Hunted by the Hound of Heaven

I was baptised recently. In the morning, I had a bit of a ‘freak-out’ moment when I realised there were 250 sausages on order for the post-ceremony BBQ. How many? It was both terrifying and humbling that there were so many in my new Christian family who were invested, happy and delighted in the choice I was making – even people I had never met – and wanted to celebrate it.

It struck me that ‘terrifying’ and ‘humbling’ pretty much summed up my Christian journey over the past six months. So how did I get here?

About 35 years ago, my family had a bit of a bad day. In the morning my Dad announced he was leaving the family home. And in the afternoon my Mum overdosed on sleeping tablets.

I don’t share this for the ‘poor, damaged, child’ angle. Mum pulled through and my Dad remains happily married to the woman who went onto become my step-mum and I therapied my wounds a long time ago.

I share it because what happened next impacted incredibly on how I viewed God, Jesus and Christianity.

You see, so-called Christian friends turned up with judgement about adultery and the sin of suicide.  The dogma obliterated the grace. And that skewed my viewpoint. Not helped by the bloke in the black dress at the front of the school chapel who failed to make Christianity relevant to me. Then, as a cadet journalist in Ireland, I saw too much fear and terror enacted out in the name of God to make it an appealing proposition.

New age spiritualism and yogic non-attachment called me far more than Jesus did, and pretty much formed my agnostic life for the past 15 years.

In New Age, God is there but in a distant, malleable way. An energy you can somehow harness through the power of correct thought. If your life isn’t going the way you hoped, then you’re not thinking the correct thoughts. So you pay for another course! New age exhausted me. I was tired of having to fix myself!

Yoga and meditation gave peace but felt empty – I was dessicating my soul in my striving to non-attach.  I kept forgetting we are relationship driven. We are not built for non-attachment!

Deep down I wanted a relationship with God. I wanted that still, small voice of calm. But with all my childhood baggage from Church and religion, I couldn’t figure out the right path. I was also petrified of vulnerability. After a parent attempts suicide, there’s a lot you lock-off in self-preservation.

So I am blessed that God hunted me down, put Jesus squarely in front of me, and made me listen.

It started with a failed job interview. One of the job criteria was a practising Christian, active in church. No surprises, then, that I didn’t get the gig. And the interviewer was kind and graceful but pleasantly steadfast in telling me that my faith wasn’t there. And he said something about structure…

Someone recently reminded me how God presses on us, this insistence that shoves at you. Jesus and that phrase about structure kept pushing into my brain. I kept telling myself it was because my ego had been pricked.

But the Easter weekend that followed was packed with too many ‘insistencies’, too many signs to ignore:

·      The Bible falling off the shelf at my feet at a holiday house communal library – with no one nearby to cause it to fall, and with at least a hundred of other books that could have fallen.

·      The yacht at Palm Beach, the sail unfurling, emblazoned with the words ‘Mister Christian’.

·      Awaking with specific lyrics from Jennifer Warnes’s ‘Song of Bernadette’ playing over and over in my head around 3am each morning for four days in a row, when I had not heard her music in probably a decade.

In the end, on Easter Monday morning at 3am, I sat bolt upright and asked, “What? What are you trying to tell me?”

And a voice that was of me, but not of me, said clearly: Sort out your baggage around Christianity. You have all this unconditional love and non-judgement for other religions. You need to get rid of your stereotypes about how ‘Christians’ should be. Sort out your faith.

The next morning I asked my husband’s opinion, a small bit of me hoping he’d give me a ‘get out a jail free card’. Instead he responded: “Well, Phil, Jesus did have to ask Peter 3 times….”

I thought I’d just do some research. C of E stuck me as similar to Anglican. The kids attend school in the area so I found Menai Anglican online, spotted that a Christianity Course was running and picked up the phone. I’d missed a couple of weeks, but figured I could do some catch up - some solo, distant education.

Again, God was having none of it. Instead of a quick video download in my own time, I ended up having theological emails with an associate pastor who was refreshingly honest. There was no watering down, which was a change compared to what I had known. It was my first adult conversation with a Christian who was happy to unpack his faith and really let me rummage around in it – whilst kindly challenging me both intellectually and spiritually.

It was obvious he wasn’t going to let this seeking soul just do distant education! I found myself at a 10am service. Then another. Then an 8am. Then a 6pm.

As my heart whispered to me how astounding this love, the cross, the resurrection was, my head was on the sidelines, arms folded. Could a man really have come back to life? Well, then, I got to do the CE course. Which helped my head catch up with my heart.

I liken my new-age relationship with God before like some faulty light bulb. That flickered on and off. Jesus reached past me and screwed in the bulb.

As soon as I accepted Jesus, it literally clicked into place. How liberating it was to go: I am more sinful and flawed than I could ever imagine, yet at the very same time I am more loved and accepted in Jesus than I could ever dare dream.

