Sermons and Studies

Matthew 13:31-33

Do you ever feel like giving up in the Christian life? It’s too hard. It’s too much effort. God seems to be blessing other people and never you. God seems to be blessing other churches but never ours.
Perhaps you feel a failure as a Christian. Other people are succeeding in the Christian life and you are not. Other people’s prayers are answered and yours aren’t. Other people are full of joy but you are weighed down with sorrows and worries and doubts.
The apostle Paul tells us that Christians are “more than conquerors!” But many Christians have times when they feel they are not conquering nor even coping, but barely surviving. Instead of reigning in life” many Christians feel they are not waving but drowning.

Such feelings are normal. This morning we are going to look at four parables which Jesus told which describe “the normal Christian life.” Four parables which aren’t often preached about because they give a different picture of life and growth from the one we would like to have. Four parables about the ways God’s kingdom grows.

Matthew 13:31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”

On the surface here is a parable about spectacular growth. The smallest of seeds becoming the largest of trees. If you have ever grown mustard and cress in a pot on your windowsill it is hard to imagine the tiny see which grows into that tiny shoot growing into the biggest of trees! But here is the point of the parable. Big things grow from small beginnings. In God’s Kingdom, great things will come – but they come slowly and gradually over a long, long time! A long long time!

But we live in a world of instant everything. We look for rapid results and dramatic growth. We want everything yesterday – but mustard seeds take time!

I read an article recently saying that trillions are the new billions. Really big amounts of money used to be measured in billions (the American billion of one thousand million). Now people talk casually about trillions of pounds or dollars. Millions of millions. The capacity of hard disk storage in computers used to be measured in Megabytes (millions of pieces of information), then it went up to Gigabytes (billions). Now you buy hard disks measured in Terabytes – trillions of pieces of information. So many things in our world are getting bigger and bigger. That is what the world expects.

We live in a world which measures success by size. Big numbers. Lots of money. And popularity – being well known. A world where people pursue celebrity for its own sake. Not being famous for any great or worthwhile achievement. Just being famous. The world of X-factor.

And some Christians expect the same in their Christian lives or in their churches. They expect a story of growth and success all the time. Everything getting bigger and better every day, always the newest and the best.

The parable of the mustard seed reminds us that in God’s Kingdom success will come. But it will come slowly, imperceptibly, and very very slowly. Because God measures success not by size, not by big numbers but by holiness, love, and faithfulness. The standard by which God measures success is the sacrifice of the cross.

Some churches and particularly some styles of worship portray the Christian life as always successful, always victorious, always big and growing even bigger. The parable of the mustard seed, and others we will look at in a moment, remind us that it isn’t necessarily meant to be that way.

When the Toronto blessing hit England the Baptist church which was at the forefront of the blessing was in Wimbledon led by Rob Warner. Rob was on the Leadership Team of Spring Harvest and he championed that outpouring of God into Baptist circles. 15 years later Rob is now a university lecturer in Practical Theology. In his book “Reinventing English Evangelicalism”, Tob has some strong words on some of the kinds of worship he once so passionately advocated.

“Some kinds of contemporary song promotes a universal ecstatic spirituality that promises a sustainedly passionate devotion to Christ, with the expectations that every believer will speak truth to all mankind and that whole towns are presently filled with joy and compelled by the Gospel. Neither the New Testament nor church history gives credence to such expectations. Given the current condition of the church in Western Europe such songs indulge a wilful disregard for reality. They represent a heavy cocktail of the promise of an altered state of consciousness through exuberant singing - the charismatic equivalent of clubbing - combined with the exaggerated hopes of entrepreneurial evangelicals, persisting in denial faced with the failure of inflated promises.
(Some kinds of worship provide) disposable worship songs with an imminent sell-by-date. Contemporaneity has been secured, while eccentricities of spirituality and exaggerated claims of present day success have been promoted. Here is a Mephistophelean pact with modernity: the hidden price tags are a ruptured tradition, a heightened potential for a theologia gloriae unfettered to a theologia crucis, a growing biblical illiteracy, a replacement of parousia hope with expectations of imminent success, and a quasi-gnostic, ecstatic and escapist spirituality (pp.84-85).”

Forgive the long words – it was his PhD thesis. But what Rob is saying is that churches and styles of worship which talk only about success and growth are unbalanced and unbiblical.

Last week we looked at the Parable of the Sower – or we could call it the parable about the four kinds of soils. That ends triumphantly.
8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. …. And Jesus explained his parable like this. 23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Bearing fruit. A hundred, sixty or thirty-fold. That is the part of the parable our success-obsessed world likes to hear. But there is more to the story than the happy ending.
Here lies the danger of some thriving growing, on the surface successful, churches. Some of them are successful because they preach the heresy of health, wealth and prosperity. But others which do not give a much more subtle message of “success”. The idea that if a church is following God it will thrive and succeed. Easter reminds us that the path to glory is through suffering – if you will not bear the cross you will not bear a crown.
The truth is that the history of the church is not full of success stories. When churches and denominations have appeared strong and successful in human terms, they have actually been at their weakest spiritually. It is the blood of the martyrs and the lone voices of the missionary evangelists which has been the seed of the church far more than great preachers and huge congregations. Those Christians who have remained faithful unto death and not given up despite the rocky soil of persecution or the heat or the sun of the temptations of deceitful wealth. The Christian life will ALWAYS be hard!

The Scriptures do not promise the church a a golden age of blessing and success. The prophets and the Scriptures foretell wars and rumours of wars, deceit and betrayal and persecution and suffering and distress and only those who stand firm to the end will be saved – not my words but the words of Jesus in Matthew 24. We can already see the beginnings of that opposition to the gospel in our own society, and things are only going to get worse. And it is those churches which have preached an unbalanced gospel of victory and success which will disappear first when their congregations discover that following Jesus demands a cost which they didnt know they would have to pay.

Church = ship, the ark of salvation.
Some people seem to think church is a pleasure cruiser – it’s not
Chatham historic dockyards, warships and lifeboats – not an easy ride!!

EPH 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
For the Ephesian church, success was not going to be about huge numbers and continuous victory. Success would be about just surviving!

2 Cor 4:12 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11 For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. 12 So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you Carrying around in our body the dying of Christ. Given over to death for Jesus’s sake! ALWAYS. That is what Paul understands to be the normal Christian life, just as much as being more than conquerors! If the going is tough – don’t be surprised. That’s the way it is always going to be!

The parable of the mustard seed – growth comes, but it takes a long long time! Now more briefly three more parables about how God’s Kingdom grows, which say much the same thing.

33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”

Small things matter - God cares about the little things – even the very hairs on your head are all numbered. The tiny bit of yeast working its way through the whole loaf – that is how the Kingdom grows.

Winifred Waller – retired Baptist Deaconess who worked all her ministry in small Home Mission aided Baptist churches.
“Do not despise the day of small things.” Zechariah 4:10

Single word of testimony
Random act of kindness, turning the other cheek or going the extra mile
One person praying faithfully privately for years unseen except by God.
A cup of water
Matthew 11:42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.”

Matthew 25: 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’A little can change a lot – as long as it is mixed in thoroughly. You may sometimes feel the little things you do don’t matter. The prayers you offer don’t seem to make a difference. Nobody seems to notice. Don’t give up just because you don’t see spectacular results!! Don’t be discouraged!! God DOES notice. Every little thing we do counts for His Kingdom. “Do not despise the day of small things.”

And one more thing about yeast. And seeds. Summed up in the words of Jesus in John’s gospel. John only records one of Jesus’s parables about seeds, so you know it is important!

John 12 23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 I tell you the truth, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

Growth demands sacrifice. The seed dies to form the new plant. The yeast dies when it is baked into the loaf. Growth demands sacrifice – that is the way in God’s Kingdom!

One final parable about growth. In Mark 4 just before parable of mustard seed
26 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil produces corn—first the stalk, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”
The parable of the seed growing secretly. We can’t see things growing. We look for results. We look for growth and we look for fruit. But for much of the life of the plant we cant see anything – it is growing unseen underground. Then we see small signs, shoots. Slowly day by day the plant grows, but we don’t see the fruit until the very end and then it is time to be busy with the harvest!

Don’t be discouraged if you don’t see immediate results in your service for God. In work with children or young people. In sharing your faith with neighbours and friends. In prayers for healing. Don’t be discouraged if you have to be patient and wait – that’s the way it is in God’s kingdom.
And remember - and we cant do anything to make things grow 27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil produces corn.

So it is in the Kingdom of God. There isn’t anything we can do to make things grow quicker. Nothing we do will produce the fruit – it is God who gives the growth. We can only pray for God to send rain and sun and give growth = prayer is essential!

1 COR 3:6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labour. 9 For we are God’s fellow-workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.

This is the way the Kingdom grows. Not usually spectacular success. But slowly and often imperceptibly. This is the normal Christian life. Hard slog! Like a mustard seed, or yeast. Like a seed which falls into the ground and dies. Like a seed growing secretly.

Philippians 4:4-9

Rejoice in the Lord always, and I will say it again, rejoice! Phil 4:4

Joy has been described as “the surest mark of a Christian” and “the gigantic secret of Christianity”. So how come so many Christians seem to be missing out on joy for so much of the time. Why are some Christians so gloomy and dismal and unexcited about God and about the new life He has given us? Why do some churches have a reputation of being dull and boring? As somebody once said about Christians “If one tenth of what you say you believe is true, you ought to be ten times as excited as you are!”

1. Joy is part of God’s gift of salvation

CS Lewis Joy is the serious business of heaven. Joy is the happiness and excitement we feel as we receive and experience God’s blessings.

Isaiah 35:10 10 and the ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Psalms 126:2 2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” 3 The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.

