Now often I find art stupid, rubbish, pretentious, etc etc – I'm sure it's because I don't understand it.
This this is stupendously good – I genuinely couldn't believe my eyes the first time I saw it..
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Over the years I have frequently thought about the relationship between the uncompromising ethical stance of much of the New Testament (not least the Sermon on the Mount), and salvation as the free gift of God, through the cross, while we were still God's enemies.
With the help of various theologians (John Calvin, Karl Barth etc), as well as sustained reflection on the Bible (not just the New Testament) I have come to think of it in terms of a response. We are given a free gift of live, salvation through Jesus Christ, which we must live out. We must live a life worthy of the calling we have received.
But of course the context of that life is always that it is a free gift. We didn't earn it in the first place, and we can't mess up so badly that there is no way back. We can't lose our salvation in Christ through our failure to live it out. There is nothing we can do that is so bad God won't forgive us—if we repent.
And right there is the crux of the issue. We can stuff things up terribly, but if we repent and turn back to God, he will forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Although our sin cuts us off from God, there is always a way back, through the cross, if we repent.
Unrepentance I think comes in two guises: first, refusing to repent of what we know is sinful behaviour (this is the most obvious kind); second (more subtly perhaps), failing to acknowledge that we are simul iustus et peccatore, at once justified and sinner, and that we do mess things up.
The first is perhaps more common in our individual lives, the second much more common in our communities. In many (evangelical) churches I have been privileged to be a part of, there has been an unspoken culture / expectation that actually things are all right for everyone. Maybe that's my perception, I don't know, but that's how I've felt.
When the culture is like that, it is very difficult for individuals to acknowledge serious failures. Yeah we can all say a confession, I haven't put God first, that kind of stuff, but when there is a serious problem, the sense of failure is so strong that it is difficult to tell anyone, because you are worried they will judge you for not being a good enough Christian (or whatever).
I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking that. Often in churches it can feel as if we are expected to be perfect, so when things aren't it is very difficult to talk to anyone about it. Somehow we need to create an atmosphere in which failure (privately and publicly), while not accepted as 'right', is not condemned or judged, but accepted as 'real' and worked through, drawing on God's grace and power.
We need to create communities of grace (I'm sure I've not made that phrase up, but I don't know where it's come from), which accept sinners, but challenge sin and encourage an atmosphere of repentance and forgiveness.
We need not to expect people to be perfect, or even close, but to be real about the messed-up world we live in, that things don't always work out, that people get things wrong, that we all do, just some of us more obviously than others. People need to be aware of all that, so they feel comfortable and able to be real and honest, to share where they are really at, so that sin can be dealt with in God's way (by repentance and forgiveness) rather than being allowed to fester within our congregations.
I watched an excellent programme on BBC One last night, called the Narnia Code.
One of the points of the documentary was that CS Lewis preferred a medieval understanding of the universe to the modern scientific one, which he claimed made things cold and mechanical.
A couple of the interviewees (which included John Polkinghorne) made this point: science is very good at answering its own questions (how does this work, what happens if we do this, etc).
But there are two important questions that science can't answer:
Why is there something rather than nothing?
Why is nature ordered and comprehensible?
I'm sure there are others, but these two are a good start. This is from The Voyage of the Dawntreader:
"In our world," said Eustace, "a star is a huge ball of flaming gas."
"Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is but only what it is made of."
We need to ask both kinds of questions, I think – and use science and theology together to enrich our understanding of the universe.
By this I don't mean Proverbs that necessarily are Good News, but the translation of the Proverbs in the Good News translation of the Bible. One or two have actually made me laugh out loud, because the language is so blunt and in-your-face. Here are some examples, in the Good News and ESV:
10.13
Intelligent people talk sense, but stupid people need to be punished. (GNB)
On the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found, but a rod is for the back of him who lacks sense. (ESV)
10.21
A good person's words will benefit many people, but you can kill yourself with stupidity. (GNB)
The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense. (ESV)
11.26
People curse someone who hoards gran, waiting for a higher price, but they praise the one who puts it up for sale. (GNB)
The people curse him who holds back grain, but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it. (ESV)
12.8
If you are intelligent, you will be praised; if you are stupid, people will look down on you. (GNB)
A man is commended according to his good sense, but one of twisted mind is despised. (ESV)
12.15
Stupid people always think they are right. Wise people listen to advice. (GNB)
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice. (ESV)
12.25
Worry can rob you of happiness, but kind words will cheer you up. (GNB)
Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad. (ESV)
13.16
Sensible people always think before they act, but stupid people advertise their ignorance. (GNB)
In everything the prudent acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly. (ESV)
14.13
Laughter may hide sadness. When happiness is gone, sorry is always there. (GNB)
Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief. (ESV)
14.29 (one for me)
If you stay calm, you are wise, but if you have a hot temper, you only show how stupid you are. (GNB)
Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. (ESV)
15.4
Kind words bring life, but cruel words crush your spirit. (GNB)
A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit. (ESV)
15.13
When people are happy, they smile, but when they are sad, they look depressed. (GNB)
A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is crushed. (ESV)
15.17
Better to eat vegetables with people you love than to eat the finest meat where there is hate. (GNB)
Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it. (ESV)
15.19
If you are lazy, you will meet difficulty everywhere, but if you are honest, you will have no trouble. (GNB)
The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns, but the path of the upright is a level highway. (ESV)
16.22
Wisdom is a fountain of life to the wise, but trying to educate stupid people is a waste of time. (GNB)
Good sense is a fountain of life to him who has it, but the instruction of fools is folly. (ESV)
16.24
Kind words are like honey – sweet to the taste and good for your health. (GNB)
Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body. (ESV)
17.10
An intelligent person learns more from one rebuke than a fool learns from being beaten a hundred times. (GNB)
A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool. (ESV)
17.12
It is better to meet a mother bear with her robbed of her cubs than to meet some fool busy with a stupid project. (GNB)
Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly. (ESV)
17.22
Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is slow death to be gloomy all the time. (GNB)
A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (ESV)
18.2
A fool does not care whether he understands a thing or not; all he wants to do is to show how clever he is. (GNB)
A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion. (ESV)
18.13
Listen before you answer. If you don't you are being stupid and insulting. (GNB)
If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. (ESV)
18.20-21
You will have to live with the consequences of everything you say. What you say can preseve life or destroy it; so you must accept the consequences of your words. (GNB)
From the fruit of a man's mouth his stomach is satisfied; he is satisfied by the yield of his lips. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits. (ESV)
That's enough for now – as you can see a lot of the ones I've chosen revolve around the word 'stupid'. But it does highlight the difference in translation philosophies – the ESV is 'essentially literal', whereas the GNB is 'dynamically equivalent'. In other words, the ESV simply tries to translate word-for-word, whereas the GNB tries to explain some of the Hebrew / Greek idioms in plain English.
