THE PURPOSE OF THE POWER OF GOD...

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Romans 1:16

I want to see more of the power of God in our church! I pray that God will manifest His power in healing, deliverance, provision, and refreshing. I long for the spectacular aspects of God's presence to convince the sceptical of their need for a Saviour. If you're interested in reading about the recent history of God's power in Australia, there is a very inspirational book in our foyer called "The C.L. Greenwood Story". While we can all be open for God to do the spectacular and pray for God to manifest His miraculous power, there is an even more powerful manifestation of the power of God that we should be craving....

If you have the luxury of having some advanced Bible software, you could check out the following statement: The New Testament epistles use the expression "the power of God" in quite a different way than how I have described it above.
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God..
First Corinthians 1:18

Rather than the power of God being reduced to an emotional experience, it seems that the New Testament authors regarded the power of God as the transforming work of the Holy Spirit wrought by the Word of God. It causes some to wonder whether the apostle Paul would balk at the use of the expression in the way most Pentecostals use it today. This is because the power of God is meant to transform us into the likeness of Christ so that our character is radically changed. If anyone claims to have encountered the power of God and yet they still lie, swear, cheat, slander, gossip, or abuse others - they have not genuinely encountered the transforming power of God. It is quite possible that you could be touched by the power of God so that your heart is filled love for those you were previously cold towards, or, so that you can now encourage those you once despised - yet carry on with the same physical ailment you had prior to your encounter with the power of God. Jesus curiously said that it was better to enter Heaven with one hand or one eye than to be totally whole yet go to Hell. Our eternal destiny is what matters immediately to the power of God, and our satisfaction with Jesus in this life (measured by our Christ-like character- who we are on the inside) is what matters most since this is what we take with us into eternity.

For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.
Second Corinthians 13:4

WOW! Without the transforming work of the Holy Spirit through the ministry of the Word of God to our souls- "the power of God" - we can't even live the Christian walk. While we pray and crave for the power of God to overcome all that enemy puts in our way, we have the promise of the Bible that the power of God is able to transform us through the preaching, reading, and ministry of God's Word into our lives as the Holy Spirit renews our hearts, minds and souls.


Andrew Corbett

ERNEST HEMINGWAY'S CHALLENGE...

Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
Ecclesiastes 5:2

To say something with only a few words is a very rare ability. To write something in only a few words is less rare thanks to the luxury of re-writing and refining the vocabularly used. This is why the best speakers are often also really good writers (because they've laboured hard as wordsmiths to make their writing concise and persuasive).

Before Ernest Hemingway's tragic end, he had attained literary-legend status within his own lifetime. He received the Pulitzer Prize in 1953 for The Old Man and the Sea, and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. He was renowned for being a concise writer. Like G.K. Chesterton before him, he could say a lot with just a few words. This ability was challenged when he was asked if he could write an entire story in just six words!

He did.

When I heard of Hemingway's 6-word story I was struck by its immense simplicity and power. It then got me thinking about Jesus of Nazareth and how little he spoke, and how scant our record of what He spoke actually is. But consider the impact of what we do have. His statements fill our language and most non-Christians probably wouldn't even realise it! "Go the extra mile...Turn the other cheek...Ask and you shall receive..." Jesus spoke with more profound simplicity than even the great Ernest Hemingway.

And the disciples were amazed at his words.
Mark 10:24a

After I heard Hemingway's 6-word story I couldn't shake it from my head for the rest of the day. I pondered it. I admired it. I felt it.

Contrary to Eastern Meditation, where the practitioner is required to empty their mind, Biblical meditation is filling the mind. I had been meditating on Hemingway's 6-word story. The Bible instructs us to meditate on its contents. That is, we should ponder a Bible verse. Memorise a Bible verse. Dwell on a Bible verse. Admire a Bible verse. And feel a Bible verse. This is the essence of Biblical meditation.

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
Joshua 1:8

When Ernest Hemingway was asked to tell a story in just six words, here's how he responded-

For sale. Baby shoes. Never worn.

Wow. Apparently those who first heard it were stunned and some even began to cry. But here's something even more concise and even more moving-

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
Colossians 1:16

WOW!

Andrew Corbett

THOUGHTS FROM FOOTBALL FOR THE CHURCH...

A church is different to any other group of people. It is meant to be a group of spiritually-related people who are co-operative and organised. Just like a football team, a church requires people who perform different functions simultaneously in order to achieve their common goal. In a football team there are those who initially get the ball moving. These are usually the big guys. They can’t run, duck and weave, like the smaller guys, but they sure can jump high and get things moving! Then there’s the smaller guys who get fed the ball by the big guys- boy! they can run! They get the ball to the mid-fielders who know how to jostle with their opponent and get around them to pass the ball to the forwards. It’s the forwards who know how to kick goals. Then there’s the defensive members of the team whose job is to get the ball off the other side and prevent them from kicking goals.

