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From the Minister’s Study
Pillar
of salt or salt of the earth?
We say goodbye to the year 2001
and welcome 2002. What a year we have had! New Circuit magazine, new Circuit
Office, new Circuit photocopier, new site for a new church complex, newly
reconstituted Youth Club at Dearnley, new Children’s Club at Greenhill, an
Alpha course at Smithy Bridge, a monthly Bible teaching session, an
Evangelism Explosion Seminar for the Circuit, a newly accredited Local
Preacher, a new Local Preacher on note, a candidate for full-time ministry, a
new electronic piano at Dearnley and the list goes on. It was a year full of
tough challenges as well, which were dealt with graciously. On balance, the
achievements and blessings of the year far outweigh the challenges.
There
is a great temptation to look back to the year gone by. There is an even
greater danger of focusing on the year that has gone and failing to move on
to new ventures in the New Year. Every New Year presents two choices: to be
prisoners of history or prisoners of hope. Last year is now history. The New
Year brings hope of new things and new opportunities. In order to exploit
these we need to yet the year that has gone be gone.
In
his Manifesto, commonly known as the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said to his
disciples: ‘You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its
saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything,
except to be thrown out and trampled by men’ (Mt 5:13). What did he mean
by that? One commentator points out that the prophets, who went before him,
were the salt of the land of Canaan, but the followers of Jesus were the salt
of the whole earth, implying that they were to permeate the whole world as
salt permeates food, working silently. He goes on to point out that one
handful of salt would diffuse its savour far and wide and work quietly and
irresistibly like leaven. The teaching implied here is that the Gospel is
like salt: it is penetrating, quick and powerful (Heb. 4:12), and pierces to
the heart (Acts 2:37).
If
the followers of Christ behave as they should, they are as good as salt,
small, white, broken grains here and there, but very necessary if society is
to be preserved. Pliny, at the time of the early Church, commented, ‘sine
sale, vita humana non potest degree’—without salt human life
cannot be sustained. The wider teaching of this verse is that the followers
of Jesus exist to be dispersed, they must not be kept in a heap—an advanced
warning to his followers not to continue always together at Jerusalem, but to
be scattered, like salt on meat. Implied also in this teaching is that
Christians do not have to be in a majority to influence society. Always in
the minority, but permeating society with the flavouring, preservative effects
of the Gospel. Applying this to out context, it means that the 175 members
who form this circuit, acting as salt, have the ability to permeate
Littleborough and transform it for Christ. D. Fraser comments that ‘Our Lord
requires that all who follow Him shall have that style of character which
savours of the Kingdom of Heaven and so exert a morally antiseptic influence
on others.’
Later
in His teaching (Luke 17:32), Jesus referred to Lot’s wife (Genesis 19:6),
who became a pillar of salt. Although the main teaching here was a warning
against apostasy and the danger of relapse, I use it here to strike a
contrast. Salt lumped together (a pillar of salt), not moving or permeating
society, is less useful. When the Church spends its energy on self-preservation,
and ceases to be a movement for change, it becomes a monument of the past.
The body of Lot’s wife metamorphosed into an inorganic substance, a pillar of
salt, a monument that that would last perpetually but without effect or
influence on society. One commentator points out that, ‘This pillar of salt
should season us: since it is such a dangerous thing to look back, let us
press forward’ (Phil. 3:13–14). The past leaves us with monuments, memories,
which are good to treasure, if we use them to help us move forward.
Let
me suggest three dangers of looking back. Firstly, looking back saps
our confidence for the future. Our faith in God who acted in the past should
focus us and propel us forward with eyes fixed wholly on His providence for
the future. Secondly, looking back leads to indecision. Bush comments
that, ‘While we lament her fate, let us profit by her example: one look
behind is fatal, she perished by a look.’ Thirdly, looking back stops
us dreaming into the future, while looking forward helps us to focus on our
dreams. Dreaming is part and parcel of any achievement. Eleanor Roosevelt
once said, ‘The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their
dreams,’ and Kenneth Hilderbrand along similar lines, said, ‘Strong lives are
motivated by dynamic purposes.’
