Narrabri Anglican Church Podcast

God's covenant of grace with His people stands: one of Abraham's seed will beat sin, and change the sinful nature of people, so that God can dwell with His mob again. Circumcision is the picture God gave His people, which pointed to this promise. This promise could only happen by God's work alone. At the end of the Old Testament, this promise stands. At the start of the New Testament, there is the hope of a ‘new beginning' (Matt.1:1). This hope is followed by a genealogy which traces the ‘seed [singular] of Abraham' down to Jesus (Matt.1:2-17). Jesus is described as the One who will ‘save His people from their sins' (Matt.1:21). And then He does – through His life, death and resurrection alone, Jesus offers the forgiveness of sins and changed nature for God's people. As Jesus sends His people out to proclaim this to the world, He does so with a picture that points back to who fulfils the promise of God: the picture of baptism points BACK to Jesus! And the work He achieved is received by trusting in what He has done!

In His last days on earth, Jesus instructed His disciples to continually practice two sacraments of baptism and the Lord's supper as signs of God's saving grace towards us in Jesus. Jesus here continues God's practice in the Old Testament of using pictures and words to teach His people about His abiding grace towards a sinful humanity. Often in the Old Testament, God gave a sign to accompany His covenant with His people. For example, when God made a covenant with Abraham to bless the whole world through his offspring, He gave him the sign of circumcision. Circumcision symbolized God's promise to cleanse sinners through Abraham's seed.

We are at the end of Matthew's good news biography of Jesus. Matthew started with a statement of ‘new beginnings', as God fulfilled his promise through Abraham and David, to bring outsiders back to God. And now the message is to go out to all the nations, from the one with all authority, creating a community that is connected to all of God, taught all of Jesus' commands, and obeying all of them. This is how Matthew finishes – from new beginnings to the proclamation of the new beginnings, to the whole world, God gathering his people in, through the news of Jesus. And as Jesus gives this command, he promises that he will never neglect his people, always being with them as they proclaim this good news to outsiders everywhere!

As dawn breaks on Sunday morning, women go to view the tomb…but what they see is far greater. An angel announces.. “He is not here. For he has risen..” What wonderful, good news! Some in our passage are gripped with fear, still others are shocked, displaying unexpected joy. But should we be surprised? Isn't this what Jesus was saying all along? As we come to Easter, as we come to Jesus, be expectant that Jesus will do all he says. We can have complete confidence that what Jesus says.. Jesus does! “He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come see the place where he lay”. Death is defeated, the tomb is empty, and for those who trust in Jesus we have the promise of life after death because Jesus has gone before us. Celebrate today that God is faithful and that Jesus now reigns!

The events of Good Friday have significant impact. Jesus, the outsider deals with sin in the only way possible. It involves an excruciating death, burial and is final. There are insults and mockery, confusion and speculation abound. Jesus, the outsider has left His mark.

In today's passage it's Good Friday, the saddest day in human history. But hidden amongst the lies and deception and betrayal are glimmers of hope. The great African American preacher S.M. Lockridge wrote a reflection on this time in Holy week. Here's what he has to say in part, “It's Thursday, and Jesus is praying. Peter is sleeping, Judas is betraying, but Sunday's coming. It's Friday, Pilate's struggling. The council is conspiring, the crowd is vilifying. They don't even know that Sunday's coming. It's Friday, the disciples are running like sheep without a shepherd. Peter is denying, Mary is crying, but they don't know that Sunday's a coming. It's Friday. The Romans beat my Jesus. They robe him in Scarlet, they crown him with thorns, but they don't know that Sunday's coming. It's Friday, see Jesus walking to Calvary, his blood dripping, his body stumbling and his spirit burdened. It's Friday, only Friday, but let me tell you something: Sunday's a coming!” The Son of Man is more ‘outside' than ever before. Betrayed, rejected, beaten and handed over to be crucified. Majestically silent, confident in his father's plans. So much more than just a king of the Jews, he's King of all Kings.

