A good day, but nothing profound

Today was a good day: First, I repotted some plants I bought very cheap yesterday, then we went for a family walk and picnic in Bedgebury Forest (watch out for the mink by the visitors' centre!). This afternoon, I revarnished the kitchen table, helped S to cut down a jasmine that was climbing everywhere, and transferred old videos of our wedding and the girls growing up onto hard drives and created DVDs - and we all laughed when we watched them.

So that's it. A good day, but nothing profound to say.

Encouragement

Yesterday, I went back to the church through which I was converted in my mid-teens. I hadn't been there for many years, but there were loads of people I knew. Some of my contemporaries looked much older, some had hardly changed since they were 18, and one I hardly recognised! Of course it was a slightly surreal experience - like stepping back 30 years - nothing had changed, and yet everything had changed: we now have children the same age we were when we met and hung around together, and yet all those years were as nothing when we talked.

But what was really encouraging was to see them still there - still faithfully serving the Lord and his church. It's the same when I go back to St John's - to be welcomed by people whom we ourselves welcomed into the church 15 years ago is just a wonderful experience.

And week-by-week, we must not under-estimate the value of just being together in church. The mere fact that you turn up every week is a great encouragement to others. And unless we're together week in, week out, we'll never build the relationships necessary to 'carry one another's burdens' (Gal 6:2), to share joys and sorrows (1 Cor 12:26) and build each other up (1 Thes 5:11).

And that's why the hardest part of being on sabbatical is being away from the St Peter's Church Family. Only a few more weeks to go!!

How can we help our children? Part 2

John Ware's second programme about respect was on late last night. He takes a while to get to the important points, but when he does, they're worth hearing. He again champions marriage, but this time challenges those who have, for the sake of political correctness, failed to speak the truth. You can see the programme here. (Because it includes interviews with young yobs, there is some foul language).

When the faithful are held in contempt

Sarah & I read this together this morning. It's a psalm that's not well known, but perhaps deserves more attention:

¹ I lift up my eyes to you,
to you whose throne is in heaven.

² As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the LORD our God,
till he shows us his mercy.

³ Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us,
for we have endured much contempt.

⁴ We have endured much ridicule from the proud,
much contempt from the arrogant.

The problem is the contempt in which God's true & faithful people are held by those who claim to be God's people.

Of course we all think that we're the ones who are faithful and true, and those others who are not. But history shows that the faithful are those who stick with the truths which have always been taught. The unfaithful are those who invent new things to believe, or believe and behave like those who don't even claim to be God's people.

So we hold fast to 'the faith once for all delivered to the saints', and are held in contempt by those who have abandoned the faith and morality of God's word. And in that situation, we 'look up to the Lord whose throne is in heaven', we look to him to provide and to guide. We look to him in humility for mercy.

For more, see Hebrews 12:1ff.

I read it in the paper so it must be true...

Well, not if you read about Codex Sinaiticus, which has been in the news a lot recently. Dan Wallace corrects a few of the (deliberate?) mistakes, especially from The Independent (which is about as independent as a Man Utd supporter!!).
See here.

How can we help our children?

I have been criticised on numerous occasions for saying that if we want a better society we must encourage stable family life - by which I mean marriage for life and fathers who take responsibility for their household. Of course that's what the Bible promotes, but the world (and much of the church!) won't listen to God's word. And yet, for many years, science has also shown that marriage (not cohabitation or single-parenting) and responsible fatherhood is best for children. And yet the intollerance of liberal thinking, policy-making and reporting has suppressed this truth in favour of the lie which says 'all sorts of families are equally good for children'.

Well finally, the BBC has allowed someone to say something different. In an excellent programme about the failure of society, John Ware reported on the uncomfortable truth that marriage is best for children and society. If you missed the programme, you can see it here on BBC i-player.

What your heart desires

This past week has again brought into sharp focus the stupidity of setting out hearts on things here and now...

Last week, E & R were both away, so for the first time in 16 years, Sarah & I could have a few days away by ourselves. We found an excellent deal on a good hotel, and off we went. But very quickly Sarah developed the worst cold she's had for years, the weather was miserable, and when we did get out for a walk round Cheddar Gorge, Sarah slipped and bashed her back!

We still had a good time, and I'm not complaining at all, but it was just another reminder that we must not set our hearts on holidays, or luxury goods or anything else in this life. Instead, 'blessed are they who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart' (Ps 119:2).

Treasures in heaven

As I was walking past a very large, very smart house this afternoon, the bins were being brought in past two very expensive cars. Nothing remarkable in that, except that at this house, the maid or au pair brings them in. And there's not just one, or even two, but three rubbish bins.

