discipleship

A Letter from a 10 Year Old

/ sweetpeacardco

A young friend of mine recently had to write a “persuasive letter” at his Christian school. This is a boy with whom when he was six I went on an hour long walk to discuss Satan! I share this to encourage us as to how the Lord is at work in some youth, and to challenge us to examine whether our Christian maturity is in step with our years of experience. Do we have this boy’s heart, knowledge and persuasiveness?

Dear Isaac,

Shouldn’t you think about becoming a Christian? It would be a good idea.

First of all, if you don’t you’ll go to Hell. Hell is eternal punishment. Wouldn’t you rather go to Heaven, a perfect and wonderful place?

Secondly, God sent Jesus to save those who believe in him. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” Why else would Jesus come?

Lastly, in Heaven you will get a new and perfect body. Your earthly body will not last. 1 Peter 1:24–25 says, “For all flesh is as grass and its glory as the flower of the grass. The grass withers and the flower falls, but the word of God remains forever.” All humans will pass but God lives forever.

Don’t you want to be a Christian? Doesn’t it sound great? I am one and I want you to be one too.

From,

William 🙂

 

The Lord’s Sweetest Blessings,

Pastor Chris

The Greatest Decision

/ sweetpeacardco

On February 20, 2016, Prime Minister David Cameron announced the referendum to decide whether we are to remain within the EU or not. He described the vote as one of the “greatest decisions of our lifetime.” It is a colossal decision. I have weighed the evidence, and of primary importance, tried to filter it through the lens of biblical values. I know how I intend to vote (yes, Canadian residents are permitted to vote!). I fundamentally disagree, however, with Mr. Cameron’s statement that this worldly decision—while important—is the greatest in our lifetime. That decision is who we profess Jesus to be! (Mt 15:16).

As we enter into this post-Christian era I am becoming increasingly a-political with the substance of my political creed simply being the Lord reigns (c.f. Prov 29:26). This whole debate got me thinking about the saying taken from John 17:14-18, “to be in the world but not of the world.” The Bible does not actually use those words but rather they are a summary of:

14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. [emphasis added].

 Working out the tension in Jesus’ command has been the subject of debate for faithful believers for centuries. In a nutshell allow me to attempt to provide the interpretive key necessary for solving the application of this tension. World (cosmos) refers to the world system ruled by Satan. The Christian is to remain in the physical world (play on words here) while not to be of the world because we have been made citizens of the Kingdom of God through faith in Jesus. This is a Kingdom with a different government, set of laws, values and vision than that of the world. Until Christ comes again we are aliens in a world in which we are not citizens, wherein we are called to live as ambassadors of Christ. May the Lord give us the wisdom and grace needed for this, while we earnestly pray “come Lord Jesus!”

The Lord’s Sweetest Blessings,

Pastor Chris

Who was Shamgar the Judge?

/ sweetpeacardco

Who was Shamgar the Judge?

As we read through Judges we came across a number of famous individuals with well-known stories such as Samson and Gideon. But right near the beginning of the book, which is overall descriptive of “the dark ages” of early Israelite history, we find this passing reference:

After him [Ehud] was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed 600 of the Philistines with an oxgoad, and he also saved Israel. (Judges 3:31 ESV)

Who on earth was Shamgar? Why was he remembered? Why does he receive such sparse attention?

Let’s begin with what we know followed by what he might teach us.

Shamgar’s name in Hebrew likely means “sword.” He was the son of a man (or perhaps of a family group) named Anath meaning “answer” [i.e. an answer to prayer]. Taken together these provide a fitting name that links to his role, as a deliverer and judge (there are also possible overtones in his name to the Canaanite culture, which may indicate how Canaanized the Israelites had become).

He is remembered for killing 600 Philistines. The Philistines consisted of a nation along the Mediterranean coast who had arrived in Canaan about the same time as Israel and represented a continual military threat until they were subdued by King David. In an impressive feat Shamgar was enabled by the LORD to strike down 600 Philistines using only a primitive weapon known as an oxgoad.

oxgoad

An oxgoad, or simply a goad, is used with oxen as a prodding tool. Historic examples include those pointed with metal (or not) and also variants that had an additional point which curved backwards developed to maximize the drivers ability to poke the oxen.

Using only this everyday agricultural tool as a weapon, in one battle or perhaps as a tally of all of his encounters, he struck down 600 Philistines and thus provided a measure of deliverance for Israel (though the nature and extent of that deliverance is not presented).

The only other verse that adds information to this story comes in the song of Deborah who tells us that:

In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were abandoned, and travellers kept to the byways. (Judges 5:6 ESV)

Life as Israel had known it, a life of peace and prosperity under the rule of and faithfulness to the LORD, had ceased. In its place had come national insecurity and distress.

