'A' GRADE CHARACTER

Every parent wants their children to do well at school. When they receive their child's school report they look hopefully at it to see if they got any 'A's. But there is a set of 'A's that every parent should want for their child that will have a lasting benefit for their lives well beyond the school ground.

When it comes to helping their children learn, many parents confuse schooling for education. If you have to choose, choose education. And while your children's teachers are busy showing your children how to do well on the Government's Naplan tests, you might like to introduce six 'A's that you insist your children learn: Ability, Accountability, Awareness, Attachment, Actuality, and Awe.

and endurance produces character, and character produces hope
Romans 5:4

These six 'A's are the components of character. Character is the fabric of a person's soul. This fabric can be weak - torn by the slightest flutter, or it can be strong - able to withstand life's storms and adjust accordingly.

The story is told of a couple of friends who grew up together. One of the young men leaves his hometown and eventually builds a very successful business. Meanwhile, his childhood friend who remained in their hometown has become a struggling carpenter. As the years go by, the successful businessmen pines to return to his childhood hometown and does. The news of his return spreads around the town. He soon catches up with childhood friend and learns that he has become a carpenter. "That's great!" he tells his tradesman friend, "You can build my my new home!" The proposed house is grand. It is the biggest project that the carpenter has ever undertaken. Added to this, his successful businessman friend has offered to pay very generously for its construction. Without a contract, the two old friends shake hands and the deal is done.

As the carpenter is building the new home, he becomes angry. "How dare he come back into town and start throwing his money around like a big-shot!" he thinks. The more he thinks about how unfair life has been, the closer he gets to his hatching his scheme. He begins to reason that this old friend might be a good businessman, but he surely doesn't know much about carpentry and building. He further reasons that if he was to scrimp here and there and use second grade material rather than the first grade material he quoted on, he could increase his profit margin and his wealthy friend would never know the difference. But as he begins to swindle his friend he goes far further than he ever intended. But when the day comes to hand over the newly constructed house to his friend and client, he has a moment of guilt about what he has done but then quickly dismisses it because he reasons his wealthy friend can afford it. As he brazenly hands the keys of the new home over to his client he is then stunned when his old friend explains why he is giving the keys back. "I heard that things had been tough for you. I've done well in life and I'd like to do something for you. You've built me the finest house money could buy - and you've poured your heart and sould into building it. I'd like to give you this house as a gift!"

Character is the fabric of our lives just like the building material was the fabric of the house in this story. Just as a house can have a fancy façade and a coat of paint to hide its structural deficiencies, so we too can put up façades to hide our character deficiencies. These six 'A's are the ingredients to first-grade character development.

Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
First Timother 4:15

1. ABILITY

Every child needs to develop their abilities. This can only happen when allowed to fail. It takes practice. (Most children do not naturally understand the difference between rehearsing and practicing). Developing abilities involves stretching present capactities, focussing for an extended period of time, learning from those with better abilities. It unavoidably involves setbacks. It requires persistence. Life demands certain abilities and the level of a person's character is how those demands are met.

To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.
Matt. 25:15

2. ACCOUNTABILITY

None us of like to be corrected. But without the character strength to accept correction our children's characters cannot be developed. Children must be taught how to receive correction, welcome it, and apply it humbly. This is the process of accountability. Parents often don't want to correct their children for fear of nagging or discouraging, but children need to understand that being held accountable for their actions (what they've done) and responsibilities (what they should do) will set them up for maximising their life's potential. Accountability also involves congratulating, rewarding, and celebrating your children's efforts as well.

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.
James 2:10

It takes an extended season of heat and pressure to turn a piece of coal into a diamond.

¶ In the end, serious reprimand is appreciated
far more than bootlicking flattery.
Proverbs 28:23

3. AWARENESS

Parents are responible to make their children aware of no only what is right and wrong, but also, what is appropriate and what is inappropriate. Learning the right and appropriate way to behaveis an essential skill for life. It requires the character trait of awareness.

¶ For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.
Second Corinthians 1:12

4. ATTACHMENT

When surveyed, the majority of employers said that they would employ someone who was moderately competent and able to get along with others, before they would employ someone highly competent. Getting along with others is a learned art. Parents may be proud that their child gets an 'A' for Social Studies (History and Society, "Sose") but if their child lacks social skills that 'A' means little. From the toddler years, parents train their children to share, to be polite, respectful of elders and those in authority, how to apologise, how to hold a conversation with appropriate eye-contact, and how to show sympathy.

Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
Romans 12:10

5. ACTUALITY

Character is strengthened when reality is accepted. Our children may not like reality. They may not be willing to accept it. But as soon as they do they are best equipped to begin to deal with it. Apparently Denial is not just a place in Egypt! Playing in a Grand Final for the losing team. Failing an exam. Not passing a test. Being told you can't sing. Not being selected. Attracting certain people. Finding yourself repeatedly in similar circumstances. Earning money but never having any. Helping your child align with the actual world rather than the ideal world, will be one of the greatest training gifts you can give them.