And after all my new-age work? The ease of this astounds me every day. Just keep accepting the grace. And I pray that God just keeps me, all my flawed ego self, out the way.

Being loved, no matter what, gives you an incredible blank canvas of trust and grace from which to create. Jesus died for me.  How can I do anything but humbly accept?

My acceptance gave me a new freedom to embrace the joy. After trying to be all yogic, trying to non-attach, to not feel, all this… it is like going from black and white to technicolour.

All my numbed nerve endings fizzed back online. And even if there are hurts – all that sensitivity I tried to hide, the vulnerability I was so fearful of – what are they compared to the pain Jesus’ took on for me? My biggest wounds are like a broken nail compared to crucifixion and taking on the sins of the world. Vulnerability delivered me joy, faith and more.

Six months ago I would have laughed at anyone who said I’d have a Bible app on my phone and be writing a blog about my Christian journey.

Preparing this testimony, I was asked to share examples of how my life has changed since I accepted God and Jesus. But I can’t give examples of incidents, because this isn’t incidental to my life.

It is like breathing. The edges have been smoothed. I’m sure my husband would agree that the ‘point scoring’ of life has dropped away.

I find myself in a range of places – the café, getting my back adjusted, a business networking event - and God insistently tells me to share the blog and my experience of returning to church.

God: ‘Tell them!” Me: “Really?” God: “Yes, now” – and so I do and every time, every time, I end up in a conversation with someone who has been wondering about going back to church after having a poor experience.

So now, whilst I do still question, I trust. And so, even when He’s telling me to step forward and I feel like it’s off a cliff, I trust and honour that He knows what He’s doing. So I step forward and the bridge – or path – appears.

And getting baptised? I now recognise that God and Jesus were always on the look out for me over these past 43 years; they had my back.  But I hadn't got their's.  I needed to reciprocate.  Choosing baptism was my testimony to them, saying: "I'm sorry it took me so long.  Thanks for chasing me down.  Here I am."

Yet despite that, for the 42 intervening years, I know God and Jesus were always on the look out; they had my back. But I hadn’t got theirs. I needed to reciprocate. Choosing baptism was my testimony to them, saying: “I’m sorry it took me so long. Thanks for chasing me down. Here I am.”

Finally, although I say God chased me down, and Jesus worked his grace – there is one more important factor.

The past six months have clearly demonstrated that, just as it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a supportive husband, an amazing ministry team and an engaged congregation to raise a new Christian.

So on the days that you wonder what exactly God and Jesus are up to in your life – and I’m pretty sure we all have them – please remember each time over the past six months I saw you here at church – even if we have never spoken – I saw you here.

In worship. Treading the path. And it gave me joy and encouragement to keep stepping forward on mine. Thank you.

By Phil(ippa) Lowe, a member of our 10am Service, and a PR/Communications Manager who takes God and Jesus seriously, but herself not so much.
 

An Observation On Life

I recently visited a high school graduation. I had the pleasure of seeing some of my good friends on their last day of high school – they are solid young Christians and I’m honoured to be both their pastor and friend.

But here’s what I noticed. Secular humanism is so utterly empty. In the speeches the year 12s were told that they could change the world and make it a better place. They could look inward and see that the solution to life’s difficulties could be found within themselves. They were told they could achieve anything – any dream they had could become a reality with enough hard work and trust in themselves.

I sat there wondering if I was the only bloke scratching his head; wondering if I was the only bloke who had watched the news recently. Everything that was said seemed to have no connection with reality. Surely if we have learned anything at all from modern history (Ancient is the same, people’s names are just harder to pronounce), it’s that we humans are not the answer to the problems we have created. We’ve flippin made the mess we’re in – and we add to it every day. 

But history was ignored today. The take home message was that this group of year 12 students could change the world by the sheer force of their inner brilliance and capacity to ‘just be themselves.’ That’s a pretty heavy burden to place on 17 and 18 year olds, don’t you think?

I reckon the Bible makes much more sense. Here’s a bit of 2 Corinthians 12.

But he (Jesus) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Romans 7 knocked on my head a moment later:

19For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Here’s the wash up of my morning. Jesus actually takes the pressure off us – we don’t need to try and perform well to get in His good books – we can't make it on our own. Yet He turns up and says, “I’ve got it. I’ve got you. I won't drive away anyone who comes to me.” (that’s my paraphrase of John 6:37).

Secular humanism, on the other hand, places all the pressure squarely on us – on our young people, our elderly, and people like me – middle aged blokes just battling away trying to keep our heads above the water – and it says: you do it. It’s all up to you. You change the world. You change yourself. Heck, half the people I know can't change a tyre…

No wonder depression is an epidemic.

So here’s a thought – maybe when Jesus said all that stuff about…“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (that’s Matthew 11:28-9, in case you want to read that bit – it’s pretty sweet, eh?)

