THEY WANT TO SEE JESUS

I've just returned from an interstate trip where I interviewed two elderly men for the upcoming FW Boreham Documentary. Both of these gentlemen were in their nineties and had been friends for over 70 years. After from sitting under the preaching of F.W. Boreham, they had many other things in common, but their one joint passion was for their local church and their Saviour. These men radiated the presence of Christ and such there was something peculiarly attractive about them. This was the same with the first followers of Christ as well.

¶ Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.  So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."
John 12:20-21 

Jesus chose to be represented by people. These representatives are called the Church. The genius of having people represent you, is that you reach more people. In this episode in John 12 where these Greeks say to the disciples, "We wish to see Jesus", there is something very profound going on. Over the years I've heard many preachers use this passage to say that people often get in the way of other people seeing Jesus. "The church should just get away of people wanting to see Jesus", they preach. But the problem with that conclusion from this text in John 12 illustrates the exact opposite point. Far from followers of Christ being a hindrance to people seeing Jesus, followers of Christ are the means by which people come to see Jesus. 

Jesus has called you to follow Him so that others might see Him. Keith and Russell, the two gentlemen in the nineties, had spent their lives helping others to see Jesus. There are some people that might not ever see Jesus because of me - but these same people may well see Jesus because of you! When these Greeks approached the disciples of Jesus, I guess they could have asked any of the disciples to introduce them to Christ. But they didn't ask Matthew, or Judas, or Thomas, or Simon, instead they went straight to Philip. Did you notice something in that list of names? Philip is a Greek name. These Greeks went to a disciple of Jesus with whom they felt they could relate. If we read on in this passage we see that Philip went to another of Christ's disciple's who also had a Greek name.

Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.
John 12:22

CONNECTING POINTS

This week I was contacted by someone interstate who knew me primarily as a tennis player. (In my early life, tennis was my life.) They wrote to me reminiscing about watching me play tennis and knowing that I was a Christian. He then shared a small summary of his recent journey to Christ after having been delivered from alcohol and drugs. Tennis become the connecting point for our relationship. Yet other people connect with me because they hear me on radio. In fact, yesterday as I checked in for my flight, the stewardess asked, "Are you the Andrew Corbett on radio?" This became another connecting point for me to reach out. Jesus has strategically invested in you certain connecting points with others. Like the disciples, Philip and Andrew, it might be your ethnicity and family history. It could be the school you went to. It could be your sport, or sporting team. It could be your job or profession. It could be your love of craft. It could be your children or even your parents. It could be your choice of music. 

FOLLOWING PRODUCES FOLLOWERS

Far from the Church being in the way of people coming to know Christ, the Church is the greatest means by which people can! When these original Greeks approached these original disciples, they lived at a time when so much about life was uncertain. The Romans were swift in dealing with those who displeased them. And many people displeased them. Death and the after-life were extremely important issues to the people of the first century. Today, without the looming threat of a Roman sword, most people in the Western World (which includes much of Australia) do not ponder these deeper matters. Arguably, many people in these more affluent societies are blinded to their real need by the utter deception that they have no needs. It's into these peoples' lives that God sends a follower of Christ with a connecting point. They observe in this follower of Christ a deep peace that comes from having the deepest need met - a need thay they now begin to recognise because of this Christ follower. This is a need that a Mercedes cannot fill. It is a need that having the right address does not address. It is a need that a Mastercard cannot buy. And while there are many followers of Christ who have similar stations in life to these need-blind people, they see their wealth and possessions as resources at the King's disposal so that even more people can be healed of their blindness. It is followers of Christ which produces followers of Christ.