What then are we meant to take away from these two verses about Shamgar? There are several possibilities but let me elaborate on just one of them.[i] Shamgar obviously did something very great in Israel to the extent that he was remembered as he was. The modest account we are left with struck me as a great reminder that our motivation to serve the LORD should not be to receive a lengthy entry into the annals of the faith but rather to please the LORD, irregardless of whether such service is acknowledged publically or not.

Jesus said as much in Matthew 6:5-6 (ESV):

And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

And similarly a few verses on in Matthew 6:16-18 (ESV) He said again:

And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Believers such as these are truly “unknown, and yet well known…poor, yet making many rich (1 Cor 6:9).

The Lord uses many means, some secret and some public, to bring about his salvation. To some He affords the honour of their deeds being publically acknowledged, while to others He grants the even greater blessing of acts of service being known only to Him in secret.

The Lord’s Sweetest Blessings,

Pastor Chris

[i] Some others might include that Shamgar used what was available to him to serve the LORD and this was sufficient. It also demonstrates how the LORD in His providence uses ordinary people (a farmer like Shamgar) as means to bring about extraordinary works of salvation.

The eternal question…

/ sweetpeacardco

Several weeks ago I was asked a very good question by a older child. Wanting to encourage them in the Faith I took this opportunity to reply to their question by sending them this letter:

Dear Sally,

Happy New Year!

Your grandmother passed along a question that you had about God. As I love talking to people about the Lord and helping us all to know Him better it always excites me when people like yourself ask a really good question. Asking good questions about God is one important way of how we can come to know Him more deeply. So before I begin I just wanted to encourage you to continue to seek God out and ask good questions about who He is, what it means to know Him and be able to do what pleases Him; and most of all, how we can be saved from our sins through Jesus.

So I would like to respond to your question, “Why has God always been?”, and I hope it answers (or begins to answer) your question.

The Bible often says that God has always existed. Sometimes it uses the word “eternal” or “eternity” to show this characteristic of God. Eternal simply means God has existed forever.

Psalm 90:2 tells us that “from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” Many other Bible verses say the same type of thing (ex. Genesis 1:1, 21:23; Psalm 103:17; Isaiah 57:15; Hebrews 2:10, 13:8; Revelation 4:11).

Some of God’s characteristics we can share. For example, God is love and so we can love one another, or, God is truth and so we should not lie. However, some characteristics of God we cannot share. His eternity is one of them. We began to exist the moment we started to grow in our mother’s tummy. God is eternal. He has always existed and will always exist. It is one of His amazing characteristics! We can see this in the story of the burning bush. God appeared to Moses in the form of a bush that burned but was not burnt up. He wanted Moses to go and tell the King of Egypt to let His people the Israelites go free. Moses asked God, “if they ask, who shall I tell them sent me?” God told Moses to say that I AM sent you (Exodus 3:14). God’s name shows us that He is eternal. He was, He is and He will be. He has always existed in the past and will always exist in the future!

Now since you are a smart girl, you have probably already noticed, this does not completely answer your question. The truth is that no one fully knows how God has always been. Some things God keeps as a mystery to remind us that we are only human and that He is God. One thing that we can be sure of, though, is that God has told us He is eternal. In the Bible God has told us everything He wants us to know about Him. There is a small poem that I memorized when I was very young. It says, “O God, your sea is so great, and my boat is so small!” The hard part in answering your question, after saying that God is eternal, is that you and I are so small. We are just a small part of everything that God has created. Because we are small and God is great we will never know everything about Him. But we can be thankful that He has told us about His greatness in the Bible because He loves us. Because of this I believe the best answer is that we should be happy with what He has shared with us. What God has told us in the Bible is true and when we come to believe this, then we are able to trust Him with the mysteries He has not shared.

Think of it this way. There are many things you do not know or do not know how to do yet. When you need to know something your parents lovingly tell you and help you so that you will grow up into a beautiful and intelligent young lady. They know so much more than you do because they are older and experienced. It is like that with God. He is our heavenly Father and He doesn’t tell us everything but what He does tell us is for our good so we might become the people He wants us to be.

God is eternal. From everlasting to everlasting He is our Creator, Rescuer and Friend. We can trust this because the Bible is true. We accept it in faith, which means we trust in God.