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
Romans 8:22

In the actual world, dishes need washing up (not just putting in the sink for someone else to do), clothes need folding and putting away, grass needs mowing, people let you down, people offend you, and you let people down and offend others. Parents should help their children to accept the actual world of reality in which we live and learn to forgive, forget, flex, and friend well.

6. AWE

If you add nothing else to your child's character, add this one thing: awe. This is a deep sense of reverence for God. It is a sense in which we take our right place in the universe (which is not the centre of it). We acknowledge that this universe is God's and everything in it - including us (Psalm 24:1). We live our lives in awe of what God has done. We admire it. We take pictures of it. We sing about it. But most of all we admire Him. We become a picture to the world of Him. We sing about Him.

A deep sense of awe centres around a profound devotion to Christ. This is why children need to learn that church is a delight. They need to see us model to them that when we are assembled in church we are in awe of God through the worship (sometimes despite the music and sometimes despite the engagement of those around us), in the midst of our fellowship with other believers, under the sound of the preached Word, and in the acts of service that we each contribute to the Lord's House.

I don't know who raised the young lady we met in the carpark at James River Assembly in Springfield Missouri. But they deserve badges or medals of honour for the outstanding job they did in raising their daughter! We drove into the church carpark when the temperature was -10ºC ! She was wearing warm clothing - beanie, mittens, thick jacket. But she must have been cold. As we drove into the carpark she was smiling as she directed the traffic. But that's not all she was doing. She was dancing. Yes, dancing! She looked genuinely happy to be serving the Lord in any way she could. That day I heard the famous pastor preach but was barely impressed. Instead, the best and loudest sermon I heard that day, was from this young lady! She was a picture of awe. She was in awe of her God and it showed because she was prepared to serve in the House of God in a way that few would have even been prepared to try. I can tell when people have a deep sense of awe for God. They too serve. If you look closely at our ushers this Sunday you'll see the word "awe" written on their souls.

¶ For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
Psalm 84:10

And awe doesn't stop at the doorway of the Church building - it's refueled, re-calibrated, re-ignited so that we can enter into the world with an awe-full awareness of God and His works.

These are six essential ingredients to strong character that School Report cards tend to neglect but no parent should.

Ps. Andrew

What Happens When Dr Hugh Ross Visits Your Church

We've just hosted Astronomer and Astrophysicist, Dr Hugh Ross, for a five day Easter campaign. Before he arrived, after we announced he was coming to Launceston, we became aware of the campaign of opposition to his visit. I only looked at a fraction of the emails which were put in circulation among my colleagues calling for a boycott of his visit. In these emails, and printed materials, Dr Ross was accused of being "a charlatan", "a tool of Satan", "an atheist pretending to be a Christian", "divisive", "heretical", who "distorted the Bible", promoted "secular" science over the Bible, and did not take the Bible "literally". In the week he actually arrived in Launceston, one 'ministry' website declared that Dr Ross was "racist" because "he teaches that Australian aboriginals are not human!" 

In every instance (and I did not have time to challenge every opponent) when I asked if these opponents if they had actually read a Hugh Ross book or attended one his talks, the answer was: no. This was extremely disturbing.

Our first meeting was a Business Breakfast which was nearly sold out two weeks before the event. For those familiar with events in Tasmania, this was extraordinary! In fact, we sadly had people turned away at the door of this first event because we were fully booked out. Dr Ross was questioned about how he understood the "days" of Genesis 1-2 and gave a reasoned response showing that the expression, 'evening and morning' occurs no-where else in Scripture (and is not applied to the seventh "day") and that the Hebrew word translated "day" ('yom') has four literal meanings - (i) 24 hours ("Last Tuesday was her birthday."); (ii) Daylight hours ("While it is day, we will work.");  (iii) Part of the day ("It took us all day to drive from Launceston to Hobart."); (iv) A long period of time ("Back in the Romans' day there was a lot of bloodshed."). Of note, Dr Ross pointed out that the Hebrew word for era, long time, is the same Hebrew word, "yom" (often translated in English as "day", but the same Hebrew word used Genesis 2:4 is used to describe the entire period of creation from Genesis 1:1 to Genesis 1:26).

We held an Apologetics Seminar the same day as Business Breakfast which was nearly fully subscribed - quite remarkable for a mid-week, weekday event. One of the questions which came up during the seminar was about the physical laws such as gravity, the speed of light and the second law of thermodynamics.  Dr Ross stated that God created these laws to govern what He was creating. He cited Jeremiah 31:35 and 33:25 as straightforward examples of this Biblical claim. Thus, when someone attempted to persuade him that radio-metric dating techniques are unreliable, he simply pointed to the Scriptures to show that the Bible states it is designed by God to be reliable.