For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.
Revelation 3:17

WHERE TO FIND JESUS

These Greeks of John 12 knew where to find Jesus. Find His disciples and you'll find Him! The same is true today. Find His followers and you'll find Him. When Joseph and Mary wanted to find the twelve year old Jesus, they went to the House of God. The same is true today. When the family of Christ followers gather, Christ is in their midst (Matthew 18:20). When the Church gathers with Christ in her midst, everything she does is worship of Him. If anyone would find Jesus, they should look in church. If they also want to see Christ they should look at the One the Church is worshiping. 

so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another... ¶ For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
Romans 12:5, First Corinthians 12:12

THEY WOULD SEE JESUS

This Sunday we will have people join with us who have never been to church. These people are not interested in becoming religious. They are not coming to be controlled or duped. They have, however, been given a glimpse of their true need and painfully come to realise that stuff, although momentarily numbing, does not (because it can not) meet this need. They've discovered that what the world calls medicine is actually the very poison that made them terminally ill in the first place. They need to see Jesus. They have come to where He can be found. As the followers of Christ assemble to worship Jesus, people are drawn to Him. 

After I met with these two veteran followers of Christ to film them for the FWB documentary, they chatted about their church (Kew Baptist Church). Russell, who enjoyed better health than Keith, warmly invited Keith to come to their next Chat and Chew outreach morning. Russell then turned to his pastor, Nick, and told him how he had been encouraging his great-granddaughter to come along to church. There are some who have grown fed-up with the church. Through their immature response to some offense they have chosen to despise the flawed followers of Christ like you and me, and have instead justified their detachment from the Body of Christ as somehow being more spiritual, and even more Biblical. This is sad and unnecessary. When these Greeks wanted to see Jesus, they came to His flawed disciples. And Philip and Andrew then brought them to Jesus. In the next verse, Jesus announced that the hour had come for the Him to be glorified. When people are drawn to Jesus because of His followers, He is glorified. 

And Jesus answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified."
John 12:23

And every time when the church assembles to worship God The Son through praise, giving, prayer, reflection on the Lord's Table, the ministry of the Word, and fellowship with one another, Jesus is most glorified. And when Jesus is most glorified we help more needy people to see the only One who can eternally meet their need.

to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:21

Ps. Andrew

A HAPPY LIFE

He was truly happy. It would be unfair to assume that his happiness was due to a trouble-free life. He had many troubles. But he was happy, really happy. His happiness was independent of his position and circumstances. He often reflected that life was very unfair to him - unfair in a positive way. He felt that he didn't deserve the many blessings he enjoyed. His life stands to this day as one of the greatest testaments to achievable happiness that any person has ever attained. And what he discovered is little known today, but ready for anyone to enjoy.

¶ Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy
Jude 24

Happiness is all too elusive for most people. It needn't be. He not only found it, he learned how to share it. When he was just months old a wandering gypsie woman came up to his pram, picked up his little hand, and prophesied over him. Her prophesy was remarkably fulfilled. Despite his many obstacles nad his painful accident, he would go on to bring joy and great happiness to millions of people for decades and decades.

He was the eldest of eleven children. Big families tend to shape a person in a certain way not seen often seen now. As a youngin', he had a love for nature and books fostered in him by a loving father. Those who recognise the ingredients of happiness will have detected something vital in what I've just said. He graduated from his small high school when he was just 14 years old while it took others another few years to do the same. He describes his school days as "happy". This came at a cost though. He as now required to contribute to the household. At around 15 he became a clerk. He was happy at work. He found his work relatively easy. His eager mind craved more and wandered. His craving was satisfied by night school. His wandering was satisfied with his day-dreaming. He was happy.