And just as I was becoming envious ("They must buy so much to be able to throw away 3 bin fulls... I bet they can afford Sky Sports..."), I realised how foolish I was - the owners of that house will only enjoy those wonderful possessions for a few more years - 40 at most. But in the new heavens and the new earth, all of the very best things will be ours to enjoy forever - not just for a few short years. And I began to ponder the new creation. We'll enjoy the very best food and wine; we'll walk through a perfect city without litter or pollution, without sore feet or painful necks (I shouldn't have hit so many golf balls so hard - but it's fun!). Most of all, we'll enjoy simply being with Jesus and marvelling at his glory. "Come, Lord Jesus!"

Again, Tim Chester has some great things to say on this topic. I'll bulk buy some when I'm back, and get everyone reading it!

First draft done!

Hooray! I've emailed the first draft of my research on punctuation in papyrus P66 to my 'supervisor' in Cambridge! I'm sure he'll make loads of suggestions about how it could be improved, but I'm pleased to have got this far.

And my conclusions? Well, the major ones are: first there's a definate hierarchy of punctuation marks in this manuscript (a new line, then a double dot, then a single midpoint or an apostrophe. The chevrons (>) are not punctuation marks - though what they're for, I don't know!). Second, 99% of the marks make sense, but, third, because the scribe is inconsistent in his use of punctuation, the presence of a mark could be significant to the meaning of a sentence or phrase, but the absence of one is definitely not significant.

If that doesn't make sense, don't worry - this work has been in an obscure corner of an obscure field of study. Nevertheless, I've had an offer to publish it, and it might eventually be useful if others do similar studies in other manuscripts.

FCA

So I joined about 15oo others at the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans conference in London yesterday. Of course it got all the negative press you'd expect, and the reporters all enjoyed misrepresenting what it was all about, but what did we expect?

I can't say I enjoyed the day - not only because Methodist Central Hall is such a dreadful venue, with its small seats, lack of leg room, soaring temperature, and poor sound - but more because such a day should not be necessary. If anglican church leaders had done what they swore to do at their ordination there wouldn't have been any need for the day. But as it is, we have faithful ministers and churches that have been locked out of their buildings, sued, and excommunicated.

The FCA is NOT a schismatic, divisive, extreme organisation, despite what you may have heard or read. It is a home for those who have remained true to their promises and true to the Anglican Communion. As Archbishop Peter Jensen said in his address, it's a unifying, not a dividing, organisation.

But that doesn't stop people complaining, lying, exaggerating and misrepresenting.

"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matthew 5:11f).

Glory & blessing

In John's gospel, Jesus reveals his glory through the signs, 'This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory...' (John 2:11).

But the greatest revelation of his glory was still to come - at the cross, 'Jesus replied, 'The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.' (John 12:23).

'Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you...' (John 14:1).

Jesus' time of suffering is his time of greatest glory. Now think about Mark 8, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.'

If suffering on the cross is Christ's time of greatest glory, and if we are to take up our cross as he did, is it not reasonable to think that our time of suffering is also our time of greatest glory?

And what does it mean to 'take up your cross'? Well back in John 13, Jesus shows his disciples what it means, 'Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. (John 13:1-5)

Taking up our cross means serving others. That's where we experience, share, enter into the very glory of Jesus.

But we spend our lives avoiding the cross, we make excuses for not serving - too busy, too tired, need time for myself, it's Eastenders... And then we wonder why we don't feel close to God! If you want to experience the glory of God - serve others!

"Ah", you say, "that's all very well for you on sabbatical!" Well, I had great expectations of experiencing God afresh on retreat & sabbatical, but you know what? I can't wait to get back to serving God's people, because it really is in doing that that I experience God's glory. It's good to read and study, but only because it will, by God's grace, help me serve better, and so experience his glory.

How do I love thee?

As promised, a great quote from John Owen, the 17th century pastor and theologian:

Jesus Christ is the beam of his Father's love and through him the Father's love reaches down and touches us.
It is God's will that he should always be seen as gentle, kind, tender, loving and unchangeable. It is his will that we see him as the Father, and the great fountain and reservoir of all grace and love... Believers learn that it was god's will and purpose to love them from everlasting to everlasting in Christ, and that all reasons for God to be angry with us and treat us as his enemies has been taken away. The believer, being brought by Christ into the bosom of the Father, rests in the full assurance of God's love and of never being separated from that love.
Many saints have no greater burden in their lives than that their hearts do not constantly delight and rejoice in God. There is still in them a resistance to walking close with God... So do this: set your thoughts on the eternal love of the Father and see if your heart is not aroused to delight in him. Sit down for a while at the delightful spring of living water and you will soon find its streams sweet and delightful. You who used to run from God will not now be able, even for a second, to keep at any distance from him.

As I mentioned in my last post, this is taken from Tim Chester's book, The Ordinary Hero. Buy it. Read it.