It's all going to be alright

Reading: Philippians 1:18b-20

“There, there - it’s all going to be alright”. How often have we reassured our children with these words? Perhaps you were soothed by the same words when you were a child. It is a comfort to know that everything is going to turn out alright. Indeed it can even be a source of joy.

Paul wrote: “Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that this (what had happened to Paul) will turn out for my deliverance.” Yet Paul was in prison waiting to hear whether he would be executed or not. Would he live or would he die (v20). And perhaps your current situation holds a large degree of uncertainty too. How will it all turn out?

Paul was convinced that, no matter what the outcome, his situation would turn out for his deliverance. The Greek word translated “deliverance” refers to a state of being safe. How could Paul know that he would end up being safe and even rejoice in the fact when there was a good chance that he might be executed?

The answer has three parts (though this is not as clear in some English translations of the Bible as it is in the Greek). To begin with, Paul’s state of safety would be assured through 1) the prayers of the Philippians, and 2) the help of the Holy Spirit (v19).

God has provided for your safety through the prayers of your church family and the fact that His Spirit is in you. Are you praying for brothers and sisters that are in crisis? Are you firmly plugged into a church family? Have you forgotten that the Holy Spirit is within you? Are you ignoring Him? Do not be like the Galatians who were trying to complete something that the Spirit had started (their salvation) in their own strength (Gal. 3:1-5). God is with you and He is leading you to safety by the Spirit. Further, the Spirit is a guarantee that one day you will make it to heaven, the ultimate place of safety.

Let us turn now to the third aspect of Paul’s safety which is closely linked to Paul’s passion to glorify God. The NASB translates: “I know that this will turn out for my deliverance ... according to my earnest expectation ... that Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or death”.  The word translated “exalted” also means to glorify or to highly praise. It was Paul’s hope and earnest expectation that He would make God famous whether imprisoned or free, by living or dying. Paul knew that his desire to live or die in such a way as to show the supreme value of God would keep Him safe.

The safest way for you to live is by seeking to show God as your greatest treasure in life. Then through the provision of the Spirit, whatever has happened and whatever will happen, you will end up being safe. We have an assurance of safety that will prevail in all circumstances, good or bad.  Now that is something to rejoice in!

Cheers for now - Ian

Joy in discomfort

Philippians 2:11-18a

Just to let you know: I am officially fed-up with adjusting the driver’s seat on my new (second-hand) car. Yesterday, after weeks of careful tweaking and experimentation, I happened to compare my ideal settings with the position of the non-adjustable passenger seat ... they were identical. It was a sad moment. And this doesn’t bring me terribly smoothly to the subject of joy. Or perhaps it does.

Fact is we all want some form of joy that will endure. But we often look for joy in the wrong places. We learned last week that Paul derived joy from the fact that he was changing the shape of eternity through a successful gospel partnership with the Philippians. Partnerships created for the purposes of building the Kingdom of God can become a reliable source of enduring joy. Yet how often do we turn to gospel partnerships as a source of joy? How important are they to us?

Let me tell you about something that is important to me: comfort. I don’t do suffering. The less pain, hardship, chaos, or untidiness there is in my life the better. My friends may even be stunned to hear that I HATE bad smells. Surprising? Given my constitution, maybe it is. But seriously, if there are bad smells in heaven, I don’t want to go. Bad smells came after Adam sinned (in my opinion).

But here’s the thing – life is not comfortable. And if I want an easy life, then I will be a rotten Christian and a stranger to joy. Did not Jesus order me to pick up my cross every day? And did not Paul experience joy though in prison for the sake of the gospel? Roman prisons were not designed for comfort. They probably didn’t smell too good either. That prison was Paul’s cross. Yet Paul did not report on his comfort in verses 12-18a (chapter 1). Instead, he reported on the progress of the gospel and delighted in the fact that the gospel was advancing through his suffering rather than in spite of it.

There were soldiers in Caesar’s palace guard that could only be reached through Paul’s imprisonment. I wonder who God wants to reach through your suffering or tough circumstances? How could you respond to your circumstances in a way that will point people to Jesus? When we look for joy in easy circumstances, our gladness shares will soon start devaluing. But when we focus on how God can use our tough circumstances to propel the gospel, we will find true gladness.

Cheers for now - Ian

The fingerprints of joy

Last week, I wrote about my new (second-hand) car and joy, a vivid emotion of pleasure and gladness. And if I remember correctly, I signed off by asking how one could find joy that will endure, providing strength in this life and a reward in the next. Joy, after all, is something of an elusive commodity, especially when it is linked to transient things like possessions, health, pleasant circumstances or the fact that one’s new (second-hand) car allows one to adjust the level of one’s bottom in the driver’s seat ... sorry – I forgot myself for a moment then.