Maybe He really meant it – because He is the answer. Not us.

Blessings folks,
Steve Wakeford, Associate Minister

The presence of God: the dwelling place of the Christian

How do you react to conversation about the presence of God? Does it elicit a positive or negative reaction? Perhaps your protective wall has already gone up. Or maybe your ears have been pricked in a good way. Whether it is a word you want to shy away from, or embrace, the truth is that the Scriptures have a great deal to say about God’s presence. What exactly do they teach, and what does this mean for us?

The Scriptures make three things abundantly clear regarding God’s presence. Firstly, God’s desire is that we know him deeply, in relationship, at the level of our heart, mind, soul and strength, as we dwell in his presence, without restriction or barrier (Lk 10:27). Secondly, the privilege and joy of living in God’s presence was stripped from humanity because of sin. Thirdly, from the moment mankind was cast out of God’s presence because of sin, there has been a gracious movement on God’s part from being far away to near his people.

God’s drawing near has been inaugurated[1] in Jesus, through his dealing with our sin, and realised[2] in the giving of the Holy Spirit to those of us who are in Christ by faith. Having received the Spirit by faith, those who are in Christ now truly live in God’s presence, and he in them. Despite this, however, the Christian still awaits the final and full expression of this reality, to be put into effect in the New Heaven and New Earth. Let’s examine what the Scriptures teach on this issue in a little more detail.

Prior to sin, Adam and Eve enjoyed an unbroken, intimate relationship with God, as he walked with them in the garden (Gen 3:8). Since the fall of humanity (Gen 3) mankind has been deprived of fullness of life in God’s full, unrestrained and unveiled presence (Gen 3:22-23). Unfortunately, Adam and Eve’s sin resulted in them desiring to hide from God’s presence (Gen 3:8-10), only to be cast out of it soon after (Gen 3:23-24).

Since this time God has been progressively revealing his plan of redemption, with the ultimate purpose being to bring humanity back into the fullness of his life-giving presence again (Rev 21:3), that God might be glorified by his saving works (Ezek 20:44). God has shown himself to be a God of grace, initially demonstrated by his tempered judgement of Adam and Eve’s sin. The book of Exodus, in particular, shows God’s transition from being distant from Israel, to delivering them from Egypt, that they might be his ‘treasured possession’ (Deut 7:6), and choosing to dwell with them, represented by him dwelling in the tabernacle in the centre of the Israelite camp (Exod 25:8). This idea of tabernacling with his people was consummated when the true tabernacle of God ‘pitched his tent amongst us’ (John 1:14), in the incarnation of the Son of God. In Jesus, God’s presence truly has drawn near to mankind.

Exodus also records that it was God’s presence that led Israel to Horeb (Exod 13:21-22), provided water from the rock to nourish his people (Exod 17:6), and which descended on Sinai to deliver his word to Israel (Exod 19:18). And despite there being need for Moses to mediate between Israel and God, representing the reality that God is transcendent and cannot be in friendship with sinners, God’s immanence was demonstrated in him speaking to Moses ‘face to face’, as they stood in one another’s presence (Exod 33:11). It was God who established a sacrificial system whereby sinful man could come into his presence (Lev 1:3), and it was God who ‘walked in the midst’ of Israel’s camp (Exod 23:14). In fact, God was not merely portrayed as being in Israel’s midst, but as being Israel’s dwelling place (Deut 33:27).

The writer of Deuteronomy shows us that God’s gracious works on behalf of Israel were for the purpose of revealing him to be the one and only God – ‘there is no other besides him’ (Deut 4:35). Additionally, they are to be understood as an outworking of his personal revelation of who he is (Exod 3:14). God’s works on behalf of Israel are an expression of his desire for relational intimacy with his chosen people – they reflect him drawing near. The nature of God’s promise of land to Israel adds additional weight to this point. The promised land was to be understood as an inheritance of God himself, because the promise was accompanied by God’s declaration that his Name would dwell there too (Deut 14:23). All of this is to say that God’s agenda in salvation history is to restore us to the place of being in his presence again. Deuteronomy, therefore, paints a forshadow of this agenda, which was inaugurated in Christ, and fulfilled in the giving of the Holy Spirit (though not fully experienced).

Our greatest inheritance is not God’s forgiveness, nor his justification, nor heaven, but God himself. These lesser blessings are blessings in as much as they make it possible for us to inherit God, not just as Saviour and Lord, but as Father, Treasure and Friend. Those who have the Holy Spirit experience God in these ways in the present. The fullest experience of God’s presence, however, is yet to come, in the New Heaven and New Earth.

