’ even clearer: Martha was busy preparing a meal.  However, the Greek doesn’t actually have any word for meal here.  The word that is used is “diakonia” – service or ministry.  This word most often is used by Luke for ministry or leadership within the community of Jesus.  It might include in serving food, but if we make this interpretation we are reading that into the text.

Could it be that Martha is “distracted”, not by the meal preparations, but by the business of the mission and community of Jesus?  Whatever, the heart of her problem is that Mary is not pulling her weight.  Martha’s perspective is that she is doing all the work, and so the source of her distraction is a conflict with Mary.

The word “distracted” is a little difficult to translate, but it has connotations of being pulled away.  Martha has lost her sense of centeredness.

Martha does, what all good disciples of Jesus should do at this point: she prays.  She asks for Jesus’ help and intervention.  She asks Jesus to enlist Mary’s help.

I love what Jesus does at this point:  he takes the conversation to another level.  Martha is complaining about her sister not pulling her weight, and how she is doing all the work.  But Jesus doesn’t respond at that level at all … he starts talking about her anxiety.  Martha, says Jesus, your problem isn’t really your conflict with Mary.  Your problem is really your stress and anxiety.  This is what is pulling you off center.  This is what is causing you to be out of sync.  And, offers Jesus, the very thing that Mary is doing, is exactly what you need to be doing, to get back to the source of this mission and ministry you are involved with.

Jesus isn’t offering a choice for disciples: either action or contemplation.  He is offering Martha a way out from her stress.

In Luke’s gospel, we see an ebb and flow between mission, and returning to the source of that mission.  Just a few verses earlier, the 72 return from their mission, amazed at what they were doing.  Jesus immediately draws them back to the source: rejoice that your names are written in heaven.

Jesus invites us, too, to an ebb and flow of action and contemplation.  Mission in our workplaces, colleges, communities and streets.  Return the source of the mission, to draw life from Jesus and remember whose mission it is anyway!

I suggested on Sunday, using “imaginative contemplation” with the Scripture this week.  Each day read the text, and imagine yourself in the story, perhaps as a different character each time (eg Mary, Matha, a disciple, a onlooker).  What do you feel?  See?  Hear?  What is going on inside you, and the story plays out?  Can this Scripture help us tap into our deepest desires?

Part 1 can be read here.  This is a short summary of the first part of what I said yesterday (Sunday 13th September) at church.  The audio will be available from our website in a day or two.

“There have been times when I think we do not desire heaven; but more often I find myself wondering whether, in our heart of hearts, we have ever desired anything else.”  CS Lewis. The Problem of Pain.

Our desires often seem to ebb and flow, but it perhaps more helpful to see we have different desires competing for our attention and to gain the upper hand.  We may want to ask the girl out (a desire that flows in one direction) competes with the desire not to face potential rejection.  We may want to get fit by going to the gym, but we may prefer to watch the TV instead.  We will end up acting on the strongest desire.

So I think people of faith do want to pray.  They know the value.  But often, we also want to do other things (stay in bed, have the radio on in the car, read a paper on the bus, watch TV, have a  coffee with friends) which compete with our desire to pray.

However, I believe, deep in the heart of every human being is longing for something Divine.  Something beyond ourselves.  To be loved and to love.  To be secure and held.  To have value and purpose; adventure and significance.  To be part of a world where there is no suffering or pain.  These “deepest longings” are often untapped and lie dormant, but speak of our being made in the image of God.

These desires are dangerous.  To long for something deeply opens us up to pain.  The longing will inevitably not be fulfilled to some extent (this side of heaven anyway).  It is much safer to keep these wild longings buried away, where they can’t cause so much trouble.  But in the process we lose something of ourselves, and what we were created for.

These deepest longings can’t be discovered by our rational mind, which is bad news for many of us raised in our terribly rational western world.  But they can be tapped into through music, story, poems, art, images, beauty, creation, scripture and prayer.  We can learn to recognise these deep longings, and as they poke their head above the surface of our lives, and if we nurture them, they can become powerful motivating forces for prayer.

