GENESIS AND SCIENCE: THE WAR OF THE WORLDVIEWS

There is no doubt that science and technology have transformed our world.  We have developed medicines that help us live longer and resist deadly infections that previously killed millions.  We have developed electricity, cars, computers, the internet, space craft.

Just think back over your day: how much science and technology have you benefitted from using – from the moment the alarm went on your phone, to your electric toothbrush, to boiling the kettle for a cup of tea …

Some people hope that one day science will be able to solve all our problems and answer all our questions about life, the universe and everything.  At the same time, scepticism about the Bible’s account of creation has increased.

BRAINSTORMING SESSION: In light of science, what are some of the common questions/objections about the opening chapters of Genesis?

We’ll return to consider some of these specific issues later tonight but first I want to reframe the subject.  There is no battle between the Bible and Science.  The first scientists believed that the Bible and the natural world are God’s “two books” - they don’t conflict with each other when rightly interpreted.  Instead, there is a battle raging between two worldviews or philosophies: Theistic Science vs Atheist Science.  It is inherently a religious argument based on faith, although few scientists will admit that. 

Everyone has some belief about what came first – what is the ultimate reality – that is the foundation of their worldview.  For example, the atheist scientist Stephen Hawking once told this story:

“A well-known scientist once gave a public lecture on astronomy… At the end of the lecture, a little old lady at the back of the room got up and said: "What you have told us is rubbish. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant turtle." The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, "What is the turtles standing on?" "You're very clever, young man, very clever," said the old lady. "But it's turtles all the way down!"   

It’s a funny story, but it makes the serious point that everyone believes in some ultimate reality, “all the way down,” that supports everything else.  For an atheist the ultimate reality is eternally existing matter and energy – whereas for the Christian it is the eternal God who created all things out of nothing.  This is important to bear in mind when we interact with the theories and claims of science.  The Christian mathematician professor John Lennox has said

“What no scientist can avoid is having his or her own philosophical commitments.  Those commitments are not likely to figure very largely at all, when we are studying how things work, but they may well play a much more dominant role when we are studying how things came to exist in the first place”.

In the war of these two worldviews, the question is which makes best sense of the things we observe in nature – and the very possibility of science (of mathematics, of rational thought) itself?

HOW COULD YOU RESPOND:

“SCIENCE PROVES THAT GOD DOESN’T EXIST”?

There is nothing in science that proves or forces you to conclude that God doesn’t exist, or that goes against the idea that God created the world.  For example the atheist scientist Stephen Jay Gould once said:

“science simply cannot (by its legitimate methods) adjudicate the issue of God’s possible superintendence of nature.  We neither affirm nor deny it; we simply can’t comment on it as scientists”.

The reason science cannot answer the God question is because science interacts with the mechanism rather than the maker.  “We don’t find God within creation…”– just as you don’t expect to find Steve Jobs, the inventor of the IPhone, hiding inside the one in your pocket – or Henry Ford under the bonnet of your Ford car!  “but all of it points towards him!” (Michael Ots).

However, there are many in the scientific establishment (who control what gets published and funded) who have an entrenched belief system that is hostile to belief in God.  For example, here is an extremely candid and rare admission from a secular biologist:

“Our willingness to accept scientific claims that are against common sense is the key to an understanding of the real struggle between science and the supernatural. We take the side of science in spite of the patent absurdity of some of its constructs … because we have a prior commitment, a commitment to materialism.

It is not that the methods and institutions of science somehow compel us to accept a material explanation of the phenomenal world, but, on the contrary, that we are forced by our a priori adherence to material causes to create an apparatus of investigation and a set of concepts that produce material explanations, no matter how counter-intuitive, no matter how mystifying to the uninitiated. Moreover, that materialism is absolute, for we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door” (Richard Lewontin)

HOW COULD YOU RESPOND:

“THE BIBLE HAS HELD BACK SCIENTIFIC DEVELOPMENT”

This charge is often made using the story of Galileo, who got in trouble with the Catholic Church for claiming that the earth orbits the sun (and not the other way around).  Rather than this being the Bible and Church holding back science, in fact the church was defending the scientific and philosophical establishment which believed the sun orbited the earth on the basis of Aristotle.  The lesson here is for the church to beware of trying to read scientific theories back into the Bible!

In fact, many of the first and great scientists like Copernicus, Galileo, Bacon, Descartes, Pascal, Faraday, Newton, Kelvin –believed in God, and their faith was strengthened by their discoveries in the natural world. 

The historian Rodney Stark asks why did the scientific revolution happen only in the West centuries after the brief rise and fall of science in China and Arabia centuries before? 

“Many societies pursued alchemy, but only in Christian Europe did it lead to chemistry; many societies developed extensive systems of astrology, but only in Europe was astrology transformed into scientific astronomy.  Why?  Science arose in Europe because only medieval Europeans believed that science was possible and desirable.  And the basis of their belief was their image of God and His creation…. It was only because Europeans believed in God as the Intelligent Designer of a rational universe that they pursued the secrets of creation”.

So that’s why the first scientists were Christians. The scientific method they developed was driven by these convictions: that we can trust our senses and reason to lead us to truth; that the language of mathematics can accurately describe the world; that we can examine the universe to discover its order and laws, because it is not random— a rational mind stands behind it, who scripted its laws and breathed life into the equations.  That’s why John Lennox writes:

“God is not an alternative to science as an explanation… he is the ground of explanation… God explains why science explains”

The atheistic worldview faces a problem to explain why science is possible and reliable.  You see if the human mind is simply the byproduct of blind physical forces and unguided natural selection, then it opens up the question whether our minds can be trusted – what if they are geared more to survival than truth.  Here’s what C.S. Lewis said about that:

“If minds are wholly dependent on brains, and brains on biochemistry, and biochemistry (in the long run) on the meaningless flux of the atoms, I cannot understand how the thought of those minds should have any more significance than the sound of the wind in the trees.”

Rather than hold back scientific development, the Bible inspired and fuelled it!

HOW COULD YOU RESPOND: “WE DON’T NEED GOD, ONE DAY SCIENCE WILL EXPLAIN EVERYTHING AND SOLVE OUR PROBLEMS”

Will science ever be able to answer every question and solve our every problem?  Some dream of it doing so – but it will always remain a dream. 

The atheist scientist Philip Goff recently released a book entitled “Galileo’s Error”.  He argues that it is naïve to believe that science can explain everything, based on Galileo’s decision that the language of science would only be mathematics – and ignore everything else.  Henceforth science has proceeded on the basis of measuring and observing how things behave and how they work.  It has been very successful – but only because it has ignored lots of other things.  This quantitative method of science is unsuitable for addressing all sorts of questions and experiences – foremost for Goff is the experience of consciousness and the mind.  For example, he points out that physical science cannot describe the experience of “the taste of mint, the redness of red, the smell of coffee” – we could add that science cannot address questions of morality (what makes a good or bad person… why is racism and sexism wrong?) or beauty (why is something beautiful or ugly) or meaning (who are we and why are we here?). 

A good example from John Lennox (“Can Science Explain Everything?”): science can test and identify all the ingredients used in baking a cake, but it cannot tell us who made it (agency) and why they made it (meaning) and whether I can eat it (morality) – that instead requires revelation from the cake’s baker!

HOW COULD YOU RESPOND: “SCIENCE CONTRADICTS THE BIBLE’S TEACHINGS IN GENESIS”

Well actually there are many areas on which science agrees with the Bible:

• Science tells us that the universe had a beginning. Stephen Hawking has written: “All the evidence seems to indicate, that the universe has not existed forever, but that it had a beginning, about 15 billion years ago. This is probably the most remarkable discovery of modern cosmology. Yet it is now taken for granted…Many people do not like the idea that time has a beginning, probably because it smacks of divine intervention… therefore there were a number of attempts to avoid the conclusion that there had been a Big Bang”.  The Cosmological Argument says “Anything that begins to exist must have a cause” – the universe had a beginning, ergo it had a cause.  The Bible was ahead of its time and its first words agree: “In the beginning God created”! 

• Science tells us that we live in a universe that seems designed and finely tuned for life. Astrophysicist Dr Hugh Ross explains how unlikely this fine-tuning is due to chance: “Cover America with coins in a column reaching to the moon, then do the same for a billion other continents of the same size.  Paint one coin red and put it somewhere in one of the billion piles.  Blindfold a friend and ask her to pick it out.  The odds are about 1 in 10^40 that she will”.  Those are unbelievable odds against it being chance.  Indeed, the mathematician and atheist Sir Fred Hoyle said of these things: “it is almost as if a super-intellect has monkeyed with the physics as well as with the chemistry and biology – there are no blind forces worth speaking about in nature”.  The Bible describes for us the deliberate and careful design of God in creation.

• Science reveals that the chemicals in DNA function like letters and form a complex code of information that makes life possible. But the question is where does all that intelligent information come from?  How could it arise from non-intelligent nature?  Professor John Lennox says: “A building does not emerge from the bricks nor the writing from the paper and ink without the injection of both energy and intelligent activity”.  The Bible reveals a God who is intelligent and who brought life into being.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE LINGERING QUESTIONS PEOPLE HAVE ABOUT THE GENESIS ACCOUNT OF CREATION?

Let’s look at three specific issues:

The Length of the Creation Days:

Is it seven literal 24 hour days?  Or is it seven periods of time?

Many Christians would prefer the latter, because that would better fit with the suggestion that the universe is very old.  However, what does the text say?  It numbers the days chronologically and each day has a “evening and morning” – so that implies a normal day than a long-age-day.

In fact the Oxford Professor of Hebrew James Barr once wrote:

“probably, so far as I know, there is no professor of Hebrew or Old Testament at any world-class university who does not believe that the writer(s) of Genesis 1–11 intended to convey to their readers the ideas that … creation took place in a series of six days which were the same as the days of 24 hours we now experience” (although he himself didn’t believe the biblical account was true!). 

Of course it is possible for God to have created the world in seven days – He could have done it in a single moment if He chose to.  However, the Scriptures say that God created the universe in a week – and it seems a normal week as we would recognise it.

A creation less than 10000 years old vs a universe over 15 billion years old is a huge difference.  What explains it?  The ways that scientists use to calculate the age of the universe involve many assumptions and interpretations of the data.  When astronomers noticed that galaxies were moving away from us, they realised the universe was expanding – and so they worked backwards to estimate that at one time the universe was much smaller, closer and hotter – the Big Bang.  However, there are more and more problems with the Big Bang understanding of the universe and its age.  To make things work they have had to make up things like Inflation to explain how the temperature across the universe could be so uniformly distributed.  They have had to postulate the existence of things like dark matter (to explain the gravitation force that holds galaxies together) and dark energy (to explain the expansion of the universe) to explain things that don’t fit.  And now in recent months they have begun having to invent another thing (dark radiation: to explain the different speeds of expansion) – although some scientists have begun to complain that perhaps what we need is a whole new cosmological model that explains the development of the universe! 

The point is that science always changes but the Bible doesn’t – and one day, when all things are known, then what the Bible says and what Science says will agree!

The Age of the Earth

If you work through the genealogies in Genesis and throughout the Bible, then you will find that the human race (and the world) is less than 10,000 years old (interesting that modern science suggests a similar date).  However, then geologists suggested that rocks and sediment layers suggested the earth is much older than the Bible would allow.  But rocks don’t come with a label that tells you how and when they were formed.  Instead there are assumptions that govern how the data is interpreted. 