So this week, I would like to explore the subject of enduring joy. One way of doing this is to begin tracing the fingerprints of joy in Paul’s letter to the Philippians.

The Philippians stirred up pleasure and gladness in Paul’s heart. We see evidence of this when Paul claims that, “in all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy” (v4).  The cause of this joy is spelled out in the next verse: “because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now”.

Therefore, it was a gospel partnership that stoked up the joy in Paul’s heart. A gospel partnership is one that extends the cause of the gospel, holding out eternal life to a dying world. Paul established his partnership with the Philippians when he preached the gospel to them and took a severe beating in the process (Acts 16). Then, the Philippians continued the partnership by supporting Paul financially whether “in chains or defending and confirming the gospel” (v7).

The Philippians supported Paul’s ministry when it was thriving, and when he had freedom to travel and preach (4:15-16). Then when Paul was imprisoned and his ministry appeared to be crumbling, they did not abandon Paul. Instead, they sent Epaphroditus with money to look after him (v18). How could Paul fail to experience joy when he reflected on the wonder of his gospel partnership with these big-hearted and generous people? Further, the fruit of the partnership had eternal value, sparking joy that would endure forever.

I bet that the results are not in on your gospel partnerships. One day, God will let you see how they have shaped eternity. Yet how often do you look to your gospel partnerships as a source of joy? How important are they to you? If you are anything like me, I turn to many other sources of joy that are far less enduring, so please excuse me whilst I go and fiddle with the driver’s seat on my new (second-hand) car.

Cheers for now - Ian

Addicted to Joy

I just got a new (second hand) car. Ah, the joy of it. You know what? This car even has an adjustable driver’s seat. And I’m not just talking about backwards and forwards. By turning two knobs, I can actually raise or lower the level of my bum. How’s that? I know – so what? Nevertheless, I can do it! Woohoo!!

 But ... now that I think about it, I felt the same joy when I got the new (second hand) car that this latest, new (second hand) car is replacing - if you get my meaning. Cars deteriorate. Prince Charming may turn into a flatulent King. Health and wealth come and go. Holidays always come to an end. Clothes go out of fashion. Technology gets superseded. Rugby teams loose (flipping Sharks). The dog pukes on the new carpet.

Joy can seem like an elusive commodity.

In spite of this, I am hoping to turn into a bit of an addict – a joy junkie if you like. My dictionary defines joy as “a vivid emotion of pleasure, gladness”. And the Bible says, “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh. 8:10). It also says, "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” (Mat. 13:44).

Now that sounds like a good thing. In fact, it sounds like THE thing! Joy brings strength. It floods our hearts with pleasure and gladness. It is what we feel when (like the man who found the hidden treasure) we realise we have found SOMETHING more valuable than ANYTHING else. Bring it on!

Question is: where does one find such joy? And that is the question I would like to leave you with today.

Cheers for now - Ian

An embarrassing moment

To me, one of the most mind-numbingly frightening things in life is trying to catch any kind of ball without making a fool of myself. Recently, however, I have started to change myself from the inside. I have been changing the way I think. For example, I have been repeating little mantras to myself. Here is a sample (which you should feel free to use yourself): I am athletic; I am COORDINATED; I am good under the high ball. I have beautiful hands (huh?). I am ... PATRICK LAMBIE*!

Then last week, my moment of testing arrived. Matthew was playing rugby against St John’s College, and I was sitting on the touch-line. I must confess (to my shame) that warmth of the sun and the soporific sounds of young gentlemen growling at the break-down had lulled me into a false sense of security. Little did I know that a ruthless danger was about to be unleashed on the ladies sitting so trustingly beside me...

Suddenly, my reverie was shattered by the sound of a deep thud and Gail shouting “watch out, the ball’s going to hit us”. I looked up to see that the John’s full-back had kicked a sky-rocketing up-and-under in our direction. “I am Patrick Lambie”, my brain screamed exultantly. I knew what I had to do. I was about to become a hero.

The world faded away as my eyes locked remorselessly onto the spinning ball. Everything began to move in slow motion. I was a ball catching machine. My mind, arms and legs were moving as one, finely-tuned athletic marvel. In fact, I had BECOME the ball...

“Ian!” shouted Gail – “You’re on the field! You’re on the field of play!”

I looked up. Thirty boys were thundering towards me, their faced contorted in various expressions of confusion. What was this 40-something, bearded man doing on the field? Should he be tackled? Would he try to score once he had caught the ball? The ref was reaching for his yellow card.

Gasping one short, sharp (very un-theological) word, I lunged for the safety of the touch-line and sat down. Make of this what you will, but one thing I know for sure: I am not Patrick Lambie. Also, my ears blush horribly when I am embarrassed!