The desire to pray (and for God) resides within every human being.  We just need to let it out.

If I knew the answer to that one, I could write a book, become famous …

Bill Hybels did it, in 1988, when no-one had heard of Bill Hybels or Willowcreek.  “Too Busy not to Pray”.  I was a student at the time.  And I was too busy to read the book.  It still sits on my bookshelf, mostly unread.  Too busy to read the book, we joked at the time.  And too busy to pray, we often still say.

“Prayer takes time” says Bill Hybels, “and we are so busy!”.  Time and prayer.  We link them together, but somehow prayer rarely gets time.

But here is something I have learnt this summer:  time is never the reason we don’t pray.  Maybe I should soften that slightly: time is rarely the reason we don’t pray.  There may be the odd day, when we really don’t have a moment.  But I suggest these days are odd.  They aren’t the norm.  My point still stands.  Time is rarely the issue.  It is a convenient excuse.

The issue is desire.

You may think you know what I am going to say now.  Our desires are wrong.  We need to stifle our desire to watch TV, read magazines, check facebook, or read blogs, so that we all pray more.  Or that we all need to desire Jesus more, to conjure up some passion for the Lord.

Well actually no.  This Sunday, at Community Church, I will suggest that we don’t trust our desires enough, let them out, let them loose, let them run wild and see where they take us.  I think they might just lead us to prayer…

PS. If you want to do some reading beforehand, you could read a very familiar story in Lk 10 38-42

You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Often these verses have been used to encourage individuals in “personal evangelism”.  However, we need to bear in mind that Jesus has in mind here a community, a Kingdom Community, who demonstrate to the world there is a different way to live.

In our English this is masked by the the world “you” which can be either singular or plural.  The Greek is clear: it is plural, you could translate “you folks”.  You folks are the salt of the earth.  You folks are the light of the world.  The community of people, who live out the sermon on the mount, are salt and light, in the way they live together.  In the way they sort out their differences.  In the way they are faithful to each other.  In the way they are people of integrity, doing what they say will do.  In the way they don’t retaliate and love each other. 

They show a world that is watching, there is a different way to live.  A world that is so often characterised by grudges, bitterness, unforgiveness, revenge, unfaithfulness, lying, hatred. 

It all seems so reasonable.  If someone offends you, get your own back.  Or at very least, don’t let him do that again.  And probably a few judicially placed words to others, to make sure (of course) that they can’t do the same to others. 

Stay married.  Until it is better for you to separate.  Feeling stifled?  Feeling unfulfilled? Arguing all the time? Found someone else?  Well then go on, its OK, start again…

Look out for yourself.  No one else will.  So its good to be honest, until you find yourself in a situation where lying is a better option.  To cover up indiscretion and incompetence.  To climb the ladder.  Dog eat dog is justified as that’s the way the world works.

But Jesus calls his followers to a different way.  To live it together.  And to live it in such a way that others who aren’t followers of The Way, can see there is a different way.

Over the next year in our church, I am speaking on the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).  Over the last few months, I have been reflecting on the famous inaugural speech from Jesus, as he seems to outline his manifesto.  It is gripping, scary, and very enticing.  Imagine a world where everyone lived this sermon?  Where we loved our enemies, sorted out our differences, remained faithful to those we loved in heart and action, where we resolved our anger towards others, didn’t worry about tomorrow but trusted God, where we didn’t judge others, and weren’t consumed by the pursuit of money, but served God?

Sounds a bit like heaven on earth.

And so, this last Sunday, I opened the series, primarily looking at the context for the sermon.  Here is a summary.  You can listen to it here, once it is uploaded in a day or two.  Your thoughts and comments would be appreciated, as we learn together, and discern what God is saying to us.

The Context

Jesus came announcing the Kingdom had come, and was here (Mt 4:17).  Now.  Not some future hope (although it was surely that too).  But the possibility of living in the Kingdom on earth, now.  Here.