On Maundy Thursday we did a Radio Breakfast Show interview, where I pressed Dr Ross with some of the things that these anonymous emailers were accusing him of. One of the issues put to him was that he was interpretting the Bible with science - that is, despite the plain reading of the Biblical text only giving us thousands of years of existence, he was reading into the Text millions and billions of years. He responded by pointing out that the Bible does not give a date for the creation of the universe and the assumption of only thousands of years was built on a calculation of the genealogies which are known to be incomplete. He showed that the Hebrew expression, "father" was the same used to describe Grand-father, Great-Grand-father, Great Great-Grand-father and so on. [Listen]

We then filmed some interviews (keep an eye out for them on my YouTube Channel), had some private meetings, then did a sold-out Dinner meeting. Dr Ross showed that from the creation of the universe, the universe has expanded at an exquisitely fine-tuned rate. If it had expanded any slower, our universe would not have come into existence. If it had initially expanded any quicker, our universe would not have been formed. The margin of error for this expansion rate is so infinitesimally small that it is like driving then accelerating your car for a million kilometres at a speed/rate that must not waver to at least the 47th decimal place. 

Good Friday morning was held in our church at Legana and was full.

We then hired the largest hall in Launceston for our Good Friday evening service as part of the Launceston Easter Community Festival. Around 900 attended this meeting where Dr Hugh Ross gave the scientific evidences for the existence of the God of the Bible. He was quizzed on the law of decay (mentioned in Romans 8). He pointed out that this was a necessary component to God's good creation of the world. Dying, ageing, wearing-out, decay, running down, are all an essential part of life and without it life itself could not be. When a star, such as our Sun, gives off light, it is decaying. When we eat food, our stomach breaks down the food in order to draw the necessary nutrients for our bodies. We know that both of these aspects of decay were in play before the Fall of Man.

One of the comments from an attender was that Dr Ross had presented him with a problem. When I asked "How so?" He replied, "My vision of God was far too small - now I need a bigger one!" Another attender told me that they had previously been taught that science was corrupted because of the Fall and couldn't be trusted, but he could now see that this was utterly wrong and that God had decreed science to observe what He has done and to receive glory as we admire His works in the Book of Nature.

The night was made even more memorable by the presence of so many ministers of the churches of Launceston being in attendance. Bishop John Harrower even drove up from Hobart just to lend his support to the evening! While Dr Ross appealed to the head, I summed up his address and appealed to people's souls, Sonia Bowen and the assembled worship team appealed to the hearts of those present. This is partly why we referred to the Festival as a Festival of Art - Music - and, Thought.

Resurrection Sunday was full in the morning. This was quite a change in pace. Rather than have Dr Ross speak, I interviewed him. Because I knew Dr Ross, and some of the personal struggles he has had to overcome, I was able to draw these out in the interview. For many people this was the highlight of Dr Ross's ministry with us. People were particularly enthralled by his position on supernatural gifts and miracles.

Then Sunday night we nearly filled the Tailrace Centre. I interviewed Dr Ross so that people got a broad idea of where he was coming from, and then we took Q & A.  One of the questions, which was quite aggressive, related to the Old Testament genealogies and the ages of the fathers. Dr Ross attempted several times to answer the question without the freedom to do so by the listener. Here is some background information from Doug Ward about this issue-

Have you ever added up the numbers in the genealogies of Gen. 5 and 11 to compute the number of years from Adam to the Flood, and from the Flood to Abraham? I know that I have, at least a couple of times. I can remember my grandmother doing this sum on the back of an envelope when I was boy. She may have even assigned it to me as an exercise in arithmetic. 

If you have carried out this computation, you are certainly not alone. Bishop Usher's famous seventeenth-century estimate that Adam was created in 4004 B.C. was partially based upon it. The numbers are just sitting there, waiting to be added up. 

But is there any significance to the fact that the biblical text itself does not list the totals? The Bible does periodically give chronological information-e.g., Ex. 12:40 mentions that the Israelites were in Egypt for 430 years, I Kings 6:1 gives a figure of 480 years from the Exodus to the building of Solomon's temple, and Judges 11:26 states that 300 years elapsed between Israel's arrival in the Promised Land and the time of the judge Jephthah-but it is silent about the total time from Creation to the Flood and from the Flood to Abraham. 

The answer may be that the genealogies in Gen. 5 and 11 were not intended to give an unabridged record of the time before Abraham. In fact, an examination of other biblical genealogies reveals that these lists often skip generations. 

Some Examples of Omissions 

A prime example is the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1. When Matt. 1:8 mentions ``Joram begat Ozias''(KJV), three generations are omitted: Ahaziah (2 Kings 8:25), Joash (2 Kings 12:1), and Amaziah (I Kings 14:1). Later, in verse 11, Jehoiakim is left out (2 Kings 23:34). Here Matthew's purpose is not to give an exhaustive account of Jesus' ancestry; rather, he is establishing that Jesus was a descendant of David, as the Messiah was prophesied to be. The numerical equivalents of the Hebrew consonants in David's name add up to 14, and Matthew is emphasizing Jesus' Davidic ancestry by listing his genealogy in three groups of fourteen notable individuals (Matt. 1:17). 