“… “But all this has happened so that the writings of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then the disciples deserted him and ran away.” With these words we were left on a cliff hanger. Jesus has become the Outsider. Deserted by his disciples, just betrayed by Judas, captured like a criminal. He is led away to face trial, but as we'll see he is not the only one on trial. It is a trial of faith. For the Sanhedrin, Peter and Jesus. Ultimately it boils down to how they view the word of God. Do they reject it, are fearful of others above it or submit to it and rest in its promises. Jesus reveals his nature on his terms. Revelation brought through God's word brings exposure. What does it reveal about us?

Matthew has employed the super slo-mo camera in his account of the last two days of Jesus' life. He has slowed all the events right down, so that we can grasp the details. The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of sinners. The one who came to save the outsiders can only do this by becoming THE outsider. And we cannot miss how incredibly alone, and ‘outside', Jesus is in these moments. He prays alone. He resists alone. He stands firm alone. All the disciples abandon him. All the religious authorities are arrayed against him. And, yet, his authority remains undiminished – all the events happen according to the word of God, and nothing happens without Jesus' explicit approval. Jesus is the Son of Man, who is the outsider, so that the sinners who abandon him can proclaim him, and the sinners who kill him can be forgiven by him.

In Matthew 26:1-35, Matthew transitions us from Jesus's final sermon on the Mount of Olives to the events leading up to his crucifixion. As he has done since being revealed as the Messiah (Matt 16:16-21), Jesus prepares his disciples for his crucifixion. He does this by teaching them that his crucifixion fulfills the covenant promises of God captured both in the Jewish scriptures and festivals instituted by God, especially the Passover. How different people respond to Jesus shows whether they truly understand who he is or the significance of his crucifixion.

I think many of us struggle in the face of Jesus' teaching in this, his last sermon to his disciples. It is urgent, it is blunt, it is confronting… and there is immense comfort. In this last moment, he turns from metaphor and parable to clear statement—this is what it will be like on judgement day. And there are some very significant, and deep, theological truths revealed here (the identity of Jesus, the reality of judgement, the nature of Jesus' relationship with his people, the foundation for judgement). But there is also immense comfort—the entry into the kingdom remains the forgiveness of sins by Jesus (Matthew 1:21); the practice of the kingdom is so simple and obvious (caring for those in the kingdom); and there will be a day of judgement!

The logic of Jesus' last teaching time with His disciples is clear: the end is coming; no-one knows that day; be alert, working… and now, in two clear parables, He teaches what that looks like. In the parable of the virgins (vs.1-13), to be alert is to be prepared. And what does that look like? Well, I suspect it is to know Jesus and His words deeply, it is to know Jesus and His mob consistently, and I suspect it is to live Jesus and His truth daily. In the parable of the talents (vs.14-30), to be alert is to wholeheartedly work with everything God has given you, for Jesus. And what does that look like? Well, I suspect it is not pew-warming, but pew-working – it is not just wafting through life as one of Jesus' disciples; it is to be actively using whatever gifts, resources, and faculties (and opportunities) for the sake of Jesus, and the proclamation of His good news.

In his closing statement of the ‘woes', Jesus asserts that Jerusalem will be ‘desolate' (23:38). It seems an impossible statement when the magnificence of the Temple is considered. But, Jesus again asserts its truth: Jerusalem, and the Temple, will be razed so that no stone is left on another. The disciples are curious—when, and what sign? In his reply, Jesus makes clear that the fall of Jerusalem (which happens under Rome in AD70) is a microcosm of the return of Jesus at the end of the world—and the responsibility of God's mob is clear: be ready and working when that day comes, by not being distracted, by praying, by proclaiming the kingdom of God. Don't get distracted!

For some time, Jesus has been patiently answering the questions from Jerusalem's teachers and rulers. Last week we saw the final engagement with Jesus… now it's His turn to speak. For what might seem like an overreaction, Jesus is justly pointing out the failings of Israel's leaders and how they have led the people astray. In one of the most emotionally charged exchanges, Jesus both severely judges, and deeply laments, the false religion He sees before Him. While much of what Jesus says is directed to the Pharisees and scribes, it is the crowd to which He speaks. How will they respond? How are we meant to respond?