Let
me illustrate this. Thomas Edison, inventor of the light bulb, phonograph
player and motion pictures, started as six-year-old boy who dreamed of a way
to make hens’ eggs hatch faster. His solution was to sit on the eggs himself!
That was the first glimmer of his genius and the start of ideas that would
change the world. What about Hewlett Packard? Perhaps some of us use his
computers. The Hewlett Packard Information System was started by two
tinkerers, who set up a shop in the garage of their home, with the dream of
reaching the cutting edge of technology. One of their first inventions was an
electronic harmonica tuner. What about the late Dr Christiaan Barnard, the
first surgeon to perform a successful human heart transplant? He started as a
GP who dreamed of performing a surgical procedure everyone thought was
impossible. His goal was to fulfil his dream before rheumatoid arthritis
prevented him from operating.
In
his book, All you can do is all you can do, but all you can do is enough,
A. L. Wiliams makes the point that, ‘When people feel like they are
doing something to help other people, something that has meaning, their lives
have a new purpose.’ The Great Commission, given nearly 2000 years ago in
Mat. 28: 19-20, has been not only one of the greatest cures for human misery,
but also the greatest motivator to those who live by it. Commenting on what
makes business successful, Williams says, ‘Don’t let your respect for modern
technology replace the fundamentals.’ One of our Christians fundamentals in
carrying out the Great Commission is talking to people. Leafletting is
a useful tool in our modern world, but this alone will not bring people to
Christ, or even to Church, for that matter. We have to befriend them and
bring them to Christ in person. A failing insurance company in Chicago called
in a marketing consultant to analyse what was wrong with their business. The
company was averaging only about 2 sales per agent per month. The Managing
Director had tried everything to get the company moving for two years, but
without success. When the experts finished their analysis, they told the
company, ‘Your Number One problem is that you just aren’t seeing enough
people.’
I
am fully persuaded that one of the reasons for Church decline and the
stagnation of the Church in Britain is not so much that it is harder to bring
people to Christ than in former generations, but that most Christians will go
to great lengths to avoid direct, face-to-face contact with non-Christians
when it comes to inviting Christ into their lives. It is my hypothesis that
too many Christians spend too much time with fellow Christians and not enough
time with non-Christians to influence them with the Gospel. I implore each
one of us to re-evaluate how we spend our time in this New Year, and to try
and spend more time with non-Christians, exposing them to our ‘saltiness’.
Thomas Edison once remarked, ‘Opportunity is missed by most people because it
is dressed in overalls and looks like work.’ Yes, spending time with non-Christians
may not be as enjoyable as with fellow Christians, but it presents a
wonderful opportunity for sharing the Gospel. We need to remember that most
of them are seeking and although the opportunity may look like hard work, it
could surprise us, because God is at work in non-believers. It was the famous
sportsman Steve Bartowski who said, ‘If you don’t stand for something you’ll
fall for anything.’ If we stand for the Gospel, and are prepared prayerfully
to share it, God will provide the opportunity. If we don’t stand for the
Gospel, we will find ourselves discussing the weather all the time.
But
the greatest impediment seems to be the lack of plans and dreams for
outreach. My dream, with God’s help, is to double this Circuit. It is a
reasonable dream given the resources we have by way of people and facilities.
I believe that each member of our churches has a gift or talent to use in
building up this Circuit. Since last year, I have encouraged each of our
chapels to dream their dreams: I still do. I am encouraging everybody in our
Circuit to become a dreamer, and to dream big, to have a crusade, to be
passionate about something. Yes, our Circuit may be the smallest, but its
compact suburban nature gives us a wonderful opportunity, with so many
non-believers on our doorsteps. As I look at our five fine buildings and
schoolrooms, I see a marvellous opportunity to reach out to young families
and youth. Yes, I believe that with a vision, there is no doubt that
Littleborough can become the ‘Lit-borough.’ Catch the vision for the New
Year.
Have a very Happy New Year 2002
with a BIG VISION.
Daniel
Anno
Domini 2002
This month sees the start of the
new year, 2002 ad. A coin minted this year will have the date printed as 2002
ad, ‘the year of our Lord, 2002.’