Matthew gives an even more striking abridgment in the opening sentence of his genealogy: "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.'' In [2], Walter Kaiser comments that if Matt. 1:1 were written in the style of Genesis 5, it might read something like,``And Abraham was 100 years old, and he begat David. And David was 40 years old, and he begat Jesus Christ.'' After all, Matthew 1 is intended to trace the messianic line, and Abraham was 100 when he begat Isaac, through whom this line continued on to David. Similarly, David was about 40 when Solomon, the next occupant of his throne, was born. 

Comparisons of other biblical genealogies reveal further omissions in a number of them, as Green documents in [1]. For instance, a comparison of Ezra 7:1-5 and I Chron. 6:3-14 shows that six names are left out in Ezra 7:3. Another example of apparent omissions occurs in Exodus 6:16-20, where four generations are given from Levi to Moses. There are several reasons to suspect that this account is condensed: 

(a) I Chron. 7:23-27 lists 11 generations (many more than four) between Levi's brother Joseph and Moses' successor Joshua. 

(b) Numbers 3:19,27 lists the total number of males in the Kohath clans at 8600 one year after the Exodus, including 2750 between the ages of 30and 50 (Num. 4:36). If there were only two generations from Kohath to the Exodus, then Kohath must have been very prolific indeed! 

(c) Kohath was born before the Israelites settled in Egypt (Gen. 46:11), so Kohath was at least 350 years older than Moses. There is room for many more than two generations in these 350 years. 

These examples and others suggest that the Gen. 5 and 11 may themselves contain omissions. The structure of the lists in Genesis also implies that the names could have been carefully chosen, as in Matthew 1. Both the Gen.5 and 11 lists include ten names, and each ends with a father having three sons. Enoch, the key name in the Gen. 5 list, is seventh in the list, paralleling Lamech, the seventh in the list of the generations of Cain's descendants (Gen. 4:17-19).  

But if the numbers in Gen. 5 and 11 are not meant to be added, why are they mentioned in the text? Green and Kaiser suggest that these numbers may be meant to show the effects of sin on the long lifespans that God apparently originally intended for man. Abraham's life of 175 years and Moses' life of 120 were significantly shorter than the lifespans of over 900 years recorded by Adam, Methusaleh, and Noah.

- http://graceandknowledge.faithweb.com/add.html

And more great articles at-

www.reasons.org

Lots of people contributed to making Dr Ross's visit to Launceston such a success. Without the efforts of several key people, this enormous event could not have happened. The feedback we received from seekers, struggling Christians, and non-Christians was incredibly encouraging. Many people stated that they now had good reasons to believe in the God of the Bible and to put their faith in Jesus Christ as Creator, Lord and Saviour.

Andrew Corbett

THE EASTER QUESTION

William was a handsome young man who was proud of his physique. Before commencing university, he and a buddy agreed to have summer holiday at a popular beachside tourist location with the one intention of, as he put it: “scoring”. He met a very attractive young girl, who was also holidaying there with her friend. But William’s hopes of “scoring” were dashed when he discovered that she was a Christian. William was also intelligent and thought the easiest thing way to win this girl was also a very simple exercise: show this girl why the claims of Christianity were untrue. This presented him with an immediate problem however. 

In William's circle of friends, none of them gave ‘God’ or Christianity a second thought. He realised that although he was raised by very nominal church going parents, he didn’t actually know what the claims of Christianity were. 

Upon returning home he maintained contact with this girl and he maintained his quest to disprove Christianity. To do this, he reasoned, he needed to go to the source documents. Consequently he bought a Bible and began to read about the life of the founder of Christianity, Jesus the Christ. He was struck by what he read. 

It wasn’t what he had been told or even thought about Jesus previously. He was somewhat shocked by the accurate historical account of Jesus in the Bible and stunned by what Jesus actually said. The Jesus of the Bible was authoritative, fearless, not swayed by popular opinions. 

William was challenged by the one Christian he now knew to "try church". But William's sporting commitments clashed with church services - until he injured his shoulder. During his time off sport he decided to attend a nearby church. He saw people worshiping Jesus. He was moved. He heard people praying who honestly believed that there was a God who was listening. He describes this first time in church as a shock to all his senses. As soon as his first church service was over he dashed out of the building but involuntarily stopped in the doorway. He says he was gripped by an overwhelming urge to return into the building and talk with the pastor. He did. They agreed to meet through the week. William also decided that since he couldn't join his sporting team on Sunday mornings, due to his recovering injury, he would give church a couple more goes. The more he went and the more talks he had with the pastor, the more the claims of Christianity began to make sense. 