For the Israelite on the plains of Moab, to be in God’s presence was to exercise faith in his word, by stepping into his promises in faith, specifically the conquering of the promised land, for that is where the Lord was to be especially present with his people. God’s involvement with Israel, therefore, is an example of him revealing his redemptive plan in the earthly realities of Israel’s history, for the purpose of foreshadowing the greater spiritual reality now realised in the giving of the Holy Spirit, for those who are in Christ.

After Israel inherited the promised land, the presence of God continued to be revealed primarily through God’s word, but the location of God’s earthly dwelling place narrowed down to a focus on the Temple (2 Sam 22:7). The emphasis shifted from encouraging Israel to conquer the land to exhorting them to repent and be obedient to God’s covenant, so that they might continue to live in the land, which would allow them to continue to live a life centred around the temple, where God’s presence dwelled in a unique way. The exile, therefore, was particularly painful for Israel, because it did not merely suggest that God had removed his blessing because of Israel’s sin, but that he had cast them out of his presence, evoking reminders of Adam and Eve being cast out of the garden (Gen 3).

Beyond God’s word, the promised land, and the temple, God’s presence has been inextricably associated with the presence and work of the Holy Spirit throughout history. In the Old Testament there are allusions to the need for all people to have the Spirit of God (Num 11:17, 25 & 29; 1 Sam 16:13; Ezek 36:26-28; Joel 2:28). Acts 2 is evidence that this has now been fulfilled through the giving of the Holy Spirit. Being sealed with the Spirit through faith (Eph 1:13) is the ultimate fulfilment of what the Old Testament tabernacle and temple foreshadowed. The Christian himself is now the new temple of God because the Holy Spirit resides within him (1 Cor 3:16; Eph 1:13). The extension of this is the church, that is, the body of believers, who collectively are being built into a dwelling place for God by his Spirit (Eph 2:22). God truly has drawn near in Jesus Christ, not merely because Jesus dwelled amongst us as a man, but also because Jesus as our representative, has entered the Father’s presence. If I am in Christ then I too, in a spiritual sence, also dwell in the Father’s presence. ‘For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf’ (Heb 9:24).

Bill Johnson argues that the ‘baptism of the Holy Spirit is the fulfilment of the Old Testament picture of entering the promised land’ and that ‘those who discover the value of his presence enter realms of intimacy with God never previously considered possible’.[3] These statements are helpful for us to consider. All Christians have the Spirit of God, but there are varying degrees to which we submit to his leading, and pursue him in relationship, and therefore experience his presence. The degree to which a person dies to self and submits to the will of the Spirit, is the degree to which he is aware of the Spirit’s presence in his life. This is not to say that we can usher in the presence of God by our worship, nor is it to suggest that the Spirit is present in some circumstances but not others, as if he comes and goes in response to worship or lack thereof. God is omnipresent (Jer 23:24; Ps 139:7-10). However, despite God’s omnipresence, the Scriptures do make clear that God is uniquely present in believers (Eph 1:13), and especially present when believers gather together (Matt 18:20). And so despite God being present everywhere, his manifest presence can and does fluctuate.

The point is this. What the Scriptures testify to is that the Spirit of God is everywhere, but there are certain circumstances that result in him manifesting his presence in unique ways. This seems to be what James 4:8 is suggesting, along with Ps 22:3. Although ever-present, God responds to our attempts to draw near to him. As already discussed, the Scriptures depict a movement of God from ‘far’ to ‘near’ his people. This trajectory of drawing near continues throughout salvation history up to when God comes closer than ever before in Jesus, and beyond when he blesses believers with the indwelling of his Spirit. Mankind, however, is not passive in the process. We are required to embrace God’s initiative by stepping into his promises and making them our own, and this has direct consequences on us knowing his manifest presence in our lives, whether that be because our awareness of him increases, or because he chooses to manifest himself in a more profound supernatural manner.

The time is coming when redeemed humanity will enjoy the full manifestation of God’s presence in his eschatological kingdom. Although inaugurated in Christ, and realised in the giving of the Spirit, this reality is not yet experienced in full. Therefore, the trajectory from far to near continues. In this age, however, the onus has fallen upon us. God has already fully drawn near by choosing to dwell within those who have faith in his Son. Jesus has torn the curtain of the temple in two and given us his Spirit, purchasing for us unrestricted access to the Father. Will we embrace this reality and take up James’ call to draw near to him in return?

Relationships require investment. They don’t start out intimate. Yes, we have unrestricted access to the Father, through the Son. But access is different to intimacy. Access speaks of opportunity. Intimacy, on the other hand, is cultivated when a person takes advantage of such access. Everyone knows that the opportunity to know someone is not the same as knowing them. The degree to which we take advantage of our access to the Father, by pursuing him in relationship, is the degree to which we will know his presence, because to experience God’s presence is to experience him.

