AN UNPREACHED SERMON (213)
Usually when I settle down to writing these blogs/mini messages, there is one main theme in my mind clamouring for attention. But that is not the case this week. Try as I might, no single idea is shouting within my brain, “write about me, write about me!”. And no single passage of scripture is making the same demand. Instead, I am setting down a whole series of incidents and ideas confident that an individual comment will be a help to those who read about them. So here goes. As Abigail said to King David, they are all part of the “bundle of life” (1 Samuel 25:29).
YOU’VE GOT TO LAUGH.
A friend sent me a get-well phone message recently which only came to my attention when he told me last weekend. Unfortunately, he had used an old phone number but was pleasantly surprised when the person who had received the greeting took the bother to reply. “I do hope Sandy recovers from his recent surgery, whoever this Sandy might be”. Also, heading into the local supermarket I was accosted by a man sitting outside begging for money, only to be told I hadn’t any cash on me. On the way out he was waiting and watching for me with the good news, “I can take a card” as he waved his portable card reading machine at me. I’m sorry to admit I was so taken aback that I kept my plastic card in my wallet. Modern technology is alive and well on our streets.
TEARS MIXED WITH JOY.
On a quite different level, some other friends have shared news both good and bad. From Utrecht comes the sad news that my friend Martijn died on New Year’s Day. He succumbed to cancer, and to make matters worse, he himself was a cancer specialist working at the Universeitet Utrecht hospital. He and his wife Lisa had lived and fought with this for eighteen months; Martijn more than others well aware of the inevitable, working as he did in the largest cancer research institute in the Netherlands.
Closer to home here in Edinburgh, another friend, Ian, has been diagnosed with a brain tumour with a poor prognosis. He undergoes initial major surgery next week. And yet another friend, Gordon Thomson the director of Faith Mission work in Scotland, has recently been diagnosed with something cancerous affecting his inner ear and balance. Genuine concern about others in their predicament has a strange way of putting our own less serious ailments into prayerful perspective.
But life is never always bad news. Also in Utrecht, Sam and Kirsten welcomed little Arthur into the world just before Christmas. Both of them high flyers in their chosen careers, they had decided the time was now right to start a family. They will be great parents and the wee boy has entered a stable, loving, welcoming environment.
GROWTH AMIDST DECLINE.
Recent reports continue to show that both the Church of Scotland and the Church of England are in dire straits. Poor attendance at worship, steep decline in membership and growing disillusionment with the message being put out by our national churches paints a heartbreaking picture. My own denomination, the one I know best and love most, is talking about quite a number of new congregations. But they forget to say, these are usually amalgamations of several declining churches coming together to give the impression of growth. It reminds me of Ezekiel’s vision with the bones coming together, but there was “no breath in them” (Ezekiel 37:7-10). It is so obvious to those with their finger on the spiritual pulse, that the more churches go down the road of bowing to an unbiblical, secular, woke agenda the freefall into further decline spirals out of control.
But the Church of Scotland is not the same as the Church in Scotland. Genuine new congregations are sprouting up everywhere, and they all seem to be tarred with the same brush: solid biblical teaching, leadership with vision and clear commitment to Christ and making Him known. People are voting with their feet and seeking out vibrant congregations where the truth is unashamedly being proclaimed and lived out. Thankfully, some of those vibrant congregations within the national church are also experiencing growth.
PEACE FOR ISRAEL AND GAZA
It has been far too long in coming and the hope of all sensible people is that it will develop into something lasting. Israel is the only major democracy in that part of the world and it must never be forgotten that most of the surrounding nations have it as their long-term intention to see Israel wiped off the map. Even though they have been seriously weakened, Hamas still operates with that basic aim. The devastation caused in Gaza is unimaginable and the hope is that humanitarian aid, medical assistance and a rebuilding programme will swiftly take over from the destruction that has brought such havoc to innocent lives. The keyword on all sides is trust.
TIME FOR A RE-FOCUS.
I attended the Faith Mission rally last Saturday. It was a packed meeting and the preacher left us in no doubt that the obligation to keep our eyes on Jesus must be the priority for every Christian and every congregation. In an exhilarating tour through Hebrews 1:1-2:4 and the superiority of Christ, he kept punctuating each part of the message with the phrase “fix your eyes upon Jesus”.
It strikes me that in all these incidents I have mentioned in this blog, the ultimate answer to whatever the problem is found in Christ alone. The preacher even quoted a chorus from the mid 60’s that brought back memories of exuberant teenagers singing:
“When the road is rough and steep,
Fix your eyes upon Jesus;
He alone has power to keep,
Fix your eyes upon Him.
Jesus is a faithful Friend,
One on whom you can depend;
He will keep you to the end,
Fix your eyes upon Him”.
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