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My child, if sinners try to lead you into sin,
do not follow them.
They will say, "Come with us.
Let's ambush and kill someone;
let's attack some innocent people just for fun.
Let's swallow them alive, as death does;
let's swallow them whole, as the grave does.
We will take all kinds of valuable things
and fill our houses with stolen goods.
Come join us,
and we will share with you stolen goods."
My child, do not go along with them;
do not do what they do.
They are eager to do evil
and are quick to kill.
It is useless to spread out a net
right where the birds can see it.
But sinners will fall into their own traps;
they will only catch themselves!
All greedy people end up this way;
greed kills selfish people.
Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospelâŠEph 6:19
Paul was no fool. He knew the task of preaching was an onerous one. He understood the dangers of leadership. He battled daily against the temptations that creep up on every pastor. And he saw, first hand, the devastation that flowed from ministers wandering away from the truth. So he asked his congregations to pray: to get on their knees and ask God to help him remain faithful and bold.
Itâs all too easy to forget that our own leaders face similar tests and temptations today. In a world that swings between hostility to the gospel and apathy, it can be desperately appealing to amend the gospel message to make it more âpalatableâ. And sadly, many leaders succumb. Indeed, if the BBC have their stats correct, it seems 1 in 6 clergy in the Dutch Protestant Church are now either agnostic or atheist - 17% of ministers in Holland's largest protestant denomination have serious doubts about the existence of God and have given up holding out any clear gospel-hope to their congregations.
Such statistics should not be a surprise: the Bible reminds us that in these last days there will be false teachers (2Peter 2:1). But reports like this should remind us that we need to be praying for our pastors. So why not take a moment right now ... pray for your minister and the leaders of your denomination that they, like Paul, will be faithful to the gospel and bold for Christ.
Sheikh Hamad, one of the ruling family of the oil rich state of Abu Dhabi has made a name for himself. Literally.
He paid an army of workers to toil for weeks in the sand of an offshore island to carve his name into the earth. The letters are a kilometer high and are visible from space. You can even see them on Google Earth. Genesis 11 v 4 springs to mind: Then they said, âCome, let us build ourselves a city and a tower bwith its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.â
Shelley commented on the hubris of such acts in his famous poem Ozimandias. The Bible says that such acts are not just sad - but will lead to self destruction. Writing our names large, with a building, a company, or like Sheikh Hamad in the sand may make other people notice us. We seek immortality by bigging ourselves up. Paradoxically, this is the route to extinction. Because what matters in the end is whether our names are written, not in history or architecture, but in the Lamb's book of life. If it's not, we are in serious trouble.
And if anyoneâs name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:15
Evangelical leader, pastor, mentor, evangelist and writer John Stott died peacefully at a retirement home aged 90 yesterday. I heard the news from a lifelong friend of Dr Stott, who was affectionately known as "Uncle John" to his many friends. Philip wrote:
My dear friend (and perhaps yours, too) died this afternoon at 3.15. He passed peacefully into the presence of his Lord and Saviour whom he served so joyfully and effectively throughout his life.
Frances Whitehead, his niece Caroline and her daughter - Emily, his former study assistant, Matthew Smith, his fiancé - Eia and I were with him. There was no apparent pain and no famous last words. He died at peace both without and within. Rico Tice from All Souls church had visited him in the morning. Shortly before he died we read 2 Timothy and 4:6-8 seemed particularly applicable.
There will be obituaries in the main papers and a memorial service at St Paulâs Cathedral (eventually).
I will miss him very much â he taught me to love and follow Jesus Christ by his life as much as in his writings.
I thought you would like to know as soon as possible, so please forgive this for not being more personal.
âThe Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lordâ.
John Stott stands as a towering figure over the history and growth of evangelicalism in the second half of the 20th Century. You can read more about his influence and life in detail on the Christianity Today obituary here.
As a measure of his influence, he was voted among the top 100 influential people in the world by a Time magazine article in April 2005. And his influence is everywhere in a whole generation of evangelicals who grew up devouring his carefully written and researched books, and benefitting from his humble pastoral mentoring and prayers.