But he had one question. 

“Why did Jesus die?” 

Shortly after this question began to weigh on his mind, he increasingly became aware of his own shortcomings. William said, "As I started reading the Bible, attending church, and talking with the pastor, without them directly raising the matter, it was as if my previously numbed conscience suddenly began working again. And I felt guilty. Very guilty." William then had an epiphany about the connection between his question and his guilt. He realised that Jesus Christ died in his place to pay the price for William' guilt and sin. 

This discovery of the answer to this supremely important question resulted in his life being transformed. William became a committed Christian. 

Why did Jesus die? This is the question that is answered every time we celebrate Easter. It is the most important question you could ever hope to answer because its answer has both a lifetime and an eternity of immense impact. Have you found the answer? Like William, many of us have also discovered why Jesus died. The answer has defined our lives - but the same answer is far too extravagantly good not to share. That's why we love the opportunities that Easter provides because it allows us to share its answer with people just like William. And in our city, there are thousands of Williams who need to know why we celebrate Easter.

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

(Romans 5:8)

Andrew Corbett

* This story was adapted from an account told by STR's Greg Koukl. 

DANIEL, ANTIOCH, AND THEIR COMMON GREATNESS

Recently our Prime Minister reinstated imperial honours. People who are Knighted or Damed in Australia are now receiving the highest accolades that Australia offers. The world awards many prestigious honours, but none of them can compare with highest earthly honour: to have the Bible list you as one of the greatest people to have ever lived! And only three people have ever attained to this most prestigious honour.

What qualifies a person for the Biblical honour of "greatness"? And why haev so few people attained it? Since Biblical greatness is no longer attainable, does the Bible give principles for attaining regular greatness?

The Bible ranks Daniel as one of the three greatest men to have ever lived.

Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness, declares the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 14:14

What made Daniel great?

you are indeed wiser than Daniel;
no secret is hidden from you;"
Ezekiel 28:3

Daniel was taken from his home and family while a teen. As Judah's invaders, the Babylonians, first stormed Jerusalem, they looked for, and took, the brightest and the best to serve the King of Babylon. Daniel was selected. As a boy he was different. He had a keen sense of God. When parents taught him how to read, he listened attentively because this would enable him to know more about God through reading the Scriptures. From a young age, Daniel became a reader - in an age when most boys his age just wanted play games and fool around and didn't want to read. Daniel's parents showed their son that the Scriptures should be read often, privately, publicly, aloud, reflectively and especially prayerfully. Later, at an age into his eighties, the once boy Daniel maintained this habit and was able to prayerfully deliver his countrymen from their captivity in Babylon (cf. Dan. 9).

¶ As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.
Daniel 1:17

Daniel's prayerful reading of Scripture as a teenager opened him up to supernatural experiences with God. Not only was Daniel well read on matters of science, philosophy, and politics (as we note in Daniel chapters 1 and 2), he was firstly a reader of Scripture. But he quickly became Scripturally spiritual as well. That is, as he prayed to God in response to the Scriptures he was reading his spiritual discernment (his spiritual "ears") became sharper. Thus, we read of him hearing from God in extraordinary ways and able to prophesy God's Word with startling accuracy. What makes this all the more remarkable is that Daniel did this with little to no support - and in fact, often had to maintain such high spiritual disciplines in the midst of hostile opposition.

Few of us will ever face the opposition that Daniel had to face in his lifetime. He had an entire government adminstration passing legislation directed at indicting him with criminality (remember the 'Lions Den'?). Yet he maintained his happy devotion to God through Scripture reading and prayer! Daniel was horribly and repeatedly slandered. Most people who commit their lives to love and serve God will discover (initially to their surprise) that they will have others spread slanderous untruths spread about them. The Enemy often knows where we are vulnerable to hurt. Accuse a Bible teacher of lacking mercy and he will be put out - but accuse of being 'false' and 'lying' and you will be putting a virtual dagger into his heart. Accuse a pastor of being disorganised and he might be upset (he might even agree with you) but accuse him of not 'caring' or providing 'pastoral care' and you'll wound him deeply. Daniel was accused of disloyalty, treachery, and virtual witchcraft - you can begin to imagine how he must have felt in the midst of this slander (at least he could put faces to his slanderers. Today with the internet, slanderers can be 'faceless' - even on the ironically called: Facebook.)

Daniel displayed the traits of greatness from the earliest age. A simple trust in God. An undivided devotion to God. A commitment to be a daily reader of Sripture. A person of prayer. But many people start well. What sealed Daniel's greatness is that he finished well. As an old man he had a simple trust in God, an undivided devotion to God and a commitment to daily Scripture reading and prayer.

Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.
Daniel 6:3

Added to this was Daniel's grand vision of what worship was. He saw not only these spiritual disciplines as worship. He saw his diet, his work, and his leisure as expressions of his worship. Thus, he strove for 'excellence' in everything he did, not to be merely 'professional', but to worship God.