To conclude, for the Christian in the church age, to follow the Lord by obeying his word and walking in step with the Spirit, is to be in his presence, and the gathering of believers is a unique expression of it (Matt 18:20). We should seek, therefore, to give increasingly more of our lives over to the Spirit’s rule, as we pursue a functional relationship with God, defined by the parameters of his word. In doing this the divine presence will be made more manifest in our lives. So let’s respond to God’s initative of drawing near to us with his Spirit, by drawing near to him in return! May a desire be awakened within all of us to pursue the Lord with intention and fervour, that we might experience on earth as much of the heavenly reality as is available to be tasted this side of heaven, as we hope for the final and full expression of God’s presence in the New Heaven and New Earth!

by Peter Crowther, Student Minister

Bibliography

Johnson, Bill. When Heaven Invades Earth: A Practical Guide to a Life of Miracles. Shippensburg: Destiny Image Publishers, 2013. Kindle.

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[1] The Macquarie Dictionary, 5^th ed., 2013, defines inaugurated as: to make a formal beginning of; initiate; commence; begin.

[2] The Macquarie Dictionary, 5^th ed., 2013, defines realized as: to make real, or give reality to.

[3] Bill Johnson, When Heaven Invades Earth: A Practical Guide to a Life of Miracles (Shippensburg: Destiny Image Publishers, 2013). Chp. 6. Kindle.

Why Will Tim Costello Visit Our Church?

 

By Eric and Carolyn Hatfield from the Justice and Mercy (JAM) Team

Carolyn and I first met Tim Costello at Black Stump Christian Arts Camps where he was teaching and leading seminars on social justice issues. We were impressed with his broad knowledge and the fact that he could speak for an hour without notes while holding his audience enthralled.

At that time he was pastoring Collins St Baptist Church in Melbourne and we heard stories of the more well-to-do parishioners having to step over homeless people sleeping on the church steps while coming to the morning service. 

As a result of this obvious need, Tim began a ministry from his church to serve the marginalised in inner city Melbourne. When we visited Melbourne we were privileged to be invited to attend an informal evening service in the basement where these people felt comfortable to attend.

Tim is now well known as CEO of World Vision in Australia and a respected spokesperson on justice and overseas aid. He will be our guest at Saturday Night Church (SNC) on 26th July at 6pm to present us with an award.   For the second year running we were the top money raising church in Australia for the World Vision 40 Hour Famine.

World Vision is one of the World's largest relief and development organisations with annual revenue of almost $3bn. It runs the 40 Hour Famine each year, and Menai Anglican Church has participated for more than a decade.

Tim's topic will be God's mission in the world, how Christians can relate to the community around us, and how the 40 Hour Famine is part of all that.  Having visited many countries where World Vision has responded to disaster, war, famine or injustice, he shares from deep experience.

Joining him that night will be musician Levi McGrath, who will lead us in worship and share some of his own songs. Levi has volunteered overseas with World Vision.

It promises to be a great night of celebration, learning and being challenged to serve God in our world. 6pm Saturday 26 July.

Why I've Prepared A Talk For Women on Being Crazy Busy

A (mercifully) short blog about a (really) big problem (to quote Kevin DeYoung from "Crazy Busy")

I have to confess, when Margaret sent off an email to ask me to write a quick blog about why I've prepared a talk about being Crazy Busy for Women.. my first thoughts were "Oh no, when will I fit that in?!!"

Ironic huh! Ok, so this is really not about me being an expert. But sharing some things that I have had to (and continue to think deeply about)

How often do we find we miss e mails, eat dinner on our laps in the car, double book important dates, and take 5 or 6 attempts to "catch up" with a good friend.

How often do we hear ourselves express our admiration of another woman in terms like "I don't know how she does it"

Yet busyness and the stress that comes from it can rob our lives of emotional depth, creativity, joy and meaning as we skim relationships and activities, like its an Olympic sport to be mastered.

We tend to wear busyness as a badge of honour, somehow marking our significance.

Yet it can be the very thing that keeps us from the things that are MOST SIGNIFICANT...and ultimately from the one who makes sense of it all.. God himself.

By Wendy Potts - Guest Speaker for the Women's Annual Dinner on Tuesday 17 June

Singing in Church - Who Really Cares?

For many, singing at church is nothing more than a commercial break that allows for a smooth transition between the more important episodes within the service. When it comes to worship through song who really cares right? Why bother? Would it really matter if we just dropped it from the service entirely? At least then we wouldn’t have to stand there being disinterested and disengaged for so long.

If these thoughts and feelings strike a chord with you, you’re not alone. For many of us, when it comes to congregational singing, we relate to the experience of making declarations of truth to likeable melodies, but have minimal to no experience of being ministered to by the Holy Spirit. Worship through song really has become a take it or leave it kind of activity. But what do the Scriptures have to say for it? Could it be possible that those who have this attitude toward singing in church are missing out? Is it time for a reformation in our thinking regarding congregational singing, and thus a renewal of its practice?