He was day-dreaming when tragedy struck. Others said that tragedy struck because he was day-dreaming. Either way, the accident severed his right leg just below his knee. Medical treatment in the late 1800s was crude and it was touch and go as to whether he would even survive the contracted septicaemia. Doctors eventually gave up hope and told his parents so. After a passionate full morning of prayer by his earnest mother, he miraculously regained consciousness. It was a Catholic Sister whom he first laid eyes on and although he was only 15 and she was nearly 40, he was so happy to know that someone had so carefully tended to him that he fell in love with her instantly.

in every way and everywhere we accept this with all gratitude.
Acts 24:3

Even with his right leg gone, he was happy. Happy to be alive. Happy to go on in life. Another ingredient of happiness. But at 16 he was forced to leave his family home and move to, the then, world's largest city. He arrived and marvelled. But he felt lost. A sense of loneliness the like of which he had not known. Despite being happy he knew something was missing. He became aware of his utter lostness. He heard a street preacher tell him of the God who loved him and offered to save him, forgive him, adopt him, and use him. It wasn't at that moment. It was later. He didn't do it to become happy. He was already happy. He gave his life to Christ in the quietness of his own company - but not that it was a particular moment. It seemed to him to be process. He now had a new reason to be happy. He joined a church and was baptised. He was now 18. A strange thing happened to him after he arose from the baptismal water. The pastor and elders gathered around him, laid hands on him, then bade him to "receive the Holy Ghost". A strange thing immediately occured. He felt an unfamiliar sensation of power, purpose, and presence. He experienced a new happiness. He describes it in his autobiography as if he was now walking a foot above the ground!

You have put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.
Psalm 4:7

This stirring grew. He felt that he was called. He began to suspect that the gypsy, who spoke those prophetic words nearly twenty year earlier, may not have been what she initially appeared to be. He began to follow his heart. His heart held a pen. His words soon appeared in newspapers. His heart held a Bible in one hand and a pulpit in another. He was invited to speak alongside that street preacher who had made such an impression on him. His first sermon lasted seven minutes. No one was saved. But he discovered a new level of happiness as a result of his attempt. He continued this for several months. Eventually dozens gathered around him regularly on the street corner to listen. One of those intrigued from a distance was known as 'the Prince of Preachers'. He kept an eye on this happy chap.

The Prince then made his move. He became the young man's benefactor. This was the last thing the Prince did. He died days later and over 30,000 mourners attended his funeral procession.

His benefactor arranged for a full scholarship for him at Pastors College. He was happy to be in College. As part of this he was assigned a small village church to oversee. At 22 he met a young woman in this church who won his heart. His heart was irretrievably smitten when he escorted her in the dusk moonlight and retrieved then returned her hat. Placing her broad-brimmed hat back on her head he looked into her eyes shimmering softly in the moonlight. Snared, but happier than ever. Unlike the worldly relationships of today, he took the Scriptures seriously which prescribed happiness with the love of your life. As a result, he was a perfect gentleman toward her. Happiness and delayed gratification always complement each other. After two years of blossoming friendship he gave her a first kiss and never kissed her again until they were married nearly a year later. They enjoyed 64 years of marriage which he described as the happiest years of his life. Together they had five children. One of their daughters died tragically when she was in her forties. He took up his pen and shared with the world the comfort he received from Psalm 23, called IN PASTURES GREEN. When happiness takes a break it is often relieved by times of comfort and joy.

He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Psalm 23:3

The O.B.E. that Dr. F.W. Boreham received from
Queen Elizabeth for Preaching & Literature

He lived a happy life. He served three churches, the first in a New Zealand town of a thousand people where he says he was utterly happy and content to do so. After twelve years there he moved to Hobart and served there for ten years. It was during this time that their "special" daughter was born. She experienced continual night-terrors due to her incurable meningitus which led her daddy to hold her for hours on end in the middle of the night to bring her comfort. The church came to know that whenever their pastor stepped into the pulpit and spoke with unusual tenderness for a man of his times that the young princess had had a particularly troubled night. They saw their burdened pastor happy. He was happy to be married to his Sweetheart, to be the father of four daughters, and to pastor them through counsel and preaching.