The church is made up of people who are gifted to get things moving. There are others who are able to keep things moving: servant-hearted people who know what “hard work” means. They serve as deacons, ushers, hosts, follow-up counsellors, visitation helpers, cleaners, gardeners, or door-greeters. Then there are those who are like “wingers”. They play near the side boundary with an aim to get the ball into the middle of the field toward their goal. In the church there are evangelists who are like wingers. They roam the boundaries looking for lost souls to bring into the centre of God’s Kingdom. They are bold. They gossip the Gospel. They scheme salvation of souls. They pray for sinners to be converted. They don’t care for the limelight but they long for the light of the Lord to shine in the darkness of people’s minds and souls. When the ball gets near the goal, the player with the ball is often “shepherded” by his team-mates. In the church, we each shepherd each other by protecting each other with prayer, encouragement, and practical provisions. The church that is functioning as a well-organised and co-operative team is more likely to be a growing, healthy church.

Andrew Corbett
www.andrewcorbett.net

IS THE "BIBLE-GOD" THE SAME AS THE GOD OF THE BIBLE?

The New-Atheists are ticked! Christians are supposed to be obsolete. Instead, Christianity has spread. And despite the posturing of Islam, Christianity is growing faster than any other religion [source]. In Western societies, where many New-Atheists are entrenched in positions of societal influence (the Media, the Academy, the Arts, Commerce, the Judiciary, Government) they are ramping up their attacks on Christianity. This is ironically really good news for western Christianity which has enjoyed nearly three centuries of amazing favour and influence largely free from persecution.

This newest avalanche of persecution is dressed up as rationalism and intellectual superiority- all for the public good. The initial battleground for the New Atheists was the science-lab. The New Atheists felt they were in a safe place. But then Intelligent Design became the worst nightmare of the New Atheists and their scientific arguments. So the battle has now bewilderingly shifted to the library, where theologians and philosophers have been camped. This is great news for western Christianity!

These latest developments remind me of Ghandi's statement- First they ignore us. Then they ridicule us. Then they attack us. Then we win.

One example of the type of New Atheist attack in this battlefield highlights the desperate measures now resorted to. This particular website takes typical (and dare we say- classical) atheist "proof-texts" from the Bible and proceeds to distort their meaning and convince its readers that the God of the Bible, which it pejoratively calls "biblegod", is a mean, cruel, bloodthirsty, hypocritical deity. Its citations are generally those texts which describe God commanding capital punishment under the Old Covenant. These capital punishment proof texts are somehow supposed to prove that God doesn't exist(?).

These kinds of arguments are illogical. But they have the potential to rock the faith of the casual Bible reader. What the average Bible reader may not discern is that the God of the Bible who ordered acts of capital punishment was not being unfair with the guilty- they had willfully slandered His character and defiantly rebelled against his commands. Clearly, the overall presentation of God in the Bible is one of love, compassion, mercy, kindness- but also someone who does not tolerate wickedness, evil, or sin. It is this same God that is spoken of in John 3:16 who so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son into the world to save the world. These type of arguments from atheists are not new. Marcion expressed them as well.
This particular website concludes with the startling assertion-

"CHRISTIANS ARE ANTI-ABORTION ???"
"The people of Samaria must bear their guilt, because they have rebelled against their God. They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to the ground, their pregnant women ripped open."
(Hosea 13:16)
[website reference]

Read Hosea and you will see that this is not a prescription for what God's people should do to Samaritans, but a prophetic description of what would be done to them by invading pagan nations. So in effect, citing this verse by atheists backfires horribly since it highlights the extent of wickedness that people who rebel against God will go to!

The premise of the New Atheists' attack is that "Bible-god" will send people to Hell for not believing right. But this is not the Gospel. The God of the Bible condemns no-one merely for what they believe. People will be condemned to Hell for sinful rebellion- no matter what their religious beliefs. This equally applies to those who "believe" the Bible but live in rebellion to God.

The God of the Bible is not a cruel, maniacal, megalomaniac. He is kind, loving, compassionate and full of mercy. There is no greater demonstration of this than when He became man and lived among us. He suffered more than any other person for doing this. He suffered the greatest humiliation. He was executed justly for claiming to be God while obviously a man. But this He did for us. Some people get it and "see the light". They understand the Gospel because God has opened their spiritual eyes. But another group, which at times seems to be the majority, still choose to rebel and defy their Crucified Maker. The former read the Old Covenant passages of divine capital punishment for rebellion and sense the broken heart of the Great Broken Heart. But like CS Lewis's Uncle Andrew, from the Chronicles of Narnia, all the latter group hear when they read the same passages, is an angry, mangy, lion arrogantly roaring while the children in Narnia hear the most delightful song being sung by a glorious lion.