The Scriptures testify to worship being an all of life activity (Rom 12:1-2). Given that corporate worship through song is currently an aspect of our lives, because of its place in our church services, how should we engage in the activity, so as to make it another aspect of our lives that is also performed in worship to the Lord? Or perhaps it doesn’t warrant being part of our lives at all? Maybe we should finally scrap the dead practice and eradicate it from our church services?

I would like to challenge us to consider the opposite. The offering of praise we collectively bring to God through song, when gathered together as a community in Jesus’ name, should not merely be permitted as a valid place in our church services, but as an essential practice, respected and valued for the unique way it brings glory to God and maintains our spiritual vitality.

The devaluing of corporate worship through song is probably the result of many factors. In my opinion, two significant reasons for it being devalued are: firstly, our simplistic view of what word-based ministry is; and secondly, the informality of our services, due to us having made them seeker-sensitive to the informal culture in which we live.

With respect to our understanding of word-based ministry we are guilty of placing listening to the word of God preached and responding to the word of God in song, in opposition, as if the two are at enmity with each other. We fail to see that responding to God’s word in song is in and of itself a ministry of the word, in the sense that it helps consolidate the word of God preached and God’s truth more generally into our hearts, by providing us with an opportunity to respond with thoughtful reflection, word-shaped emotion, joyous praise and physical expression.

Regarding the informality of our services, it seems our zealous attempts to contextualise the gospel for the broader, largely informal culture have gone so far that we have now lost much of our reverence for God, and this spills over into our singing.  It is vitally important we take time to self-reflect on our current attitude and practice. We are in great danger of becoming mere hearers of the word instead of doers (Jas 1:22-24), puffed up with knowledge, having lost our heart of love (1 Cor 8:1).

Piper states in The Pleasures of God, ‘It is God’s supreme commitment to […] display the full range of his glory […], for the enjoyment of his […] people […]. This everlasting and ever-increasing joy of God’s people in [God] […] is the shining forth of God’s glory’ (pg. 339). How many people truly relate to the idea of attending church for the purpose of enjoying God? How many can testify to fully delighting in God through the hearing of the sermon alone? How many truly cherish the opportunity to experience God’s transforming, sustaining joy in worship through song?

Corporate worship can be a powerful forming experience for us, yet many of us walk in functional unbelief of this reality when it comes to practice. If our values and knowledge are formed by the social relationships and structures in which we find ourselves, then to be involved in a church where the majority of people place a low value upon corporate worship, is to be in an environment where the cultural norm will continue to reinforce that worship through song is not important, satisfying or transformative. This makes changing a culture’s attitude toward corporate worship difficult.

Congregational singing is performed in both the vertical and horizontal dimension. The vertical refers to our personal relationship with God, within which we sing to him and focus on enjoying him. The horizontal refers to our mutual edification of each other, as we sing God’s truth to one another, spurring one another on to love and good deeds. Both aspects are important and we should seek a balance between the two when it comes to song selection. Let us, however, for the purpose of this discussion, consider the vertical aspect in a little more detail. What is God’s intention for the vertical dimension of our corporate worship through song?

‘The climax of God’s happiness is the delight He takes in the echoes of His excellence in the praises of his people’ (J. Piper, Desiring  God, pg. 30). Isaiah 48:11 affirms this statement, ‘For my own sake, […] I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another’. God’s glory is his highest concern and it should be ours too. Corporate worship is one of the ways we can magnify God’s name above all else.

Our worship needs to be an expression of our delight in God (Ps 37:4). Burdened and begrudging obedience does not glorify the Lord, because it does not testify to his all satisfying goodness – it is not worship. Fortunately for the Christian, loving God through obedience can be a delight. God’s gift of faith overcomes our deadness toward him, awakening our affections for him so that our obedience to him is an outworking of our heart’s delight (1 John 5:3-4). ‘The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever’ (J. Piper, Desiring God, pg. 369). The wonderful news is that God is to be enjoyed, and the greater that enjoyment, the greater His glorification. It is vital therefore, that we pursue a deepening satisfaction in the Lord in all aspects of our lives, including during our congregational singing.

What is necessarily required for our joy to soar? Surely, it is that we express it! Joy is incomplete until it is expressed in praise. Our delight in God is consummated in our expression of praise to him. We all relate to this truth in our experience. We have all been in circumstances where delight has been awakened in response to something we appreciate, but has failed to reach the heights for which it was destined, because it was not expressed or shared with another. The same is true for our joy in the Lord - our delight in God overflows in the greater joy of expressing it in praise. To not participate in worship is to rob ourselves of higher levels of satisfaction in God. ‘God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him’ (J. Piper, Desiring God, pg. 288). Let us therefore pursue deeper levels of satisfaction in the Lord in all aspects of our lives, including when we worship together in song!

