Don't Ask me For The Answer, I've Only Got One

I was singing an old Larry Norman song this morning. One phrase has stuck with me through the day:

Don't ask me for the answer, I've only got one: 

That a man leaves his darkness when he follows the Son. 

Yep. That’s pretty much sums it up as I look around me. A world pandemic. The killing of George Floyd. Climate change. And now the Taliban. 

Add to that earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes and forest fires. Myanmar, Hindu fundamentalists, terror attacks, random shootings.

To claim to have answers to the politics, the science or the religious hatred is to claim to be foolish.

I have no answers. But one.

Yet that answer overcomes every political motive, every advance of violence, every voice of hatred.

That answer is Jesus.

He had no servants, yet they called Him Master.

He had no degree, yet they called Him Teacher.

He had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer.

He had no army, yet kings feared Him.

He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world.

He committed no crime, yet they crucified Him.

He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.

 

His name is Jesus.

He came as God’s Son. He died for you and me. And He’s still changing lives today. Ask Him to change yours.

The God Who Zoomed

We live in strange times. Isolated at home, unsure how long the virus pandemic will continue.

It can be unsettling.

But God is still on His throne. The Psalms declare it. He is not unaware of our situation. The Gospels tell of it. He has a plan for us and it is still in place. The Epistles affirm it.

God is with us.

The Christian leader and theologian Ian Barclay explained it as God dwelling with us: The root of the Bible word is God ‘pitching His tent with us.’

Loosely translated, that’s the same as God Zooming with us, God Skyping with us.

So when we meet as a church or small group by electronic means, He is still with us in the same way as if we were together.

This was brought home to me by the beautiful way His Holy Spirit was with us on Sunday at Chroma. Just a few at the centre. Thousands on line. And most importantly of all, God with us.

We have a God who Zooms.

The Last Chapter in the Last Book in the Series

“We may not be on the last page but it’s the last chapter in the last book in the series.”

That was a comment from a pensions manager friend of mine relating to what we are seeing around the world and I think he’s got it about right.

I’m not one to go on about ‘end times’ and try and plot and plan what the Bible says on these things, but I’d be pretty blind not to see the relationship between what we are seeing in Japan, New Zealand and Northern Africa and some of the apocalyptic verses in the last chapter of the last book in the series!

The Bible says a lot about the times we live in. More importantly, it points to the answer. Have a read.

My thanks to Jim Churcher for the quote

Interesting times

'May you live in interesting times' is supposed to be an old Chinese curse (it isn't but most people think it is!). But we certainly do live in interesting times here in the UK.....

I have a Christian faith. As such, it's been sad to observe the recent Government ruling on adoption, effectively forcing Catholic adoption agencies to compromise their faith by recognising gay couples. It seems to me that when we look back on this decision, it will be seen as something of a watershed. In recent years, we have moved from being a Christian country to being a multi-faith country. (I welcome multi-cultural but regret the crumbling of the Christian foundations our society was built on).

With this latest Government ruling, I wonder if we have now moved a step closer to being an anti-Christian country?

It's a hard one for the Government. They have some outspoken ministers on this (Peter Hain in particular). But they also have a number who hold a Christian faith. Blair appears to, as does Brown, Straw, Kelly. Sadly, their efforts to bring in non-discrimination legislation (a welcome move)is forcing a compromise on those with a Christian faith. For the church, it is not an issue of discrimination, it is an issue of what the Bible says is unnatural.

So, intersting times. Christians have dealt with 'persecution' before of course. It's just sad it is happening here at home.