Have
you noticed how the initials ad are so rarely used these days? Until quite
recently, a date was always followed by ‘bc’ or ‘ad,’ because an event
occurred either before Christ (bc) or after his birth, in which case it was
termed the year of the Lord, Anno Domini (ad).
But
more recently, a new trend has started. We now see CE or BCE, which means
‘Christian era’ (after the birth of Christ) and ‘before Christian era.’
But
the movement to diminish the influence of Christianity has progressed further
still. It is now possible to find the initials CE and BCE defined as ‘common
era’ and ‘before common era,’ with the word ‘Christian’ removed completely.
This
downgrading of the way we cite a year has accompanied the way we downgrade
our Christian observance. As a country, as a Church and as individual
Christians, so often we ignore God. So as this new year starts. remember that
it is His¾ 2002 is the year of the Lord 2002, and should be lived for Him and dedicated to
Him. Happy New Year!
Why did
St Paul write so much?
St Paul must have been a prolific
author. He wrote letters (we call them ‘epistles’) to Churches in Rome,
modern-day Turkey (letters to the Galatians, the Colossians, Thessalonians
and Philippians) and Greece (the epistles to the Corinthians). He also wrote
to his pupils Timothy and Titus, and, perhaps he also wrote to a Church made
up of Jewish converts (the letter to the Hebrews).
Paul
considered himself to be the apostle to non-Jewish people (the ‘gentiles’),
and jealously guarded the purity of each church he founded. He travelled
widely, visiting the Churches as often as possible, and encouraged to keep in
touch. He appointed leaders in each church (calling them ‘elders’) as
spiritual administrators so that, when he was away, each church could be
self-governing.
Periodically,
the churches encountered problems they felt unable to deal with on their own:
usually the queries concerned matters of doctrine or discipline. Elders from
the local churches then wrote letters to Paul, asking his advice on how to
deal with matters as varied as sexual scandals and how to administer the
Lord’s supper. And Paul replied to each. Generally, Paul appears to be a man
who encourages and wants the local elders to grow in confidence and
authority: he gives detailed advice to enable them to deal with the problems
themselves.
Unfortunately,
we do not possess the whole correspondence, and only have St Paul’s replies,
which demonstrate three things. Firstly, that the early churches were
filled with real people who were just like us in being a mixture of new and
mature Christians. But all of them needed God’s advice via Paul.
Secondly,
the epistles show that St Paul was utterly uncompromising about standards of
behaviour, morality and doctrine. Christians had to be pure and holy, and had
to believe in the truth, and act accordingly. Nothing less would do.
And,
thirdly, the fact that the churches kept copies of Paul’s letters and
distributed copies amongst themselves shows that they did not regard them as mere
letters. Paul was an apostle, and had God’s authority. St Peter recognised
this fact when he wrote the letter that we now call his second epistle: in 2
Peter 3:16, he calls Paul’s letters ‘Scripture’ i.e. inspired by God.
And
if Paul’s letters were inspired by God and useful for teaching when Paul was
away in other countries, how much more do we need to read them today!
We
start with worship
Who are the ministers in the
‘Lit-borough’ Circuit? You will probably answer by saying Daniel, Gill and
Jack. But I would suggest that you are wrong. I think that God calls every
lay person to be a minister. Daniel, Gill and Jack have been ordained to
assist us, guide us and teach us how to minister to the people in this area,
and to build up the Church. They are there to help us find out what our place
is in the body of Christ, and show us how to evangelise.
Don’t
let that word put you off or worry you. We don’t necessarily have to go
knocking on doors or be a Barry Woodward. But where do we start? What
do we do?
We
start with worship. Not just attending a Sunday Service for an hour of
hymns, prayers and a sermon, but spending time with God on a daily basis,
quietly becoming aware of His presence, worshipping Him, praising Him, giving
Him the glory for all things, letting Him know that we love Him and receiving
His unlimited love. We will then be spirit filled. Within our Churches and
Circuit, we will become a real fellowship, one caring, sharing, loving
family.
When
we reach this stage, the difference in our attitudes, words and actions will
be noticed, and we will find ourselves ministering to others. By our very
words and deeds, we will evangelise. It will happen naturally as the love of
Jesus flows through, nourished by worship and fellowship. But worship is our top
priority. Worship will release God’s power in our lives. We will be aware of
it in our own lives and in the lives of our Church family.