To demonstrate that the Kingdom had come, Jesus  travelled throughout Galilee, healing people who were sick and ill, setting people free, and preaching about the Kingdom (Mt 4:23-25).  Crowds followed him, as this revival spread.  And we come to Mt 5:1-2 …

Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them saying:

Jesus left the revival (as good as it was) because it was too small a vision.  I believe he had seen something about the Kingdom, that was wouldn’t just change a few people’s lives, but change the world.

A New Community

Jesus saw a community of God’s people, who would live out the Kingdom life, on earth.  Groups of people, who would realise the instability of the worlds system, that one day will eventually pass away, and would live with a different set of values.

For ages, I have always thought of the sermon on the mount as an individual ethic.  But it isn’t.  It is how we can live in Christian community.  A community that will embody the Kingdom.  Jesus leaves the crowds; his disciples follow (not the 12, as they weren’t all together yet – but a group of people who were willing to follow Jesus).  Jesus has a vision of them forming a visible Christian community, that would show people there is a different (and better) way to live.

A Missional Community

This community is at its heart, a missional community.  Not necessarily in what is does, but in who it is.  We are salt and light.  We reveal the nature of God, by the way we love, and forgive, and trust God, and don’t judge, and don’t rely on power, manipulation, status, or position.

We don’t form community that is hidden or removed from the world in which we live.  We live this out, in the midst of the world around.  But we aren’t of the same system.  As Hauerwas says in the title of his book, we are “resident aliens”

Turn the world upside down

Jesus invites us into this kind of community.  It isn’t a question of are we saved or not.  Or will we go to heaven.  But to go beyond faith in Christ being for our personal needs, to living and incarnating the Kingdom with others.  And this will turn the world upside down.  When Paul & Silas were in Thessalonica, they upset some of the Jews and people were becoming Christians (were they worried about their diminished influence?) and they went to get them questioned, shouting “these men have caused trouble all over the world!” (NIV).  Which doesn’t sound that attractive to me!  But it is more helpfully translated “these who have turned the world upside down have come here too“. (NKJV).

Jesus left the revival, because he has a vision of a Kingdom and a Kingdom people who would turn the world upside down.  He invites us, to move beyond our allegiances to this system and values that characterise so much of this world, to turn the world upside down. 

Now I think that is worth giving our lives to.

What do you think?

I will write some more on the background, and include some of the quotes later in the week.  But in the meantime, here is some food for thought and discussion.

I will try to write something more on this over the coming weeks, but here is a talk that I gave at our church before Christmas on times when God seems absent in our lives. God is never absent, but there are times when it seems as though He has left us; times when when we seem to praying to the ceiling; when all we hear is silence; when we have no sense of God’s presence. We are in a barren place, which can become a place of incredible fruitfulness, if we know how to walk with God in these seasons. Often we think we have done something wrong or we try to go back and do what we were doing in times of blessings. We can be tempted to give up. But if we can discern the “withness” of God, that God is with us in a unique, but different, way, we can learn to love the desert. And find it a place of transformation.

Intrigued? Well listen, and let me know what you think.

Living in the desert – Talk 4.mp3

This weekend, I was invited to Ivy Cottage Church in South Manchester to preach on Sunday morning. It was great to be with some old friends (Lynn Swart is now based there and I have know Frank and Debra Green for probably nearly 10 years now), and to be in a thriving and growing church.

They were starting a new series on “renewal” and I had been asked to introduce the series. I have become increasingly bothered by our often very self centred focus on faith: God meets my needs, makes me feel good, heals me etc. Faith in God seems to revolve around “me” rather than the other way round. Funnily enough, the last time I spoke in Ivy a couple of years ago, I spoke on that very thought, and the process in which we learn that God is the centre and not us.

Anyway, back to renewal: often renewal has been very individual, personal, and self-focussed. I think the work of the spirit is essential and much needed in restoring us to the people that God made us to be, but it can never be an end in itself.