¶ But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.Daniel 1:8

Where are the Daniels today? If you are a 'Daniel', we need you.

What lessons can we learn from Daniel? I personally find Daniel one of the most inspirational people the world has ever hosted. He is listed alongside Noah and Job as among the greatest men to have ever lived and rightfully so. The principles which governed his life and qualified him for greatness are still the same today. But I also wonder whether they are translatable to an entire church - a congregation of local believers? As I pondered this great question I was led to reflect on the church at Antioch. If ever a church exhibited the qualities that Daniel did, it was Antioch! In the church at Antioch we observe greatness. I'm sure if you ponder why the church at Antioch is honoured in the Book of Acts as the greatest local church in its day, you'll soon see that it is possible to reproduce it today. Surely Antioch was a "Daniel" type church and equally as surely we need more Daniels and more Antiochs today - for greatness' sake!

¶ Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
Acts 13:1

Ps. Andrew

The World's 5 Biggest Problems

AND HOW WE MIGHT SOLVE THEM

March 25th 2014

The world is increasingly becoming a global village. We now have entire media networks dedicated to potentially delivering news as it happens from anywhere in the world. Sadly, those of us in the more affluent parts of the world usually don't get the most important news offered to us. Instead, we often get dished a diet of celebrity appearances, entertainment updates, political scandals, media commentary and sporting match results. To quote Neil Postman, despite the potential of our News media to inform us and even call us to action, we are "amusing ourselves to death."

There are several websites which list the survey results of what people think are the world's greatest problems. The major problem with such surveys is that they are largely Western and almost always fueled by how the participants have been informed by their media sources. Here's a summary and ranking of the word's greatest problems, and possible solutions to them.

The word "Fundamentalism" has come to mean those who think they are right and everyone else is wrong ("Us and them"). Added to this, Fundamentalism has come to mean that Fundamentalists feel not only justified in attacking those who disagree with them, but morally obliged to do so. In it's worst form it looks like murderous terrorism. In it's more subtle forms it looks like slander of those who disagree with them. Religious Fundamentalism adds the dimension of claiming that they alone are endorsed by God to carry out these acts of terror and oppression. Typically women and children suffer under the shadow of Religious Fundamentalism. Thus, girls are treated as objects (so-called 'female-circumcision' is often inflicted on these girls and even genital mutilation is performed - this was highlighted in the movie about Waris Dirie, Desert Flower), denied an education, 'married' off as young as 13 (when their bodies are incapable of the physical implications of marriage).

Fundamentalists are not prepared to defend their positions. Rather, they merely assert their positions are right and true and resent any challenges to them. Questioning is not allowed. Other views are maligned and misrepresented. This leads to hatred of others who do not agree with them.

Dialogue is the solution. To foster the kind of international dialogue necessary to counter religious Fundamentalism and the subsequent threat of terrorism, trade, tourism, and educational exchange programs are needed.

Christians are also prone to a kind of Fundamentalism. The solution to this is found in First Peter 3:15.

but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 
First Peter 3:15

While dialogue is the starting point toward a solution, truth is the goal of such dialogue. This needs to happen at cultural, political and religious levels.

Click here to continue reading this article

WHICH ROOM IS HE IN?

(Hint: try the kitchen then the lounge-room.)

The last few days had been harrowing. Their brother deteriorated slowly and painfully. In his final hours he struggled to breathe and was in obvious agony trying. Their only hope refused to help. His final minutes were unbearable and even more unbearable to watch.

Four days after Lazarus had died and been buried, Jesus finally arrived. Of the two confused and grieving sisters, it was Martha who went out to meet the arriving Jesus. Only months before Jesus had been the dinner guest of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. At this dinner Martha had been rebuked and this rebuke was public and, to add to her potential humiliation, recorded in the sacred annuls of Scripture for the entire world read of.

¶ Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her."
Luke 10:38-42

Please don't think that I am being dim, but what did that rebuke sound like? You may look at me quizically and read these verses to me again. But all you'd be doing is telling me what words Jesus used not, how they were used. Words are an important component of communication - but they are still only a component. When you've been publicly rebuked what did it sound like to you? There is the highest possiblity that when Jesus appeared to rebuke Martha for being pre-occupied with the necessities of life, it had a deeply therepeutic effect upon her. The major clue that this was the case is her greeting of her Rebuker-Saviour when arrived "late" to attend to her brother Lazarus recorded in John 11.

But I sincerely doubt that Jesus was rebuking Martha for being concerned about food preparation more than Bible teaching. The rebuke seems to be for her more-or-less accusing her sister Mary of wasting time. Mary, we read in the above passage, was transfixed on what Jesus was teaching her, rather than being in the kitchen with Martha. Some overly practical bods have lept to Martha's defence at this point and pointed to other people who were commended for their practical mindedness. But this misses the point. Jesus wasn't rebuking Martha because she was bearing her responsibilities as a hostess - Jesus is not against being responsible or practical - rather, His rebuke was about misplaced priorities and unwarranted judgmentalism.