Some people will tell you that joy isn’t the same as happiness. It is a much deeper contentment. That is certainly true. But if we claim to be joyful but never actually enjoy our Christian lives then we are missing out somewhere. If your experience of being a Christian NEVER makes you happy then there is something missing. There are 576 references to joy and gladness and rejoicing in the Bible, and those often come in the contexts of festivals and celebrations. If our joy is so “deep” that we never let any of it surface in gladness and excitement then it isn’t Biblical joy.

One problem is that we live in this age of entertainment where we sit around waiting to be entertained. We expect somebody else to make us laugh and feel good. Whatever did people do before iPods and the internet, before television and even radio? The answer is that a century ago people made their own entertainments. Not just children but adults too. They played sport and didn’t just watch it. They made music and didn’t just listen to it. They played games and put on plays and entertainment was much more of an active thing. The greatest problem the “couch potato” generation face is not their physical health. It is that we have a generation of people who have become passive – who expect to be entertained and have forgotten how to entertain each other.

And I believe this problem can spread even into our Christian lives. We can just sit around waiting to feel joyful. We wait for the preacher or the music group to make us feel joyful. And sometimes it doesn’t happen! “Being joyful” can be something very passive. In contrast, “rejoicing” is something very active. We have to stir ourselves and do our bit. Time and again the Bible invites us to take the initiative, to rejoice!

2. Rejoicing is our proper response to God and to his salvation

God and the angels in heaven rejoice at our salvation – so should we!! One recurring theme in Jesus’s parables is joy and rejoicing.

Luke 15:6 PARABLE OF LOST SHEEP. `Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Luke 15:9 PARABLE OF LOST COIN `Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Prodigal Son
22 “But the father said to his servants, `Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate

We know how to rejoice at parties, at birthday parties and weddings. We need more practice at rejoicing in the Lord, always!

Psalms 35:9 9 Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD and delight in his salvation.

Isaiah 25:9 9. “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”There was a fascinating article in Readers Digest a few years ago, telling the extraordinary stories of ordinary people, “The day I nearly died”. When Lizzie was only two and Susie just a few months old our car was written off in the middle of a pile up. We were very grateful all to survive without a scratch, even our dog Tara who was in the hatchback which was mangled. How much more should we all be grateful and rejoice at the fantastic salvation God has given to us!

God loves us so much! We should rejoice in all the blessings God has poured upon us.
o We are God’s children
o God forgives our sins
o God gives us eternal life
o God is in us – we are in God
o God gives us victory
o God answers our prayer
o The certainty of heaven
o Jesus laid down his life for us
so we experience the length, breadth height and depth of God’s
Great, incredible, amazing fantastic wonderful love !!!!!

If we aren’t excited and happy and joyful about all these wonderful blessings God has lavished upon us, then we can’t have experienced God’s love in the way He wants us to.

Our salvation is SO precious – it is the most important thing in our lives! We will be thinking about two final parables next Sunday morning and here is a sneak preview of one of them:-
Matthew 13:44 44. “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.

The joy we have in our salvation leads us to give everything we have to God!

One particular blessing we can focus on again this evening = our HOPE OF HEAVEN.
We don’t think about heaven enough! When life if getting you down, the Bible tells you to look up, look beyond this life to the glory which is waiting for us all in heaven.

1 Peter 1:3. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade- kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials…. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
We greatly rejoice! We are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy!! That is God’s promise! And it has worked for suffering and persecuted saints in every age.

We, like them, can rejoice even in face of suffering and opposition. Even mature Christians can be weighed down sometimes by so many cares of the world. We need to learn to respond to the trials of life with faith in God and a conscious attitude of rejoicing IN God. Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS.

Psalms 126:5 5 Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. 6 He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.

James 1:2 2. Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
When our faith is tested, when times of illness come, when we face great temptations in the challenge to live a holy life, when we even face opposition and persecution:

Nehemiah 8:10 …. for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

So we should make a point of rejoicing at the salvation God in His grace has given us.

3. So how can we know this joy, this inexpressible and glorious joy??

Joy comes from being in the presence of God and His Holy Spirit. The root of Christian joy is being glad and excited about God! Just like meeting your loved one on a date is a thrilling joyful experience, so meeting with God should be even more thrilling and joyful. Joy comes from being in God’s presence.

Psalms 16:11 11 You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Acts 13:52 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes the joy God gives when we experience his presence can be quite overwhelming!! Nobody is saying that every Christian has to have spectacular encounters with God. But if we have NEVER met with God in a way which has left us with an awesome sense of wellbeing and Godly excitement and true joy, then start to get excited – God may yet have a few surprises for you! Open your heart and mind and ask God to reveal to you the full measure of “the joy of your salvation”.

Galatians 5:22 22 The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
Joy comes from the presence of God - so to find true joy we must draw near to God.

Draw near to God in Prayer – personal and private rejoicing

John 16:22 Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no-one will take away your joy. 23 In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

In prayer we draw near to God. His answers to our prayers will fill us with joy. And we can worship God in private, but something special happens when we join with other believers in praise adoration thanksgiving.

Draw near to God in Worship – corporate rejoicing

Psalms 92:4 4 For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at the work of your hands.

Psalms 5:11 11 But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

Four years ago I preached on the title, “Worship should be joyful”. Worship in the Bible is always reverent, but it is also always exciting and joyful. Just as meeting a pop star or film star or sports star would be thrilling, even more should meeting with the Almighty and eternal God, Our Creator and our Heavenly Father, be amazingly exciting! Sadly, familiarity breeds contempt. And too often we don’t allow ourselves to get excited in worship. If our worship is not characterized by deep joy and exhuberant gladness for all that God is and for all that God has done for us in Jesus Christ, then we’re missed out on something somewhere. That isn’t the characteristic reserve of the English, that’s an absence of joy!

2 Chronicles 30:23 records an amazing worship service. Hezekiah purifies the Temple and celebrated the Passover 23 The whole assembly then agreed to celebrate the festival seven more days; so for another seven days they celebrated joyfully. 26 There was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem.So LET US draw near to God this evening and receive His joy. Let us rejoice in the wonderful salvation He has provided for us.

Psalm 96:11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; 12 let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy!

Message translation: “Let’s hear it from the Sky with the Earth joining in, and a huge round of applause from the Sea! Let the Wilderness turn cartwheels and the animals come dance. Put every tree in the forest in the choir!”

May God restore to US the joy of our salvation!

Rejoice in the Lord always, and I will say it again, rejoice! Phil 4:4

Deuteronomy 15:1-11

Some passages of Deuteronomy are hard to apply today because they seem to belong to a bygone age, the Old Covenant of the Law of Moses.

Other passages are hard to apply today because in them God demands from his chosen people more than we are ready to give Him! What on earth are we supposed to do with passages like Deuteronomy 15: At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.???

Literally cancelling debts

15 At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. 2 This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel the loan he has made to his fellow Israelite. He shall not require payment from his fellow Israelite or brother, because the LORD’s time for cancelling debts has been proclaimed. 3 You may require payment from a foreigner, but you must cancel any debt your brother owes you. 4 However, there should be no poor among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you, 5 if only you fully obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commands I am giving you today. 6 For the LORD your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.

Here is a fascinating text in these days of a Credit Crunch caused by sub-prime lending and toxic debt. A novel solution which in certain respects many governments are adopting. Cancel the debt! Write it off! Clear the decks and give everyone a clean start!

At the personal level the same principle is available to individuals who find their finances in a real mess. When somebody owes more than they can possibly ever pay back there are the options of complete Bankruptcy, or else of an Individual Voluntary Agreements. Most or all the debts are written off and the person can start again afresh.

And these arrangements are so important in order to give people HOPE. Rather than being trapped in debt forever, there is always the possibility of starting over again. The God of hope had this idea first. The year of cancelling debts. The generosity of the Lender who is expected to give up money he has loaned to others is meant as a reflection of the immense generosity of God Himself.
there should be no poor among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you,
God has blessed his chosen people so much – we are commanded to be extravagantly generous in return.

But surely this is a recipe for economic ruin! If a man writes off all the loans he has made every seven years! Economic ruin – except for the gift of God. In fact it is a recipe for faith. It is a plan to make sure the Lender continues to trust in God’s grace and God’s provision. If your savings are diminished because you have lent them to others and then written those loans off, you can’t rest on your laurels and trust in your savings. You have to trust God for the next seven years once again. The people who follow God’s command by cancelling debts are the people who God will then bless richly once again! Because they trusted God and obeyed God and put their lives and their fortune once again into God’s hands!

Giving generously to the poor and needy

7 If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted towards your poor brother. 8 Rather be open-handed and freely lend him whatever he needs…. 10 Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. 11 There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open-handed towards your brothers and towards the poor and needy in your land.
God calls his chosen people to be generous to the poor and needy. Notice – this is not the kind of giving in proportion to what you have received which we talked about last week. Here the Bible makes clear that our generosity must not be defined by how much we have, but by how much is needed!

do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted towards your poor brother. 8 Rather be open-handed and freely lend him whatever he needs. WHATEVER HE NEEDS
I command you to be open-handed towards your brothers and towards the poor and needy in your land.

Whatever He needsWe are to be open-handed not closed-fisted. And our attitude has to be right! 10 Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart;

Again, surely this is a recipe for financial ruin! If you give to everybody WHATEVER HE NEEDS you will end up with nothing! Surely there must be limits on how much we have to give? We might hope that the New Testament will show some common sense in this – some get-out clause, some small print somewhere which would excuse us from giving all our money away! Luke’s gospel records more than the others of Jesus’s teaching on money wealth and possessions – but listen to these words of Jesus in Luke 6.

Luke 6: 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. 32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners’ love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners’ do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners’ lend to `sinners’, expecting to be repaid in full.
35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.
35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.

Just the same recipe for economic catastrophe! Give to EVERYONE who asks you?? What kind of a life would Christians live if we actually obeyed that command! When people learned they could ask us for anything and we would have to give it to them!