Toward the end of his life, just weeks before he entered into infinite happiness, he was visited by Billy Graham who had read each of his 55 books. Dr Graham invited the aged sage to join him on the centre stage at the MCG as he launched his Melbourne evangelistic campaign. But he was happy to enjoy the pleasant company of just his wife instead of the adoration of over 100,000 appreciative people. At 88, despite the pain he felt in his amputated leg (which he had concealed from everyone including his family), he was deeply happy. He had learned and sought to share that happiness comes from living nobly. He showed millions from the pages of the Sacred Text what noble living entailed. But more than that he showed millions what the Sacred Text meant when it prescribed noble living.

Ps. Andrew Corbett

Redeeming The Time

I was marvelling recently about how much the 74 year old F.W. Boreham did. Not only did he preach at least twice a week, he wrote a weekly column for the Melbourne Age Newspaper, the Hobart Mercury, produced a book a year, was a regular contributor to at least six monthly journals or periodicals, read a book a week, and made pastoral house-calls four afternoons a week. I'm staggered at his output. But then again, I swim in a culture of 24/7 social-media, 16 Free-to-air television channels, several million YouTube videos, several billion webpages, and what seems like hundreds of (mostly trivial) emails everyday - which all seem to hinder me from using my time well. Even with all my technological "time-saving" devices, I doubt that I get a fraction done of what people a generation ago achieved. Nevertheless, even though I struggle, there is hope.

making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:16

THE VALUE OF TIME

Leading up to Christmas, some dear folk asked me what I would like for Christmas. Under pressure to keep up with the demands on my time, the first thing that came to mind, but not past my lips, was, "More time!"  Knowing I will never get more time, I am left to pray what the Scriptures tell me to do - redeem the time. Some prayers are not meant to be prayed but this one is!

Time is the most precious gift we each have. It is so precious that it is virtually equated with our very lives. To give your life to someone is to give your time to them. When you think you've just told someone, "I love you" but then won't give them your time, you've actually told them something other than what you think they heard from you. It's why attending, weddings, birthdays, funerals and church is so important.

¶ Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.
Colossians 4:5

USE OF TIME

Have you ever wasted time? Whether you have or haven't is determined by answering the should question. With the time that you have what should you be doing? If your answer is other than what you should be doing then your answer might be describing what wasting time looks like. And this is where I encounter many of my problems with time. When I should do something, but really really really don't want to, I find things that urgently require my attention. I find them. They are not all ignoble. But they successfully occupy my time when I should be doing something else.

Should not only guides my daily moments, it also my lifetime. However I answer the why, what, how and where questions that should asks, I know that the answer will involve my use of time. But to satisfy should my answer cannot merely involve the use of my time - it must involve the disciplined use of my time. But still should is not entirely satisfied with this painful answer. Then I realise why. It can not merely be the disciplined use of my time that will ensure I use my time to fulfil my purpose the way God has wired and called me to do in the place and time that He has called me to do it - it has to be the self-disciplined use of my time.

From my observations of people who seem to manage pressure, and therefore time, well, I notice that they are able to withdraw from their time-bank when they need to. This of course means that they have made adequate deposits into it. In other words, they invest their time well. Reading a book, watching a movie, having a coffee with a colleague, going for a walk, throwing a ball with your son, taking your wife out to dinner, might seem like a waste of time, but they might also be investments of time. The Bible doesn't use the wordinvestment but it does use a three-letter word which means the same thing.

WHAT TIME CANNOT DO

'Time heals all wounds'...'In time you'll get over it'...'Time to move on'... 'What happened in the past should be left in the past'... Myths like these are nearly always half-truths. Time does not heal all wounds - but time used wisely can help wounds to heal. In time you won't get over it unless you learn to grieve and forgive properly over time. When it's time to move on you will already have because you've aligned yourself with reality and surrendered to God's sovereignty. What happened in the past should not be left in the past if gross injustice is involved (such as a World War II Nazi war criminal should be brought to justice despite the decades that have passed). We could add to this list. A supplier may forget to invoice a client and when their oversight is discovered they invoice their client - who then claims that they have no right to expect payment because too much time has elapsed (another version of What happens in the past should be left in the past).