Other tributes to Dr Stott include:
"The evangelical world has lost one of its greatest spokesmen, and I have lost one of my close personal friends and advisors. I look forward to seeing him again when I go to Heaven." Billy Graham
"It will not be possible to write the history of the church in the 20th century without reference to John Stott. His remarkable ministry spanned the whole of the second half of the century and even in his eighties he was making an impact on the 21st. His leadership of the evangelical movement, both in the Anglican Communion and in wider inter-denominational settings, was a major factor in moving it from rather narrow-minded fundamentalism after the Second World War, to the fastest growing part of world Christianity that it is today. The list of movements and institutions he founded, fostered and strengthened can be read in the biographical pages of this website. His books have challenged and nourished millions of Christians into a balanced and thinking biblical faith. His legacy through the global impact of the Langham Partnership International and the London Institute of Contemporary Christianity is incalculable.
For the vast majority of people whose lives he influenced profoundly, however, he was simply âUncle Johnâ â a much loved friend, correspondent, and brother, to whose prayers we will never know how much we owe. Like Moses, he was one of the greatest leaders God has given to his people, and yet at the same time, one of the humblest men on the face of the earth. He was, for all of us who knew him, a walking embodiment of the simple beauty of Jesus, whom he loved above all else.". Chris Wright, Langham Partnership International Director
Personally, I have been hugely shaped as a Christian disciple by both Basic Christianity and The Cross of Christ.
Other obituaries can be found here:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2011/julyweb-only/john-stott-obit.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/28/world/europe/28stott.html
http://www.tributes.com/show/John-Stott-92007699
http://barrycooper.com/2011/07/27/uncle-john/
"A Christian fundamentalist with right-wing views."
This is how police described Anders Behring Breivik, the bomber and gunman responsible for the appalling tragedy in Norway this last weekend.
I suspect I am not alone in shuddering at the way this title links an act of cold-blooded murder with the Prince of Peace. Perhaps the confusion comes from the fact that political parties described as "Christian" in continental Europe, often now have a very tenuous connection with living faith and belief. The Christian Democratic party in Norway for example (the KrF) is supported by some muslims and secularists because of its stance on headline issues such as abortion and gay marriage. But the rule that party officers must sign a declaration of their Christian faith has come under increasing pressure to be removed in recent years. Sadly, the word "Christian" has become synonymous with "right wing" in many parts of European politics.
So just to get it straight. There is no-one who is a follower of Jesus Christ who could claim that these acts of terrorism are in any way consistent with the teaching and example of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus calls us to lay down our own lives, not those of others (1 John 3:16). He calls us to live in peace (2 Corinthians 13:11). He calls us to let God be the judge, not us (Luke 6:37). He calls us to love not hate (Galatians 6:10).
Join me in praying for the distressed and bereaved in Norway at this time. Join me in trying to live out His life of love and self giving. Join me in trying to change the world with the word of the gospel, not with bullets and bombs.
Nb. For our international readers; please see this report about the ticketing for the London 2012 Olympics and the mild debacle that it became.
Did you get any Olympic tickets? Did you even try? As a sports fan, I was so excited when London was awarded the Olympics. Iâd never thought I could go to the Olympics â and now I could. Wonderful! I jumped through all the hoops â applied for a wide range of sports to increase my options â and waited with anticipation. There was a false dawn when some money was taken from my account that would have been the exact amount for several tickets. Yes, I thought, Iâve definitely got something. But it turned out to be my council tax. More waiting⊠and waiting⊠until, eventually, the email that started âWe are sorryâŠâ. I was gutted.
A few weeks later, the whole saga started again. This time I set my alarm for 5.45am, so that I could sign in and apply on the dot of 6.00. My application was finished at 6.03am â yes! ⊠No ⊠âWe are having processing difficultiesâŠâ Round and round the circuit I went â apply / deny / apply / deny â ugh! Eventually the application was accepted â but that didnât mean tickets, just that theyâd received my request. âYouâll hear for certain in 12-24 hoursâ â oh, no I didnât. Aagh! Then eventually, when Iâd given up hope, another email: âWeâre delighted to tell youâŠâ. Phew! Iâve got one. Just one solitary ticket, (and even that was dependent on them successfully taking the payment from my account), but I now know how lucky I am to be going at all.