If anyone takes anything, do not demand it back – isn’t this just a thieves’ charter!
Lend to your ENEMIES without expecting anything back. Crazy!!

If we did live by these rules we would end up with nothing! We would be less than poor – we would be destitute! But perhaps for some people that would be better than the state they are in where treasures on earth count for more than treasures in heaven. Perhaps the vows of poverty taken by monks and nuns through the ages do have something to say to us today.

When Henry Richards did brought the gospel to the people of Banza Mateke in the Congo, each day he would translate and explain 10 verses from the book of Luke. When he came to the 6th chapter, he hesitated because most of his followers were very poor, and might misunderstand the 30th verse. He said that Jesus’ words illustrate a principle and had to be interpreted in the light of other Scriptures. But they took them literally and quickly asked for almost everything Richards owned. Without hesitation he gave them what they requested. Soon, his most cherished possessions were in their hands. After talking among themselves, the people concluded that Mr. Richards was truly a man of God, for they had never seen anyone so self-sacrificing. One by one they came and returned what he had given them. Because of his willingness to give up everything, the missionary’s work bore much fruit.
Jesus’s teaching is clear: when anyone has a genuine need, we who are His followers must be generous and never allow greed or a love for things to keep us from giving assistance.

This teaching in the Old Testament is not just for the Old Testament. Jesus Himself puts it even more strongly. Listen again to these words which we conveniently forget about:

15 At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts
do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted towards your poor brother. 8 Rather be open-handed and freely lend him whatever he needs.
Give to everyone who asks you,
and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.
35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.
Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
I believe God is calling each one of us to think very hard about how we put these commands into practice in our own finances. And we must consider how we as a church respond to these words. Do we really trust God enough to cancel debts, to give to everyone who asks us and lend without expecting to get anything back?

But this teaching in Deuteronomy 15 has a spiritual as well as a material dimension.
Showing God’s kind of forgiveness

The old Testament speaks about cancelling debts. In at least two places Jesus uses financial debt as a picture for spiritual debts. The most familiar of those places may surprise you – it is in the Lord’s prayer.

MATTHEW 6:11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
14 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

There in the Lord’s prayer the word recorded is not trespasses or sins, but “debts”. The underlying Aramaic word Jesus used undoubtedly meant debt, “that which is owed”.
Our sins put us in debt to God, just as those who sin against us owe us a debt. God cancels all our debts – but commands us to cancel the debts of other people too.

Matthew 18:21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents (millions of pounds) was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26 “The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, cancelled the debt and let him go.
28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow-servants who owed him a hundred denarii. (a few hundred pounds) He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29 “His fellow-servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’
30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow-servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

This parable talks about literal debts. But that is a picture for us of the kind of forgiveness God has shown to us, the pretty amazing grace He has lavished on us. Our debts worth millions of pounds have been cancelled. The debt of our sins so great none of us could ever repay it has been cancelled. Since God has forgiven us so very much, we also should forgive others from our hearts when they sin against us.

Here is the thing I find interesting to think about. Which is easier? To forgive sins? Or to cancel monetary debts? Both cost us. If it is a debt of money, we have to let go of that money. We may have worked hard for it – saved it over a long time. But now that money is in somebody else’s hands and if we cancel the debt the money will never be ours again. On the other hand, if we forgive somebody for some sin they have committed against us, we are letting go of our right to justice. They may have caused us sadness or pain – we have to let that go. So which would be easier? To forgive somebody for something. Or to cancel their financial debt?

Which of these we would find easier tells us something important about ourselves. And about where we are storing up our treasures. Treasures on earth or treasures on heaven. Because I have a sneaky suspicion that many people would actually find it easier to forgive somebody else’s sins than they would to cancel their debt. Letting them keep the money would actually be harded. And I also suspect that is not the way round things are meant to be.

Many years ago two young men were working their way through Stanford University. At one point their money was almost gone, so they decided to engage the great pianist Paderewski for a concert and use the profits for board and tuition. Paderweski’s manager asked for a guarantee of $2000. The students worked hard to promote the concert, but they came up $400 short. After the performance, they went to the musician, gave him all the money they had raised, and promised to pay the $400 as soon as they could. It appeared that their college days were over. “No, boys, that won’t do,” said the pianist. “Take out of this $1600 all your expenses, and keep for each of you 10 percent of the balance for your work. Let me have the rest.”
Years passed. Paderewski became premier of Poland following World War I. Thousands of his countrymen were starving. Only one man could help - the head of the U.S. Food and Relief Bureau. Paderewski’s appeal to him brought thousands of tons of food. Later he met the American statesman to thank him. “That’s all right,” replied Herbert Hoover. “Besides, you don’t remember, but you helped me once when I was a student in college.”

Literally cancelling debts
Giving generously to the poor and needy
Showing God’s kind of forgiveness

What does God expect YOU to do about these things?

Matthew 13:1-9

In this envelope is something worth more than you can possibly imagine. It isn’t the deeds to a new house. It isn’t a winning ticket to the national lottery or even the euromillions draw. It is much more valuable than those things. In here is the entrance ticket to heaven. In here is the free gift of knowing God. In here is the way God gives us forgiveness and new life, life in all its fullness, life which begins here and now and continues into eternity.

Here is an amazing gift, God’s more than pretty amazing grace – really incredible amazing grace.

LISTEN TO Neil Diamond – Pretty Amazing Grace

“A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.
Why is that some people reject the gift God wants to give them?

“Well I knocked on your door to see if you wanted some hope.
I was so sad when you only looked out of the window.
So I waited around, standing outside in the cold
But to my dismay the door of your house remained closed.
And I’m giving away gifts, you don’t need no money to pay.
Take what you want, if its no good then throw it away.
Don’t pass up the chance of something entirely free.
Open your door and come out and come over to me.”

5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.

20 The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.

When a person becomes a Christian, God forgives their sin and gives them the free gift of eternal life. God becomes their Father and they have the certainty of spending eternity with God in heaven.
We receive all these blessings as a free gift from God which we cannot earn or deserve, simply by believing in Jesus Christ. But as somebody has said, “The entrance fee to the kingdom of God is free because Jesus has paid it for us. But the annual subscription is everything we have!”
The Bible tells us, “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” (Romans 10:9-10)
In other words, at the same time as believing that Jesus is risen from the dead, to become a Christian we also have to accept that Jesus Christ is Lord of our lives. More than that, we have to “confess that Jesus is Lord.” That means we have to show by our words and our actions that Jesus Christ really is Lord, the master or the boss over every part of our lives. We cannot be secret disciples.

But being a disciple isn’t always easy!

Trouble and persecution -> falling away

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
God knows about what happens to every bird. Every animal. Even every plant. Every hair of our heads. God knows, and God cares and God is in control. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
Suffering and sickness – whatever our situation, whatever our problems, God knows and God can help. Especially in context of standing up and being counted as a Christian. If problems come, opposition or ridicule, God is with us. Even the very hairs on our head are numbered.
32 “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.

7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.

22 The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.

The worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth

There are lots of worries of this life! Especially today. Credit Crunch. Depression. Threat of unemployment. Money problems. The world tells us we are “Born to Shop” but the false god of Shopping and Entertainment and Money are being shown up as empty!

Matthew 6:19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Hearing and understanding -> yielding a crop, bearing fruit

A healthy plant will produce fruit!

In our lives = fruit of good works
Fruit of Holy Spirit – character of Christ in us
Fruit of more plants, more seeds sown leads to more becoming Christians

John 15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

In parable NO SUCH THING as a healthy plant which doesn’t produce fruit! If plant isn’t producing fruit it is because something is wrong.

Here is this unremarkable envelope. In here is the entrance ticket to heaven. In here is the free gift of knowing God. In here is the way God gives us forgiveness and new life, life in all its fullness, life which begins here and now and continues into eternity.

OPEN – envelope contains copies of Mark’s Gospel and Journey into life
It is the word of God, the Good News about Jesus Christ. Help yourself to these books in the Foyer.

Here is an amazing gift, God’s more than pretty amazing grace – really incredible amazing grace.

What kind of soil are you?

9 He who has ears, let him hear.”

BINDING THE STRONG MAN Matthew 12:22-29

Did anybody happen to see the wonderful science fiction comedy “Men in Black” on TV this week? The Men in Black are a fictional organisation responsible for defending the earth from aliens from outer space. At one point in the middle of pursuing a particularly nasty space insect, Agent K from the Men in Black says this to his new partner Agent J:
There’s always an Alien Battle Cruiser…or a Korlian Death Ray, or…an intergalactic plague about to wipe out life on this planet, and the only thing that lets people get on with their hopeful little lives is that they don’t know about it.
Agent K is right. If we knew that there really was some alien force threatening to destroy all human life then everything would change. Things which seem so important to us would become trivial: money, possessions, success – even things like films and science fiction. So many things just wouldn’t matter any more in the face of the prospect of destruction.

Well I have some good news and some bad news this morning. There is a force in the world which threatens all human life. It is a force more dangerous than and Alien Battle Cruiser or a Korlian Death Ray or global warming or the risk of nuclear war. It is more lethal than an intergalactic plague, or HIV Aids. And I am not talking science fiction here but Biblical fact. That threat to human life is what the Bible calls the devil, or satan, or Beelzebub. “and the only thing that lets people get on with their hopeful little lives is that they don’t know about it.”

The BAD NEWS this morning is that everything the Bible says about the devil is true – and the devil is real. The devil isn’t a little comic character with horns and a forked tail and a trident. The devil is the prince of demons. Here are some of the things the Bible says about the devil.
The devil appeared to Adam and Eve disguised as a serpent and tempted them to disobey God.
The devil was originally an angel but he rebelled against God and was thrown out of heaven.
The devil tempted even people like David and afflicted Job and even tried to tempt Jesus to sin.
The devil tempted Judas to betray Jesus and he continues to tempt people today.
The devil is also known as Satan, The Adversary, the enemy and the evil one and the deceiver.
The devil blinds people spiritually. Jesus calls him a liar and the “father of lies”.