To help you praise God because of His eternity, I would encourage you to ask your parents to listen to these three songs on the internet:

Everlasting God by Chris Tomlin

Everlasting to Everlasting by Brian Doerksen

Immortal, Invisible

 

The Lord’s Sweetest Blessings, Your Friend,

 Pastor Chris

 

Real Christianity

/ sweetpeacardco

Over the last three months we have been blessed at the chapel to have worked our RCway through a Christian classic, written over 200 years ago, and have discovered how timeless and pertinent its message is for us today. Beginning in June roughly 25 regulars along with those who read along at home, journeyed through Real Christianity by William Wilberforce. We began with two movie nights watching the 2006 film Amazing Grace so as to have a better idea of this man and his times. Pastor Chris then led us through the book with accompanying questions and related Bible passages to complement and aid our discussion. We had many profitable and meaningful gatherings and refreshing times of prayer as we were all challenged by this book. Wilberforce, an evangelical Christian, sought to end the slave trade and reform the morals and values of society but realized he could not accomplish this aim until the nations hearts had first been rendered by the Gospel. In this classic book he investigates the differences between authentic Christianity and cultural Christianity, challenging cultural Christians to not simply believe but have faith in and be transformed by the Gospel, and calling on true believers to new heights of devotion and service to their Lord. Last night we ended our series with elderberry pie, but more importantly a group time of sharing where we could all share some of the highlights of what we had learned. Here are some of them. This study helped…

  • Me see with clarity the difference between authentic and cultural Christianity;
  • That what he said was indeed timeless and applies as much today as when he wrote it;
  • Spur me on in my walk with Jesus;
  • To see that I have to ask for the Holy Spirit’s help to address my shortcomings as a Christian;
  • Me to re-evaluate my priorities, Jesus is not as high a priority in my life as I had thought and He must be not only my Savior but my Lord;
  • Challenge me to use our influence in society better for the sake of advancing the Kingdom of God;
  • Me to strive to be a greater light in my non-Christian workplace;
  • Me renew a heart to share the Gospel with nominal Christians so our/their joy may be complete;
  • Have a greater appreciation of the importance of Holy Scripture in the life of the believer;
  • Us see the necessity of prayer, both individual and corporate, to live the Christian life and change society;
  • Me have a greater hunger for God’s word;
  • Me appreciate and trust the power of God’s word to transform;
  • Me be reminded how much we really need the Lord in all things;
  • Remind me of the need to do good and to love as a Christian;
  • Emphasize that salvation is by grace and not works of any kind;
  • Me see the value in Christian fellowship, reflection and prayer;
  • Demonstrate that beliefs affect our behaviour. Faulty behaviour in society and politics arises because of false beliefs;
  • Us see that to be truly patriotic is to seek our nation’s welfare and its welfare comes from knowing God and walking in His ways. There is great national and political importance in the future of our nation whether we become Christian again or not;
  • Me very much see that Christianity is not about belief or simply going to Church but must be a personal relationship with Jesus;
  • Me see that, while we may disagree with other Christians on secondary matters, we must strive with those with whom we have primary Gospel agreement to effect change upon our country.
  • …many more to be sure.

If you were not able to or would like to study this book yourself, then please do not hesitate to ask me for the questions and order yourself a copy today. Next week we return to our study of the Gospel of John.

The Lord’s Sweetest Blessings,

Pastor Chris

A Challenge from Church History for Children of the Faith

/ sweetpeacardco

Our current mid-week study Real Christianity has challenged us as to whether as Christians we have a handle upon the mereBRB0967A-D Watts 1st title basics of Christianity. I was challenged from my studies this week by reading Isaac Watt’s Catechism for Children (1741).[1] Do our children know the basics, do we know them? John Ryland (the man I am studying) was instructed in the faith with these 24 Q&A’s by the age of 6 (by instructed I mean taught to memorize)! Many adults today who consider themselves Christians and have been in the church many years may struggle with these. Add then, the 78 Q&A’s, Apostles Creed and Lord’s Prayer for children aged 7 to 8 and the expanded version for children aged 9 to 10, and the whole catechism (presumably) for teenagers!

How lax and lacking in in desire can 21st century Christians be when we have available to us innumerable resource to grow in our factual and relational understanding of God and Christianity. One American church study revealed that their church was “a mile wide and an inch deep.” May the same NOT be said of us! Let us strive, let us endeavour to be known as a people who are zealous to know the Lord and in turn make Him known.

“My little children,” as the apostle John wrote (1 Jn 2:1), is our affection for God so cold that we would not seek to build ourselves “up in the most holy faith” (Jude 20)?

O Lord help us to have a deeper handle on the Faith!

The Lord’s Sweetest Blessings,

Pastor Chris

[1] Isaac Watt’s (1674-1748) was an independent pastor who is known as the father of English hymn writing. He is also credited with helping preserve orthodox Christian beliefs amongst Congregationalists at a time when many Christians were slipping into heresy or unbelief altogether.