Reading: Acts 8:26-35
Paul posed a very interesting question in his letter to the church in Rome when he asked: “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? (Rom.10:14)
To this we might add: “How can they believe when they see no evidence? In an age when experience plays a big part in determining what a person believes, we need to understand that that we have a call to reveal Jesus through being his followers and doing what is in line with what he is doing.
For the Ethiopian in his chariot, although he was reading, he still wanted to “see”.
God’s preparation
This is a God-ordained meeting (v26 and v29)
The Ethiopian official was “ready” (he’d been up to Jerusalem to worship).
This meeting didn’t just happen. God was at work in both lives. He brought them together, he opened the heart of the Ethiopian official, and he put Philip alongside him.
Sometimes all we are doing is connecting with the people with whom God is already connecting.
God’s inclusive love
But there’s a problem. He’s a eunuch, and eunuchs would not be allowed into the temple if Deuteronomy 23 were being strictly enforced. It’s possible that he was allowed in on the basis of God’s word of acceptance in Isaiah 56, but it’s also possible that eunuch was simply a way of saying he was a high-ranking official.
Whatever the physical condition of this man, it is clear that he’s on a spiritual journey. He’s been to worship, he’s reading a copy of Isaiah and he’s got questions (v34).
God’s revelation
God shows himself through Philip, as he explains the meaning and significance of the passage from Isaiah.
Then Philip began with that very passage of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
Learning from Philip’s approach
Philip began with where the Ethiopian was in his journey.
What might this mean for the people you know? What happens when you begin in the wrong place? How might it change your approach to sharing your faith with others?
Philip was: available, attentive (to both the leading of the Spirit and the questions of the Ethiopian), and able (to explain)
Friday, September 22, 2006
Be a part of God's Big Plan
Reading: Acts 2:1-8
Although this reading is usually reserved for Pentecost, we're going to look at it in terms of God's big plan, and the part we can play. But before we do that, let's ask a simple question:
How can you be a part of God’s plan today?
As you think about this, think about the simple, ordinary things that you can do to be part of God's big plan in our community right now. It might mean becoming a good neighbour, or doing something unexpected for someone. It might mean becoming a friend or getting involved in a free car wash. All sorts of things are possible.
Here are some ideas:
Just walk across the room • Seek to serve • Show kindness • Show mercy • Pay attention • Share your story • Listen to someone else’s story • Ask open questions • Be natural • Let God lead you • Giveaway time • Ask God for opportunities • Get involved in something outside of church • Be generous • Be a good neighbour • Pray for someone • Be available • Spend time with the missing • Do what’s doable • Exploit the ordinary
In Acts1:8 Jesus told the disciples that they would be his witnesses all over the world. But how does that connect with God's big plan and the events of the Day of Pentecost?
God’s Big Plan
When you read the story of what happended in Acts 2, you see three things:
1. Includes everyone: Nobody was excluded from the events. Everyone was included.
2. These events brought great change : A small group became a very large group. Structures would have to change, leadership would have to change, almost everything would face the challenge of change.
3. It's the only way forward: There would be no going back to how it used to be. Some of the disciples might have longed for the cosy feeling of the smaller group, but that was never going to come back now that the church had exploded in growth. Things were going to be different and forward was the only way to go.
How do we respond?
Look back at your answer to the question: How can you be a part of God's big plan.
Look back at the list above.
Look back at the The words of Jesus: You shall be my witnesses
Although this reading is usually reserved for Pentecost, we're going to look at it in terms of God's big plan, and the part we can play. But before we do that, let's ask a simple question:
How can you be a part of God’s plan today?
As you think about this, think about the simple, ordinary things that you can do to be part of God's big plan in our community right now. It might mean becoming a good neighbour, or doing something unexpected for someone. It might mean becoming a friend or getting involved in a free car wash. All sorts of things are possible.