Andrew Corbett

Benny Says Adam Could Fly...

THE ROOT OF BITTERNESS...

See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;
Hebrews 12:15

I’ve sometimes wondered why Australians tend toward bitterness as a strategy for handling disappointment. Perhaps this started with our ‘Diggers’ in the trenches of Gallipoli. Two mates would be fighting side-by-side in the trenches when one of them would be shot dead. His mate would then look down on his fallen comrade and exclaim that he was a mongrel anyway!

I recently stubbled across an autobiography of a Bible teacher I had heard and enjoyed a few years ago. I learned that his life had been filled with tragedy. A year after becoming a Christian he married another new Christian who betrayed her marital vows and left him with their 3 month old daughter. She divorced him and remarried, twice. He then married againa few years later when he was 27. A few months of being married came to a tragic end when his new wife was killed in a hit-and-run accident. A few years later he married again. This time his marriage lasted and he and his third wife went on to have 4 children. But as I continued to read his biography he began to highlight the faults of his wife. He shared things about his wife that husbands should never disclose. I stopped reading and re-read this portion to Kim and then remarked to her that he though he was about to say this marriage ended too. And sure enough, as I read on, he went further in his criticism of his wife became self-justification and then he wrote: "She left me." A root of bitterness had occured and this was most obvious with his self-justification.

This also happens with Christians and their disappointment with a church. A believer is happy and connected with their church and then gradually some root of bitterness occurs. The believer who was previously so happy and even proud of their church but allows a root of bitterness to grow and then sees every little fault or deficiency with their church is as huge in order to justify their bitterness.

But this disappointment strategy is not just limited to military comrades, spouses, or churches- God Himself is the most common target of bitterness. As people dispute with God over His standards of right and wrong they hear a "nice" voice in their head that affirms their objections to Him- "Has God really said?...He doesn't want you to enjoy yourself because He knows that the moment you do this you will become like Him!"

The safeguard against bitterness is love. Love covers a multitude of sins, shortcomings, faults, and offences.

"Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.”
1Peter 4:8

The root of bitterness sprouts into a deadly weed that climbs up its victim and chokes the life out of them. It destroys fellowship. It ends marriages. It divides churches. It estranges people from God.

But bitterness can neither take root in love or climb up around it to choke it. Therefore, for us to build strong friendships, healthy marriages, great churches and a joyful relationship with God we need to-

clothe ourselves in love
(Col. 3:14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.)

wear a breastplate of love
(1Th. 5:8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.)

ensure that our love is genuine for others
(Rom. 12:9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.)

always be a debtor of love
(Rom. 13:8 Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.)

walk in love by being considerate of what offends another
(Rom. 14:15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.)

strive in prayer for one another by the love that the Spirit places within us
(Rom. 15:30 I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf,)

This doesn't happen naturally. It demands constant vigilence- that is, we must be continually correcting ourselves when we detect the root of bitterness and the diminishing of love for others. King David did this when he detected discouragement setting in-

Psalm 42:5 ¶ Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation.

For us to battle the enemy's seeds of bitterness requires constantly asking God for His grace. It requires humility when we most naturally feel like justifying ourselves. It also requires overlooking offences by not dwelling on them and not retelling them to others (eg- "Did you hear what they said and did to me?"). By doing these things we can avoid the root of bitterness. But what do we do when the seeds of bitterness have already taken root in our souls? If we suspect that something bitter has entered our soul then we should ask God and our church community for help. By meeting in our church community small groups where we share our hearts and pray for needs- both ours and the other groups members', we are tilling the soil of our soul. This disrupts weed growth and promotes good growth.

If however, you suspect that there is bitterness in your soul and you have stopped asking God for deliverance from it- and ceased to be a part of a discipleship (small) group- there is no hope. Hebrews 12:15 is a dire warning against allowing the root of bitterness. According to this verse, if we fail to uproot the sprouting seeds of bitterness we will (i) fail to experience the grace of God, (ii) cause trouble, and (iii) become defiled (in our thinking and behaviour). Therefore, let us guard our souls against bitterness and its fruit (malicious gossip, slander, hate). I suspect that as we continue to experience this season of church-growth that the Enemy will prowl around our church community with a dirty big bag of seeds and sow them willy-nilly in the hope that someone's heart is unguarded and that he can turn their heart against their friends, family, their church, and their God. May God help us to guard our hearts and to fill our souls with love for our friends, family, church and Himself.