The atheist geologists James Hutton and Charles Lyell revolutionised our understanding of the history of the earth by asserting that we can rightly understand what has happened in the past by looking at similar conditions today: “the present is the key to the past”.  This is the principle of “uniformitarianism”.  They assumed that the universe is a closed naturalistic system and so things have always operated in the same way without changing.  They concluded that the lengthy time involved in laying down sedimentary layers or erosion of rocks today, must have been the same in the past – and when you look at something like the Grand Canyon it would take millions of years to form - thus the theories about the old age of the earth.  However, the Bible tells us that things have not unfolded uniformly since creation – rather there has been the catastrophe of the Fall and the Global Flood.  The latter resulted in fossils, vast rock layers, and mineral deposits all forming in a very short period of time - rather than millions of years like it would naturally take.  When Mount St Helens exploded the mountain was transformed and many features that resembled the Grand Canyon were formed – although they would look like they had been carved out and laid down over thousands of years according to uniformitarian assumptions, in fact they had been laid in minutes due to a catastrophe!

So it’s no surprise that you can make out that the Bible is wrong when you set out with the assumption that the Bible is wrong - and create an alternative paradigm through which to explain ancient history!

The Theory of Evolution

Although many Christians have argued that the theory of evolution is compatible with the Bible, it does require significant reading between the lines – and it causes problems – that there were millions of pre-hominid beings before Adam and Eve who lived, suffered and died, before sin entered the world.

Evolution is a theory, not a fact.  It belongs to historical scientific theory, but observable scientific fact.  We can observe micro-evolution, natural selection and adaptation – but never have observed macro-evolution – interspeciation: the development of simple lifeforms into more complex species over time branching out of the tree of common ancestors.  Nor does the fossil record yet contain compelling evidence of transitionary common ancestors between different species.

The theory of evolution is in crisis today – it cannot account for many things: – the first living cell, genetic information, new biological forms, and the narrow limits of change that random mutation processes can achieve.  That’s why in the big book “Theistic Evolution” dozens of Christian scientists, philosophers and theologians warned against the church trying to read the theory of evolution into the Bible in search for scientific credibility – since the theory itself is in serious trouble!  That was the very mistake the church made with Galileo – reading a secular philosophy into the Bible in the search for intellectual credibility.

Instead as Francis Schaeffer often reminded people: on the last day, when all things are truly, fully, and perfectly known – then there will be “no final conflict” between the book of nature and book of scripture.  But we’re not yet there – there are vast amounts we do not know and there are many with a sinful desire to suppress the truth and refusal to countenance believing in or bowing to anything more than the natural material world.  Until the final day, we should humbly but confidently put our trust in God and His unchanging word amid the shifting sands and winds of change in scientific investigation.  And we should never be ashamed to be Christians who are biologists, mathematicians, engineers, physicists, astronomers, etc. – because it is God who makes the sciences possible!

Last night, in Acts 24-26, we witnessed Paul on trial.  He stood accused of the religious crime of sacrilege against Moses and the political crime of sedition against Caesar.  Repeatedly, on all counts, he was found to be innocent.  Thereafter, we considered what accusations are made against Christianity in the court of public opinion today.  Here is a write up of some quick ways to respond  to some of the most common ones:

IT’S UNSCIENTIFIC

• Science proceeds on the basis of an assumption (faith) in the “rational intelligibility of the universe” (John Lennox) – because science presupposes an intelligent mind of a divine creator and designer. “Men became scientific because they expected laws in nature, ad they expected laws in nature because they believed in a divine law-giver” (C.S Lewis)
• The true conflict is not God VS Science; it’s between two competing belief systems (worldviews / philosophies): Atheistic science VS Theistic science

IT’S VIOLENT / IT’S JUDGEMENTAL

• We don’t get our problem with violence and judgement from the Greeks or Romans – they boasted of the numbers slain in battle and were outspoken in their condemnation on those they considered inferior to themselves. Instead, a world that gloried in honour, strength, power, justice was turned upside down by the values of Jesus who exemplified weakness, humility, mercy, forgiveness and love. 
• The very values that cause us discomfort at some things we find in the Bible are actually shaped by the Bible itself! That's why Jordan Peterson says: “The Bible is the foundational document of western civilisation”

IT’S HOMOPHOBIC

• It’s good to stop to ask some questions in conversation:
  • What about you, do you believe that there is any sort of inappropriate or unacceptable sexual activity? (most likely yes e.g. with children)
  • How do you know that is wrong? Where is your authority for making that judgement?  (most likely it will be because this is what our culture considers acceptable and has expressed in its laws)
  • But what if our society changes its mind in future? Then something you think is wrong and dangerous today will be celebrated as good and acceptable.  Is good and evil simply a question of majority popular opinion - do you see how that could and has gone wrong?
  • Instead, we’re IKEA Christians, we want to follow our maker’s instructions, believing He knows how life and sex is meant to work best.
• The fact is that all of us struggle with aspects of our sexuality, because these strong desires and drives, which can leave us feeling confused, frustrated or ashamed. The Bible has always seemed strange about sex – the Old Testament’s view of sex was radically different to the rampant pagan fertility religions of the day, the New Testament’s view of sex was radically different to the 'anything goes' Greco-Roman culture of the day.  But the Bible celebrates the beautiful place of sex between a man and a woman, who are covenantally committed to one another for all their lives saying: All that I am I give to you, all that I have I share with you (bodily, financially, socially, emotionally, spiritually).  Otherwise you are saying with your body something which you are refusing in the rest of your life!

IT’S EXCLUSIVE

• The Christian faith is exclusive only in the sense that the human race is universally sick and there is an exclusive remedy – there is only one thing that can make us well again.  You are welcome to try any other course of treatment, but it won't heal you.  However, Christianity is also radically inclusive, because that remedy is made freely available to everyone!
• Unlike all the other religions and philosophies of the world, which require you to work your way up to the gods or to pull yourself up by your bootstraps (but not everyone is smart enough, good enough, born into the right circumstances to do that); the gospel is the good news of how God has come down and done everything necessary for us to be saved in the person of Jesus – and freely offers Himself to us all (no matter who we are or what we have done). That is why Christianity is the only truly global multicultural faith.

IT’S PRO-SLAVERY

• We are rightly concerned with equality in our society, we want everyone to be treated fairly and properly, with their human dignity respected. However, where do we get that idea of equality from – after all, naturally we are all so different in ability that inequality is the default reality?  We don’t get equality from the Greeks or Romans – they believed some people were 'born to be tools' and others 'born to be kings' – they didn’t believe men and women were equal, nor young and old – also they didn’t believe that all races were equal. 
• The reason we have a problem with slavery, is because we live in a society that has been profoundly shaped in its values and attitudes by the Bible. The Bible declares that all human beings have been made in God’s image, sharing equally in glory and dignity in the sight of God.  Those very ideas on page one of the Bible lit the fuse that would in time lead to the abolition of the historic cultural practice of slavery! (NB: slavery in biblical times was a form of indentured service in the extended family, rather than the barbaric evil of trans-Atlantic slavery in the 18^th – 19^th century plantations)

IT’S INTOLERANT

• We live in a society which has redefined tolerance and that considers disagreement as hatred (together with protecting people from challenging ideas or difference perspectives via safe spaces, no platforming, trigger warnings). But we believe that it is possible to disagree without being disagreeable. But we believe that it is possible to disagree without being disagreeable.
• The Bible teaches us from its first page that we must respect all people as made in God’s image. That respect means that we must listen and take time to understand where other people are coming from.  However, it is people who have rights, not ideas or ideologies.  We can accept all people but we cannot accept all ideas/ideologies uncritically (our culture knows that is true, because it also rejects some ideas and ideologies as being dangerous!).

IT’S IRRELEVANT

• It is “chronological snobbery” (C.S. Lewis) to assume that something is wrong or useless simply because it is old. Instead, the Bible proves that it has timeless value because it continues to be the world’s best selling book, almost every year since the printing press was invented.
• It addresses the issues which are explored and celebrated in our best selling novels and films (e.g. love, forgiveness, loyalty, war, peace, hope, justice, purpose, etc.)
• It answers the deepest questions that humans have ever asked (Why are we here? Who am I?  What is the nature of the good life?  What happens to us after death?)

TEACHING POINT: The Bible is vital for our Christian lives and growth: “The Word of God does the work of God by the Spirit of God in the people of God” (Mark Ashton)

APPLICATION POINT: We need to not only read/hear the Bible but believe/love/obey the Bible in our everyday lives

INTRODUCTION

There was once a time when there was a book deemed so dangerous, so subversive that it was banned in the British Isles.  Any one who was found with a copy of it, or caught smuggling it into the country would be arrested, tortured and executed.  This book had to be produced, printed on the Continent and smuggled into Britain in bags of flour.  This banned book was none other than The English Bible!  For centuries the only Bible available to people was a copy of the inaccurate Latin translation of the Bible, a language inaccessible to all but the elite, which would be kept in the local Catholic church.  However, with the invention of the printing press in the 15^th century, things began to change.  Challenging the decadence and corruption – both morally and theologically – within the church, William Tyndale was a brilliant young English man who set about translating the Bible into an accurate English version.  His dream was that “If God spare my life, before very long I shall cause a plough boy to know the scriptures better than the priests do!"  Tyndale went into hiding to complete his work, but was hunted down and brought back to England.  He was tortured and refused to denounce his work.  So he was burnt at the stake in 1536, with copies of his English Bible used to kindle the fire.  And his last words were: “Lord, open the king of England’s eyes”.  Within 100 years, the Authorised King James Version of the Bible was being printed in England in 1611.  No longer is the Bible the Banned Book.  Instead, when the Queen was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1953 at the height of the ceremony she was presented with a Bible accompanied with these words: 'Our Gracious Queen, we present you with this Book, the most valuable thing that this world affords.” 

Today in a country where there are dozens of different Bible translations, we probably own more than one copy of the Bible that lies unused on a shelf, we have access to endless resources and apps online – we easily take for granted the incredible privilege that we have in having access to the Word of God in our own language.  There are 180 million people around the world, from 1800 language groups, who have no access to any Bible in their own language – and 1.65 billion without access to the full Bible.

And yet it is VITAL for our Christian lives because it reveals the gospel: it births our faith, it grows our faith, it guides our faith, it encourages our faith, it helps our faith persevere to the end.  As someone has said: “The Word of God does the work of God by the Spirit of God in the people of God” (Mark Ashton).  Tonight we’ll be thinking about getting the most from the Bible.

BIBLE STUDY (v.19-25)

Hearing God’s Word (v.19-21)

• Following the gardening metaphors in this passage, draw a simple diagram showing: How do we make progress in the Christian life?
  • What is the seed?
    • “The implanted word” – which is itself referring to the Bible, especially the Bible’s key theme: the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Old Testament is Promise; the New Testament is Fulfillment!  Probably a reference to the gospel promise of the law written on our hearts under the new covenant: Jeremiah 31:33)
  • What needs to be done to the soil of our hearts? Why?
    • It needs to be cleared of “filthiness and rampant wickedness” that will hinder the growth and fruitfulness of the Word in our lives
  • What is the fruit?
    • “Produce the righteousness of God” (v.20) … “which is able to save your souls” (v21: future salvation: wholeness and restoration of our lives to God’s image in Christ)
  • How will the fruit get there?
    • It will grow naturally – the word “implanted” suggests this is a natural process of how the new life of God will be produced in us by His Word and Spirit, once we have “received” it into our lives. Sam Alberry comments: “we start to change as God’s Word is allowed to take root in every corner of our lives” Cross-reference John 15: “I am the vine you are the branches … if any branch abides in me, it will bear much fruit”

• How does Jesus’ parable in Matthew 13:18-23 help us understand James’ message?
• There are things in our lives that oppose and suppress the work that God wants to do within us: spiritual opponents that steal away the Word, adverse circumstances that cause us to give up on the Word as unworkable, internal evil desires that drain the interest out of the Word.