So I spoke from Ezek 47, where the river flows from the temple. Often we have focussed on how deep the river was, rather than where the river flows … to the Dead Sea to bring life. The Dead Sea is about 30-35% salt (whereas the Mediterranean is only about 3.5%) and nothing lives there, no fish, no plants, nothing…

But the river flows to the dead places to bring life. Renewal of individuals and the church must flow out to the dead places of our communities to bring life and restoration. Interestingly, in the passage (vs 11) there are marshes and swamps where the salty water doesn’t turn fresh. Where the water doesn’t flow, but stagnates, then the river dries up and doesn’t bring the life it was intended to.

People sometime ask why the Spirit (in their opinion) isn’t moving as much as He used to. I think God is changing church around, so that the river flows to the deadest places of our society, so that when the river rises it doesn’t stagnate, but flows to bring about transformation of culture, communities and people that currently are dead.

I talked once more about the thought that God is going to renew the heavens and earth (not destroy and mentioned the paper by Michael Goheen) … you can read a longer post and comments here.

If you were there at Ivy, have you any comments on what I said? And if not, what is your experience of renewal? Did it flow from you to others to bring life?

Tags: Ivy Cottage, Manchester, Michael Goheen, Ezekiel, River, Life, Missional Church

We also gave away £20 to everyone that wanted … well we actually had a limit of one hundred £20 notes! This was to enable us to practically live out the parable over the next few months. If you were there, I would love to hear what you thought … If you weren’t, you can add "gutted" to the comment section!

But first the parable. For me one of the keys to understanding the parable is to know how much a talent is worth. Nobody knew on Sunday, and to be fair, I didn’t either until I looked it up! A talent was originally a measure of weight, but in NT times it was also a currency, and was worth 3000 shekels or 6000 denarii. Enlightened? Well, a denarii was a days wages, say for someone working in a vineyard (unskilled worker). In the UK an unskilled worker might earn £60 for a day’s work, which would make a talent worth £350,000!

So the story goes: A wealthy man went away for a long time, and he entrusted his wealth to his servants. To one servant he gave nearly £2million, and he put the money to work, and doubled it! To another, he gave about £700,000 and he also doubled the money. To a third, he gave £350,000 and he hid it under his mattress! What? He had that much money and hid it under his mattress (well actually he buried it … but hiding it under his mattress adds a bit of poetic licence to the story!).

No wonder the master was angry. But his response is astounding when you think about it?

you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest (vs 27)

The sense of what Jesus is saying here is: "You could have done anything with the money … apart from doing nothing!"

He could have paid for his ill mother to visit a doctor, he could have given the money to the poor, he could have thrown a party … just not hide it away and do nothing.

Jesus is talking about how we should live in light of the Kingdom that has come, but is yet to come fully. It isn’t really about money, but the wonderful gift of the live we have: our gifts, abilities, education, opportunities, time, money, our physical bodies … everything. When we are constrained by fear (vs 24), we aren’t present, don’t show up, and aren’t the contribution that we are meant to be to the world we live in.

So we gave £20 to every person who wanted it. It was a ridiculously small amount, compared to outrageously large amount each servant was given. But it represents everything that we have. We are to put it to work in some way … maybe to multiply the money, or maybe to do something that we have wanted to do, but just seems a bit risky. It could be baking cakes to sell; buying material for a painting; printing up business cards; or joining a community group or learning opportunity etc. etc. We aren’t looking for tangible results (although getting some of the money back would be nice!), but the stories of what God does in us as we engage with him and our fears …

In February, we want to hear stories of what we have done, and what changes and opportunities have emerged because of this small £20. We want to see a community than learns more to take risks, to trust God, to be present, to show up …

OK, preach over.

If you were there, what did you think? What are you planning on doing with the £20? If you weren’t (and you have managed to get to the end of this massive post!) what do you think about interpretation of the parable? And what would you do if you had been given £20 (about $40) to take some risk?

Tags: Community Church Edinburgh, Parables of the Kingdom, Preaching, Parable of the Talents, Talents, money

The Parable of the 10 virgins – Mt 25: 1-13

At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’

Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’

‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’

But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.