We now live in an age where it is the easiest it has ever been in human history to be distracted from preserving divinely warranted priorities. For example, I now mostly read my Bible on my iPad. But my iPad is a perpetual source of temptation away from my spiritual disciplines because the same iPad which has the world's most powerful Bible software also has Email, Twitter, Facebook and world news. None of these things are wrong, but if they become a higher priority than spending time in prayerful Bible reading, they become wrong.

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.Matthew 6:33

Even though we are a tech-friendly church, this is not our priority as a church. The story of Mary and Martha is a timely reminder for us not to be so caught up in the practical matters of life at the price of being in the wrong room of the house when Jesus is our guest. And even as a church, with all our valuable activities and programs, we must know which room Christ is in. There are times when Christ is in the dining room - not dining, but washing feet! There are times when Jesus is in the "kitchen" preparing to feed 5,000. The issue for us is not about getting a 'balance' between spiritual and practical matters, rather we must see all that we do as a spiritual activity - even if it is preparing a meal for Christ 'in the kitchen' -

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'
Matthew 25:35 - 40

- or in the 'lounge-room', in the midst of the congregation lifting our hands in songful worship. Everything we do should not only be for Christ, it should be with Christ - where He is. Which room is Christ in, in your life - and are you in that same room like Mary was when Jesus came to her home?

Ps. Andrew

Here We Go Again

When The Past Keeps Presenting Itself

The Past has power. It defines. It reminds. It hurts. It invades the present. Like a trendy ageing rock-star’s weirdly tinted glasses, the Past colours how we see our present and discolours our future. As a result, we often treat others based on our past experiences with them. We also treat our present problems based on how we’ve dealt with similar past problems. But the Past, just a little more than the present, and quite unlike the future, has the unavoidably bad habit of becoming out-of-date and even obsolete. Have you allowed the Past rent-free occupancy in your life?

In the Past when a patient was suffering from high blood pressure, physicians would use leeches to “blood-let” their patient (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloodletting). This practice started with the ancient Greeks and continued up until the 1800s. Someone had the courage to examine the Past and realised that patients got worse and not better as a result bloodletting. Have you ever considered that what you’ve been doing in the past hasn’t worked? Like the person who grew up watching their parents fight whenever they had a disagreement and then faces a problem in their own marriage and is almost instinctively guided by the Past, resorts to this futile strategy to solve their own crisis. Just as the end of ancient medical bloodletting came when courage was used to realise that this strategy didn’t ever work for their parents and it has never actually worked for them either! 

The Past has a cousin called Nostalgia. Nostalgia loves talking about his cousin but does so in a very distorted fashion. Nostalgia magnifies the good times and attempts to convince us that these good times were far better than they actually were, and at the same  time tries to tell us that the bad times weren’t that bad! It’s hard to spot Nostalgia - after all, it always creeps up behind us and begins with a whisper in our ear with a pleasant memory. But there is a kind of Nostalgia that is closer to sorcery than Remembering because it takes a damaging past event and reinvents it as the present solution to a similar difficulty. For example, I know of a person who was introduced to drinking. Initially they felt somewhat guilty for accepting the introduction but as time went on that drinking session became a Nostalgic memory which helped them relax. They then experienced some unwelcome stress and Nostalgia whispered in their ear that a drink would help them to relax. They struck up quite a friendship with Nostalgia and accepted Nostalgia’s suggestion that they now “needed a drink” in order to feel happy, gather their thoughts, and cope. Meanwhile Nostalgia is sniggering behind their backs as another victim is now fully duped.

When the Eternal Jesus came to redeem mankind His atoning death had the effect of reaching into the Past, changing the Present, and redirecting the Future. This was illustrated on the night He was betrayed when He took bread and said, “Do this” (Present) “in remembrance of Me” (the Past) “until I come” (Future). Christ’s Cross transcends time! He deals with our Past, aids our Present, and gifts our Future.

Because of the Gospel (the supernatural life-giving message of Christ’s work and offer) we can break free from our negative Pasts, live an overcoming Present and have a brighter better Future. The Gospel shows us that people change. You may think that you have no hope. But the Gospel gives us hope. It teaches us that the angry can become easy-going, the downcast can become joyous, and the despairing can become optimistic. The next time you find yourself saying, “Here we go again” remember the Gospel you have accepted - and remember that the Gospel has delivered you from your Past, given you guidance for your Present, and invested you with hope for a better future.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

Second Corinthians 5:17

“Remember not the former things,

nor consider the things of old. 

Behold, I am doing a new thing;

now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

I will make a way in the wilderness

and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:18-19

Andrew Corbett

CAN YOU HEAR IT?