Here are some ideas:
Just walk across the room • Seek to serve • Show kindness • Show mercy • Pay attention • Share your story • Listen to someone else’s story • Ask open questions • Be natural • Let God lead you • Giveaway time • Ask God for opportunities • Get involved in something outside of church • Be generous • Be a good neighbour • Pray for someone • Be available • Spend time with the missing • Do what’s doable • Exploit the ordinaryIn Acts1:8 Jesus told the disciples that they would be his witnesses all over the world. But how does that connect with God's big plan and the events of the Day of Pentecost?
God’s Big Plan
When you read the story of what happended in Acts 2, you see three things:
1. Includes everyone: Nobody was excluded from the events. Everyone was included.
2. These events brought great change : A small group became a very large group. Structures would have to change, leadership would have to change, almost everything would face the challenge of change.
3. It's the only way forward: There would be no going back to how it used to be. Some of the disciples might have longed for the cosy feeling of the smaller group, but that was never going to come back now that the church had exploded in growth. Things were going to be different and forward was the only way to go.
How do we respond?
Look back at your answer to the question: How can you be a part of God's big plan.
Look back at the list above.
Look back at the The words of Jesus: You shall be my witnesses
Sunday, September 3, 2006
The Cry of the Examined Heart
CH Spurgeon called Psalm 139: One of the most notable of the sacred hymns.
He said: It sings the omniscience and omnipresence of God.
Whilst most of us have never found ourselves being cross-examined in a courtroom, most us have probably been interviewed at some time or another. Being open to scrutiny isn’t always a pleasant experience. To have the details of our lives examined by someone who knows us is one thing, to allow God, the all-knowing (omniscient), ever-present (omnipresent) God to do this is to allow him to expose our innermost thoughts and feelings. In so doing you’d think we’d become vulnerable, but in fact we become free. Not because we can do nothing about who we are, but because the only solution that can give us any hope is the grace of God. A grace that means in knowing us for who we truly are, God accepts us as we are and offers us the power to live differently.
In the act of knowing, and of being known, David rejoices. He rejoices because he knows what it means to be “in God’s hands”.
The foundation for examination
#1 Searched and known
In detail (when I sit, rise)
In depth (thoughts and ways)
In darkness (What I think will be hidden will be revealed, even the darkness is like daytime to you.)
#2 Created with care
With wonder
In secret
With purpose
The cry of the examined heart
#1 The cry to be known
There is both good and bad news about being known by God.
When the Bible teaches that God is all-knowing it is not saying that he is bright, or that he is sharp. It is not even saying that he is a genius. What the Bible is getting at is that God simply knows it all, he knows everything. No question can confound him, no dilemma can confuse him, no event can surprise him. Nothing is news to God.
As we are known, we can respond in a number of ways.
First we can try to ignore it. Carry on as if what we think God doesn’t see and doesn’t know, isn’t seen or known. Like a child who thinks you can’t see him when he closes his eyes, we close our eyes and try to convince ourselves that God isn’t looking and cannot see.
The second way is to acknowledge, to confess our failure and allow God to forgive us in accordance with his great promise to do so.
#2 The cry for justice
As David expresses his desire to see the wicked slain there is a cry for justice that is common to the examined heart.
It’s not a cry that arises from a self of self-righteous importance, but from a sense of the injustice of sin on the world. A sense of the failure and falleness of humanity.
#3 The cry for God’s leading
Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth and the light”. He called people to follow, and he offered forgiveness and reconciliation to all who come and be his disciples.
The examined heart is willing to ask God:
What next in my character?
What next in my circumstances?
What next in my service for God?
The examined heart is willing to see itself made for a purpose.
He said: It sings the omniscience and omnipresence of God.
Whilst most of us have never found ourselves being cross-examined in a courtroom, most us have probably been interviewed at some time or another. Being open to scrutiny isn’t always a pleasant experience. To have the details of our lives examined by someone who knows us is one thing, to allow God, the all-knowing (omniscient), ever-present (omnipresent) God to do this is to allow him to expose our innermost thoughts and feelings. In so doing you’d think we’d become vulnerable, but in fact we become free. Not because we can do nothing about who we are, but because the only solution that can give us any hope is the grace of God. A grace that means in knowing us for who we truly are, God accepts us as we are and offers us the power to live differently.