The Bible makes clear that the devil exists – the devil is real. In our reading this morning it is clear that Jesus recognised and taught that the devil is a real enemy – a real threat to human beings.

And there is more BAD NEWS. The devil is not alone. He has his allies – more fallen angels which the Bible refers to as evil spirits, or unclean spirits, or demons. The Bible speaks about demons or evil spirits more than 100 times. In different places it refers to demons as rulers, authorities, powers, dominions, thrones, leaders and “kosmokrats” world rulers.

Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

“The powers of this dark world and the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly realms.” The devil and all his minions controlling the world and keeping people away from God.
Ephesians 2 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts
Here is the bad news. The devil and the demons exist but most people don’t know it. I say most people don’t realise the devil exists, but that is only true in the scientific west. Talk to Christians in Africa or India or South America, where witchdoctors or shamens practise and voodoo and magic are common, and they know that demons exist and have power to harm people! They know demons or evil spirits are everywhere. There is only one devil, and he can only be in one place at one time. But there are so many demons who serve the devil and they spread his power everywhere. practically universal. They can influence people to do evil, and in extreme cases demons can so invade a person’s life that they can speak and act through their human victim.

Here in the West we don’t have witchdoctors or voodoo so much. So the main ways in which people come into contact with demons is through dabbling in the Occult. They may play with magic, casting spells, or witchcraft. Some might call it “The Craft”, or “Wicca”, ancient British magic. Others dabble in fortune telling – tarot, astrology, crystal balls. Others try to contact the dead, in spiritualism or spiritism, through clairvoyance, mediums or séances. All of these practices are very dangerous because they can bring people into contact with the demonic.

Deuteronomy 18:9 When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. 10 Let no-one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practises divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you.

This may sound weird and science fiction to you – but it is all terribly real. I heard of a school recently hosting an evening of clairvoyance. Psychic fayres are still popular. Many people on the stalls of the Body Mind and Soul exhibition at the Brentwood Centre at the end of this month will be trapped in different aspects of the Occult. Only last week I was talking to a man whose life has been ruined by his parents’ deep involvement in witchcraft.

There’s the bad news. The devil is real. Demons are real. They are dangerous and powerful enemies whose only aim is to lead people into sin and keep them away from God. There’s the bad news.
But here is the GOOD NEWS. Jesus has overcome the devil! And the proof of that is in his miracles of deliverance!

22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. 23 All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”

One third of Jesus’s miracles were healings. But another third were specifically miracles of deliverance, of driving out demons. And Jesus’s disciples were also given His authority to cast out demons. To set people free from evil which had a grip on their lives. This ministry of deliverance continued into the early church and continues in the church today.

Jesus’s opponents the Pharisees accused Him of driving demons out by the power of Beelzebub, another name for the devil. But Jesus rejected their arguments and said two separate things which are very important for us to understand. The first was this.
28 But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
In other words Jesus was saying that his power to drive out demons was in some way the work of God the Holy Spirit inside Him. And all the miracles of deliverance were expressions of the Kingdom of God, God’s Kingly Rule, God acting as King to bring salvation to his people. Casting out demons was not something which only Jesus could do because He was the Son of God. His followers would cast out demons too because the Holy Spirit is at work in them and because that is part of the work of God’s Kingdom.

Then Jesus went on to tell a little parable, the parable of binding the strong man.
29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.

The strong man in the parable is the devil. His possessions are the people held in the grip of evil by demons. How was is that Jesus could drive out demons, take the strong man’s possessions away from him? Because Jesus had already tied up the strong man. Jesus has already bound the devil. So he can easily cast out the demons and rescue people from the devil’s clutches.

Miracles of deliverance are relatively rare in churches in England today. We need to realise that in Jesus’s time one of the most important reasons people followed Him was his visible power over the demonic.
21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. 23 Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, 24 “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”
25 “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” 26 The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.
27 The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him.” 28 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.
Jesus drove out demons. One of the major reasons for the growth of the early church was their miracles of deliverance. And outside of the scientific west, even today, one of the chief reasons people turn to Christ is that they see His power defeating the devil and setting people free from demons. I know all these things are true because I have seen people delivered from demons!

29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.
Here is the GOOD NEWS – Jesus has bound the strong man. But how did that happen. Remember what happened immediately after Jesus’s baptism and before He began His public ministry.
Luke 4 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.”
5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendour, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours.”
8 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”
9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 10 For it is written:
“ ‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully;11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’
12 Jesus answered, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
In the wilderness Jesus was tempted. But He did not give in to temptation. Jesus was the first human being ever who did not give in to the devil’s temptations. He proved there that He was stronger than the devil. Many believe that it was there in the wilderness that Jesus “bound the strong man”. Demons would have to obey Jesus!
The Bible tells us that Jesus had bound the strong man before he began his ministry. But it also tells us that Jesus had an even greater victory over the devil in his death on the cross.
JOHN 12:31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32 But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross more than bound the devil – it was God’s supreme victory over the devil and his demons.
HEBREWS 2:14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— 15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
Christ’s death on the cross defeated the devil and sets everybody free who puts their trust in Christ.
So Jesus “bound the strong man” in his time of temptation. And Jesus defeated the devil on the cross. So here’s the good news. Christians don’t need to be afraid of the devil or his demons. Christ’s victory is our victory!
And Jesus sends his church out to continue his ministry of deliverance. To confront the devil and drive out demons. To plunder hell and populate heaven. To set the captives free!
29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.

Halloween – New Age, Old Deception

Yesterday we went for a family day out. …….

I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised really. Steve Wright ended his Show on Radio 2 on Friday afternoon with these words: “Have a great “Halloween Weekend””
It used to be just a day. Now it’s a whole weekend. In fact Halloween has become bigger than that. HALLOWEEN IS NOW A MAJOR MONEY-MAKING EVENT. It’s a whole month of themed shopping! In some shops, HALLOWEEN is almost as big as as Christmas & Easter. All kinds of sweets everywhere. Costumes of all sorts - Dracula, Frankenstien’s monster, Werewolf, etc. Probably a quarter of the kids at Colchester Zoo yesterday were dressed up in Halloween costumes. Decorations everywhere (Pumpkins, & Witches Flying on Brooms) Not to mention Horror videos and DVDs and films on television. Some primary schools even choose Halloween as a topic for weeks of study. Before half term I visited almost 20 schools taking assemblies for Harvest for the Hungry. In one school I listened over coffee as teachers were complaining that their school did not let them “do Halloween” because it is a church school! Well done that school!

But what should be our Christian response to Halloween? Should Christians Celebrate Halloween? Absolutely not! Should Christians even participate in Halloween activities? Absolutely not!! Let me give you three reasons this morning why not!
Christians should have nothing to do with Halloween,

1. BECAUSE OF WHAT HALLOWEEN REPRESENTS

Let’s look at the history. Long before Christ was born Ireland, Wales, Scotland and France were inhabited by the Celts. The Celtic people had an elite intellectual class known as the Druids, who served as religious priests, judges, lawmakers, and scientists. They were the first to celebrate the traditions we associate with Halloween and most of the today’s traditions and symbols came from their practices.

The ancient Druids were nature worshippers and held elaborate pagan religious festivals. The most important Druid celebration was the Fire Festival held in honour of their lord of the dead, called Samhain (pronounced summa-heen). It was observed at harvest time to mark the Celtic New Year. Samhain (summa-heen) was the most solemn and important night in the Celtic year. The Celts believed that on this night the barrier between the natural world and the supernatural was removed, and the souls of the dead were able to move freely among human beings. The Celts believed that, as the sun god grew pale and Samhain “the lord of the dead” grew stronger, these lurking evil souls also became more powerful. On this festival of Samhain (summa-heen), they hoped to scare away the evil souls by lighting great bonfires on the hillsides. In order to please Samhain (summa-heen) the lord of the dead, some Druids offered human sacrifices. Some people think that the Druids built ’Stonehenge’ as a temple for sun worship and that they offered human sacrifices there on October 31st.

After the Roman Catholic Church brought Christianity to the Celtic peoples in the seventh century, some of their traditional folk customs were Christianized. In 835 A.D. Pope Gregory IV moved the church’s “Feast of All Saints” from the spring to November 1st to replace the observance of Samhain (summa-heen). Many Christians still celebrate All Saint’s Day to honour all believers who have died. The night before, which used to be a sacred vigil in church, became known as “All Hallow’s Eve,” or Halloween. But by the tenth century, witchcraft was more popular than Christianity in England and its followers became known as witches. While All Hallows’ Eve originally had been a strictly Christian holiday, the pagan influence from earlier traditions gradually crept back in while the Catholic Church’s influence faded. Halloween became a secular feast. The 14th Century saw the rise of all kinds of occult practices. Witchcraft grew and witches held weekly meetings as well as their annual Sabbaths especially at Halloween and Mayday. Magic became more widespread as people searched for knowledge to control the forces of nature.

So Halloween is definitely not a Christian festival. For centuries it has been a pagan festival dating back to the Druids.
Trick or Treating had its origins in Druidic practices. The Druids believed that on the night of Halloween, wicked souls that had died in the past year returned to their original homes. To exorcise these ghosts or to free yourself from their evil influence, you had to set out food and provide them with shelter for the night. If they were satisfied, it was believed they would leave you in peace. If they were not satisfied – if food and shelter were not provided – the ghosts would cast a spell on you and reek havoc in your home. So if you set food out on your door step for the night-the spirits would pass you by, not cause your milk to spoil or your cattle to have birth defects, or damage your family. It is said that the Druids would then go around collect the food and burn it as a sacrifice to their gods. It is also said that they tended to burn your house down if they arrived and the treat was not at the door!
That tradition was revived in Ireland a few hundred years ago when groups of farmers went from house to house begging for food. Good luck was promised to generous donors and threats were made against those who could not give. And those ancient pagan traditions continue today as children dress up as ghosts, skeletons and demons and go ’trick or treating’ – begging for food “or else!”