The whole process was exhausting, frustrating and an emotional roller-coaster. But it also got me thinking. The worst thing about the Olympics process was the not knowing. The uncertainty, coupled with the disappointment of hopes dashed, was crushing. And in the end I had to tell myself I was delighted with something thatâs far less than I originally hoped for. In contrast â how wonderful the gospel message is. Weâre not left hanging around waiting. The outcome is based on the finished work of Christ, not the vagaries of a lottery. And the glittering prize wonât lose itâs glow as we get closer to it â instead it will prove to be far more wonderful than we can ever imagine. Iâm still quite excited about my single Olympic ticket â but Iâm thrilled to the bottom of my soul by the prize I have through Christ my Lord.
The talk and posturing over the place of evangelicals in the Church of England seems to have been endless. But after a few false dawns, a significant step towards an alternative oversight system for confessing evangelicals has been announced here.
The Anglican Mission in England (AMIE) held its inaugural event last wednesday at the Evangelical Ministers Assembly in London, and a new office will be opened in central London for the organisation which will be overseen by a number of bishops, from the UK and overseas.
Update: Rev Richard Perkins writes with some helpful explanation of what the AMIE means in practice.
Terry Pratchettâs BBC documentary on the BBC last night will no doubt reignite the long-rumbling euthanasia debate. What to make of it as Christians? This is the first of a few blogs weâre going to run on the issue.
Few people are scared of death itself:
But many of us, if we are honest, are afraid of the whole process of dying. The thought of a failing body, the potential for pain, the possibility of not quite being ourselves, leaves us profoundly disquieted.
As human beings we tend to want to make pain go awayâso it shouldnât come as a great surprise that there are plenty of people who want to control the dying process. There is something deeply appealing about knowing that itâs not going to hurt too much, or take too long.
The trouble is, we can only take control of the dying process if we are first willing to dump the Lord of life and death (Matthew 10:29-31): To take a life (including our own) means ignoring the God who says âdonât killâ (Exodus 20:13).
It involves denying that there is something intrinsically special about being in the âimage of Godâ (Genesis 1:27, 9:4-6). And it must mean forgetting that God, who knit us together in our motherâs womb, has a plan for each day of our life and is intimately involved in sustaining us through those daysâno matter how hardâuntil He takes us home at the best moment, the moment of His choosing (Psalm 139).
As with all ethical issues, we need first to get a right view of who God is and what He says; and then allow ourselves and our opinions to be directed by that view.
Last nightâs programme on the BBC will no doubt reignite the long-rumbling euthanasia debate. And in the face of that Christians have a double responsibility:
But at the core of both those activities lies a Christianâs ultimate responsibilityâto tell the world that God is good, and He is sovereign. And that rather than dumping Him, the best response is to follow him, trusting Him for the power to persevere in this life and to bring us to pain-free perfection in the next.
Bosnian Serb warlord Ratko Mladicâs arrest yesterday in some ways closes a chapter in the bloodiest episode in post-war Europe. Heâs off to the Hague to face justice. And one word we wonât, understandably, hear much is âforgivenessâ.
Which prompted me to think of one of the most provocatively-titled books we stock: âForgiving Hitlerâ. Itâs by a Jewish lady who suffered terribly during the Holocaust, but since discovering Jesus as her Christ found herself able to forgive those whoâd wronged her.
Three reasons to grab a copy:
You can buy it here.
It comes around about every dozen or so years, and the story is the same:
These guys are great at waving their Bibles around, and playing endlessly with their calculators.
Camping is reported on the BBC website here as saying: "I'm not a genius, and I pray all the time for wisdom". What a shame he didn't wisely turn to Mark 13 v 32 and discover that he was claiming knowledge that even the angels and the Lord Jesus are not party to.
How can we respond to this in conversations with others?... continue reading