In the act of knowing, and of being known, David rejoices. He rejoices because he knows what it means to be “in God’s hands”.
The foundation for examination
#1 Searched and known
In detail (when I sit, rise)
In depth (thoughts and ways)
In darkness (What I think will be hidden will be revealed, even the darkness is like daytime to you.)
#2 Created with care
With wonder
In secret
With purpose
The cry of the examined heart
#1 The cry to be known
There is both good and bad news about being known by God.
When the Bible teaches that God is all-knowing it is not saying that he is bright, or that he is sharp. It is not even saying that he is a genius. What the Bible is getting at is that God simply knows it all, he knows everything. No question can confound him, no dilemma can confuse him, no event can surprise him. Nothing is news to God.
As we are known, we can respond in a number of ways.
First we can try to ignore it. Carry on as if what we think God doesn’t see and doesn’t know, isn’t seen or known. Like a child who thinks you can’t see him when he closes his eyes, we close our eyes and try to convince ourselves that God isn’t looking and cannot see.
The second way is to acknowledge, to confess our failure and allow God to forgive us in accordance with his great promise to do so.
#2 The cry for justice
As David expresses his desire to see the wicked slain there is a cry for justice that is common to the examined heart.
It’s not a cry that arises from a self of self-righteous importance, but from a sense of the injustice of sin on the world. A sense of the failure and falleness of humanity.
#3 The cry for God’s leading
Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth and the light”. He called people to follow, and he offered forgiveness and reconciliation to all who come and be his disciples.
The examined heart is willing to ask God:
What next in my character?
What next in my circumstances?
What next in my service for God?
The examined heart is willing to see itself made for a purpose.
Friday, September 1, 2006
Wixams & Shortstown
If you are looking for information about the new developments at The Wixamas, then visit here. This is the main developers site.
There is also information on the Mid-Beds website here.
I can't find much about Shortstown, but you can keep checking the Bellway Homes site for developments in the Northern Home Counties.
There is also information on the Mid-Beds website here.
I can't find much about Shortstown, but you can keep checking the Bellway Homes site for developments in the Northern Home Counties.
Give thanks, with a grateful heart
At the beginning of July we noticed a challenge in our budget. There was a growing gap between our budgeted income and our actual giving. Although we weren't spending as much as we anticipated, our falling income was enough of a concern for us to decide we needed to take action. So we began to pray and set a date for a special offerings, a Gift Day. The response was remarkable.
On the day we raised nearly £10,000, a truly awesome response from everyone. Every single extra gift given that day made an important contribution to the budget of the church, but it said so much more. It said we are ready to rise to a challenge. If we can respondd to this challenge in this way, what challenges will God offer us to rise to next? I believe we are more ready to respond than we may have realsied before. We know that a lot of homes are coming to our area, and this is a great boost to our faith in respect of what God will do in our midst in the coming years.
It's a thrill to see the rising expectations and the extension of prayer that has continued beyond addressing the early financial need. Of course we now face the challenge of investing these extra gifts in the kingdom, and the ongoing challenge of bringing the whole tithe into the storehouse (Mal.3). But it's an exciting time for us, and we can all give thanks with grateful hearts that God has used these events to stir our faith and move us forward in our walk with him.
On the day we raised nearly £10,000, a truly awesome response from everyone. Every single extra gift given that day made an important contribution to the budget of the church, but it said so much more. It said we are ready to rise to a challenge. If we can respondd to this challenge in this way, what challenges will God offer us to rise to next? I believe we are more ready to respond than we may have realsied before. We know that a lot of homes are coming to our area, and this is a great boost to our faith in respect of what God will do in our midst in the coming years.
It's a thrill to see the rising expectations and the extension of prayer that has continued beyond addressing the early financial need. Of course we now face the challenge of investing these extra gifts in the kingdom, and the ongoing challenge of bringing the whole tithe into the storehouse (Mal.3). But it's an exciting time for us, and we can all give thanks with grateful hearts that God has used these events to stir our faith and move us forward in our walk with him.
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