The carved pumpkin, the Jack O Lantern, is an ancient symbol of condemned souls. The story goes that Jack tricked the devil into chasing him up a tree. Jack then jumped down and held up a crucifix so the devil could not get to him. He then put an ember that the devil threw at him from Hell inside a pumpkin or gourd and used it as a lantern. But even earlier, the pumpkin lantern was also a symbol used by the Druids and pagans to determine who was in agreement with them and deserved mercy from their tricks. People used to light a jack o lantern to show the Druids “we are one of you.”

So the traditions and customs of Halloween today have their roots in pagan religion. They may seem harmless – but just because something may appear harmless doesn’t necessarily mean it will be.
ADAM & EVE THOUGHT TAKING OF THE FRUIT WAS HARMLESS
LOTS WIFE THOUGHT LOOKING BACK WAS HARMLESS
SAMSON THOUGHT LYING HIS HEAD IN DELIALAHS LAP WAS HARMLESS
Halloween customs may seem like harmless fun – but when we see the beliefs behind them Christians will want to avoid them like the plague!

Let’s be clear, Halloween is actually a celebration of the belief that on this day the souls of the dead rise from the grave to haunt the living. Last year Lin and I were invited to a flat on Clements Park because the occupants were convinced it was occupied by an evil presence. I don’t believe in ghosts. The Bible tells us that once a person is dead they are dead and there can be no contact between this world and “the other side”. But the Bible tells us that demons exist and I know that is true because of the number of situations in which we have encountered the demonic. And demons can and do sometimes appear as “ghosts” or even imitate real people who have died for their own evil purposes.

Ephesians 5:11 warns us very clearly Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.

As Christians we totally reject false and evil beliefs about the souls of the dead walking the earth. So there is no reason on earth why we would want to join in pagan celebrations of such beliefs on Halloween.

But secondly we will want to avoid Halloween
2. BECAUSE OF THE DANGERS OF WITCHCRAFT

The words “witch” and “witchcraft” have a whole range of meanings. Witchcraft in the Bible does not mean the same thing as witchcraft in today’s films and novels and television programmes. Witches in Dennis Wheatley horror books are very different to witches in Narnia or Harry Potter books. Witchcraft as it is practised by “Wiccans” today means something very different to witchcraft as it was in the middle ages. And witchcraft is not the same as Satanism or devil worship, although some witches are Satanists. But anything which encourages anybody (and especially children) to dabble in witchcraft and magic is a bad thing. Because witchcraft and magic are not harmless fun and games. Witchcraft and magic are dangerous things!

In USA Witchcraft now has more than a million practitioners. That makes it the FIFTH LARGEST organised religion in USA. It is usually known as Wicca, “the Craft”, or “white witchcraft” or sometimes as Neopaganism, “New Paganism”. Wicca has grown up over the last 50 years especially in USA and Europe based on some books by Gerald Gardner. The number of followers of Wicca is estimated to be doubling roughly every two years. There are more than 1000 books about Wicca or NeoPaganism listed on Amazon.com – 2/3 of those were written in the 1990s. There are also 371,000 web sites on the subject of Wicca!!! Its influence is spreading. For some years now some hospitals have been obliged to give so-called white witches the same access to patients who request it as hospital chaplains have. For witches Halloween is a pagan celebration the witches’ high Sabbath.
Wicca is not Satanism. But some witches do worship the devil. You may have read the appalling news last week that a sailor in the Navy has had official recognition that his religion is “Satanism”, guaranteeing him freedom to practise satanic rituals on board ship and the promise that his funeral will be carried out according to the traditions of Satanists, whatever those traditions may be. Satanists believe that Halloween is a night when demons and the Devil are given special powers. In some places animals are sacrificed. There is also some evidence that ritual human sacrifices are made even today.

Some people think Wicca is harmless fun. Wiccans claim it is harmless. Its most important principle, the wiccan rede says “An it harm none do what you will”. That could mean, “don’t do any harm.” Or it could mean, “as long as it doesn’t hurt anybody, you can do whatever you like.” Doesn’t sound too bad. But any wiccan who casts a spell, or casts a circle to create their own sacred space, or attends a wiccan gathering, is worshipping false gods. They are rejecting God their creator and worshipping created things. Their eyes are blinded and their minds are closed to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Galatians 5:19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft;…. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The Bible condemns witchcraft and magic, and Christians should have nothing to do with witchcraft or magic in any form! But the dangers of Halloween are broader than simply witchcraft. Christians should have nothing to do with Halloween

3. BECAUSE OF THE WIDER DANGERS OF THE OCCULT

Not just wicca but all kinds of occult practices are now spreading like wildfire. It is curious really, since the word “occult” means “hidden” and for centuries these things were kept hidden for the inner circle of practitioners. Nowadays the occult is getting more much more free publicity than ever before. Films like the Exorcist, TV programmes like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the X-files and Charmed, books like Harry Potter, all making evil seem “cool”. Ordinary people and especially children are being introduced to all kinds of occult practices. Psychic fayres and New Age shops will sell you anything you need to do all kinds of things from casting spells to contacting the dead. And the world wide web is luring curious people deeper and deeper into evil.

In Britain today only 26% of us now believe in a personal God. Less than a quarter believe that the Bible is the unique Word of God. 44% believe in some kind of spirit or life force – so nearly twice as many believe in the kind of Force described in ‘Star Wars’, rather than in the personal God described in the Bible. The popularity of that New Age understanding of an impersonal “Force” controlling destiny and events has come primarily from those films! 69% of people think we have a soul, and 25% of people believe in reincarnation. But only 48% of people say that we belong to a particular religion – and that is a decrease of 10% in the last ten years Only about 8% of people call themselves atheists, and this figure has stayed consistent. But in 1990, 54% of people considered themselves “religious’. Today, that figure has halved to LESS than a quarter! 31% of people now prefer to call themselves ‘spiritual’ but NOT religious. 38% of have some kind of awareness of God and 29% claim to have experienced a ‘sacred presence’ in nature. 33% believe in a way to God outside of organised religion. 16% have tried astrology. 17% have tried fortune telling or Tarot.

This change in spiritual climate is not due to people converting to other religions at the expense of Christianity. This is a move away from established religions and towards the private spirituality of the “New Age movement.” “New Age” is an umbrella term which includes all kind of spiritual activities, Many New Age ideas come from far eastern mysticism, or ancient Celtic pagan beliefs and practices. For very many people following aspects of “New Age” teachings, Halloween is the New Age equivalent of Christmas and Easter all rolled into one.

But these New Age ideas which are spreading like wildfire today are not just harmless fun. To borrow my friend Ben Alexander’s slogan, NEW AGE – OLD DECEPTION. Many of the practices of the New Age movement are just the old lies of paganism and eastern mysticism neatly repackaged and remarketed for today’s consumer society.

Listen carefully to God’s warnings in the Bible about the dangers of the occult.

Deuteronomy 18:10-12 Let no-one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practises divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you.
So nobody can be led astray, let me just list for you now some of the more obvious “New Age” practices which the Bible completely condemns and which Christians must both avoid and oppose.

MAGIC - Manipulating the spirit world to gain power over enemies (black magic) or to help friends (white magic).
wicca, witchcraft, White Witchcraft
spells, curses,
charms, fetishes, occult books and objects, magic healing, crystal healing
levitation, astral projection, ‘‘out of the body experiences’’
blood pacts, Satan worship and praying to the devil
CHRISTIANS SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH ANY FORM OF MAGIC

FORTUNE TELLING - The aim is power through knowledge.
tarot cards, runes, crystal gazing and palm reading, reading tea leaves (etc),
astrology and horoscopes, dowsing, psychometry,
CHRISTIANS SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO with any form of fortune telling

SPIRITISM/SPIRITUALISM
Attempting to communicate with spirits of the dead for various purposes.
ouija boards, table turning, automatic writing, séances, mediums, trances,
spiritualist ‘‘churches’’ and spiritual healers.
CHRISTIANS SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO with any form of spiritualism
Remember that the Old Testament commanded the death penalty for mediums and any form of spiritualism.
Leviticus 20:26 You are to be holy to me because I, the LORD, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own. “`A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist among you must be put to death. You are to stone them; their blood will be on their own heads.’”

Then there are other things which can be very dangerous

PSYCHIC AND PARANORMAL EVENTS
ghosts and poltergeists,
telepathy and ESP,

SATAN’S COUNTERFEITS
Transcendental Meditation and some other forms of Yoga
Reincarnation
Scientology,
Eastern Mysticism - especially ancestor worship and idol worship.
Tribal pagan and animistic religions including witch-doctors.
Voodoo
Freemasonry
Fantasy games and literature, e.g. Dungeons and Dragons etc
Aspects of Alternative Medicine and some Martial Arts
Ancient Celtic religions and traditional British mysticism
The many faces of the ‘‘New Age’’ movement.
CHRISTIANS SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH ANY OF THESE THINGS

The problem with all these aspects of the occult is that each and every one can be a doorway to danger! Each one can lead a person away from Jesus Christ and each one can expose a person to the demonic. Demons are very real! What begins with the appearance of harmless fun, ends up for some people in all kinds of evil, grief and pain.

1 Peter 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Should Christians Celebrate Halloween? Absolutely not! Should Christians even participate in Halloween activities? Absolutely not!!
1. Because of what Halloween represents
2. Because of the dangers of witchcraft in particular
3. Because of the dangers of all the other forms of the occult
All these are doorways to danger. They draw people away from God and can ultimately open their lives to demonic attack and even demonic control.