Look
at some of the great events mentioned in the Bible, and you find out that
worship was involved:
·
Three
thousand were saved at the day of Pentecost, which started for the disciples
with prayer. They then received the Holy Spirit. Then they praised God in
foreign languages. and evangelised¾ spread the Good News.
·
The
people worshipped daily at the Temple, and each day new believers were
added to the Church.
·
When
Peter and John healed the lame man at the Beautiful Gate, they were on their
way to worship.
·
Peter’s
magnificent sermon (Acts 2) was the by-product of worship and an infilling of
the Holy Spirit.
If you enter St John’s Church,
Smallbridge and look up, you will see the words, ‘O worship the Lord in the
beauty of holiness.’ And if you enter Dearnley Methodist Church and look up
above the pulpit, you will see the word ‘Love.’
Let
us first worship on a daily basis, and then we will experience love.
Derek Ackroyd
Samaritan
Kindness
Some students at theological
college were asked to preach on the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30).
When the hour arrived for their sermon, each was deliberately delayed en
route to class. As the students raced across campus, they encountered a
person who pretended to be in need. Ironically, not one of them stopped.
After all, they had an important sermon to preach.
Followers
of Jesus can preach powerful sermons to the world when they reflect God’s
kindness by showing Samaritan kindness to others, and not just talking about
it.
And
what about us? Every time we meet someone in need, we live the parable of the
Good Samaritan. Do we take the time and trouble to get involved? Perhaps we
can assist a neighbour who is in material need, or lend a sympathetic ear to
a troubled person. Maybe we can share the Gospel with someone the Lord brings
into our lives today. Or will we be like those who passed by on the other
side and offered no help?
Let’s
honour the Lord by responding to the needs of others as he would.
What is a family? There are many
definitions but this is one that many may like to read: a family is people
who care when you’re sad; who love no matter what; who share their triumphs;
who don’t expect you to be perfect; who just grow with honesty in your own direction.
’I didn’t even like
her’
When Missy started her new job in
the factory, she was determined to let her light shine for the Lord. But as
soon as she met Louise, her work partner, she knew it wasn’t going to be
easy. Louise was brassy, defensive and crude, and ridiculed everything that
Missy did. When Missy tried to befriend Louise and tell her about Jesus, she
was rejected with the words, ‘I tried that and it didn’t work.’
Missy
asked God for help. She opened her Bible at John 13:34,
A new commandment I give you,
that you love one another as I have loved you
So Missy kept trying to show
love. But all she met was hardness.
After
a particularly rough day at work, Missy opened her Bible again, and cried out
to God. Again, her eye fell on John 13:34. ‘But I don’t even like her!’ Missy
complained.
One
day Louise sat beside Missy at break, and said, ‘You’re the only person who
cares.’ Then she poured out a story of heartache and trouble. Missy put her
arms around her and they became friends. Louise attended the Church with
Missy and, after a struggle, opened her heart to Jesus.
This
is a true story, and it has a happy ending . . . but not all do. Even so, as
faithful followers of Jesus, we are to let his light shine through our love.
The people we like the
least may need our love the most
Did You Know?
St Paul lived in the Greek city
of Corinth during the years 50 and 51 ad (Acts 18:12 allows us to date his
time exactly there), and wrote several letters while there. He earned his
living in Corinth as a tentmaker (see Acts 18:1–3), which would have allowed
him much trade, because Corinth was a major sea-port. Those taking passage on
a ship would buy or hire a small tent to protect them from the sun and sea
spray while on board, and to shelter them when they camped at night on a
lonely beach.
Corinth was also the host site
for the Isthmus Games, which were second in importance only to the Olympic
Games. Visitors to the Isthmus Games lived in tents surrounding the games’
arena, and shopkeepers sold their wares in their midst. The Isthmus Games
were celebrated in the Spring of 51 ad, and seem to have given Paul a host of
sporting metaphors for inclusion within the letters he wrote back to the
Church in Corinth. He thinks of wrestling and boxing in 1 Cor 9:16 and 2 Cor
4:8,9, running in 1 Cor 9:24–5, and winning a victor’s crown in 1 Cor 9:25.