Matthew has been about the ‘outsider being brought inside', and the outsider is any human (because we are all sinners). Jesus is now into His last week, before His crucifixion, in Jerusalem. It has not been a calm week – it has been a week of conflict and confrontation. It has been a week of plotting (by the religious and political authorities), and a week of truth-telling (by Jesus). The King has come to His ‘capital' and His ‘people', and they are actively opposed to Him. As we resume, the conflict and the traps are reaching their climax… and so is the revelation of who Jesus is!

We have come to the end of The Apostles' Creed – and what a wonder that these are the truths we believe, these are the truths that shape us, these are the truths that reveal the nature of God in His word! The work of Jesus has given us a certain and true hope: our sins are forgiven. And sin itself will be removed and destroyed – there will be a day of great renewal, and this has been shown in Jesus: we will all be raised, given new bodies fit for dwelling with God! That will be a one-off moment, but its impact will be felt for eternity! God – the Father, Son and Spirit – have worked in faithfulness to bring before God a people of His own, to live with Him forever. God is so good! A great summary is in John 3:16: ‘For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.'

Amongst all the striking things of The Apostles' Creed is this: when we come to the final ‘I believe', we are revealing what time we live in. What I mean is this… the nature of God is always present in His word—He is always Trinitarian… but the fullness of the revelation of His nature is only reached once Christ comes in the flesh, and sin is dealt with. At this point, we can look back over the whole word of God, and see the Holy Spirit lurking everywhere. But now, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling with us, and we know that the Spirit is God! And now we experience, across all of God's mob, what the Spirit does: He enables and equips and assures God's mob as they carry out God's work!

One of the prevailing views of the world after the Second World War was that God had abandoned the world – look at the death camps, look at the slaughter, look at nuclear weapons, look at what our modern ever-improving humanity had achieved! But that view of God – that He has abandoned what He has made – remains, doesn't it? We feel it as we wait as God's people, and wonder about the promise of return and renewal. We speak it as we watch a world groaning under sin, as we feel the pain of loss or disappointment. If we are transparent and honest, we have all felt like God has abandoned us, and this world. The next phrase of The Apostles' Creed is an emphatic statement that God did not abandon Jesus, and so God has not abandoned all those connected to Jesus.

If Jesus is the Christ (God's chosen Saviour of the world, who will deal with sin and return God's mob to rest), God's only Son (and so the right ruler of the world who gathers God's mob home), and our Lord, then how is this all achieved? The next phrase of The Apostles' Creed asserts the historical truth of the actions of Jesus, their means, and by implication, their efficacy and purpose. It is here that we publicly state that the death of Jesus was not a wasted life, but the final sacrifice of the only man who could stand in for sinners like us. In this statement, we believe that Jesus paid for our sins – once and for all.

We must keep remembering that The Apostles' Creed speaks to the world we live in. And the world we live in is marked, defined, by restlessness. This is the absence of rest – and the dominance of searching for rest – in work, in leisure, in experience, in self-discovery. It is against this backdrop that we must understand the next part of The Apostles' Creed – ‘I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary…'. The Incarnation – the birth of Jesus as THE God-man – is the only answer for the restlessness of our world. And this is because our restless lives are the expression of sin, and its judgement… and only someone who is both fully God and fully man can deal with our sin.

Each week, we publicly state what we believe, as we gather as God's mob. Each week, we publicly state that we believe certain truths about God – about His nature, about His actions, about His community, about His interactions with this world. In fact, as an Anglican Church, we are part of a denomination that states we hold to three ‘creeds', three summary statements about what we believe about God – the Apostles' Creed, the Nicaean Creed and the Athanasian Creed. Each creed emerged in response to certain questions – about the nature of God, about the nature of the Trinity. But the earliest was the Apostles' Creed, a summary of the truth of the apostles, originally created for baptisms. In fact, to have such a creed – a summary – is following in the footsteps of God's word – just look at Deuteronomy 6:4, or Romans 10:8-9, or Philippians 2:5-11.