Lord lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

A fair day’s pay

It is a scene I have found in Uganda and in Bulgaria. It is multiplied all over Eastern Europe and all over the Third World. Groups of men standing by the side of the road in the hope that a truck or bus will stop and offer them some work. They don’t know what kind of work it will be. In the fields or on a building site. Some work – any work – so that they will earn enough to feed their family for that day. If nobody stops they won’t find work and the family will go hungry. The strongest and the young are chosen first. They will get the full day’s pay. But the others, the old and the lame, stay waiting and hoping that that somebody will still chose them to work that day. If more workers are required employers will come back for a second bus load. For all of those people who gather, work is not a luxury or something to avoid, it is essential for survival.

This background to Jesus’s story hasn’t changed for some people across the world for 2000 years.

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
The landowner hires his workers for the day and agrees to pay them the going rate – which was a denarius a day. The Jewish workday began at 6:00 AM. This was called the first hour. The third hour began at 9:00 AM, the sixth hour began at noon, the ninth hour began at 3:00 PM, and the eleventh hour at 5:00 PM. The Landowner hires other workers through the day. Even when the day is almost over he takes on those who were left standing around all day, who could well have given up any hope of any work that day. At the eleventh hour – and that is where we get that phrase – the Landowner hires some men and agrees to pay them “what is right”. At the end of the day the time comes to be paid.
8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ 9 “The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius.
Now there is the surprise. A whole day’s pay for just an hour’s work! Well if those men were being rewarded so generously, no wonder those who had worked a whole day were expecting a little bit more!
10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12 ‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’
Working in a vineyard was very hard work. It involved laboring on a hillside in the heat of the day with few breaks! We can sympathize with these workers. We can understand their complaint. Their joy turned to anger as they realized that they received the same pay as those who had worked for only one hour. As such, they were determined not to leave until they received “satisfaction” from the landowner. However this is only a symptom of the real problem. They were upset that the landowner had made the other workers equal to them.

13 “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
Indeed – they were jealous because the Landowner was generous! This is not a parable about workers’ rights. This is a parable about the generosity of the Landowner. Generosity which treats everybody the same however much or little work they have done. Generosity which is a picture of God’s grace. God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense.
Grace makes us equal to everyone else. The workers’ complaint in verse 12 is interesting. “You have made them equal to us.” The all-day workers don’t complain about their own wages because they knew their pay was already generous. They’re upset because they wanted to be superior.

The word “grumble” is in the imperfect tense, which means that they complained not just once, but were in a constant state of grumbling. They weren’t saying, “You have put us on a par with the late-comers,” Instead, they grumbled, “you have put them on a par with us.” In other words, they weren’t so much dissatisfied with what they themselves had received; they were also envious of what had been given to the others. They emphasize that they bore the burden of the work in the sweltering heat of the day. Compared to these upstarts, who only worked an hour, these workers thought they were worth a lot more.

But that is not the way grace works. Here is the marvellous truth about grace.
There is nothing you can do to make God love you more.
There is nothing you can do to make God love you less.
Like a gift, the only thing we can do with grace…is to receive it.

The 12 hour workers – in Jesus’s day

Jesus told this parable to challenge the attitudes of the Jews of his time and especially the strictest and most religious of all – the Pharisees. The Pharisees lived to the letter of the Jewish Law. For that reason they thought that God’s blessings were especially for them, and that the best places in heaven would be reserved for them. The Pharisees thought they were better than everybody else. Through this parable, Jesus was teaching the them that God’s generosity is not just for them, who had worked all day and borne the burden of the work and the heat of the midday sun. Instead God’s blessings are for everybody – even those who only make an appearance at the eleventh hour, when the work is coolest and easiest.

The end of the day workers – in Jesus’s day

Last week – Parable of the Lost Sheep
Luke 15: ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
Luke 19: 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
In Jesus’s time what really annoyed the respectable Jews was the company he kept. Not respectable people like them – but the lost sheep.
Luke 15 Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering round to hear him. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners, and eats with them.”

Matt 9: 9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
It really annoyed the 12 hour workers that Jesus spent his time with outcasts and drop-outs. That God cared about such people just as much as He cared about those who had done their very best to live by the Jewish Law. But the gospel really is for the lost sheep, the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the “sinners”.

1 Corinthians 6:9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
These are the kinds of people God welcomes into His Kingdom!

The eleventh hour workers – today
Grace teaches us that God does for others what we would never do for them. We would save the not-so-bad. God starts with prostitutes and then works downward from there. Grace is a gift that costs everything to the giver and nothing to the receiver. It is given to those who don’t deserve it, barely recognize it, and hardly appreciate it. That’s why God alone gets the glory in our salvation. Jesus did all the work when he died on the cross.

In the end grace means that no one is too bad to be saved. God specializes in saving really bad people. Some people here today may have some things in their background that they would be ashamed to talk about in public? Don’t worry. God knows all about it. His grace is greater than any sin.

Who are the eleventh hour workers? Items in the news this week:
On Wednesday in Zimbabwe long-time opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was sworn in to the office of Prime Minister by president Robert Mugabe. At last there is hope for that country. Democracy has been trampled for too long. Under Mugabe’ tyranny inflation has completely wrecked the Zimbabwe economy. Cholera has killed thousands with tens of thousands infected. Yet Robert Mugabe could still become an eleventh hour worker. He could yet repent and be gloriously saved!
The great train robber 79 year old Ronnie Biggs is so ill he has been moved from prison to hospital. He was part of the 15 strong gang which attacked the Glasgow to London mail train in 1963 and stole 2.6 million pounds. But Ronnie Biggs could still become an eleventh hour worker. Even on his deathbed he could repent and be gloriously saved.
Alfie and Chantelle are the proud parents of Maisie, born this week in Eastbourne. Chantelle is 15 years old. Alfie is only 13.
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, who runs the Centre for Social Justice think tank, said the birth highlighted another case of “broken Britain” where “anything goes”. He said: “It’s not being accusative, it’s about pointing out the complete collapse in some parts of society of any sense of what’s right and wrong. It’s as if no-one is saying this is wrong.”
Alfie and Chantelle cannot shoulder all of the blame in this tragic situation. Maisie’s grandparents must also be held responsible for their children’s actions. Children should not be having children. But Alfie and Chantelle and Maisie and their parents could all become eleventh hour workers. If they repent they could be gloriously saved.
Yesterday mother-of-two Varsha Champaclal, 43, was attacked in a store room at the rear of a branch of Peacocks in Mitcham. She died of stab wounds to the neck and chest. She is believed to have been murdered by her husband. But that man could become an eleventh hour worker. If he repents he could be gloriously saved.
And here in Brentwood the front page story in the Brentwood Gazette is about a man with a serious criminal record who is being employed by a Christian charity in the town. The manager of the charity said, we are “a Christian charity seeking to help people regardless of their circumstances or lifestyles.” Should a Christian charity employ a convicted criminal? I see no reason why not. ANYBODY can become an eleventh hour worker. By the grace of God - anybody can be saved.
In his book, What’s So Amazing About Grace, Phillip Yancey describes grace like this. “Grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us more—no amount of spiritual calisthenics and renunciations, no amount of knowledge gained from seminaries, no amount of crusading on behalf of righteous causes. And grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us less—no amount of racism or pride or pornography or adultery or even murder. Grace means that God already loves us as much an infinite God can possibly love.”

If these are the eleventh hour workers, then who are the
The 12 hour workers – today

Anybody who thinks they can earn God’s favour. Anybody who thinks they actually deserve the blessings which God offers.
If it’s a wage that we want from God, the Bible says that our salary is already figured out for us. If we want to be rewarded for our merit, if we want God to recognise all our good work, then Romans 6:23 spells out how we will be paid: “For the wages of sin is death…” There is NOTHING we can do to earn or deserve God’s favour. But, if we want to receive what God wants to freely give us, then here is the wonderful promise of the second part of Romans 6:23 “but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.”

12 hour workers today - Any Christian who looks down on any other Christian – who thinks, “I am better than you because I have served God longer, because I have been a minister or a missionary or a preacher or an Elder or a Deacon or a Home Group Leader.” Any Christian who thinks I am better than you because I know my Bible better, or because I have prayed more, because I have sacrificed more for Christ. Anybody who thinks like that is represented in the parable by the twelve hour workers. They thought they deserved more because they had worked harder and longer – but they were wrong.

12 hour workers today - Any Christian who is jealous of another Christian. If we think it is unfair that God lets prostitutes and tax collectors and “sinners” into his church. If we are worried they might spoil it for us respectable Christians.
The eleventh hour workers and the twelve hour workers. Which of those groups are you in? So we come to the post-script to the parable.

Matt 20:16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
The Pharisees thought they deserved the best place in God’s Kingdom. But that place was reserved for Tax Collectors and “sinners”.
We may think that we deserve a good place in God’s Kingdom. We may be surprised! It is the last who will be first – those who think they should be first will be last!
Luke 14:7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honour at the table, he told them this parable: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honour, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honoured in the presence of all your fellow guests. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Matt 20:16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

LOST and FOUND Luke 15

When I was young we had family holidays on a farm in Devon with Farmer Pugsley and Mrs Pugsley. At Easter of 1963 it snowed – and we were snowed in. It was lambing time and there were still lambs being born out in the fields but a few of the mothers did not survive the births. So in the evenings we children were invited into the farmers’ living room in front of the log fire to help feed these tiny lambs from bottles. Lost orphan lambs.

“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them.

LOST

How lost people are

Treasures in heaven or treasures on earth – people are realizing that the god of shopping and the god of entertainment have nothing to offer them. Realising that the things they have worked for and chased after all their lives are empty and worthless.

Created for a relationship with God. But human beings have lost their way. Sin is a short word with “I” in the middle. Anybody who puts themselves in the centre of their lives, worships that unholy trinity of “me, myself and I” cuts themselves off from God.

Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God;
your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt.
Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters wicked things.
4 No-one calls for justice; no-one pleads his case with integrity.
They rely on empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.
…… 7 Their feet rush into sin; they are swift to shed innocent blood.
Their thoughts are evil thoughts; ruin and destruction mark their ways.
8 The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths.
They have turned them into crooked roads; no-one who walks in them will know peace.
9 So justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us.
We look for light, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.
10 Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like men without eyes.
LOST without God

We live in a lost world. So many people lost without God – facing death and the judgment throne of God with no hope whatsoever - and going to a lost eternity without God.

But God has not given up on all these people!

FOUND

3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?

Elizabeth Cecelia Clephane, 1868
There were ninety and nine that safely lay
In the shelter of the fold.
But one was out on the hills far away,
Far off from the gates of gold.
Away on the mountains wild and bare.
Away from the tender Shepherd’s care.
2. Lord, Thou hast here Thy ninety and nine;
Are they not enough for Thee?
But the Shepherd made answer: This of Mine
Has wandered away from Me;
And although the road be rough and steep,
I go to the desert to find My sheep.
3. But none of the ransomed ever knew
How deep were the waters crossed;
Nor how dark was the night the Lord passed through
Ere He found His sheep that was lost.
Out in the desert He heard its cry,
Sick and helpless and ready to die.
4. Lord, whence are those blood drops all the way
That mark out the mountain’s track?
They were shed for one who had gone astray
Ere the Shepherd could bring him back.
Lord, whence are Thy hands so rent and torn?
They’re pierced tonight by many a thorn.
5. But all through the mountains, thunder riven
And up from the rocky steep,
There arose a glad cry to the gate of heaven,
Rejoice! I have found My sheep!
And the angels echoed around the throne,
Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!

God has not given up on all these people who are lost without Him. He has set out to find his lost sheep!

5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbours together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

God cares about lost sinners. God cared enough to give his only son so that whoever believes in Him should not die but have eternal life. God offers all the blessings of salvation - forgiveness, new life, Holy Spirit living inside us giving us strength to face the day, happy certainty of heaven. Plenty to rejoice about there!

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
Do you remember what it was like to be lost? Do you remember that time when God found you? And brought you home rejoicing? When you first knew that you were a sinner and wept with that godly sorrow which brings repentance and leads to salvation? That time when you first knew that God had forgiven your sins and given you the gift of eternal life. That time when you first knew for certain you will be going to heaven? That time when all the angels and all the saints in heaven were rejoicing because YOU had been saved!

We can forget the joy we experienced when God first saved us. We can lose our first love for the Good Shepherd who searched and searched and searched for us until He found us!

AMAZING GRACE, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now am found – was blind but now I see.

There is so much to rejoice about when a sinner comes back to God! When a sinner truly repents. When they acknowledge how lost they are without God and turn back to Him. When they confess their sins and show their repentance by letting God change their lives.

Luke 19:8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

SEEK AND SAVE THE LOST

Too many churches have embraced the little bo peep theology.
“Little Bo Peep, she lost her sheep and doesn’t know where to find them.
Leave them alone and they’ll come home, wagging their tails behind them.”

God isn’t just sitting around waiting for lost people to come home to Him – God is the good Shepherd who goes out to search the countryside for those who are lost. And he calls US who he has saved to share in this work of seeking and saving the lost.

But there is more and more pressures on us as Christians to stay silent. To enjoy our own salvation but not to tell anybody else about it.

Christian nurse from Weston-super-Mare has been suspended for offering to pray for a patient’s recovery. Community nurse Caroline Petrie, 45, says she asked an elderly woman patient during a home visit if she wanted her to say a prayer for her. The patient complained to the health trust about Mrs Petrie who follows the Baptist faith. She was suspended, without pay, on 17 December and will find out the outcome of her disciplinary meeting next week.

Radio 2 12-2 Friday – should Christians be allowed to talk about their faith in the workplace? Nurse and clients – anybody and colleagues. People are allowed to talk about anything – politics, football, all kinds of details about their private lives - except Christians arent allowed to share their faith.
Postmodernism- the only thing we are sure of is that we can’t be sure about anything. Everybody’s opinions are supposed to be as valid and as valued as anybody else’s. So the one thing which is not allowed is a truth which claims to make other ideas false. Jesus said “I am THE way, THE truth, THE life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.” But it is no longer acceptable to say that. Moslems are allowed to say “there is no God but Allah”, but Christians aren’t allowed to say Jesus is the only way to God. Christians aren’t allowed to say that all the broad roads lead to destruction and only the narrow way leads to life, and few find it! We can’t say that because that would offend people who don’t agree with us, all the people on the broad roads who don’t like to be told that they are heading straight for hell.

But we cannot stay silent! We dare not! If our salvation brings us joy and peace. If knowing Jesus is the most important thing in our lives, we cannot stay silent! If we really care about our neighbours and friends who are lost without Christ, we will NOT stay silent!

Matthew 9:35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

God calls US to have compassion on our friends and neighbours and colleagues – they ARE harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. God calls US to be the workers in His harvest field.

Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

God calls US to go out and seek and save the lost.

Parable of the wedding banquet
Luke 14:21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’
22 “ ‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’
23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full.

Christians are not called to be a happy club just sitting around enjoying the blessings of salvation – we are called to be lifeboatmen and mountain rescuers and firemen – to go out into the streets and alleys and the country lanes to seek and save the lost.

Have you ever lost anything and had to search for it? I have never lost any sheep. Mercifully we have never lost any of our children for more than a few minutes. We did lose our dog once. In the New Forest our first dog Tara ran off chasing a deer. We called and whistled but she didn’t come back so we began to search for her. It was a very distressing time. We would have stayed in the Forest searching all night if she had not eventually reappeared. But our desperate concern to find our lost dog was only a faint shadow of the concern which Jesus the Good Shepherd has for his Lost Sheep.

Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Become like little children Matt 18:1-10 090222A

Matt 18:3 And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
What did Jesus mean by “become like little children”?
Little children – not a babe in arms but not a teenager either – little child = infant maybe aged 5,6,7,8.
And not an infant as in these days who has been going to school for years! But infant like in Africa who hasn’t begun any schooling, who spends all day just playing!
Become like little children does NOT mean revert to childhood or become childish. T shirt slogan: “Keep the faith baby, not the baby faith”
So what characteristics of a little child give us a picture of a believer in the Kingdom of heaven?

Innocence
The apostle Paul says in Romans 1 that human beings keep on inventing new ways of sinning. Children are not like that

Simplicity
We make life so complicated – it need not be so!

Frankness
In the car a four-year-old granddaughter asked Granny why she was wearing the brightly colored scarf she had on.
“I thought it would make my blue suit look much prettier,” Granny said. To which the granddaughter replied, “It didn’t work, did it?”

The power to wonder
Wonderful to watch children as they discover the beauties of the world – new animals, sunsets and night skies. We miss out on these wonders.

The power to forgive and forget
Grown-ups keep grudges – children don’t. They can be fighting one minute and best friends the next

Obedience
A child is expected to be obedient. Parents expect their child to obey immediately without fussing or complaining. Adults have a lot to learn from little children about how to obey God!

Enjoyment
Children enjoy the simplest things in life.

Enthusiasm
Whatever they do, children do it with all their energy!

Trust
Children trust their parents to meet their needs. Children cannot provide their own food, clothing and shelter. So they rely on their parents for these things.
Children Haven’t Lost Their Ability to Trust. Do you remember as a child leaping into your father’s arms and knowing that he wouldn’t drop you? Allowing someone to grab your arms and swing you around knowing they wouldn’t let go. Never once did you think, “I wonder what would happen if dad let me fall, or if he let go when he was spinning me and I went flying into a wall?”
Children are curious and they like to take risks. They have lots of courage. They venture out into a world that is immense and dangerous and trust their parents to take care of them.

Do we trust our Heavenly Father as much as children trust their earthly father, or for that matter as much as children trust their Heavenly Father. Matthew 6:25-34
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

You know the story of the man who fell over a cliff and just happened to catch hold of a branch that was growing out from the face of the cliff. Holding on as tight as he could he hollered; “Hello is anyone up there?” After a few moments a voice came from above saying “This is God, do you trust me?” and the man said “Thank you God of course I trust you.” And the voice came back “Do you really trust me” “Oh yes God you know that I really trust you.” The voice answered again and said “Let go of the branch” there was a pause and the man yelled “Is there anyone else up there?”

Innocence simplicity Frankness the power to wonder the power to forgive and forget Obedience Enjoyment Enthusiasm Trust

But there is one more vital aspect of childhood which Jesus is pointing to here:
3 And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Whoever humbles himself – humility. And humility has two aspects

HUMILITY and greatness
18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Jesus uses the child as a visual aid to true greatness. The disciples had wrong ideas. They thought that power and authority would be the things that mattered most in God’s kingdom. They want a special status. They feel that they are better than others.
Children are entirely the opposite. A little child knows his place! If they are the youngest of six or seven children, as this child in Jesus’s time might well have been, they know their place! At the bottom!
A child does not think that he is the important one in the family. A child knows he has to grow up!! A child does not wish to push himself forward. He does not wish for prominence.
There is an old saying: ‘Second place is okay if you don’t mind being first in a long line of losers.’ Nobody wants to be in 2nd place. We all want to be in first place. We all want to be the winner, no matter what it is we have won at. But that is not the attitude of the little child! It is only as the child grows up and gets involved in a competitive world that his instinctive humility is left behind. The follower of Christ must learn to humble himself before the Lord so that God can lift him up (James 4:10).
The disciples asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Mark’s gospel indicates that they had been arguing about it, and Luke’s account shows the same. In fact, while they are discussing the matter with Jesus, Luke points out that the disciples were so worried about themselves and their own recognition that some time earlier they found a man who was casting out demons, and they made him stop because he wasn’t one of their group.