Obeying God’s Word (v.22-27)

• What are the contrasts between the person with the mirror and the person with the Word? How does Jesus’ parable in Matthew 7:24-27 help us understand James’ warning about deception?
  • One “looks”, “walks away”, “forgets – the other “looks” [literally ‘bends over’], “perseveres”, “obeys” – draw out the ridiculous picture of seeing your hair and face is a mess, but not doing anything about it before going out in public!
  • We need to be those who hear God’s Words and “put them into practice”

• Some non-Christians say: “True freedom is being able to do anything I like!” How can God’s Word bring “liberty” when it is a “law” (v.25) that sets limits/boundaries on our lives?  Can you think of any examples of where boundaries enhance, rather than diminish, our lives?
• We were created for a specific purpose and in fulfilling that we would work best – to be people in God’s image. God’s Word tells us what He is truly like, and so in following it, we are also discovering what it truly looks like to be a human in His likeness.
• “when you think about what Jesus has come to do, don’t think of rules and regulations and rituals. Think of a beached whale being restored to the ocean.  Think of it swimming free again… the ocean doesn’t oppress the whale.  The deeper it goes into the water, the freer it is to enjoy all that it means to be a whale.  God doesn’t compromise our humanity.  The deeper our relationship with Him, the freer we are to enjoy all that it means to be human” (Mike Cain)

APPLICATION (v.26-27)

I wonder how many times have you been like me: heard a sermon, been struck by something in it, but then gone away having forgotten about it within an hour or two?  How many times have you had a quiet time that you read the words but don’t really get more than some new trivia or interesting facts, that you forget about as you get on with the rest of your busy day?

Have you ever heard a sermon on God’s sovereignty and control, but found yourself freaking out over something unexpected that has gone wrong?  Have you ever heard a sermon on God’s justice and judgement against sin, but found yourself again knee deep in sin and shame hours later?

The Bible was not just given for mental information but life transformation!  It is meant to make a difference!

Transformation occurs as we pray for wisdom, asking God’s Spirit to show us and help us APPLY what we’ve read into our lives.

It’s not enough simply to read your Bible plan each day of the year, as this easily turns into a tick-box exercise or simply moving forward the bookmark:

“Every part of it, whatever its genre and form, demands a response of repentance and faith.  We can never read it and just say: Huh, that doesn’t really speak into my life right now.  All of it is intended to change us, today.  We need think and pray carefully about how any section of Scripture applies to us.  It is good to ask of any passage: How should this affect my thinking, my attitude, my behaviour?” (Alberry)

 Always be on the look out for:

• A command to obey
• A warning to heed
• A promise to trust
• A truth to believe
• A reason to love
• A comfort to encourage
• A self-examination to conduct
• An example to imitate

• Have a go drawing out applications from v.19-27 for your life?

• Think about what you’ve read or heard preached from the Bible recently: How is God’s Word affecting how you speak? (v.26), how you care for others? (v.27a), or your purity as you live in this world (v.27b)?

CONCLUSION:

Think of getting the most from the Bible, like getting the most from food:

• Reading - tasting, putting into mouth
• Thinking and praying over it – chewing
• Applying - swallowing and digesting

The Bible has stood the test of time and innumerable attempts to destroy it physically and discredit it (intellectually, historically, scientifically, etc.) – all have failed.  God’s Word endures forever!  But these things can unsettle us and undermine our confidence in hearing and obeying it. So please don’t be afraid to ask questions and explore things more – there are good answers.  If want to think more: Bethinking.org or “Why Trust the Bible?"

If want to learn more about getting more out of the Bible’s treasures, check out: “Dig Deeper” or “How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth” or take the video "Ten Day Bible Training Course" for free online

Wine usually represents Jesus’ blood which has saved us, but in Revelation 14:10 wine represents God’s fury which condemns ‘worshippers of the beast’. Is this parallel significant?

Good connection – yes this is significant. In the Bible, wine can refer to (1) the drink produced from grapes; (2) in the context of the Last Supper and Communion, it is a symbol of the blood of Jesus that redeems us from our sins; (3) to the cup of the wine of God’s wrath (Jeremiah 25:15-17, 49:12, 51:7, Psalm 75:8, Lamentations 4:21, Habakkuk 2:16, Revelation 14:10, 16:19, 18:6). Jesus often refers to “the cup” which the Father is placing into His hands to drink (John 18:11). The amazing thing is that the cup of wrath that God’s enemies should have to suffer to drink, is placed into the hands of His Son, who willingly drinks it in our place, bearing the judgement that rightly should fall on us. In the Bible, blood represents a life that has been violently taken – thus the focus on the blood of animals in the OT sacrifices. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23) and the animal’s life is taken instead of the offeror who is trusting in God’s promise to deal with their sins instead. Someone always has to pay the price for sin, someone always has to die – the question is will it be you or will it be Jesus for you? Will you drink of the cup at Communion that represents the death of Jesus in your place that brings eternal life; or will you drink the cup of final judgement which is the eternal punishment of God at your sin.

What about people who have never heard about Jesus? / How does God deal justly with those who haven’t heard the gospel?

This is an important question. God has a heart for all the nations. In 1 Timothy 2:4 we are told “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”. However, we know that not all people will be saved, because some reject the offer of salvation in the gospel. Nevertheless, the question is what will happen to those who have not received the opportunity to accept or reject the gospel because they have been birthed, lived and died unreached. At the end of the day, we have to trust God to do what is right: “Far be it from you to do such a thing--to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25). However, we are told a lot about the fact that while there are many unreached people in the world, there are no innocent people who are neutral with God.

It’s important that we hear what Paul the missionary says about the universal condition of humanity: Romans 1:18-23.

¹⁸ The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, ¹⁹ since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. ²¹ For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²² Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ²³ and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

Everyone knows that God exists, indeed their consciences also reveal God’s will as to what is right and wrong (Romans 2:14-15).

Everyone will be judged according to the light that is available to them. All people are justly condemned by their sinful and rebellious response to God’s revelation in creation and conscience. Romans 3:10-23 makes clear that “There is no one righteous, not even one…there is no one who seeks God…there is no one who does good, not even one…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. The grim bad news is that everyone in this world is under the just judgement of God and facing eternal death and punishment.

However, the good news is that because of what Jesus has done for sinners like us, and through trusting in Him as your Saviour, anyone who believes can be saved. No one deserves this gift of salvation, no one even has a right to hear the gospel – it’s all a gracious and undeserved gift from God to hell-deserving sinners. However, it is God’s heart that as many people as possible would be offered this gift:

“¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:1-18).

Paul tells us that it’s essential that unreached people hear the gospel from missionaries if they are to be saved in Romans 10:11-15:

As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”¹² For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, ¹³ for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

¹⁴ How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? ¹⁵ And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

If it’s necessary to repent, what happens if you want to repent, but haven’t repented for sins you’ve forgotten you’ve committed? Does “I repent of everything” cover this?

Literally, the word ‘repent’ means ‘to change your mind’. It is a fundamental change of attitude. We come into this world as sinners whose attitude towards God is one of hostility. We want to live for ourselves and rule our own lives, we want things our way, not God’s way (nor our parent’s way!). When we hear the gospel we are confronted with the fact that this way of life is under the judgement of God and will result in our eternal death and destruction. So we have to repent: to turn from ourselves and turn towards God. And we have to believe: to trust in what Jesus has done for us to save us, rather than to trust in ourselves to somehow save ourselves through our own actions.

This question is really about confession (rather than repentance – although the two are linked). We are promised: If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9). We are all far more sinful than we often realise. So our salvation never depends on us confessing every single sin. Rather it depends on us turning towards Jesus and trusting Him as our sin-bearing and righteousness-giving Saviour! While it is good to confess before God individual sins, because it forces us to take seriously our wrong-doing in God’s sight and not take for granted the costly gift of salvation; it is not necessary that we confess each and every one, especially ones we are not conscious of or have forgotten about. Instead, we are able to pray in confession generally all these things, acknowledging that while we forget them, that as Jesus died it was consciously for each and every one of them. And we resolve ourselves in trusting that when He said “It is finished” that He has done everything necessary to save us from our sins. As Micah 7:19 promises: “You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea”.

Why 144,000?

The 144,000 is probably a symbolic number – made up of the number associated with God’s people (12) and the number for fullness (10). These numbers squared and cubed, respectively, leads to 144,000 – a symbol for all God’s people alive in those days. The assurance given to all of God’s people alive during the Tribulation is that whatever happens to them in this world that their eternal destiny is secure in Christ. For the final 3.5 years they may suffer the persecution of the Antichrist and the socio-economic implications of refusing the Mark of the Beast. However, they will be vindicated with eternal life in Christ, sealed with the Name of the Father.

Q. In 6v.6-9 is it just referring to martyred Christians, or to Jews as well?
This is a good question that lets us think about the words we use and their definitions – a lot of confusion in Revelation arises when we aren’t careful in the terms we use.  Firstly, remember that “Christians” is a label for God’s people who have faith in Christ, which includes believing Jews and Gentiles. In the early church, Christians were called “the third race” – not Jew, not Gentile, but all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28; Ephesians 2:11-22).
Secondly, notice the text simply says “the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne”.  We’re not told these people are “Christians” – but it is clear that these are God’s people, who have faith in God’s promise (possibly including OT believing-martyrs who had the promise, and certainly referring to NT believing-martyrs who had the fulfilment in Christ – the promised one).  Necessarily that would mean both Jews and Gentiles are in view among the company of martyrs.

Q.  Once the 144000 are sealed, is there still a chance to be saved?  Or is this “the elect?
It’s good to ask about the relationship between salvation and the seal.  Those who have been saved through faith in Christ are sealed.  In NT terms, the seal identifies them as belonging to God, indwelt by His Holy Spirit, and with assurance of our eternal destiny that nothing can endanger.  This general principle is taught in Ephesians 1:12-14 and 2 Corinthians 1:22: salvation -> sealing.
As we briefly considered on Sunday night: the 144,000 is probably a symbolic number – made up of the number associated with God’s people (12) and the number for fullness (10).  These numbers squared and cubed, respectively, leads to 144,000 – a symbol for all God’s people alive in those days.  The assurance given to all of God’s people alive at that time, who go into the Tribulation and also those in addition who are saved during the Tribulation is that whatever happens to them in this world that their eternal destiny is secure in Christ.  So yes more people can be saved and receive this same assurance during the Tribulation.  Indeed, we see on the other side of the Tribulation that a vast multitude of people from every nation celebrating that they have been saved and secured (7:10-17).

Q. Thinking about the “sealing” in chapter 7, how can we have assurance of salvation today?
When we are thinking about our assurance of salvation there are two things to remember.  Subjectively, we can experience times when we ‘feel’ assured and there will be other times that we don’t.  God has given us His Holy Spirit today (Ephesians 1:13-14), who assures us that we are God’s children (Romans 8:15-17).  We should not rest our assurance on how we feel subjectively – although we can do things to test ourselves and increase our subjective assurance of our salvation (cf. 1 John 5:13).  Objectively, our assurance comes from the fact that God has given us His promise that if we ask Him to save us and entrust ourselves to Jesus, then He will do just that!  Having taken God at His Word, our salvation depends on God and His mighty power towards us in Christ (Romans 8:31-39).  Objectively we need to remind ourselves of God’s promises and take God at His Word!

Q. About the identity of the 144000 from Israel (v.1-8) and the multitude from the nations (v.9-17) – how are we meant to work out who is being referred to?
This is a very important question that cuts to the heart of how we theologically put together the Bible – the Old Testament and New Testament.  It is also not an uncontroversial question!  It is important for you to know that there are writers on different sides of this, and there are others in Carrubbers who would disagree with my understanding.
Really the question is:

• DO WE READ OT IN LIGHT OF NT – Goldsworthy, Morris, Mounce, Johnson, Hendrickson, Ladd, Stott, Still, Payne, Blomberg, Carson, Beale.  Some who read the Bible in this way would reinterpret many of the prophecies and significance of Israel in the OT as being either replaced or greatly modified by the Church in the NT.
• DO WE READ NT IN LIGHT OF OT – Roberts, Walvoord, MacArthur, Ryrie, Scofield, Chafer, House.  Those who read the Bible in this way would insist on the literal fulfilment of OT prophecies about Israel to Israel in the future, distinct to the Church in the NT.