Have you ever watched one of those "talent" search TV shows where someone who is convinced they are a world-class singer gets their big break to sing to the world and when they do, despite the desire and determination to be a pop-star, they obviously can't sing?!

Before millions of people watching on television they are then humiliated and made the object of YouTube mockery! But I wonder how people can go through so much of their life and not ever have someone tell them the truth about their dire lack of singing ability? Or maybe some did...

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 

Ephesians 4:15

Some people are convinced that they are good (even great) at something (such as singing) when, in fact, they are not. I suspect that some people, not wishing to offend, will simply tell someone what they want to hear becuase they want to encourage them. I love people like this! They are encouragers through and through. Thank God for them. I suspect that there are some other people who form a judgment about someone's lack of ability and say nothing. These people are not naturally encouragers but neither are they liars - they can't tell someone they are good at something they are clearly not. Then I suspect that there are some people who just tell it like it is. Their primary motivation is to be truthful - not to be encouraging or even caring.

Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence,
but a false witness utters deceit.
Proverbs 12:17

HOW TO SPEAK THE TRUTH

So I've been wondering: How do you tell a bad singer that they are a bad singer? After all, singing is a window into the heart of the singer and criticising a singer is therefore an injury felt in their heart. But as these various Talent TV shows prove, if no one convincingly tells a bad singer that they can not sing, they are going to have their heart hurt even more painfully and this time on national television before millions of mocking crtics. However we answer this important question, it will probably be done best when we do our utmost to apply Ephesians 4:15 - speaking the truth in love.

Speaking the truth in love rarely means being rude, blunt, or harsh. But neither does it mean lying. The fact that I am thinking out loud about this important problem should probably indicate to you that I don't do this well. Therefore anything I say about this has come about not becuase of any great wisdom I pretend to possess, but from the hundreds of times when I have got it horribly wrong. In this light, interpret my advice as a confession of my many mistakes.

• TRUTH SOUNDS LOVING when you have developed a relationship of trust with the person you are speaking to.
• TRUTH SOUNDS LOVING when you get permission to say it.
• TRUTH SOUNDS LOVING when you separate the person from the problem.
• TRUTH SOUNDS LOVING when highlight positives while pointing out the negatives.
• TRUTH SOUNDS LOVING when you haven't told everyone else before you've said it directly to the person you're talking about.

HEAR, HEAR

As tricky as it is to speak the truth in love, it is no where near as tricky as hearing the truth in love. In fact, based on my random guess, I would say that hearing the truth correctly and accepting it is about 63% of the determining factor involved in the Truth With Love equation. In all probability, many of the bad singers who audition for these TV Talent shows have more than likely had several people try to tell them that they can't sing. But what if they hadn't? This was a topic of discussion for our small group this week when our Bible Study group was considering the verse in Romans 12 about forming a "sober judgment" about yourself and not "thinking of yourself more highly than you ought." The question was asked about such talent show contestants whether others had tried to tell them the truth about their lack of talent. "Surely", said someone in our group, "surely they have people who care about them?" The question presumed the Truth With Love principle is going to be best practiced by those who care for the person. But this question also makes another presumption: that the person being told the truth will receive it in love.

¶ For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
Romans 12:3

Receiving the truth requires hearing well. As difficult as I have found it to speak the truth in love to someone, it pales dramatically compared with my general thin-skinned lack of ability to hear the truth with love from someone. Sometimes I just don't want to hear the truth. Sometimes, although I know that what I am being told is true, I won't hear it because I don't like it.

The follower of Christ is commanded in Romans 12:3 how to think and therefore, by implication, how to hear what others tell them. How well do I do this? How well do you do this? Our truth-targets may not be our singing. It may be our attitude. It may be our punctuality. It may be our level of sacrifice for our family, for our church, for our State. It may be our workmanship. Our ability to hear the truth and our attitude about hearing it from others is a large factor in whether others even attempt to love us with the truth.

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
Second Timothy 4:3-4

¶ Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 
James 1:19

How we speak to others is a refection of how we love others. But how we hear others is a reflection of how easy we are to love. James links listening with speaking and getting angry. I imagine that he experienced what many of us have experienced when we've tried to talk to someone we love about something that needed to be said because it was true. In our attempt to say something true to them, they get defensive and do more talking than listening - and then eventually get angry with us. [Sigh] And while I find this frustrating in others, I am far less able to hear how others might find it frustrating when trying to be truthful with me. The sober judgment of Romans 12:3 calls the follower of Christ not to be defensive ("I can't change now ... This is who I am ... If others don't like the way I do it then they can ... I'm too old to change now ... Who do you think you are to talk to me like that! ... Well that's just your opinion - there are many others who love my singing!" ... ). Can we hear the truth? Hearing the truth is one of the first steps in letting others love us. And as strange as it sounds, there are many people looking for love who actually make it difficult for others to love them because they don't hear well - if you hear what I'm saying?

Ps. Andrew