In Matthew 18, the disciples are fussing over who was the most important one of them. In chapter 19 they are still at it, and in chapter 20 James and John and their mother are working on Jesus to try to get them the most prominent seats by the throne. What was the reaction of the other disciples? They all began to argue about it. “Jesus can’t possibly give those seats to James and John! That’s where we ought to be seated!” Jesus was certainly patient with His friends!

The biblical change that Jesus is after in his disciples is humility. If they really wanted to be great in His eyes, in His kingdom, then they were going to have to humble themselves. It wasn’t about who was the smartest, or who was the strongest, or who was the best orator and so forth. In Jesus’ mind, it was about who was most willing to serve.
Later in Matthew 20 we find James and John wanting a special place in the Kingdom of God.
20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favour of him.
21 “What is it you want?” he asked.
She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”
22 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”
“We can,” they answered.
23 Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”
24 When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers.
(Of course the other disciples were angry! James and John had got their request in first. They had jumped the queue!!)
25 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
That is how the world thinks - only those who are capable and intelligent will be honoured. But Jesus tells them that just the opposite is true - that those who will be greatest in the kingdom of heaven – won’t be the people who are so full of themselves. They won’t be the people who feel that they are good, that they are better than others. They will be those who humble themselves!
Before we look down on the disciples and judge them, we need to look at our own hearts. The disciples were so busy pushing for power and position in the kingdom of God. Are we ever pushy like that? In our day jobs? In our hobbies and recreations and social circles. Even in church. Do we ever push our way to the top?

O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, hear me. Deliver me, Jesus,
from the desire of being loved,
from the desire of being extolled
from the desire of being honoured,
from the desire of being praised
from the desire of being preferred to others,
And, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire
that others might be loved more than I,
that others may be esteemed more than I,
that in the opinion of the world others may increase and I may decrease,
that others may be chosen, and I set aside,
that others may be praised and I unnoticed,
that others may be preferred to me in everything,
that others may become holier than I, provided that I become as holy as I should.
The greatest in the Kingdom of God will be like children – Jesus says, “…whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 18:4)
Then there is a second side to the humility of a child:

HUMILITY in dependence

The disciples look at themselves and they want to feel great. When a child looks at himself, he knows he needs help. Dependence is natural to a child, he never thinks that he can face life by himself. He is perfectly content to depend on those who love him and care for him. If only men and women would turn to God and place their dependence on Him, they will find a world of peace and strength, a world of joy.

The King James Bible hear says “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” The disciples were going to have to be converted, that is, they were going to have to have a change of mind and a change of heart, recognize how completely bankrupt they were, how completely dependent they were upon Jesus for their power and ability and everything else if they were going to be of any use to Jesus.

Jesus makes this point in so many places.

John 154 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Becoming like a little child is about acknowledging that without Jesus we can do nothing. We cannot achieve anything for the Kingdom of God. Especially that we cannot do anything to save ourselves from our sin. Adults think about what we can achieve – children know they cannot achieve anything and so depend upon their parent for everything!

Ephesiasns 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no-one can boast.
A child is totally dependent upon his father. This is humility - the humble acknowledgement of God’s role, in our life and in our world today; that we are not ultimately in control, acknowledging that we need Him. Humility is not telling yourselves you’re nobody, small and weak. Humility is saying that you are in need of God all the time. He is the Lord of your life, and therefore you’re going to worship Him often and glorify Him at all times.

So to become like little children we need to stop chasing after the greatness that comes from human achievements and ACKNOWLEDGE OUR DEPENDENCE ON GOD for everything. Humilty in dependence.
“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered

It is strange which Bible verses people who don’t go to church actually know. But one of the sayings which is part of very many people’s general knowledge is this memorable saying of Jesus in Matthew 10:30:
Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
How many hairs on head 100000 to 150000
How many people = 6.76 billion so in world = 1,000,000000,000000
Present here this morning =10 million to 20 million hairs.
The writers of the helpful little book “101 things to do during a dull sermon” would encourage you to try and count the number of hairs on the head of the person in front of you in any moments when your concentration wanders. They also suggest your count is more accurate if you try pull those hairs out one by one without the person noticing, but personally I think that would be going a bit too far!
“Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered”
In other words, whatever is going on in the world, in every place, at all times, everywhere, God knows all about it. Everything that happens – God knows and God cares.
29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
God knows about what happens to every bird. Every animal. Even every plant. Every hair of our heads. God knows, and God cares and God is in control. Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
God knows every instance of Human suffering – God is there beside that person. Every child dying of preventable disease. Every soldier’s bullet and bomb and gun. Every abortion. Everybody starving or drowning or buried alive. Every illness. Every accident. Every sadness and fear. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
Psalm 139
1 O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.
God knows everything that happens to us. God sees our lives from every side. He even knows our every thought.
4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
There is NOWHERE we can go where God is not with us.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
16 …. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
God knew every detail of what our lives will hold even before we were conceived. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. He knows all there is to know about every human being who has ever lived or ever will live. And that means he knows everything there is to know about each and every one of us here this morning!
We may be sick and in pain. Suffering from a disease or illness or simply from advancing years. We may be concerned about our health – will we ever recover?
Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
Some may be worried about their jobs. Threat of redundancy. Increased pressure to deliver the goods. Or there may be conflicts in the workplace. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
We may be worried about our finances. Credit crunch. Depression. Our savings may be threatened. Our pension may have dropped in value. We may not be able to pay our way. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
There may be tensions at home in the family. Divisions or battles. Problems with neighbours. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
We may have difficult decisions to make. We may be finding it hard to see the way ahead and we need God’s guidance. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
Or we may have spiritual problems. Battles with temptation. Prayers not answered yet. You may have deep questions and even some doubts. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. God is there. God knows. God cares. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
Whatever our situation. Whatever our problems – God is with us. God understands and God can help. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
But hang on a minute! By now some of you will be asking questions about what I am saying. “Hang on Peter,” you will be saying. “All this may well be true, but aren’t you taking this verse out of context??”
If that is what you are thinking, you are absolutely right! Because when Jesus said every hair on your heads is numbered he was NOT talking about times of illness. He was not talking about problems at work. Or money problems. He was not talking about problems in the family, or in seeking God’s guidance, or even spiritual problems. Listen again.
27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
In this passage Jesus is reassuring his disciples not to fear in one specific context.
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Do not be afraid of what people can do to you. 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs.
This passage is ALL about not being afraid of speaking out Jesus’s message – however hard that may be! Even the very hairs on your head are all numbered. When that really matters is when you are witnessing for Christ and proclaiming the gospel!
In Matthew 10 Jesus is sending his 12 apostles out to preach.
He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
7 As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons.And Jesus is warning his disciples that they can expect opposition and even persecution when they preach the
gospel.
17 “Be on your guard against men; they will hand you over to the local councils and flog you in their synagogues. 18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
Christians can expect opposition and persecution if we speak out for Christ. But we also have the Holy Spirit inside us giving us the words to say and the courage to say them.
21 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 22 All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 23 When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another.
This is hard stuff! All men will hate you because of me! But that’s when we need to know that every hair on our heads is numbered!
God knows our situations. God understands. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry.
24 “A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master
It is always going to be hard to speak out for Christ. It cost Jesus his life and more to give us a gospel to proclaim. We have no excuse for not proclaiming it!
27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs.
God knows our situation. We don’t need to be afraid of what men can do to us!
28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.
So Jesus goes on to explain what it should mean to us that God knows everything about us.
32 “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
This is a typical Hebrew couplet. The two sayings are two sides of the same coin. Either we acknowledge Jesus or we disown Him. For most of the time most of us would like to think we live in some fuzzy area in between those two statements. We may not acknowledge Jesus particularly but we never publicly disown him. But there is no fuzzy in-between area in these statements – it doesn’t exist! If we aren’t acknowledging Jesus then by our silence we are disowning him. If we are not actively proclaiming the gospel and witnessing for Jesus, we are disowning Him. There is no middle ground.
34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— 36 a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
37 “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
We need to take these words of Jesus much more seriously than we do. In times of persecution, in the former Soviet Union or in China, Christian commitment comes before family. In many Islamic countries today, becoming a Christian means being thrown out of your family, disowned by mother and father, by brother and sister, by husband or wife or children. Converting to Christ can mean losing your job or being thrown out of your university. Becoming a Christian can mean death!
Compared to some of those consequences which some of our fellow believers gladly endure for the sake of Christ, speaking up for Jesus in this country costs us nothing!
I think that sometimes we make it too easy for people to profess faith in Christ. When somebody prays a prayer of commitment we let them off too easily over coming to church, or joining a Home Group, or becoming a disciple.
When I became a Christian as a teenager my weekends were filled with the sport I played, a rather aggressive game called lacrosse. Saturdays I played one or two matches lasting 80 minutes each. On Sunday mornings we had club training together for a couple of hours. I went on to represent the University at lacrosse but I was never a great player. Some of my team mates were. I gave up any hopes of playing really well when I became a Christian because the Club training was on Sunday mornings and I knew I had to go to church on Sunday morning. Six a side tournaments were on Sundays and I knew I had to go to Crusaders which met on Sunday afternoons. I couldn’t go on the Easter lacrosse tours because I went as a helper on Crusader holidays. I couldn’t play as much of the sport which I loved because God didn’t want me to play on Sundays. And once I became a teacher I couldn’t play on Saturdays at all because Friday evenings and Sunday mornings were Crusader meetings and the rest of Sunday was Church and I had to do lots of school work on Saturdays and get some sleep!!
Giving up the sport which I loved to play was a tiny sacrifice, such an insignificant sacrifice compared to so much given up by so many for the sake of Christ!
When some new Christians say they cant come to church or go to a Home Group I have to wonder if they have read these words of Jesus
38 and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
God knows our situations. So don’t be afraid. Don’t worry. But don’t forget that these PROMISES ARE GIVEN TO HELP US OVERCOME FEAR OF WITNESSING! 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.