Considering the Master of Time, Jesus, who never wasted a second but perfectly used the time He was given, we see that He regarded those things which we usually regard as 'interruptions' as: 'Sovereign Appointments'. A few years ago I began to learn this. People are not always interruptions. Highly task driven people struggle to appreciate this. The next time you read through the Gospels, take note of how much of what Christ did was as a result of an interruption. Not all interruptions are a waste of time.

SOW WHAT

¶ The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
Second Corinthians 9:6

I haven't discovered everything I need to know about how to best use my time. I'm aware that there are some people who have little choice in how their time is used (whether through physical injury/disability, consequences of unwise choices, or stage of life issues). But for those of us who have the gift of time and the privilege to manage it within the constraints of our responsibilities, there are five things you might find helpful about increasing the value of your time: Create To-Do lists; Carry time-redeemers with you (book, pen and notepad, etc); Get appropriate help; Establish routines; and: Learn to forgive (bitterness steals valuable time from you).

One of the biggest lessons I have learned about increasing the effectiveness of my time is to sow it into God. I said from the outset that because time is one of our most valuable gifts, when we give it to someone we are saying something to them about how valuable they are to us. When a husband agrees to spend time with his wife and her friends he is telling his wife that he loves her and values her judgment. 

When a follower of Christ spends time with those for whom Christ died and lives dearly they are telling Christ that they love Him. But mysteriously, it seems that such time is not merely spending time - it's sowingtime. I have committed my life to Christ and being in His House with His people every Sunday at both services - because I want to love Jesus by loving what He loves. The result of this time-sowing seems to be time-reaping. Thus, I may not be as self-disciplined with my time as I hope to become, but this time-sowing principle has least given me the opportunity to begin to redeem the time that God has given me. And one day, you and I will stand before God in real-time and give an account of how we used our most valuable gift from Him: our life. And it is my hope that we can experience the best our Creator has for us in eternity because we learned to value the right things in this life.

Ps. Andrew
(I recently did a radio interview on this topic. You can listen to it here.)

FW Boreham on Lazarus

F.W. Boreham is considered by many to be the best Christian essayist of all time. His books have sold in the millions and his essays have been enjoyed by millions more. I am privileged to own nearly all of his known books and many of his booklets and pamphlets.  I even have the rare privilege of having many of his actual source books which inspired many of his essays. I was reminded just the other night why F.W. Boreham is such an influential Christian author when I read his essay on Lazarus.

In his book, The Uttermost Star, he writes around the theme that the sky is often obscured by the very thing enables to see it: the Sun. He reflects that the Sun may not actually be the brightest star in the sky, since the distant stars could be brighter, but since they are farther away they are not noticeably brighter. These unnoticed stars are like so much in our everyday life - we pay attention to the seemingly big and bright things - and rightly so, but we often fail to notice the equally bright things that are distant and in the background of our lives. This also applies to the things we read in the Bible, as Boreham illustrates.

The Uttermost Star was first published in 1919. Nearly 100 years later, the essays still shed light. In his essay on the town of Bethany he discusses its brightest star: the raising of Lazarus. But he wonders what the uttermost star might look like in this episode. He ponders the words of Christ- "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep." He reflects on each of those words. "Our", Lazarus is not lost, he is still "Our" friend. "Friend", we are still connected to him. "Lazarus", he is still Lazarus even though he is dead. "Asleep", death is not the end of a person.

Jesus wept. But why? Boreham scours over 15 centuries of Christian scholarship to provide one of the most ancient and fitting answers. His inspiration is Theodosius (347-395) who was asked this question. He wrote to his enquirer that Christ wept not because He missed His friend Lazarus, but because He was about to bring him back to this life and thereby take him away from his bliss.

Boreham discusses how we often view death as the end, or as the point at which someone ceases to exist. But Boreham shows from Scripture that this is most certainly not the case. To illustrate this he refers the reader to the story of Job.