Later the others also came. ‘Sir! Sir!’ they said. ‘Open the door for us!’

But he replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’

Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

Questions for reflection:

As you reflect on the parable and attempt to honestly evaluate yourself, you may like to consider the following questions:

What is the difference between the wise and foolish young girls? What does the oil represent for you?

“The Bridegroom was a long time in coming” When it seems God is taking longer than He ‘should’ to appear, to answer prayer, or to work in some way we would like Him to, how do we respond?

Tags: Parables, Parables of the Kingdom

Photo supplied by FreeFoto.com

At the beginning of each week, the parable for the following Sunday will be posted, along with an image for reflection. As we engage with the Scriptures ourselves we take our growth seriously, rather than solely expecting someone to come each week with their reflections and be spoon fed! This shouldn’t detract from what the speaker will say, but may bring clarity and stimulation. Even if you are not there on a Sunday (or aren’t part of our church) please do contribute and participate.

This Sunday we are looking at 2 very short parables, in Mt 13: 44-46 – the parable of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl. The text appears below together with a picture for reflection (which you can click to enlarge). It would be great if you can add your thoughts or observations in the comments, to create an opportunity for learning together …

The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Questions for reflection:

As you reflect on the parable and attempt to honestly evaluate yourself, you may like to consider the following questions:

The merchant sold everything. How important is the Kingdom to you? What things do you keep hold of?

How would describe your attitude in letting go of other attractions to take hold of the Kingdom? Joyful? Grudgingly? Hopefully? Fearfully? What does this tell you about your view of the Kingdom?

Tags: Kingdom, Kingdom of God, Parables, Parables of the Kingdom, Preaching, Church

This last Sunday, I was speaking, introducing the topic of the parables of the Kingdom by putting them in their bigger context of the Kingdom that has come and is coming …

The image I have of the “now” and the “not yet” of the Kingdom is of dawn coming, but the son has yet to rise above the horizon. Isaiah prophecies that a light will come in the midst of incredible darkness ( Isa 60); Jesus came as a light to the world (Jn 1), but there is still darkness. This is the dawn, light has start reflect around the sky, the same light that will blaze above the horizon, but has yet to be fully revealed.

In reading Rev 21, we see the end of the story, the Holy City comes to earth … the Kingdom has come in all its fullness. The sun is shinning in all its glory, and there is no night, no darkness. To use a phrase that Rob Bell has used: Heaven has crashed into earth … but will it be heaven for you?

When this light comes, it brings into the light:

1. Our actions – Jn 3: 19-21 where Jesus talks about people loving the darkness as their deeds remain in the darkness. But when the sun rises above the horizon, there will be no darkness … all will be laid bare and exposed.

All the things that we have done in darkness will be brought into the light. The God who is generous, forgiving & pure will come, and the things we have kept in the darkness will be brought into the light …

2. Our words – Lk 12: 2-3 where Jesus says that everything that has been said in secret will be bought into daylight or shouted from the rooftops.

All the things that we say about others but won’t say to them, all the things that we say to make ourselves look good, or to down others will be brought into the light.

3. Our motives- 1 Cor 4:5 where Jesus says that our motives will be exposed and bring to light all that has been hidden.

Where we are judgemental, or competitive, or compare ourselves to others, or do things for our glory, the Light will reveal all.

We have the opportunity to live, preparing ourselves for heaven, so that when heaven does come, when the sun rises above the horizon, all has already been brought into the light. The Kingdom has come, but not in all its fullness … we can chose to live in light of the coming Kingdom, in the Light of the coming Kingdom … or in the darkness which still covers the earth, ignoring Kingdom drawing near…

I have spent such a long time talking about God’s grace, kindness and love. These are all foundational in my understanding of God. But God also calls us to respond to His love and live a life worthy of Him. I feel challenged by these Scriptures and thoughts … what about you? If you were there, what did you think?

Tags: Kingdom, Kingdom of God, Rob Bell, Heaven