I endeavour to honour the fact that the Bible is the progressive revelation of God of His plans for this world.  There is progression, expansion and development as we follow the inter-canonical trajectories and themes of the unfolding story and events of the Bible (which the first group emphasise).  However, we need to be careful that we are not undermining the integrity of what God originally said in the OT and end up spiritualising or allegorising things in the OT.  I believe that by a careful balance of the two that we will best be understanding things as He intended us to do.

So stepping back, here’s how I read the whole Bible and Revelation 7 in that context.  It has always been God’s plan to redeem a people for Himself.  Beginning with Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), God chose one nation to represent all nations – however there were hints, especially in Psalms 97-100 and Isaiah 49:6, that God’s ultimate purpose was to redeem a people out of every nation (Revelation 7:9-10).  The OT mystery of Gentile inclusion in the people of God (Ephesians 3:1-6), as the spiritual children of Abraham by faith (Galatians 4:7), became clear in the NT (Acts 10-11). Believing Gentiles have been in-grafted to the believing remnant of Israel (Romans 11:17 cf. Romans 9:6 “not all Israel are Israel”); they are fully included as God’s people - the “one new man” in Christ (Ephesians 2:11-22 cf. Galatians 6:16, Revelation 21:12-14).  I think the “hear” and “see” structure in Revelation 7 (cf. Revelation 5) suggests that these two groups (v.1-8 from Israel; v.9-17 from the nations) are referring to the same people of God – Jew and Gentile together.  Nevertheless, I do not believe that the continuity and fulfilment of OT prophecies spiritually in the church (e.g. Amos 9:11 in Acts 15:16, Exodus 19:6 in 1 Peter 2:9-10) necessarily exhausts or excludes a further literal fulfilment of those prophecies to national Israel in the future Millennium (Romans 11:11-12,25-26, cf. Zechariah 14, Daniel 9:24-27, Revelation 20:1-6).

 

We’re going to begin thinking about the cinema. What do all these movies have in common?

• Armageddon
• 2012
• 28 Days Later

They are end of the world movies… scenes of horrific disaster, destruction and death… an apocalyptic future. Revelation came long before these movies, and chapters 6-9 have no doubt been the source material for how people imagine the end of the world.

Also, Revelation works a little bit like the latest Star Wars movie “The Force Awakens”. If you’ve been to see it then throughout you may have had a feeling of de-ja-vu – because JJ Abrams deliberately made (not so subtle) references and allusions back to scenes, events, and dialogue in the original Star Wars movie. Revelation does something similar – it is full of references and allusions back to things in the earlier OT and NT. You’re meant to experience dejavu!  As we move into Revelation 6-9 there are allusions to:

• Exodus 7-12: the ten divine plagues on Egypt are echoed in the final judgements
• Zechariah 2: the four horsemen of the apocalypse first appear here
• Daniel 9:26-27: the “countdown! prophecy of the final seven years, the Tribulation, prior to the coming of God’s kingdom – 12:1 “there shall be a time of trouble such as never has been”
• Matthew 24: Jesus’ sermon on “the signs of the end of the age”. He predicts three stages “(1) a period of false Christs, wars, natural disasters, diseases and death (which parallel the Seal Judgements) … (2) the period of Great Tribulation … (3) the Second Coming” (Johnson).

The reason these references and allusions are key to the whole Message of Revelation - ALL GOD’S PLANS, PROMISES AND PROPHECIES of God are being FINALLY FULFILLED.

UNDERSTANDING REVELATION

• Diagram of OT expectation of the future: When the Messiah comes He will judge this present evil age and immediately transition into the future heavenly age.

• Diagram of NT realisation of the future: When the Messiah came the first time it was to provide rescue for sinners, and when He returns the second time it will be to judge.

• Let’s look at this more closely. In the NT: “The last days” refer to the whole period between the First and Second Comings of Jesus. So we are in the last days today… however, the Bible also speaks about a final seven year countdown to the Second Coming – which Revelation 6-19 describes.

Let me explain how this part of the book works:

• Ch.5 ended with Jesus, the king in heaven, holding in His hands the sealed scroll. It contains God’s plans for the future. When it is unsealed then its contents can be enacted – John gets to see the future when Jesus begins to open the seals, beginning the final countdown to the Second Coming of Jesus to establish His kingdom.

• Next follows two visions of the Seven Seals Judgements and Seven Trumpets Judgements - set during the final seven years Tribulation. This deals with the Question: HOW will God’s “kingdom come and will be done on earth as it is in heaven”? It will involve judgement on those who persist in rebellion against it. William Still explains this well: “Those who will not have Christ as Redeemer and Saviour must face Him as Judge”

• Also in each set of judgements there is a pause or interlude (in ch.7 this week and ch.10-11 next week). This deals with the Question: What will happen to God’s people on earth during this time?

(A) GOD THE JUDGE

• In 6:9-11 who are the people and what do they pray for? What response do they receive from God?
  • “It is the blood of the martyrs crying for vindication, not the martyrs themselves crying for personal vengeance” (Ladd)

• How are the prayers of God’s people answered? (8:1-7)
  • The “prayers of the saints” symbolised as bowls of incense, are cast into the earth’s atmosphere causing storms and is the occasion for the next set of more severe judgements to begin.

• Some people complain that God ignores the evil that takes place in the world. How do these chapters (Seal and Trumpet Judgements) help us answer them?
  • Justice will be done – wrongs will be righted
  • Evil will be vanquished
  • Goodness and truth will prevail
  • The reign of sin and death will end (although it will never surrender so must be defeated by judgement)
  • The righteous sufferers and victims will be vindicated

(B) GOD THE REFUGE

In ch.5 John heard Jesus described as “the lion” but saw “the slain lamb”. Now in ch.7 he hears about a crowd of “144,000” from “Israel” (v.1-8) and sees “a great multitude that no one could number from every nation” (v.9-17).

It’s worth pointing out that a big debate concerns how to interpret these crowds. Are they literal or symbolic. Are they literal 144,000 Jews (representing the promised salvation of Israel in Romans 11) which lead world evangelisation in the final days resulting in great revival? Or are they symbolic numbers representing all God’s people (Jew and Gentile) alive during those days (12 squared and 10 cubed)? I think the latter: “They represent the same people … seen in two stages of her history in the end times: first, standing on the threshold of the great tribulation, and later having passed through this time of tribulation, martyred but victorious… the number is symbolic and affirms that the full number of the people of God will be brought safely through the time of tribulation; not one of the people of God will be lost” (Ladd)

[It has always been God’s plan to redeem a people for Himself. Beginning with Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), God chose one nation to represent all nations – however there were hints, especially in Psalms 97-100 and Isaiah 49:6, that God’s ultimate purpose was to redeem a people out of every nation (Revelation 7:9-10). The OT mystery of Gentile inclusion in the people of God (Ephesians 3:1-6), as the spiritual children of Abraham by faith (Galatians 4:7), became clear in the NT (Acts 10-11). Believing Gentiles have been in-grafted to the believing remnant of Israel (Romans 11:17 cf. Romans 9:6 “not all Israel are Israel”); they are fully included as God’s people - the “one new man” in Christ (Ephesians 2:11-22 cf. Galatians 6:16, Revelation 21:12-14). Nevertheless, I do not believe that the continuity and fulfilment of OT prophecies spiritually in the church (e.g. Amos 9:11 in Acts 15:16, Exodus 19:6 in 1 Peter 2:9-10) necessarily exhausts or excludes a further literal fulfilment of those prophecies to national Israel in the future (Romans 11:11-12,25-26, cf. Zechariah 14, Daniel 9:24-27, Revelation 20:1-6).]

• What are the four angels about to do (7:1-2)? What does the other angel do (v.3-8)?
  • The four angels hold back judgements on the earth until God’s people on earth during the Tribulation are sealed – while the other angel is told to seal them.

• “Sealed” is repeated 5x in this passage. What does it mean to be “sealed” in the OT (Ezekiel 9:4-6) and NT (Ephesians 1:13-14)? What assurances are given for those who are sealed? (Revelation 7:10-17 cf. Romans 8:31-39)
  • “the sealed are the people of God and that their sealing must be related to their salvation as in the comparable figure used by Paul (2 Cor 1:22, Eph 1:13-14, 4:30) … while the seal may not protect the sealed against harm inflicted by human agency, they are protected from the divine plagues… Such a seal surely indicates ownership by God and the Lamb. Furthermore, a seal may offer protection or security for the bearers” (Johnson)
  • The song of redeemed in heaven echoes Israel rescued from Egypt, journeyed through desert and brought into the Promised Land to rest!

• When and how does this passage encourage or challenge you to trust God in life?
  • “Here we find that the servants of God are under His special care” (Morris)
  • “The purpose of the vision is to grant a glimpse of the eternal blessedness to those about to enter the world’s darkest hour. For a brief period John is privileged to look beyond this age to the hour of ultimate triumph” (Mounce)

CONCLUSION

We ought to marvel all the more at the Cross of Jesus when we see the terror of the partial (not yet final) judgements of God on sin. We ought to be thankful that we have been rescued from the wrath to come through Jesus – who has suffered that judgement for us

The good news for God’s people is that they are sealed and secure for eternity, because Christ is their refuge who shields them from the wrath that is to come. Whatever happens to them in this world, nothing can take them out of His hands!  If God can protect His people during the darkest days to come, He can help us on every other today before then too!

"you will be safe in his arms, because the hands that hold the world are holding your heart, this is the promise he made, he will be with you always, when everything is falling apart, you will be safe in his arms"

"no power of hell, no scheme of man, can ever pluck me from His hand, till He returns or calls me home, here in the power of Christ I'll stand"

The doors of heaven are opened to John and he is given a behind the scene VIPS tour, to see this world from heaven’s perspective.

(1) God is King of Everything (Rev.4)

Amid all the other sights and sounds of heaven, at the very centre is GOD’S THRONE! It’s mentioned more than a dozen times.

Imagine a throne. What comes into your mind? Kings, Queens, Rulers. A throne is a symbol of power, control and authority. Heaven is God’s throne room and control centre, where He is directing His plan for the rescue of this world.

In a circle around the throne are “four living creatures” (4:6-8) representing all of creation. After them are “24 elders” (4:4) sitting on smaller thrones – they probably represent all of God’s people in heaven. Then after them we zoom out more and see “many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands” (5:11). And what are they all doing? They all are worshipping God on the throne.

Listen to their song: “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you CREATED ALL THINGS” (4:11). God is king and is on the throne because He’s the creator. He’s the reason anything else exists. Your science teachers will tell you that everything exists because of the Big Bang – but where did that come from and what caused it? The greatest human minds have no answer – but God answers “in the beginning GOD created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). As creator, all things belong to Him and He has the right to be their king.

There’s nothing bigger or more powerful than God: He was here first and He will always be here. He will outlast and outlive all competition. He is God alone! So in the good times and in the bad, we need to remember what John sees in the control room: God is safely on His throne and He’s got the whole world in His hands.

Things in this world often seem out of control and not going well. But the good news is God has a plan to fix that: the scroll.

(2) Jesus Deserves Worship By Everyone (Rev.5)

The next part of the drama in heaven is about who is able to open the scroll in God’s hand. The scroll is rolled up and secured by seven seals or locks. This scroll contains God’s future plans to bless His people and to renew this world. But all of heaven is sad because there is no one found who is able to unlock the scroll. If the scroll is not opened then God’s plans cannot be happen! This is awful news for John – there is no hope…

But then it’s announced: “Weep no more; behold, the LION of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals” (5:5). HEARING this John looks around to see the Lion, a powerful and mighty conqueror. But he’s surprised at what he SEES: “I saw a Lamb standing as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne” (5:6-8). Who is this? It’s Jesus who died and rose again, and all of heaven breaks out into thunderous applause and celebration! It’s even better than what would happen if the Scotland win the rugby world cup! It’s bigger than the cheer as One Direction come on stage at Wembley.