Notes
+ Quotes + Anecdotes
A Happy New year to you
all.
New Year’s resolutions?
I’m not so good at those, are you? But how about the lovely old chorus (when
did you last sing it?) by way of a prayer for 2002?
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me:
All His wonderful passion and purity.
Come thou Spirit divine
All my nature refine
And let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.
Christianity
is not a new leaf but a new life
Christianity is not a religion but
a relationship
The Bible is the only book whose Author is always present
when it is read
Cameo Character
Corner
C A L E B . .
.
Sent by Moses to assess
the
land of Canaan (Numbers 13:21)
Gave an honest report of what he saw (Nu 13:30)
Held fast to his belief that God was with him (Nu 14:6–9)
Wholly followed the Lord (Nu 32:11,12)
Received his inheritance that God promised
(Joshua
14:13,14)
He brought rest from war and peace to
Hebron
(Joshua 14:15)
Florence
From a Church Noticeboard:
For
those of you who have children and don't know it,
we have a nursery downstairs
Cover the wold in Prayer: Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe was one of Africa’s most
successful economies in the 1980s, but was dismantled during the 1990s by the
corruption and military adventurism of the government, and by the ruling
party. The decline has been accelerated by periodic droughts, the huge impact
of AIDS (25% of all adults are HIV+, and there are now 1 million AIDS orphans
in Zimbabwe), and the plundering of many of the white-owned farms on which
the economy and the urban population depend for food. Unemployment has risen
to above 60%. The population is 11.7 million.
 Zimbabwe
became fully independent of British colonial rule in 1980. The ruling party,
Zanu PF, has so mis-managed the economy that the increasingly unpopular
President Mugabe has only been able to hold onto power by intimidating all
who speak against him. After losing a referendum and only winning the 2000
election by massive intimidation and election fraud, the country has become a
virtual dictatorship. The sending of troops in 1998 to support the Kabila
regime in Congo has been an economic disaster for the country, but has
enriched army and political elites.
71%
of the population is Christian, 26% follow traditional African religions or
are non-religious and 1% are Muslim. The Protestant and independent churches
are growing strongly, and there is great freedom to preach the Gospel in
public, in the media, in schools and prisons, despite the worsening political
situation.
Please
pray:
·
For
a more just Government, that will put the needs of the nation before its own.
Pray for early, non-violent change. Malnutrition, food shortages and
unemployment are causing unrest, which leads to more repression.
·
For
successful programmes to stop the spread of AIDS: government neglect, lack of
healthcare resources, and promiscuity have led to an AIDS catastrophe. Pray
for changed attitudes to sex and to AIDS itself, and for effective church and
government action to combat the virus.
·
Land
needs to be redistributed, but the current state-sponsored anarchy lets ‘war
veterans’ seize land from white farmers, and puts the labourers out of work,
and causes the land to go uncultivated and leads to food shortages. Pray
for a return to the rule of law and for a just solution to the problem
·
For
the training of new Church leaders to meet the needs of the growing church.
Spiritual unity within and between the different churches is needed. Pray that
the Church will take a clear moral stand on social, political and economic
issues, and pray for the safety of those who have spoken out bravely and are
under threat of violence.
·
For
outreach to areas where little has so far been done: rural areas, urban
shanty towns, minority ethnic groups and Muslims.
·
For
mission work. IFES is working among students in colleges and universities, Scripture
Union is doing outreach in secondary schools and educating young people
about AIDS. The Bible Society is involved with the large-scale
printing and distribution of Scriptures, as are various tract societies,
Christian bookshops and mission teams who are using audiovisual materials to
reach out to unreached people groups¾ TV, radio and the ‘Jesus’ film are all
effective tools. 19 different languages are spoken in Zimbabwe: only 11 have
the whole Bible, 2 have just the New Testament, 3 have portions of Scripture,
and translation work is in progress on the remaining 4 languages.
(Information from Operation World, Published by Paternoster Press)
Sign on a Church Noticeboard:
Low self-esteem support
group will meet Thursday.
Please use the back door
Dearnley Greenhill Smallbridge
Smithy Bridge Wardle
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