2024 is finishing, 2025 is looming – how will we finish… how will we start… how will we go on? Psalm 92 is the only psalm designated ‘for the Sabbath' in the whole Psalter: it is a good way to finish one week, and to start the next, gathered as God's mob. As the week's flow into each other, this one truth remains every day: ‘You, LORD are exalted forever' (vs.8). It lies at the heart of this psalm – and it helps us understand where we are plated so we know what we will proclaim and practice. God's mob are planted in His presence, in His eternal presence. This gives them a certain perspective on life, on the temporal things that surround. This gives them a unique difference to so much they see, which looks flourishing but is destined to destruction. This gives them a grasp of how they came to be here – by God's grace. This, then, shapes how they proclaim and practice life, daily, weekly, yearly: ‘The LORD is magnificent – just look at Him, and His constant faithful love'. Jesus grasped this – remember how He prayed even as He approached His death? God's mob – us! – can finish one year, and face the next, knowing where we are planted, so that we know what to proclaim and practice: ‘Look at how magnificent the LORD is!'

25 Dec 2024 - Christmas Day We look through the longings of Mary and Joseph, Simeon and Anna while seeing their reactions to the incarnation of God in Jesus.

The nativity story around the wise men is something we are familiar with. We see images of three kings in so many nativity scenes. We hear in the carol “We Three Kings” about three kings who follow the star. But what does Matthew actually tell us about this part of the story? When we get into it, the story is really about an undetermined number of wise, learned, knowledgeable scientific astrologers who travel a long distance to worship a child from another nation. But why? Why do that? Because they know this child is special. He is important to them, as outsiders. He is important to His own nation. He is important for the whole world. And their response is to worship Him. Their story points us to who it is that is worthy of worship, and how to express that worship.

Have you ever considered that Christmas is a moment about reactions? When you read the accounts of the birth of Jesus, everyone on our side (the human side) is reacting – Mary to Gabriel's news, Joseph to Mary's condition and Gabriel's news, the shepherds to the angels, the wise men to the star, and Herod and Jerusalem to the wise men. Put simply, Christmas is about a series of snapshots of reactions – kind of like everything that everyone will upload onto Tik-Tok as they film each other's reactions. But reactions are only possible if there is something to react to – and, from God's side, that is exactly the truth: He has sent an event, news, a moment, of global proportions into our world. And this is His grace. And He calls us to consider this moment, and work out what we are doing with it!

‘Silent Night'. It is one of the most beloved Christmas carols ever written, translated into over 300 languages. It also captures a theme many long for during the hustle and bustle of the busy season of Christmas… Peace. Written by Joseph Mohr in 1816 while he overlooked the sleepy town of Mariapfarr, it would later be put to music and performed for the first time in 1818. It has been sung by countless voices over the past two hundred years. Most notably on Christmas Eve 1914 when German, French and British troops along the Western Front had a Christmas truce. Amongst the conflict and chaos of war, all was calm and peace was found. But is that the peace that we celebrate at Christmas time? Or is there a deeper peace that Jesus' advent brings?

Over the next few weeks (in ‘Advent', the period in the church calendar of ‘waiting', as we prepare to remember the Incarnation), we will be looking at four Christmas carols. We are doing this for two reasons: first, to get in the bait of running all we do through the word of God; and, second, reminding ourselves of what we are remembering as we wait. Our first carol – ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem' – deals with our ‘hopes and dreams'. It has its roots deep in the words of the prophet Micah, who had many hopes and dreams holed up in Jerusalem, with the wolf of Assyria surrounding the city. It has its answer in the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, as God promised. And it has a warning, as the wise men turn up and the locals reveal that they know the truth of God's answer to their ‘hopes and dreams', but they just cannot be bothered.