Jesus is described as all powerful (7 horns), all seeing (7 eyes) and everywhere present (7 spirits of God throughout the earth) because Jesus is God the Son and God the King.

Heaven is celebrating because Jesus was sent on a mission for God’s kingdom and He has returned victorious. Jesus has made it possible for God’s rescue plans for this whole world to happen.

Today Jesus is on heaven’s throne, and in His nail-pierced hands are God’s plans for the future of our lives and our world. For those reasons Jesus deserves our worship.

(3) We’re Not The Centre of the Universe! (APPLICATION)

This vision poses a really important question for each one of us. God and Jesus are on the throne at the centre of heaven receiving worship.

But what is on the throne of your life receiving worship: is it Jesus or something else?

We all worship, we were made to worship and do it instinctively – it’s like breathing, we just do it and don’t think about it. We see something we like so take a picture to post on Instagram or Facebook with the caption “This is awesome”. We see someone do something impressive and say: “They’re amazing”. That’s worship.

Our problem is that we are very good at worshipping the wrong things! People worship idols, not made of stone but idols of money, sex, popularity, success, pleasure, sport. But the biggest idol that we worship is probably ourselves! Someone has said:“Many people function as if they are God. They act as if they believe the universe, everything and everyone is there for them. They put all their efforts in building their own little kingdom. They experience themselves as the centre of the universe… By nature, I worship myself. I live as if I am God. I live for my desires, my comforts, my ambitions”.Does thatsoundlike you at all? I know it sounds like me sometimes! We want to be the ones at the centre of attention, we want to be loved, adored. We want it to be our name in lights. We want to be the hero, to be the one everyone looks up to and listens to, and to be better than the rest at our sport, at our school, or whatever. We demand everyone to do things our way and not annoy us.

I saw an interview of Kanye West a few weeks ago in which he was talking about being “the greatest music artist and rock star ever”. And then he screamed: “I AM A GOD”. I just thought: Kanye you’re an arrogant idiot! Yet there’s a bit of Kanye West, even a bit of Emperor Domitian in all of us. We all want to be like God: to be at the centre being worshipped and served by others. I am very good at living a self-centred, self-absorbed, selfish life.

But here’s the thing: I am not God and you are not God. You are not on the throne of heaven. All of creation doesn’t owe its existence to you. And your life will be filled with frustration and disappointment if you try to take God’s place, because you are doomed to fail because you’re not God!

It gets worse: for daring to put ourselves in God’s place, and trying to push Him off the throne, we’re rebels who deserve to be punished forever. But the amazing thing is what God has done for rebels like you and me. Jesus, the glorious King, has stepped down from His throne, left behind the adoring crowds of angels and the splendours of heaven. He came into this dark world which hated him and attacked him. He suffered, bled and died for us. He endured the punishment for we deserved. He loves you so much to do that! Today He’s back on His throne in heaven and He wants you to love Him and give Him His rightful place in your life.

“THE VICTORY OF CHRIST AND HIS PEOPLE”

SUMMARISING THE MESSAGE OF REVELATION

The apostle John is given a behind the scenes pass to see the spiritual realities behind the stage of world history, which presently is the battleground between the kingdoms of God (and His church) and Satan (and His antichristian forces). He sees the glorified Christ reigning in heaven and holding the plans for the culmination of history. He sees the end-time salvation of Israel and the nations through the faithful preaching of the gospel by God’s people, even though their ministry also arouses the opposition of the world. He sees the outpouring of God’s judgement on the unrepentant nations and vanquishing of death and evil. Ultimately he is shown the future triumph of God’s kingdom and coming of Christ’s rule on earth as it is in heaven: first in the Millennium and then completely in the New Creation. The light of this eschatological future is meant to illuminate and inform how we live as God’s people in all ages until the end when He returns.

For us, Revelation is a message of hope (God knows His people and they are secured by Him; He will deliver them and they shall share in His victorious new creation) and a call to endurance (hold onto Christ while resisting the flesh (with its apathy and idolatry), the world (with its temptations and seductions), and the devil (with his heresies and persecutions). We are to continue as His faithful witnesses until He comes, whatever is thrown against us. In the end Jesus wins and we will be on the winning side by faith in Him!

INTERPRETING THE BOOK OF REVELATION

We will combine insights from the four schools of interpretation: Revelation prepares 1st generation Christians for 1st century assaults against them (Preterism), but in terms that prepare later generations for further assaults (Historicism), and ultimately the final assault (Futurism) - as well as teaching timeless theological truths about God and His victory over evil through His Son, Jesus (Idealism). 

In terms of chronology, we will suggest a Historic Premillennial reading of Revelation (Jesus will return after a seven year period of evil and persecution against His people, establishing His reign on earth for 1000 years, before the Final Judgement and New Creation).

Revelation combines three literary genres which we have to grapple with simultaneously in interpretation:

(1) Epistle: Revelation is a letter written to churches in Asia-Minor at the end of the 1^st century facing persecution from outside, and heresy, corruption, and apathy inside. These daily struggles of sanctification and persecution they are encountering are part of the cosmic struggle of God’s kingdom against Satan. Many of will suffer for their witness to Christ, but will be vindicated by Christ. Christians are assured that they are secure in Christ for eternity, whatever happens in time. Christians are assured that Christ and His people will triumph over the world, the flesh and the devil, because in light of Christ’s death and resurrection (The Lion and the Slain Lamb) the victory has already been secured! One day the kingdom realities around God’s throne in heaven will prevail on the earth, so we must endure and be faithful witnesses in order to overcome and share in Christ’s victory and new creation.

(2) Prophecy: Revelation is God’s revelation of His plans for the eschatological consummation of all things in Christ, in whose light these churches were to respond for living in the present (fore-telling serves forth-telling). Indeed, there is a seven-fold blessing for those who read and respond to the words of the prophecy. So while there is a chronology of the final seven years of history prior to Christ’s Second Coming presented in Revelation (consistent with the trajectory of OT prophecies and NT eschatology), it also must have some contemporary relevance to the church in the 1^st century and in all centuries as it is confronted by evil. For example, the Beast, False Prophet and Great Prostitute are eschatological individuals and institutions (political, religious, socio-economic-cultural); yet they are also pre-figured in the 1^st century in Rome, and by all other anti-Christian powers throughout history. These are all various manifestations of the same Satanic power which will climax in the end-time Antichrist and his False Prophet. Therefore, this book is Futuristic in ultimate outlook, but also speaks powerfully to the church in all ages.

(3) Apocalyptic: While the dominant genre of Revelation is prophecy, the prophecies are expressed in apocalyptic visionary scenes, which draw extensively on allusions to the Old Testament (especially Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah) and New Testament (Matthew 24-25, 2 Thessalonians 2, 2 Peter 3) apocalyptic passages. As per apocalyptic literature, these visions are replete with symbolic images and numbers. To faithfully interpret these visions particular attention ought to be paid to the explanations given in the text itself (e.g. the lampstands are the seven churches being written to) and to their OT references (e.g. the Dragon is the serpent in Genesis 3, the enemy of God and His people) to determine the literal referent – and just because there is a symbolic connotation this does not negate their being a literal fulfilment of OT prophecy (e.g. 7 and 3.5 years can symbolically refer to the fullness of time and a short-time of persecution, yet the parallels with Daniel 9’s outstanding historical fulfilment of the last part of the 70 Weeks should not be dismissed).

Why has God spoken in this literary form filled with symbols? God is giving his people a series of images to renew the Christian imagination and help Christians to see their lives in this world from heaven’s perspective. In some cases these images are powerful correctives to the cultural propaganda of John’s day (e.g. the Great City of Rome is depicted as the beautiful goddess Roma in John’s day, but in Revelation she is a tawdry prostitute enthralled to demonic powers and destined for destruction; while the church trampled on by Rome is the beautiful bride of Christ, destined for life in the New Jerusalem). Likewise some of these images show the counterfeit/deceptive nature of Satanic power and its opposition to the truth of God (e.g. the parody of the Trinity in the Dragon/Antichrist/False Prophet; the parody of the death/resurrection of Jesus in the slain/healed Beast; the parody of the seal of God in the mark of the Beast; the parody of the worship of Christ with the worship of the Beast by people from every tribe, nation, tongue and language; the Harlot and the Bride). Such Apocalyptic images are uncompromising to challenge Christians to decide which side they are on, and warn them against being ensnared by the world.

Mark Berry produced a very helpful info-graphic showing how the Book of Revelation flows.  Our series will be working its way through each chunk.

Imagine you lived in Rome in 65AD under the reign of Emperor Nero. As you stood singing the opening song in church on Sunday morning, armed soldiers kick the door down and arrest the Christians inside. Many were thrown into the arena to fight wild beasts and gladiators. Others were dressed in clothes covered with tar, hung up on trees in Nero’s garden and set on fire as living-lamps at night. The Apostle Paul was beheaded and the Apostle Peter crucified upside down. Shortly after this Nero killed himself and the persecution stopped… for 30 years at least.

Then along came Domitian – the year is 95AD. If you thought Nero was bad, Domitian was worse. He called himself “Dominus et Deus” – “LORD AND GOD”. He demanded that people everywhere empire worship him and say “Caesar is Lord” – or else! The Christians could not do this because “Jesus is Lord” and so a second more terrible persecution began. During this time the last living apostle, John, was in Turkey and arrested. He refused to deny Jesus, and so he was put in a pot of boiling oil and roasted alive. However, miraculously and annoyingly for the Romans he didn’t die. Then he was exiled to die on an island called Patmos, 30 miles out to sea – it was like Alcatraz, an inescapable prison. And it is there, at a time when Christians are being murdered, and churches are being crushed by armies, that the Book of Revelation was written to give hope.

The message of Revelation is very helpful for us today. Sometimes it looks like life is terribly out of control – it’s a bit like being on a terrifying rollercoaster, you cannot make it stop even though you want to get off! Sometimes it looks like God and His plans are failing! That’s maybe what John felt and thought down on the beach watching the sun rise on the Sunday morning that Revelation begins. But at this the worst of times for the church, John receives a vision from a friend he hasn’t seen in 60 years. Jesus in all of His heavenly majesty appears – and it knocks John over in awe! He writes v.17-18: “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me saying: “DO NOT FEAR; I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades”. Jesus is LORD AND GOD. He holds the keys of life and death, He’s in charge, He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands! Not Domitian!

Introducing the letters, John tells us he saw Jesus standing among seven lampstands, each representing one of the churches – “this little light of mine I’m gonna let it shine” (1:12-13).  These letters are really important. Because it’s in the church and in the daily realities of being a Christian that the spiritual war of the Lamb and Dragon. We’re not spectators to this spiritual war, we’re participants. Until Jesus returns bringing His kingdom with Him, He’s given Christians in the Church important work to do as His faithful witnesses. Jesus wants us to shine for Him in the darkness. While Satan wants to put out our light.

(1) GOD’S WARNINGS TO WATCH OUT:

You have three great enemies (the devil, the world and the sinful nature). Jesus warns us about them and tells us what to do to escape their traps.

(a)  Reject The Devil (lies and temptations)

The dragon has been defeated by Jesus, but he’s not given up the fight yet! He attacks Christians and the church with his lies and with his temptations to sin. One of his favourite strategies for destroying churches and Christians is to infiltrate the church with false teachers, wolves in sheep’s clothing, who spread lies and encourage sin.

That was happening in the church in Thyatira. Jesus warns them: “I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols” (2:20). Thyatira was an industrial city with lots of jobs, but to be employed you had to join a local trade union. As part of being a member you had to join in the pagan parties where getting drunk and sleeping around were encouraged. The Christians had to wrestle with how involved with the pagan society they were. The problem was there was a false teacher in the church, like the evil OT queen Jezebel who called what was evil “good” and told people it was ok to be fully involved. False teaching leads to wrong living.