There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east.

(Job 1:1-3)

Boreham skips ahead to the end of Job's story where we see that the Lord restored twice as much to Job-

And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters. 

(Job 42:12-13)

Job received back twice what he had lost. But it seems that this did not apply to his children. In thoughtful pastoral insight, Dr Boreham points out what nearly everybody misses in this story. Job did receive twice back of everything he had taken from him, including his children. Linking the stories of Job and Lazarus he shows his readers that those who have died do not cease to exist. In this way, when Job was still grieving for his dead seven sons and three daughters, God added to his family a further seven sons and three daughters, taking the total number of Job's children to 14 sons and 6 daughters.

FW Boreham masterfully pastors his readers who may also be grieving. All too often the grieving refer to those they have "lost". But they are not lost! And if they are in Christ, and the reader is in Christ, one day they shall again be reunited. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Andrew Corbett

The Pen And The Pulpit

F. W. Boreham is widely regarded as the preeminent Christian essayist of all time. You can read my Finding Truth Matters article on him to find out why [read]. Boreham inspires me in a way no living preacher does. He was destined to be a man of words from his earliest infancy when a wandering gypsy prophesied that he would be a writer - "place a pen in his hand and he will lack for nothing" was the essence of the message. His loves of books developed in his childhood. His ability to report and comment began in his teens. By his twenties his vast intellect enabled him to graduate from Bible College a year earlier than other students. His first pastoral appointment was an adventure as Mr Spurgeon invited him to go to the fledgling nation of New Zealand. From a church of thousands led by the great Charles Haddon Spurgeon (whom Boreham regarded as being past his preaching prime by the time he heard him) he went to a rural community of around 1,000 people in Mosgiel (south of Dunedin). He pastored a church of less than 200 people for twelve years.

Almost immediately Boreham felt a mixture of frustration and inadequacy. His mentor, John Doke, advised him to read. "Read what?" Boreham replied. "Start with Gibbon" said Doke. And thus began Boreham's quest to buy one new book a week and read a book a week. His sermons became saturated with the most exquisite illustrations as he drew from ancient and modern literature; the classics and the obscure; fiction and non-fiction; and even technical journals read in waiting rooms! He humbly felt the 'waste' of these sermonic masterpieces and sought a wider audience for them. Quite a challenge in the 1890s! He converted his sermons to newspaper articles for Otago Times, the New Zealand Baptist magazine, then sometime later an Australian Christian weekly newspaper. His writing grew in popularity across the Tasman. In years to come, at the urging of many colleagues, he part self-published his first book ("The Luggage of Life") which was a phenomenal success. Boreham, now an Australian, would go on to become the contributing editor of the Hobart Mercury and the Melbourne Age, and become the best-selling Australian author of all time. His books are now highly prized collector's items. On eBay you can pay as much as $US1499 for some of his first edition books.



I have now become a devotee of Boreham. I have acquired about 56 of his 58 books. While I try to read current books, I am always reading a Boreham book. I have come to know F.W. Boreham as a writer without par. But when I preaching at Beaumaris Baptist Church in Melbourne, Victoria, I met people who had heard Boreham! They said to me that he was equally as good a preacher as he was a writer. 

Boreham wrote often about preaching. In his autobiography he talks briefly about the tension he experienced between writing and preaching and in essence said there was no tension for him: preaching and writing were complementary. By reading and writing much, Boreham said, a preacher could formulate his words and learn to select the most apt word to more fully convey the force of an idea, illustration, or concept. In fact, Boreham thought that every preacher should write his sermon out after he had preached it. This is precisely what he did and he felt that the discipline was invaluable to the quality of his preaching.

I have tried to apply Boreham's wisdom and develop my reading, writing and preaching with the common goal of magnifying the immensity and infinity of the eternal God. I hope you find the story of his life and ministry as shown in this DVD series as inspiring as I have.

Andrew Corbett