As we finish Genesis, there are so many threads and ideas that are wrapped up – and so many hopes and trusts that are laid out. Here are a few of my observations… First, the book starts with blessing and promise – and it closes with blessing and promise. Second, the whole of the account relies on the God who promises, and the promises of God. Third, the book ends with the promise of God only being able to be fulfilled by the God who promises – will Joseph get back to the land? Will God come to take his people to be with him? Fourth, the ending of the book is corporate – there is so much about what we do today that is individual. Fifth, the truth that God works for the good of his desires for his people runs as a thread throughout God's word – and it is both a description of his character and nature, and our inability. Sixth, the good news of Jesus is the culmination of all of these.

Death has a remarkably clarifying effect on life. At the moment of end, life is brought into focus, and the key truths – the things that matter – are sharpened. Jacob is at the end of his life. He has been reunited with Joseph. He has seen the promises of God fulfilled. The word of God has sustained him. As he approaches the end of life, what is sharply in his mind and action? The writer of the Hebrews describes Jacob's clarity as ‘worship' – as he dies, he gives God what He deserves – and that is the truth of the covenant and promises of God passed onto the next generation. As Jacob approaches death, the grace of God, the promise of God, the commitment of God – all these are sharpened in his actions, and passed onto the next generation. Put simply, Jacob passes on the good news of God, through grace and promise fulfilled. Are we doing the same?

The bible is full of God making promises and fulfilling them. Genesis 46 and 47 is a key example of God demonstrating His faithfulness and keeping His promises. Knowing these promises first is really helpful!

At last we reach the pinnacle of the Joseph-Judah narrative, and perhaps the climax of Genesis as a whole! The dysfunctional nature of Jacob's family we saw two weeks ago is coming to a head. The Brothers are faced with one final test. Benjamin is found in possession of “stolen” silver. Will they abandon their half-brother Benjamin as they did Joseph all those long years ago? More importantly, how will they respond to Joseph's accusation “what is this you have done?”. Will they shift the blame… deny the accusations… or rationalise their actions.? Will they, like so many before them, dodge the question? The confrontation of the uncovering of guilt and sin has two paths. One of denial, blame shifting and mitigating. This path only leads to fractured and damaged relationships. The other, more difficult, path opens the possibility for repentance, forgiveness and reconciliation. We see this played out between Joseph and his brothers but also on a much larger scale between humans and God.

Today is Reformation Sunday – the day we remember when the great truths of God's word – salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, revealed in Scripture alone – were rediscovered during a period called the Reformation. Attributed to the work of Martin Luther, the Reformation began with him, but was often solidified and cemented by the second generation of reformers, men like John Calvin. Calvin is often connected, and often in a pejorative way, with Calvinism, his great writing called ‘The Institutes', and the straw-man theology that is often mis-labelled ‘predestination'. But, at the heart of Calvin's life work is the ‘glory of God' – the unavoidable and eternal significance of God for all life and truth and reality, revealed in Jesus Christ and spoken in God's word. For Calvin, this was the heart of all things.

Genesis recounts three great truths: how this world began, how this world was broken, and how this world will be fixed. At the heart of each truth is God. And at the heart of what God does is His commitment to His image-bearers. Throughout Genesis, God is unavoidably and unmistakably in charge. His actions to restore His creation are by His initiative (grace), received by trusting in what He does (faith), and completely undeserved by humanity (there is grace again). Committing through the family of Abraham, in covenant (a binding agreement between two parties), God commits to each subsequent generation to restore His world – His people, in His place, under His rule by His word. None of Abraham's family – or Isaac's – or Jacob's – recommend themselves. And yet, as we reach Joseph, in Egypt, God displays (yet again) that His initiative brings repentance and restoration. This news never gets old!