We still see this today: people in churches say it’s ok to go out and get drunk, it won’t do harm to watch 18 movies filled with violence and sex, it’s ok to go out with anyone you like.

But Jesus these lies and temptations will only lead to their destruction. So it’s important that we reject the devil’s lies and temptations. It’s important that we are reading the Bible and know the truth, so we can detect the lies!

(b)Endure The World (opposition)

The dragon has another favourite strategy using our non-Christian society to exclude and attack Christians. Statistics released 2 weeks ago show that only 20% of people in Scotland have asked Jesus to forgive them of their sins and committed to follow Him. I went to a school of 1000 people where there were only two other Christians. That was not always easy.

Jesus writes to two churches where they’re facing even harder things. Some of them have been executed by the government for their faith in Pergamum, which was a city filled with pagan temples. If Rome was London, then Pergamum was Edinburgh, where a Roman state governor had his throne: “I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you” (2:13).

Today around the world in countries like Iran, North Korea, China, Sudan, millions of Christians cannot meet publicly for fear of being attacked, arrested and killed. That was also the situation for the church in Smyrna: “I know your tribulation…Do not fear what your are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (2:9-10).

Jesus promises them that the worst thing the world can do is kill you, but Jesus is the one who was killed by the world and rose again victorious. We don’t need to fear if we have Jesus who said: “In the world you will have trouble. But do not be afraid: I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

We can be really afraid of what people think of us and how they’ll treat us if we share our faith with them or don’t go along with the crowd. Probably the worst thing that will happen is they may look at you funny or laugh. What you’ll probably find out, as I did, is that your friends will grow to respect you for believing something. There will be times they’ll even be jealous of how your faith helps you trust God when bad things happen or you’re facing the stress of exams.

(c)  Resist Your Sinful Nature (apathy)

Sadly we are sometimes our own worst enemies and make it easy for the devil. If you’ve put your faith in Jesus, then you’ve been saved from the penalty of sin, but still sin is present inside us, in our “flesh” or sinful nature. It will be until we get our new creation bodies!

The story is told a ship at sea during a terrible storm. The sailors were terrified by the waves crashing against the sides of the ship, the wind tearing at the sails… but were even more afraid of the crashing noise down below decks. You see one of their cannons had broken loose and was crashing dangerously against the walls, and threatened to sink the whole ship. The greatest danger wasn’t the storm outside but the threat inside. So it is with our sinful nature.

Jesus warns that our sin make us lose our love for Jesus. He writes to the church in Ephesus: “I know your works, your toil, and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear those who are evil…But I have this against you, that you have abandoned your first love” (2:2,4). They know all the right answers and do all the right things, but don’t love Jesus! That’s a danger for us in Carrubbers. God doesn’t just want us to be good boys and girls, who know lots about the Bible – He wants us to love Him! To love Him more than we love our sport, our musical instrument, our PS3, our shopping, or desire a boyfriend/girlfriend.

Also Jesus warns that our sin can lead to complacency, apathy and laziness. He writes to the church in Sardis: “I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God” (3:1-2). Funnily enough, Sardis was a city that had twice been captured by its enemies. It was high up on a hill and they thought they were safe up there. So they didn’t bother having guards. But their complacency and laziness meant they were captured at night. Christians who aren’t too bothered or interested in the Bible, and just see church as a social club are in similar danger! Christians who don’t take their sin seriously and think it’s ok to keep sinning because God will forgive them anyway. Jesus says beware – you’re sleep walking off a cliff!

(2) OUR PART IN GOD’S PLANS FOR THIS WORLD

Jesus wants us to play our part in His war against the dragon. Jesus despite all the opposition and temptation of the dragon, was “the faithful witness” for God. Jesus is alive today as the victorious overcomer of the dragon and He invites us to be His faithful witnesses. He wants us to live distinct lives that show that He’s our King. He wants us to tell others about His salvation too.

The last church we haven’t mentioned was Philadelphia and it was a church of faithful witnesses. The city was located at the crossroads of all the major trades routes. This missionary city was built here by the Greeks who hoped it would spread the Greek ideas to the rest of the region. But now Jesus encourages the church in this city: “I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut”. The church in this missionary city is going to be used by God to spread the gospel throughout the world! That’s what God wants for our church too and from us as members of that church.

It’s no accident that you live where you do, or go to the school you do, at the time you do. Your friends and those you are in class with are not there by accident either. God has put you there to be His faithful witness – to be His light in a dark place, working for and speaking for Jesus.

Here's the answers to your questions so far.

Q. In Revelation 1, there is a description of what Jesus looks like.  This is the same as some verses in Ezekiel and Daniel.  Did Jesus look like the resurrection version back in the OT and did he change appearance when he entered the world?  And would the Revelation-Jesus (with bronze feet) have nail pierced hands and feet?

Paul tells us that Jesus is “the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15) – what He means is when you look at Jesus (His character, His lifestyle, His words, His actions) you see clearly what the invisible God is like. The only physical appearance that God has is Jesus. In the Old Testament there were a number of occasions when the pre-incarnate Jesus appeared on earth to people, however, we are never told what He looked like. This is probably because He had no permanent physical form – “God is spirit” (John 4:24). That is to say, Jesus had no appearance at that time. However, something very important happens in the incarnation. God the Son takes to Himself a physical human form, which will have its own appearance. The resurrected Jesus retained this physical body and appearance. Indeed, we’re told in Revelation 5 that Jesus retains the scars of His crucifixion “Behold, a lamb standing as though slain” – perhaps as a reminder throughout all of eternity of the incredible love that has saved us as sinners. As my grandfather once told me: “There is only one man-made thing in heaven: the nail prints in the hands and feet of Jesus”. So yes, His feet (shining like bronze – note the simile in the text: Jesus has feet of flesh) would be nail pierced.

Q. Why is Jesus described as the “Son of Man” (1v13)?

If you do a search for the phrase “Son of Man” in the Old Testament you’ll find that it is a common description for human beings (e.g. Job 25:8, Psalm 8:4, Isaiah 51:12). It is most often used in Ezekiel (some 93 times) as God addresses his prophet. Interestingly, it is Jesus’ favourite way of talking about Himself (using it 50+ times in the gospels). Almost certainly Jesus is alluding to the vision in Daniel 7:13 where he sees a mysterious figure – someone who is described as a human being and yet also with unmistakeable divine characteristics. This “Son of Man”, this divine-human is God’s appointed king who will reign forever and bring an end to the tyranny of evil in this world. Jesus is saying that He is this promised One! In John’s vision of chapter 1 we are being shown in his own distinct way that Jesus is the God-Man – fully human and fully divine.

“Inside Out” tells the story of an adventure inside 11 year old Riley’s head. Award winning Amy Poehler is the voice of Joy, Riley's first emotion at birth. Amy said in a recent interview: "Joy has been in charge for 11 years and is pretty comfortable being in the driving seat and assumes she's going to be there forever, but we find out very quickly that Sadness, Anger, Fear, Disgust - the other emotions - want a turn at the wheel." Poehler adds: "I love the message of the film which is basically that no-one can be happy all the time - and that's OK.”  That message resonates with kids and adults alike! Many things in our lives cause us to get stressed out, grow weary, feel overwhelmed, and sometimes we can fall into depression. Yet we can try to go about our daily business and even come to church and go through the ritual: “How are you?” “I’M FINE”. Many of us struggle to admit what’s really going on!

More than half the Psalms are Psalms of DISORIENTATION for times when everything falls apart and our lives turn upside down! We live in a fallen and broken world, so such times are inevitable!

“there is not an emotion of which any one can be conscious that is not here represented as in a mirror…all the griefs, sorrows, fears, doubts, hopes, cares, perplexities…” (Calvin).

“under all the circumstances of life, we shall find that these divine songs suit ourselves and meet our own souls’ need at every turn” (Athanasius).

Q. Have you ever felt distant from God?  Have you ever felt overwhelmed by your circumstances?

Psalm 88 combines both experiences: Heman is alone in the dark!

Normally the lament Psalms end in the light resolving to trust in God and hope in His salvation … but this Psalm ends in a minor key, it ends in the darkness and in despair of death.

BIBLE STUDY QUESTIONS (OBSERVATION AND MEANING)

• Asterisk (*) all the questions Heman asks God? What answers does he receive?
  • There are no answers given to his queries: Why is this happening to me?  Just like Job experienced no answer for a very long time.  Sometimes we will suffer without understanding and without immediate relief or explanation.
• Underline Heman’s descriptions of how he feels God is treating him?
  • Forgotten
  • Judged in wrath
  • Brought near to death
  • Abandoned
  • Taken away his friends
  • Assaulted and destroyed him
  • Hidden from him
• “Heman has lost his faith in God” – Do you Agree or Disagree? Why?
  • He remembers that God is “God of salvation … steadfast love…faithfulness…righteousness”
  • He is praying to God and arguing with God – that is faith. He does this even though he’s not getting any answers and doesn’t feel any better: “faith is learning to trust God in the dark” (Atkinson)
• Does Heman say anything that you think is wrong?
  • There are questionable things that Heman says and blames God for based on how he feels about his circumstances.
  • The lesson is that we cannot always rely on our feelings to tell us the truth about what God is doing in our lives.Culture tells us to rely on our feelings for truth…However – our feelings are like a boat, we can go up and down with the waves. We need something more stable than our feelings, and for that we need to look outside ourselves, and seek safe shelter and anchor our lives in the harbour of God’s truth.
  • Dr John Coe says: “We must learn that our feelings of God’s presence do not necessarily correlate with the reality of God’s presence - God wants to wean us off feelings alone – He’s always there even if he sometimes feels present or absent. He’s doing a deeper work.”
• Why may God have given His people Psalm 88? (Look at its companion: Psalm 89:38-48)
  • God gives His people words to use for their personal sufferings during the days of national suffering to come during the exile.
  • These journeys through the dark valley of the shadow of death and depression can come to any of us … but God ahead of time has graciously given us help to call upon in those times!

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (APPLICATION)

• How can Psalm 88 help us know what to do when we are experiencing hard and dark times in our lives?
  • Don’t feel ashamed
  • Don’t isolate yourself
  • Don’t rely on your feelings to tell you the truth
  • Don’t stop praying to God
  • Don’t be afraid to tell God what you’re really feeling and thinking – He can take it!

• How can we help others who are going through the darkness?

“Suffering is not a question which demands an answer, it is not a problem which requires a solution, it is a mystery which demands a presence” (Dr John Wyatt)

• • Church community
  • Friends to love and pray for and point to God
  • Doctors/medicine (like having a hurting body, sometimes hurting minds and emotions can be helped with medicine)
  • Counselling
  • Books

• Heman finds no help or hope in the darkness. How can the suffering Christian answer the question “Does God care?” in light of Matthew 26:36-39, 27:45-50?

“Whenever I read straight through the Bible, a huge difference between the Old and New Testaments comes to light. In the Old Testament I can find many expressions of doubt and disappointment. Whole books Jeremiah, Habakkuk, Job centre on the theme … almost half of the psalms have a dark, brooding tone about them. In striking contrast, the New Testament Epistles contain little of this type of anguish. The problem of pain has surely not gone away: James 1, Romans 5 and 8, the entire book of 1 Peter, and much of Revelation deal with the subject in detail. Nevertheless, nowhere do I find the piercing question, Does God care? The reason for the change, I believe, is that Jesus answered that question for the witnesses who wrote the Epistles. In Jesus, God presents a face. Anyone who wonders how God feels about the suffering on this groaning planet need only look at that face. Jesus gives God a face, and that face is streaked with tears.” (Philp Yancey)

The God who is cried out to in Psalm 88 is the same God who enters into that darkness as Jesus. He has come and shared in our pain. Jesus was called “a man of sorrows” and He knows what darkness and despair feels like because He suffered it in the garden of sorrows, the night before He was brutally crucified. That night is recorded for us in Matthew 26:37-38 “Jesus began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, ‘My soul is very sorrowful, even to death.”