You may be wondering if there is anything in particular that makes corporate worship through song so important? Jesus states, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matt 18:20). This refers to his resurrected presence (Matt 28:20). Although Jesus dwells in all believers by his Spirit (Eph 1:13), he is present in a unique manner when believers gather together. Believers therefore should make gathering together a high priority. But why must we sing together? Colossians 3:16 commands us to do so but why? The simple answer is that we are commanded to sing together because our singing is a ministry of the word. It is not simply a medium through which Scripture is proclaimed (although that is a good thing). Through song we have the opportunity to respond to God’s word, by taking it captive, meditating on it, making it our own, participating in it, and expressing it back to God in praise in our own words, all with the assistance of music, which helps engage our emotions. In this way the word ministers to us at the level of our affections, which facilitates greater transformation than when it is directed solely at the mind and will. In music we have a medium that can elevate words to a place where mere words could never go themselves. Singing is God’s gift to us.

We should seek therefore to take corporate worship seriously by participating in it regularly, actively, intentionally and reverently, with the anticipation of experiencing joy in God. We must be on guard against being passively present during corporate worship, and fight against any mentality that devalues it to the ranks of being a mere time filler.  We should seek to worship in song with an attitude that sees it as a unique opportunity to pursue and enjoy God. If a person is regularly untouched by their experience of corporate worship through song this does not suggest that it has no value, but rather that they are falling short of appreciating its value, which ultimately reflects a deeper problem in them. We must fight against complacency and apathy in congregational singing and fight for our delight. We need to engage in corporate worship with an expectancy that God will show up in our hearts, minds and experience.

Our value of singing in church must increase. Our delight in the Lord is at stake and so is His glory. We must work at being in community regularly for the purpose of worshiping together, and should seek to intentionally prepare our hearts and minds for it. We are commanded to love the Lord with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength, unceasingly (Mk 12:30). All of life is worship in the broader sense, and worship through song is a part of all of life. Surely our response to God’s word is of equal importance to hearing his word, for this is the purpose of God’s word – to transform us – to elicit a worshipful response from us, whatever circumstance we find ourselves in. The proclamation of God’s word, and our response to it, are not enemies of each other. They represent two sides of the same coin. In fact our active response to the word of God proclaimed is a continuation of the ministry of the word, because it assists the word in taking root in us. The goal of corporate worship through song is to make us more susceptible to being changed, and transformation into the image of Christ is our ultimate goal. To neglect corporate worship through song is to leave oneself thirstier, less healed, less edified, less happy, less effective, less safeguarded against the enemy’s schemes, less satisfied in Jesus.

In conclusion, God’s glory is his highest prerogative. The Lord has ordained that his glory be caught up in our delight of Him. Corporate worship through song is a fundamental way of magnifying God’s worth by delighting in him. It holds the greatest promise of joy, in that it provides the believer with an opportunity to express their joy in God, in the context of other believers, where Jesus is thus uniquely present, with the assistance of music, which moves our emotions, and helps engage our affections. Our value of worship, therefore, must increase so that our spiritual vitality continues to flourish, as we taste deeper levels of delight in God.

By Peter Crowther

Your Church Needs You

What's on my mind, you ask...

What's on my mind is 'Christians' who don't come to church.

Allow me to explain...

We're all busy - and sometimes things come up that prevent you from meeting with your brothers and sisters - that happens - as long as it's a rare occurrence - no foul.

I also get that sometimes - under fairly extraordinary circumstances - not being in church can be the only option for a few people. But this isn't what I'm talking about.

I'm talking about the idea that's crept into our thinking where a 
heap of people who call themselves Christians think that they don't need church and that church doesn't need them.

That's tragic.

We do need you. And you do need church.

The Bible is FULL of stuff about doing this Christian life together - and it knows nothing about doing it alone. Fact is we really need each other.

Your church needs you - because you have gifts - spiritual and regular. And the good news is that you get to share those gifts with your church. Plus, your brothers and sisters are blessed by your presence. Plus you are missed when you aren't there. Plus your pastors worry about you. Read that again - and I promise we spend A LOT of time worrying about you. Plus your friends worry about you. Do they always call? No, not always - and that upsets you. But then, you don't call them, either. So let's not get too picky. 

Also...You need your church. You need to hear the Word preached. You need to be encouraged. You need to remember 'whose you are'. You need to be reminded to bear the family resemblance - and you need feeding so that you can. You need to sing worship to Jesus and be inspired to LIVE worship to Jesus through the week.
There are a squillion reasons TO go to church if you're a Christian.
There are hardly any (aside from a handful of exceptional circumstances) for not going.

So go on... particularly if you've been a bit slack lately - quit making excuses and get back to church this weekend. Not out of guilt - but because you know that God wants the best for you - and He says, 'Do not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing.' That's Hebrews 10:25 by the way.