I have to say reading the GNB this year is very refreshing, after reading the ESV last year. I'm especially enjoying the Proverbs – no doubt more will follow!
What makes a good sermon? We are having a preachers' meeting this evening at church, and at our staff meeting this lunchtime we discussed the kinds of things we look for in a good sermon.
We suggested things like:
- Bible-based
- Applied, relevant to everyday life
- Good illustrations
- Authoritative
- Passionate
- Appropriate length (!)
- Transformational / affirming / encouraging
- Having a clear aim
To which I would add:
- Prophetic
- Challenging
- Prayerful and well-prepared
These are things that we do not look for:
- Too long
- Personal (not-so-humble) opinions
- Like a lecture (all teaching, no application)
- Emotionalism
- Inappropriate language
To which I would add:
- Boring (!)
- Lots of jokes – we should try to make people smile, but they are not in a comedy club, they are in a church
I can remember being told that every good sermon needs exposition, illustration and application. The question of length is a bit tricker. How long is too long?
Actually, I think that depends on the preacher. Some preachers can preach for 10-15 minutes, and it becomes painful. Others can preach for 30 minutes plus, and you don't notice the time go by.
Personally, I always aim for 20-30 minutes, because I think anything less than that only really scratches the surface of what you can say. It enables you to have much more flexibility in what you are saying. However, if you can't hold people's attention for that amount of time, you need to preach shorter sermons!
Application is the thing I find most difficult when I'm preaching, and the thing I pray about most when I'm preparing a sermon. Apart from the most difficult passages, I generally find the exposition part easier. Organising the sermon so it is faithful to the passage, and also applied and relevant, is a difficult skill.
Passion is something I love to see in preachers. I love to see it when the preacher has obviously wrestled with a text, when it has obviously spoken to them during the week.
The clear aim is something I used to write for each sermon I wrote, but I've got out of the habit. I guess it is always in the back of my mind, but it is helpful to write it down – especially if you have to prepare a shorter talk – because it helps you to keep on topic!
Illustrations can be hard – but they don't need to be long, nor do they need to be funny. Word pictures are much more effective than a joke – no matter how funny – that has been shoe-horned to fit the context.
The prophetic element is interesting, but when I pray while preparing a sermon that is always a big part of what I ask God for. For me, the prophetic ministry is exercised primarily through biblical preaching. So I wouldn't call myself a prophet, but I do try and make my sermons prophetic.
Finally, should sermons always seek to change the congregation? Probably – but we don't want to give people the impression all the time that they are not good enough. I know, I know – they aren't 'good enough' – but there is a place for encouragement and affirmation of the great truths of the faith, which doesn't challenge people to change their behaviour but helps renew our minds.
I could write a lot more about preaching. But I'll stop there. 500 words is quite enough!
I enjoy listening to Test Match Special (TMS) on BBC Radio 4 – usually. During the current test series there has been a lot of fuss about the new referrals system, which is cricket's attempt at using modern technology to ensure accuracy in umpiring decisions.
They seem to me to be making a bit of a shambles of it. They have got a mix of the implementation of technology in tennis and in rugby – the teams can question an umpiring decision that they disagree with.
This seems to me to be a nonsense. In rugby, the umpire makes the final decision – and has the option of referring it to the video referee if he has any doubt. This would seem to me to be the best way of implementing technology in cricket as well. The referee's decision is final – but if he has a doubt about (say) an LBW or a run-out, he can ask the fourth official.
Then the teams have no say in it. The umpires always have the final say – just like in rugby.
Ooops – Gmail has a major server error, not just on Gmail itself, but also on Gmail for Apps. The web is afire with complaints, and the BBC are reporting it here. For the latest status updates, the Gmail help and status page is here.
This must be a pretty major error, as it appears to be affecting pretty much everyone – except that I can read my emails on my iPod! I have no problems connecting there. The trouble is, of course, I think this may be affecting delivery of emails too – although I can see my inbox, there's no new mail. Of course it could just be a slow day...
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