Cheers for now – Ian

(Patrick Lambie plays full-back for the Sharks. We are the same height, but that is where the similarity ends, for I am 22 years older, 32kgs lighter and much better looking than Lambie.)

Do not finish in your own strength

Read: Galatians 3:1-5

I guess you would be pretty surprised if your pastor called you a fool. How would you like it if he called you bewitched? Such language is not guaranteed to fill the pews on a Sunday morning! But believe it or not, this is the language Paul used in a letter to the Christians in Galatia.  Why, we ask ourselves, was Paul so upset with the Galatians?

The Galatians had heard the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection. They believed that Jesus had gone to the cross to take their punishment so that they could be converted and adopted as children of God. Further, they had been given the Holy Spirit, the very presence of God within them. All of this had been received by faith not obedience to the law, yet now they were “trying to attain [their] goal by human effort”.

Paul’s frustration is birthed in the fact that what the Galatians had begun on the basis of faith, they were now trying to continue in their own strength. They were now following a Christ-plus gospel: Christ plus circumcision; Christ plus dietary laws; Christ plus observance of Jewish festivals. Since when - is the unspoken question - was your standing before God in Christ alone not sufficient? And how can you trust a religious system to stimulate spiritual growth whilst ignoring the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit?

Fact is we all do it. I hope you do not believe that a daily quiet-time will change your standing with God. Whether you have a quiet-time or not, you stand forgiven and adopted as a child of God. And sometimes, people get the message that one needs to be a sort of Bible scholar or intelligent person to know God. Baloney! You can know God because He is in you. Further, speaking in tongues does not make you more acceptable to God nor does being able to sing or having warm, fuzzy experiences or praying twice a day or tithing or reading your Bible or helping the poor or ...  anything that is on the basis of human effort.

Now, do not misunderstand me. There is nothing inherently wrong with any of these things. Actually, we would not be Christ-like if we did not do the kind of things that Jesus did. But what is your motivation for following spiritual disciplines? They will not change your standing before God. And do not rely on a program of activities and rules to live a life pleasing to God whilst excluding the Spirit. The Spirit will guide you into habits, disciplines and activities, but He will give you the insight needed to make them productive and the power necessary to follow them.

There is no need to make fools of ourselves! Let us build on the basis of faith, actively seeking the Spirit’s help and rejecting any system that excludes Him.

Cheers for now - Ian

Reflections on a bus trip

I took a bus from Harare to Bulawayo on Monday. It was a double decker no less! I sat on the top deck at the front which gave me a great view of the road. But it also gave me an interesting view into the life of the thirty-something black lady seated next to me.

The lady was seriously into the bling thing. She had a bright red plastic handbag with yellow trim, golden jacket, blonde wig and knee-high boots with fluffy edges. Get the picture? She talked non-stop from Harare to Gweru whether I was listening or not. And most of the time, I was listening because it is not often that one gets to see the world from such a different perspective.

What made the perspective interesting was the fact that she was a single mum working for an all-female computer company (“my boss says that men are nothing but trouble”), who claimed to be a Christian. In fact, church attendance seemed to be a big deal for her because she phoned on an iPhone – proudly shown off and given to her “a few years ago by a Chinese man” - to make sure that her nine year-old daughter had been correctly turned out for church. I can’t be 100% certain, but I’m pretty sure she was talking to a boyfriend. I shuddered to think that her little girl had been left in the care of a boyfriend whilst she went on a two week trip to Dubai. Later, she made another call – a blackberry this time - and spoke to her daughter, asking whether she had enjoyed church and promising her a laptop from Dubai if she was a good girl. A laptop for a nine year old....

On one of the occasions when I managed to get a word in edge-wise, I asked the standard Evangelism Explosion questions: 1) If you died today, would you be sure to get into heaven, and 2) If God asked you why He should let you into heaven, what would your answer be? No, she wasn’t sure about making it to heaven, but she had led Praise and Worship in her church. Furthermore, God had given her many prophetic dreams. Some of them had even come true. As a matter of fact, she had seen heaven during a near death experience whilst her daughter was being born, yet nine years later, she had no assurance that she would get there. How sad.

It made me wonder what they preach at her church. It made me wonder how many of the sermons were simply self-help, feel-good recipes for worldly “success”. Why else would fancy phones and trips to Dubai take priority over her little girl? It made me wonder how many people that attend our own church lack an assurance of salvation or have based it on things like church attendance or some other trapping of Christianity.

Going to church is a poor substitute for the joy of knowing God! So, for that matter, is a fancy cell phone or even a holiday in Dubai. I pray that my fellow passenger will find that out soon.

Cheers for now - Ian