We all love an against-the-odds victory, don't we. Whether its Agincourt where 6,000 English longbowmen completely routed 30,000 French infantry and cavalry. Or Rorke's Drift where 150 British troops defended a farmhouse and wounded British soldiers against 4,000 Zulu warriors—11 Victoria Crosses were awarded that day. And a small group of Hussite peasants held off an army of 150,000 Crusaders who had laid siege to the city of Prague. All they had were sharpened tools but they repelled attacks for two days allowing a relief force to come to their aid. Of course, we are more familiar with the likes of Joshua at Jericho bringing down walls with God's power, and Gideon with clay jars and loud shouts causing a much greater army to be thrown into confusion. Time and again in the Old Testament we see God winning battles for His chosen people. Unlikely, unbelievable, miraculous victories. But of course, the greatest ever against-the-odds victory was won by God through His son Jesus. He defeated sin by dying on the cross and defeated death by rising from the grave. It doesn't matter who or what surrounds us we can be confident that we are secure in Christ.

Like a swimmer slowly drifting away from shore or a car ever so slightly moving away from the centre, if our lives are not centred on God and His word, we too are at risk of drifting away. Psalm 78 is a song from the heart of Aseph. It's a call to remember all that God has done for His people. How, even though (and in spite of!) His people's constant wandering away from Him, He faithfully cares for and provides for them. Ultimately we see this provision in King Jesus. Who “being compassionate, atoned for our iniquity” on the cross. The lesson we receive from Psalm 78 is not merely a history lesson, but a discipleship model. Aseph envisions that those who fear God will draw deep from the well of His word, and pass off the wondrous acts of the LORD to future generations “so that they would set their hope in God”.

Revelation has been a wild ride! The letters to the seven churches, the glimpse of heaven now, the cycles of the outpouring of judgement, the fall of Babylon, the fall of the Dragon. Now we reach the end, the consummation of all things. And what a glorious picture it is. God dwelling with His people, making all things new. The people of God worshiping God forever. The words of this book have been passed from the true and faithful witness to His witnesses in this earth as they wait and prepare. How will you let these words shape and guide you as you wait and prepare?

We come to a section of Revelation that has caused immense debate and discussion and division (Rev 20:1-6). It is a striking fact because it immediately places a huge weight on six verses that deal with something mentioned nowhere else in the Bible, as well as throw out the consistent way we have handled Revelation so far (remember apocalyptic imagery?). As people get entranced and distracted by Revelation 20:1-6 and the question of ‘chiliasm', they forget the clarity around this section: there will be a judgement day, and how are we preparing for that day? From another perspective, there are two feasts to which all humans are invited, and the key is how they deal with Jesus – will you be at the feast as an ‘eater' or as the ‘eaten'?

‘Babylon' is Biblical shorthand for ‘opposed to God'. It is the anti-God, seen in anti-church, and led by an anti-Christ. Its characteristics were established way back in Genesis 11:1-9, where humans banded together, not to build a tower, but to ‘make a name for ourselves' (Gen.11:4) – the tower expresses this. It is to oppose God, on every level. It creates an ‘anti-church', a community that is seduced by the lies of ‘I am God' and seduced by the indulgence and materialism that goes with that. It is led by an ‘anti-Christ', a messianic figure who mimics Jesus. And it will be defeated, by God. Such an expression has been evident across all time – from the ruthless nature of Rome, through the horror of Nazism, into the materialism of communism, and now in our slavery today to materialism, authentic experiences, and economic wellbeing. As we view the fall of Babylon, there should be rejoicing by God's mob. But there should also be sobriety, as we reflect on how seductive Babylon is…

Throughout Revelation we see God pouring out his judgments. But is he fair or is he over-reacting? 180 miles of blood up to the horses bridle seems a bit much! That's how chapter 14 ended. A gruesome image of God's wrath on those who remain in sin and that are counted as his enemies. Chapters 15 and 16 draw out an aspect of God's character that up to this point has not been spoken about. The song of Moses and of the Lamb declare that God is not only great and awe-inspiring but that he is also just and true. God will act against ungodliness but we are assured and comforted that he is just and true. What he says he will do. And what he does is right!