Just think about what the words of this Psalm might have meant to Jesus in that moment. They give us a window into His agony as He faces death for our sins on the Cross. In Psalm 88 Heman cries out to God feeling abandoned… and on the Cross Jesus cries out to God His Father “My God, My God, Why have you forsaken me?” He died to destroy evil, and rose again to bring the hope of healing beyond this valley of darkness. Yet until then, in the midst of your sufferings, you need to remember that He has been here too – He understands and He will be with you!  On the radio recently Archbishop Justin Welby was interviewed about a car crash in 1983 involving his family. His daughter Joanna was only 7 months old and she died. He said: “Christian faith doesn’t hide us from the cruelties of life. Jesus himself faced every aspect of the cruelty of life that is possible. “It’s just in it he is there in the middle of the mess with us”.  Heman finished feeling that “darkness” was his “only friend”… but that will never be true for us, because we have a friend in the darkness, Jesus is with us. The darkness is dark, it veils your eyes so you cannot see Him or feel Him…but He is there with you! You cannot see Him, but hear His words “I will never leave you or forsake you”.

Resources to recommend:

• “Streams in the Desert” (book of prayers and readings)
• “Depression: The Way Up When You’re Down” (biblical counselling booklet)
• “Spurgeon’s Sorrows” (filled with biblical and practical wisdom from the life of one who struggled)

We live in a world where we see and feel the horrendous effects of evil… God cares about evil in all its forms:

Spiritual evil: idolatry

Personal evil: immorality

Social evil: injustice

Tonight we’re going to think about the IMPRECATORY Psalms, in which the writer prays for God to judge evil – particularly these are prayers cursing and condemning God’s enemies.

We are going to look at the most shocking one: Psalm 137! God has given us these angry Psalms for a reason, and I think you’ll be excited when you discover why, and how they can be used today!

God’s people are in exile outside of God’s Promised Land. A foreign nation has captured them and destroyed the Temple. Down by the rivers for ceremonial washings (in unclean place among unclean people) this was the best they could do without the Temple sacrifices and washings. They have their instruments to worship God. But then their captors come to humiliate them and mock them for worshipping the apparently defeated God of Israel, YHWH: “Where’s your God now? He cannot help you here – our gods are greater than your one!”

BOOK: Bible Study

Observation Questions:

(1)   Asterisk each curses – what do you notice about them?

(2)   Circle the locations - what is associated with these places in the Bible?

• They are not just real places, but also represent spiritual principles. Babylon with sin and evil. Zion Jerusalem with God’s redemptive work: Temple, King, Promises. The NT looks beyond historical Babylon to its spiritual significance for world history
• The Bible is a tale of two cities: City of God vs City of Sin/Evil. In the judgement and destruction of the spiritual principle of Babylon at the Second Coming, God will bring an end to evil (Revelation 18:10)

(3)   Who is to “remember” and what is to be remembered in v.1-6 and 7-9? Why?

• Remember the hope of salvation and rescue according to God’s promises to His people
• Asks God to remember and not forget to deal with the evil done against His people

Meaning Questions: Clearer parts of the Bible help us interpret the harder parts. Cross references really help understand this Psalm.

(4)   What is being prayed for in v.8-9? (in light of Nahum 3:10, Isaiah 13:16-18, Jeremiah 50:15, 51:24)

• they are “doomed to be destroyed” based on what God has already prophesied as punishment for their wicked actions against them. They are simply praying for God’s will to be done and justice to come!
• is asking God to punish the Babylonians in a way that befits their crime of killing Israel’s children – wants justice to be done and for evil to be punished

(5)   What principle (“lex talionis”) about God’s justice does Exodus 21:23-25 teach?

• lex talionis restrained vengeance and ensured justice (Exodus 21:23-25): the punishment has to fit the crime (no more and no less!)
• This is not about personal revenge but about legal process to redress wrong and punish evil – OT forbids personally taking revenge.

Application Questions: Thinking about Christian ethical responses to evil and enemies

(6)   Can we use this Psalm… and if so why should it look different living on this side of the Cross of Christ?

• First ask the question: who is entitled to use this Psalm perfectly? ONLY JESUS! He is God, the one ultimately wronged by evil committed by His enemies. And the incredible thing is that God has taken the judgement and wrath upon Himself, rather than his enemies. It is His son’s head crushed so that the blessing (rather than cursing) can flow onto us. He is dashed against the rocks so we never have to be.

We live between the Cross and the Second Coming of Jesus. When Jesus returns it will be to bring justice in the world: to right all wrongs, and to end evil’s dominion. Revelation 18:10 says that Babylon (the symbol of evil and wickedness) will be destroyed at that time and God’s people will celebrate its overthrow. But in this in-between time how are we to live? We no longer live by the OT principle… so what is the NT principle?

LOOK: Bible Application (Christian Ethics on Loving, Doing Good and Praying For Enemies)

(7)   In light of Matthew 5:38-45 and Romans 12:19-21, how should we respond to those who do evil? Share examples of when you have (or haven’t) acted in these ways?

• Because of Jesus, we are ministers of RECONCILIATION not RETRIBUTION => that leads to the Christian ethic in the present age of love and forgiveness and peace and praying for our enemies (for them to be saved, just as we God’s enemies have been saved)
• Jesus’ ethic of loving our enemies and not repaying them for their evil now, depends on the idea of a final judgement and punishment for sinners. When Jesus does return it will be to judge the world and to bring justice against sin and evil! Otherwise the only way to see justice done would be to take things violently into our own hands.

TOOK: How we can use these imprecatory psalms:

• Use them to pray for perpetrators of evil: “Our calling, since the Cross, is to pray down reconciliation, not judgement…” on those who are opposed to God and His kingdom (Kidner).
• Use them to enter into and pray for God’s people in suffering the world: “These psalms awaken our consciences to the anguish of those who suffer. They serve to wake us from the dreadful passivity that has overtaken the comfortable churches of the Western world. They make us long for the coming of the kingdom in power and justice” (Gospel Coalition)
• Use them to express our longing for God’s justice when we are wronged (physically and spiritually): It is surely better to pray and commit enemies into God’s hands rather than to take matters into our own hands for revenge

Summary:

Teaching: In the face of evil and injustice today, we should remember and rely on God’s promise to vindicate His suffering people and vanquish evil

Application: May our experience of God’s grace (as His enemies) change how we deal with ours: to love, do good and pray for them

Doubts can be a significant dampener on the fire of our spiritual lives. They can make us uncertain about whether the Bible and the Gospel are TRUE. Is it wishful thinking? Isn’t it impossible? Can we trust it?

It is not wrong to question and consider these things. It’s not helpful to repress them or ignore them. But someone wisely once said: “Believe your beliefs and doubt your doubts; do not make the mistake of doubting your beliefs and believing your doubts”. Or as someone once asked Jesus: “I believe, help my unbelief”. As some of the greatest Christian minds have said through the centuries (Augustine, Anselm, Aquinas): “we have a faith seeking understanding”

We should not be made insecure about our belief in God by some of the hard questions asked by sceptics. Even God’s people wrestled with these things: “When I speak to college students, I challenge them to find a single argument against God in the older agnostics (Bertrand Russell, Voltaire, David Hume) or the newer ones (Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris) that is not already included in books like Psalms, Job, Habakkuk, and Lamentations” (Yancey).  People in the Bible ask hard questions about God too…

We’re going to meet someone tonight who struggled with doubts. His name is Asaph, he was one of the main worship-leaders at the Temple. He was the Chris Tomlin or Matt Redman of his day!

He writes a Psalm placed at the start of Book 3 – the time when Israel is in decline due to sin and idolatry. It is a Wisdom Psalm that is asking the big questions about life. In the Bible, the Wisdom Literature reflects on how God the creator has ordered this world in a certain way:

• the wise person will be blessed as they stay close to God and obey His order;
• the wicked person will perish apart from God and by disobeying His order.

Sounds good… but it’s not that simple…As Christians we say we believe that God is all powerful and completely good, and yet we live in a disordered world that doesn’t look that way! How are we to face that reality? Asaph wants to help us!

Bible Study:

• Walk through Asaph’s journey in this Psalm by completing the flow-diagram: what main-steps does he take in his thinking? (Watch out for some key connecting words, like “For”, “But”, “Therefore”)
• Why is Asaph struggling (v.3-12)? What would be the equivalent doubts today?
  • Why do bad things happen to God’s people? Suffering and evil
• Where does Asaph find an answer to his question (v.15-20)? Why is that significant for us?
  • The Sanctuary or Temple of God is where God lives among His people
  • Brings his doubts and struggles to God. Like Job, the only help is found in God’s presence!
  • Turns from speculation to WORSHIP!
  • Involves God in the conversation in his mind and shares his doubts and struggles with Him
• What new perspectives does A reach that answers his question (v.20-28)? How can that help us today as we look at issues in our world/lives?
  • Gets an eternal God-perspective on things: the contrasting final destinies of the righteous and wicked. While the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer for a time, eternity puts everything into perspective.
  • *OBJECT ILLUSTRATION OF OUR LIVES AS A BALL OF STRING: we should not live only with the moment in mind, but eternity
• As a Christian, how can we read this Psalm in the light of the gospel of Jesus?

Teaching: Structure of the Psalm

Part of the beauty of Hebrew poetry is not just in what it says but how it says it. Often the structure of the Psalm will help us better understand the message of the Psalm. For Hebrew people they often liked to put the climax or important idea not at the end of their writing, but right in the middle. You see that kind of turning point in the Psalm

v.1: God is good!

v.2-14: Poor me!

v.15-20: New eternal perspective from God

v.21-27: Rich me!

v.28: God is good!

Teaching: Structure of the Psalter and Bible

This structure that we have found in Psalm 73 is also important for the whole book of Psalms. There are 150 Psalms and at almost the exact centre of them is Psalm 73 – it is the hinge on which the whole book turns to some extent. One commentator puts it supremely well:

“Where Psalm 1 says that if we walk in God’s way God will be good to us, the psalms that follow in Books 1 and 2 repeatedly complain that such an idea is far too simple. Life is not like that. Yet as we go on through the Psalter we find, equally often, a sense that, in spite of all, God will be good to his people; till the final psalms come to a climax of unalloyed praise. It is obvious that Psalm 73 follows just this pattern….This understanding of the Psalter and of our present psalm within it, is clearly a matter of orientation. Those who look at the world with what seems to them the simple, innocent perspective of Psalm 1 (and of Psalm 73:1) will be disorientated by the hard experiences of real life, which seem to contradict it. They need then to be re-orientated – to be turned so as to see these confusing facts from a different point of view. That new orientation will bring them ultimately to Psalm 150 (and to Psalm 73:27-28) and to the recognition that in a deeper sense than they had realised: God surely is good to Israel” (Wilcock)

Challenges to our faith in the midst of suffering are real. However, the Bible is very real about the sufferings of God’s people (go read Job, Habakkuk, Jeremiah, even Jesus Himself intensely suffered throughout His life) and it gives both reasons for the reality of pain and hope for fixing things:

“Is not this the pattern of the entire Bible story? Psalm 1 and Psalm 73:1 reflect the first two chapters of Genesis… but that is not how things work out; and a world disorientated by sin needs re-orientated before it has any hope of rediscovering Eden…The glories of Psalm 73:24-26 and Psalm 150 and the last two chapters of Revelation are the glorifies of Paradise restored. You can get there only by way of Psalm 73:17, which in New Testament terms is the encounter with God in Christ at Calvary” (Wilcock)

Use Psalm 73:23-28 and Romans 8:28-30,37-39 as basis for extended time of prayer:

• Adoring God for who He is
• Confessing to God our doubts and struggles
• Thanking God for what we have in Christ that cannot be taken from us
• Supplication: asking God for help to have this perspective on life

Two resources to help you thoughtfully doubt your doubts and strengthen why you believe your beliefs…

• www.bethinking.org
• Michael Ots “What Kind Of God?”