Steve Wakeford, Associate Minister

Reflections- Article Preview from our Autumn MAC Magazine

REFLECTION AND PRAYER GATHERING- 2PM SUN 6 APRIL AT CHURCH

Recently I’ve been reflecting on the noise of life. 

It can take over our headspace, squeezing out other things.

What sparked this reflection was a sermon I heard in January at my brother’s church. The sermon was on James 1. It helped me think more clearly about an issue I have been tossing around for a while. 

From James 1:18 – 21, and 25:

The Father . . . ‘chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of all he created.  My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. . . . The man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.’  

                                                                                                                              

The preacher suggested that, since the passage is about the centrality of God’s word, and the response to it we need to make so that the ‘righteous life that God desires’ grows in us, it is to God and his word that we should be quick to listen, and be slow to speak with him about our concerns – the noise of our lives.

That noise is powerful. 

It is the accumulation of all that is on our mind and in our hearts.

We have probably all had the experience of listening to a great sermon – the word being taught – and suddenly finding that our attention has been pulled away by life’s noise. We may have had a good look at a Bible passage in our growth group, but the prayer time that follows may have little to do with praying the passage into our lives, and have barely any focus on God himself, and how we are developing in our relationship with him. How easy it is for the noise of our lives to take over our time with God.

Not that it is wrong to bring our concerns to God. Far from it. We are encouraged, if not commanded, to do so (Psalm 62:8, Phil 4:6). It underlines our dependency on God.

But if the noise of life is the focal point of our relationship with God, that relationship is out of balance and we will struggle to grow. It is a bit like the husband who adores his wife and takes her to a fabulous getaway, to spend some quality time together and to give them both, but her especially, a break from the demands of caring for their young children. But the children are her ‘noise’. They are all she talks about. They are on her mind the whole time. She can’t step beyond her role as a mother and throw herself into her role as wife and lover, even for a short time. Her relationship with her husband is the foundation of her family. But she is giving it - giving him – very little attention, even when the opportunity is provided. Yes, she is a caring mother, but the relationship with her husband will shrivel if she does not nurture it, however hard that may be for her while the children are little.

How can we get to a place where loving God, and caring about what he cares about, drives us at least as much as the concerns of our own lives, if not more so?

We know James wrote a letter about action, so doing is important. But the preacher I heard referred to a step James mentions that it is easy to skip over.

James says we must ‘humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you’.  

God has already saved us from remaining dead in our sins and given us ‘birth through the word of truth’. The word is already ‘planted’ in us.

So what, then, does it mean when James says we are to ‘accept’ it? The preacher said that it means to take it into ourselves, to sit under its authority, humbly, and without anger – rebellion, resistance, impatience. We need to ‘look intently into the perfect law’, to work it into our lives. This is similar to the Old Testament concept of meditation – being still in God’s presence, taking time pondering his word, chewing it over, wrestling with it, taking it on board.

If we are quiet before God and quick to listen, the Holy Spirit has more opportunity to grow within us the righteousness of Jesus - to grow in us his life, which was planted in us when we were given new birth (2 Peter 1: 3-4). Nurturing this life is not something we can do on our own. What we need to do is to make ourselves available for the Spirit to grow the word in us.          

If you’ve ever tried being still before God, letting the Holy Spirit remind you of things the word says, letting the things of God ‘gel’ within you, just spending time loving God, then you will know that it can be a time when the words of the two disciples who met the risen Jesus on the road to Emmaus, can be true for us. ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us . . . and opened the Scriptures to us? ’Luke 24:32.

You will also know that, despite our best efforts to spend quality time with God, with every intention of being quick to listen and slow to speak, the noise of our life can take over so very quickly.

It can be easier to be quiet before God in the company of others, even if we are communing with him privately, in our own hearts. Guided reflection can help us set aside our noise. It can help us stay focussed.

Some of us are getting together for Reflection and Prayer, for about an hour, in the church, on Sunday afternoon 6 April at 2pm. The focus of our reflection will be Easter. We are planning for it to be a gentle, non-threatening time. We will read God’s word, sing, there will be a time of guided reflection, and a time to be still before God on our own with a suggested focus.

Whether you are an old hand at this, or whether it is something new to you, everyone is welcome, from the young to the not-so-young. No RSVP needed. Just turn up.

We are looking forward to sharing with you as together we wait on God to do his work in us. As the joy of sharing in Jesus’ life grows within us, individually and as a community of God’s people, so we will grow in the freedom to delight in our relationship with God, and to be more keenly attuned to his agenda.

By keeping on looking ‘intently’ into the word of life, the mind-boggling benefits of being ‘in Jesus’ will become more real to us. James says we will ‘be blessed’ in what we do.

- Jenny Kennedy

READ THE FULL ARTICLE and more in the Autumn Church Magazine due out next weekend. 

Comments and discussion on this article are welcome and encouraged.