This next section of Revelation, of the ‘what will be', is a little less clear in its cycle of seven. We have had the seven seals. We have had the seven trumpets. And now, before the seven bowls, we get seven ‘signs', or pictures. At the heart of these ‘signs' is the great opposition of the devil to God and His rule through Jesus. At the heart of this great opposition is the establishment of a parody of God – an anti-Trinity of a dragon, a sea-beast and a land-beast. They mimic God, in His Trinitarian nature, in every way… but they persecute the people of God. And, in the context of this world, they can be seen to be embodied by any empire that sets itself up against God, claiming to be divine, offering messianic hope in policies and practices and power. In John's day, that could clearly be seen in the power of Rome. And it has been ever since, as political authorities claim the divine power to rule the world: think of Rome, think of Hitler, think of Pol Pot, think of Stalin, think of Idi Amin, think of any current ruler or pretender who portrays themselves in messianic terms. And, yet, they have already been defeated by the ‘blood of the Lamb' (12:11). The role of God's mob now is to proclaim this victory, and to experience the sweet bitterness of following in the footsteps of the Lamb.

The next set of seven unfolds before John. The sealed scroll is now fully opened. The prayers of God's people are heard. And now, reflecting the judgement of God on Egypt in Exodus, God now judges the idols of the world. As God does, He reveals their powerlessness in the face of His power, He reveals their damage in the face of His care, and He calls people to return to Him. God also reveals, in the interlude, the place of His people in all this. His people are to proclaim and prophecy. His people are kept safe, spiritually. His people will triumph, in exactly the same way Jesus did. As all things come to an end, we must recognise that what takes place here is both future-focused, but with wisdom and clarity for God's mob now. We must call the world to turn from giving devotion to anything but God; and, as we do, we must know that the world will lash out but we are safe.

The Lamb starts to open the seals on the scroll. The plan and promise of God—to deal with sin, to reverse the curse of sin, to restore his creation so that his people can dwell with him—starts to be implemented. As this unfolds, we must remember several truths. First, God is on the throne of the universe. Second, the Lamb/Lion has all authority to open this scroll, because he has already beaten sin and death. Third, what happens now is ‘what will take place'. But, fourth, this is not a description of consecutive events, but a look at the one period, from different angles. There is repetition here as the same period is looked at in a set pattern—and the recapitulation intensifies the moment each time. Fifth, these events are looked at in a pattern of seven—they are the complete events, under the control of God.

Revelation is the clarifying big picture, of the faithful witness (Jesus), written by a faithful witness (John) so that God's mob might be faithful witnesses. To be such a witness is to someone who steadfastly and consistently and enduringly proclaims and practices the truth of Jesus, and points this out to the world. Revelation's clarifying big picture is intended to encourage and equip and confront and explain, so that God's mob steadfastly witness to Jesus. In this context, what we saw last week (ch.2-3) was ‘what was', so that we might be confronted and comforted by Jesus. And this week, we are looking at ‘what is' (ch.4-5) - a glorious vision of the sovereign rule and judgement of God himself, through Jesus, over all the affairs of this world, and history.

The risen and glorified Jesus stands among the 7 lampstands and the 7 churches of Asia. What will Jesus' evaluation of his church be? “Great work, keep going”? “How far you have fallen”? It's a mixed bag as we'll see. The churches are judged not by world standards but by Jesus' standard. He both comforts and confronts the churches, as he declares he knows their deeds and desires. The churches, while all different in unique settings, fit into three categories. They are at risk of assimilation (Ephesus, Pergamum, Thyatira), risk of persecution (Smyrna, Philadelphia), and risk of complacency (Sardis, Laodicea). How will the churches survive these risks? Jesus spurs on his followers with the promise of reward to those who conquer.

We live in unsettling times. Everyone seems to be saying this, and we feel it as we navigate news, current affairs, day-to-day life, and even personal relationships. All of us try to make sense of these times through explanations—narratives, if you like. For some, these narratives reveal a suspicion of deeper forces at work. For others, these narratives reveal an emphasis on individual authenticity. For some of us, the narratives reveal a deep gloom and hopelessness, and for others they reveal an indulgent and exulting ‘living in the now'. God has a revealing truth—a narrative—for his people, that speaks into every moment of their lives here in this deeply unsettling world. And at its heart, this revelation speaks simply: God is in charge, which is seen in Jesus winning. That is Revelation!