After all, we don’t want to unwittingly give Satan an opening for yet more mischief—we’re not oblivious to his sly ways!
2Corinthians 2:11 THE MESSAGE

Andrew Corbett

RIDICULING REASON

Last week, Easter 2008, our church was privileged to have one of the world's most articulate apologists, Greg Koukl, speak at our church's Easter Convention. I find Greg to be one of the clearest Christian thinkers in the world today. But not only is Greg super-smart, he is super-nice. He encourages this mix in all followers of Christ. His three key words for his ministry organisation, Stand To Reason, are: Knowledge, Wisdom, and Character. And Greg embodies these three key words.
Greg did a brilliant presentation on clear-critical thinking. One of his first points was to encourage people to distinguish between what is genuine argument and what is non-argument (opinion, feelings, preferences, and ridicule). We posted a deliberately short clip of Greg discussing the issue of ridicule against Christianity. He made the point that ridicule is not an argument. He went on to cite a recent "debate" between Christopher Hitchens and Jay Richards in which Hitchens interrupted Richards opening remarks by asking him whether he believed in the Virgin Birth and Resurrection of Christ. Richards acknowledged that he did. Hitchens then ridiculed Richards for holding these beliefs and then stated- "I rest my case!"
Ironically, the clip of Greg making this point that ridicule is not an argument has been ridiculed repeatedly on YouTube. You might want to have a look at the clip and also be on guard against using ridicule and be alert to when it is used as a disguised argument against your beliefs.

Dr. Andrew Corbett

WORDSWORTH & WELLINGTON

F.W. Boreham suffered some criticism for not engaging his literary brilliance in the war effort of World War 2. The frustration of many of his admirers was compounded due to Boreham's earlier contributions around the time of the Empire's role in the Boer War (early 1900s) when he had written a stirring cover page article for the Otago Times in 1900, which called for Empire's young men to rally together for the cause. During World War 1 while serving in Hobart, Boreham also made some contribution to the War effort by references to the looming dangers in Europe. But by World War 2 he seems to have had a refining of his literary focus so that he was committed to focussing on his three great life themes: immensity, infinity and eternity.

In his 1918 book, THE SILVER SHADOW, he seems to subtly express his frustration at merely applying his literary genius to the events of the moment in an essay titled- 'Please Shut The Gate'. As World War 1 was concluding Boreham seems to examined the philosophy of his writing. This refining of his writing philosophy brought him no less criticism - it perhaps caused more! But admirers of his work are forever grateful his courage to not simply be a journalist and a commentator, but a thoughtful writer who chose to write on timeless themes by drawing on some of the best literary thought from literary giants and literary grasshoppers.

This timeless philosophy of Boreham, was encouraged by his consideration of Wordsworth who wrote during the time of England's darkest hour when the looming threat of Napoleon was on every Englishmen's mind. It was striking to Boreham that one of the most classic books of English literature, THE COMPLEAT ANGLER, was written during the English Civil War and the turbulence of Cromwell and Kings Charles - without any reference to geo-political events!

Boreham understood the need for distraction. He also understood how his three life themes were the perfect distraction for all people of all times.

Andrew Corbett

WILL WE EVER SEE REVIVAL AGAIN?

Uncontrollable weeping. Deep heeving. Intense prayer. Thorough conversion. These are just some of the traits of what church historians call: revival. Revivals throughout history are rare. But it seems that there is an observable ground-work that takes place before each revival. This ground-work includes - (i) intense, fervent prayer, (ii) confession of sin, and (iii) deep repentance.

When God visits a church, community or city with revival, there is an extraordinary sensitivity to God. Christians become deeply aware of God's presence. Those who are not Christians become aware of their need for God. Churches fill. Prayer meetings grow. Giving increases. Violence decreases. It was said of Robert Murray McCheyne's church in Dundee, Scotland that after months of intense preaching, evangelising and prayer, the congregation became overwhelmed with the presence of God to the point that people were seen spontaneously dropping to their knees and sobbing heavily with heads bowed and hands clasped in prayer. Many of these people were shaking uncontrollably as they cried out to God for forgiveness and cleansing. The result was that the tiny church grew to thousands and Robert Murray McCheyne was so overcome with the demands resulting from the revival that he died of exhaustion at the age of just 29.

But rather than his life being a waste, his intense ministry had an affect on Scotland that not only touched his generation, but generations to the present day. Winkie Pratney says that the reason revival is so rare is that too few Christians are prepared to pay the price it demands. But history says that for every generation and town that experienced it, the price was worth it.

Perhaps God may move upon us more intensely at Legana to pray for His presence and power. Perhaps we too may see sin for what it truly is and be driven to relentlessly seek holiness (sin's only remedy). Perhaps God may grace us with a generation who are more interested in pleasing God than finding pleasure.

Will you not revive us again,
that your people may rejoice in you?
Psalm 85:6

Andrew Corbett
Legana, Tasmania