Most of you know what a legal appeal process is. If you are not satisfied with a court decision you can appeal the decision. Normally the appeal will go to a higher court. There, the decision will be reviewed. There are a number of possible outcomes from an appeal. The original decision might be overturned, the sentence might be reduced, or it might possibly be upgraded. We are looking at an appeal today. Psalm 38 is David's appeal to God. David has committed a sin. God is disciplining him because of that sin and David is struggling, really struggling, with that discipline and so he makes an appeal.

We can all look back on a time - or times - when God was at work in our lives, but we couldn't see it at the time. We had fears or troubles or temptations and it seemed like God wasn't there. We've all heard the saying that if you feel like God is not beside you then it's you who has moved away. David must have felt a bit like that in his fleeing from Saul. Deceiving Saul, lying to the priest at Nob, and pretending to be insane amongst the Philistines, because in the moment he was fearing man more than God and had forgotten all the times God had been with him. Earlier when Samuel anointed David we are told “the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on David from that day forward” and we see God at work protecting him, but David, like us, had forgotten. But looking back and writing this Psalm he is reminded and able to see what God has done and his response is praise, to call the people to praise with him. He calls people to seek the Lord, to obey the Lord and to take refuge in Him because: “The Lord redeems the life of His servants, and all who take refuge in Him will not be punished”

Psalm 19 is a beautiful prayer that points to the greatness of our God, His perfect and enduring word, and our need for a Saviour, Jesus. Here is the gospel! How will you respond?

Romans 11

Power, authority and… image. Over the past 7 weeks we have seen the increasing opposition to Jesus from the established rulers (Pharisees, elders, chief priest). This week it has reached the point where they are actively seeking to trap Jesus in His words. And what better trap than the age old hot button topic of politic and religion. Like a cat among the pigeons, surely this question will unsettle Jesus forcing Him to alienate one side or another. But Jesus, as He has previously done, turns the question around, forcing His accusers, and us reading today, to answer the uncomfortable question of ‘who's authority do we recognise and sit under' and ‘in who's image do we live?'. If we as image bearers of God are called to “give back to God what is God's”… what does that mean for our lives, here and now?

This is the third of three parables that Jesus teaches on His second day in Jerusalem. The first two very clearly confront the religious leaders of Israel (God's mob) with this question: ‘What have you done with the beautiful thing that the Lord has done?' (Matt.21:42). And the religious leaders are condemned by Jesus' words – they have rejected Jesus, and they are judged. This third parable makes the same point – but then turns to God's mob (the disciples and those they will bring in), and warns them from the example of the religious leadership: to be in the kingdom of God, to be dependent, is to live as someone in the kingdom of God, dependent upon Jesus. To be in the kingdom is to live in the kingdom! This is a very serious, but encouraging, warning to God's mob. Anyone can be welcomed into the kingdom of God, through Jesus – but this will not, and should not, leave you unchanged!

Jesus is still in the temple following on from last week's authority question from the chief priests and elders. In response to the weak non-answer, Jesus tells them two parables about vineyards to expose their lack of dependence on God, the vineyard owner. Unlike other parables which Jesus had to explain, there is no need for explanation here. Everyone knew what He meant. In the first parable the insiders (2nd son) were not being obedient and so were judged. The judgement was that the outsiders (1st son) who repented and obeyed, were entering the kingdom before them. In the second parable we see Israel's history in a few sentences. God planted a vineyart (Israel), and it, or its tenants, didn't live how they should have. Servants (prophets) were sent but were ignored at best, but mostly killed. He sent his beloved sone and they killed him as well. In judgement, the vineyard owner will remove the insider tenants and bring the outsiders in to do the job that the leaders of Israel weren't doing. Jesus is the stone thrown to the discard pile by Israel, but God has made Him the cornerstone. We reject Him at our peril.