TOOL: There are different types of Psalms TO HELP US TO RELATE TO GOD in all the different experiences of life:

“Whatever your particular need or trouble, from this same book you can select a form of words to fit it, so that you do not merely hear and then pass on, but learn the way to remedy your ill… In fact, under all the circumstances of life, we shall find that these divine songs suit ourselves and meet our own souls’ need at every turn” (Athanasius)

When you learn how to recognise the different types of Psalms you will learn where to go and what to use at different times.

Walter Brueggemann (OT professor)

• Psalms of Orientation: whenthings make sense and are going well in life e.g. PRAISE
• Psalms of Disorientation: whenthings go wrong or become hard in life e.g. LAMENT or CONFESSION
• Psalms of New Orientation: when God answers our prayers, comforts us, delivers us and helps us gain a new God-perspective on our circumstances e.g. TRUST or THANKSGIVING

PSALM 139: A PSALM OF TRUST

(1) Go through each of the three stanzas answering these questions:

(a) As David considers God, what pictures or concepts come into his mind?

(b) Summarise the central truth he concludes about God?

(c) How might this truth make him think or feel differently?

1. God knows everything about me (v.1-6) - omniscience
2. God is everywhere with me (v.7-12) - omnipresence
3. God has a plan for every day of my life (v.13-18) - omnipotence

(2) Looking at v.19-24 – Why did David write this Psalm? So when might we also find it useful?

• David feels threatened by enemies who hate God and God’s king. He has “anxious thoughts” about them.
• Book 5 of Psalms: time of insecurity and instability after return from exile. David doesn’t trust in army against enemies… Israel has no army in Book 5. Rather throws self in trust on God.

TEACHING

We’re Christians using the Psalms, so to apply this Psalm to ourselves need to have Christ in our minds. You can do this simply by simply putting “Jesus” in the place of “God".

1. Jesus knows everything about me
2. Jesus goes everywhere with me
3. Jesus has a plan for every day of my life
4. Jesus is worthy of my trust

Jesus would have known and used Psalm 139 in His own life. Jesus knows what it’s like to be human (not abstractly but empirically)… Jesus has walked where we walked and faced what we face. From womb to tomb He faced troubles and anxieties, but knew His life in His Father’s hands and the companionship of the Holy Spirit. All His days were literally written in God’s book before He was born! Today we can come to Jesus who not only knows everything about us, but also has experienced what it is like to be us! From the womb to the tomb. He proved God’s trustworthiness. And He invites us to trust Him today, because the God who knows everything about you also LOVES you:

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16)

APPLICATION

We’ve seen that David is confronted with circumstances that trouble him with stress and anxiety. We have a lot in common with him – because all humans experience these realities. What we now want to think about is how this Psalm of Trust can help us relate to God when we’re feeling troubled and worried.

We all get scared! The key question is what do we do with these feelings and thoughts? Where do we turn for help?

“In the middle of trouble, when you are in the heart of the battle, you will run somewhere for refuge. You will run somewhere for rest, comfort, peace, encouragement, wisdom, healing and strength….Perhaps in trouble you run to other people, hoping they can be your personal messiah. Perhaps you run to entertainment, hoping to numb your troubles away. Maybe you run to a substance hoping to numb your troubles away. Maybe you are tempted to run to food or sex, fighting pain with pleasure. Since none of these things can provide the refuge that you seek, putting your hope there tends only to add disappointment to the trouble you’re already experiencing” (Paul David Tripp)

We need to train ourselves to RUN TO GOD IN PRAYER. When we do that we will get a NEW ORIENTATION, a new perspective on what is troubling us.

There’s something important to notice about the proportions of the material in the psalm.

How many stanzas are reflecting on God?

How many are reflecting on David’s problems?

What order are they in?

There are three stanzas reflecting on God and one stanza reflecting on David’s problems. And he looks to God before he looks at his circumstances. This teaches us an important principle: when we meditate on the truths about God and pray to God, then our circumstances are put into their proper perspective.

Often our stresses, anxieties and troubles dominate our thinking and we cannot be free of them. You just cannot switch them off. Instead, you need to bring something else into your thinking that pushes them out. *Object illustration of removing all the air from the glass – not by extraction but by displacement. Filling with true and good things of God.

Case studies: How could you use this Psalm (read with Christ in mind) to help…

• Sam fears being in situations where his safety isn’t guaranteed
• Caroline fears being rejected and judged by people
• Chris is struggling with depression and feels that no one understands enough to help
• Tom has just been diagnosed with treatable cancer
• Anne feels inadequate and unimportant

APPLICATION

How can we relate to and find help from God for our stresses, anxieties troubles…Psalm 139 shows us how:

(1)   Remember some truth e.g. God is omnipresent

(2)   Process/Meditate on it for your situation e.g. God is with me even here (new orientation happens)

(3)   Pray to God about the situation: entrusting it to Him!

1. Invites God into your experience: to guide, teach and work in us
2. Imbeds abstract truth into your experience

PRAYER:

Let’s pray through Psalm 139, picking out the phrases that standout to us personally: Thanking God for who He is, and asking Him to help us this week

This term our series is entitled: “For A Closer Walk With God”. We’re going to think about our spiritual health. Spiritual growth happens as the truths of the gospel penetrate into the deepest places of our hearts and souls. Paul prays twice in Ephesians for Christians to grow spiritually: “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know Him better” (1:17) ... “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts [make Himself at home and renovate] through faith… may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (3:17-19).

God has given us the Psalms to practically use to help us grow spiritually. The first word of the Psalms is “Blessed” or “Happy”. Everyone wants to live a happy and blessed life. But the Bible tells us that THE BEST LIFE IS FOUND IN RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LIVING GOD WHO MADE US: TO KNOW AND ENJOY HIM FOREVER! The Psalms want to help us walk closely with the Living God and know more of His fullness in our daily lives.

Tonight we’re going to look at the first two psalms, which were deliberately arranged at the start of the book as the gateway into the rest of the Psalms. They give us two keys for the blessed spiritual life.

Psalms are a different genre (type of writing)

The Psalms are Poetry! Poetry is not like Prose. “A poem (a good poem, at least) uses its poetic form to probe deeper into human experience than ordinary speech or writing is usually able to do, to pull back a veil and allow the hearer or reader to sense other dimensions: ‘I have felt exactly like that, but I’d never seen it so clearly… I’d never seen that angle before, but now that I’ve seen it, I won’t forget it’.” (N.T. Wright)  It works differently to history, gospel or letters. Wants to really engage with our hearts and emotions, so uses lots of figures of speech.

The Psalms use Parallelism (repetition of ideas)! Slows down and invites us to ponder and pray. “Most poetry suffers when translated into other languages because it relies for its effect on the sound and rhythm of the original words. It’s true that the Hebrew of these poems is beautiful in itself for those who can experience it. But the Psalms rely for their effect on the way they set out the main themes. They say something from one angle and then repeat it from a slightly different one. This happens line-by-line, or in different sections”

BIBLE STUDY: Bear that in mind as we turn to Psalm 1 and 2, which have deliberately been put at the start as the gateway to the rest of the Psalms.

• Psalm 1 begins “blessed”; Psalm 2 ends “blessed”
• Both Psalms use the word translated “meditates” and “plots”
• Psalm 1 is individual focus; Psalm 2 is international focus.

(1)   Go through Psalm 1 picking out the contrasts between the community of the righteous and the wicked?

(2)   Summarise in your own words the main points made about the righteous and the wicked. Who are they?

• The righteous and wicked are defined by their response to God’s Word, their relationship with God. The righteous are close to God because they receive His Word, the wicked are far from God because they reject His Word.
• Psalm 1 says there are “Two Ways To Live”. We have not consistently lived as the blessed righteous man…. we have acted more like the wicked.

(3)   What things do we learn about God in how He responds to the rebellion of the wicked in Psalm 2? How does God want us to respond?

• Laughs/mocks at their rebellion (like an army of toy soldiers vs a real tank)
• Appoints King to Judge and Rule to end the rebellion in the world
• God’s Word of advice to the wicked is to take refuge in God’s King and Son to be spared from the judgement to come. “There is no refuge from him, only refuge in him” (Kidner)

(4)   Psalm 2 is the most quoted by the NT church. How should Christians understand Psalm 2 in light of: Mathew 3:16-17, Acts 4:25-28, Revelation 19:11-16?

• Jesus is God’s “King” and “Son” in whom we can find refuge from the judgement coming on the wicked and rebellious world. Jesus alone is the “blessed” and “righteous” man who take the place of the wicked, suffered the judgement of God for our rebellion, so that we can share in His life and the eternal blessings He alone has earned.

(5)   These two Psalms are the “gateway” to the rest of the book. In summary, what two things do we need to trust to experience the blessed, righteous life?

• Trust in God’s Word (1:2)
• Trust in God’s King (Messiah) (2:12)

Let’s look at what Psalm 1 says about “HOW TO” grow…

Psalm 1 is all about the Bible. Because God’s intended means to nourish and grow our faith is His Spirit inspired Word in the Bible: 1 Peter 2:2: “The grass withers, the flower falls, but the Word of the Lord remains forever…Like new-born infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation”

A PICTURE of the Growing Spiritual Life (Psalm 1:3-4)

In the past we were out dying in the desert… but now through faith in the gospel we have been transplanted into Christ indwelt by the nourishing living water of the Holy Spirit. We need to have roots in place to take in and absorb the good stuff, if we’re to grow up and bear fruit.

A MODEL for Daily Devotions (Psalm 1:1-2)

The key question is how can we get God’s Word deep into our hearts so we grow and are fruitful?

When we read v.1-2 in reverse we see the process:

Read God’s Word -> Meditate on God’s Word -> Pray to God based on what He’s said asking Him to work in us

Meditation is to ponder and question what we’ve read, use the mind intensely, filling it with God’s truth rather than emptying the mind. Tim Keller says: “In the Psalm meditation is likened to tree roots taking in water. That means not merely knowing a truth but taking it inside and making it part of yourself. Meditation is spiritually ‘tasting’ the Scripture – delighting in it, sensing the sweetness of the teaching, feeling the conviction of what it tells us about ourselves, and thanksgiving God and praising God for what it shows us about Him. Meditation is also spiritually ‘digesting’ the Scripture – applying it, thinking out how it affects you, describes you, guides you in the most practical way. It is drawing strength from the Scripture, letting it give you hope, using it to remember how loved you are.”

Read through Psalm 2 and discuss how it leads you into meditations and prayers of:

Adoration: Praise God

Confession: Be honest with God

Thanksgiving: Thank God

Supplication: Ask God for help

How are you doing spiritually? Sailing, rowing, drifting, sinking?

If we want to get better at our sport…our instrument… our subject…we put in time and effort and discipline to develop and grow. HOW MUCH MORE IS THAT PRINCIPLE TRUE IF WE ARE TO GROW SPIRITUALLY! To walk closely with God and experience more of the blessed life found in relationship with Him will require us to invest time and effort into meditating on the Word of God, so we can grow and bear fruit for Him.

This is what we'll be studying together on Sunday evenings this term...

The Psalms begin with the word “Blessed” – as Christian students and young workers we want to be people who experience ever increasingly the blessing of knowing the Living God. It is my prayer that this term that as we sing, pray and study the Psalms they will help each one of us have “A Closer Walk With God”. It is through faith in the gospel that we are reconciled into a loving relationship with God. In that relationship fullness of life is found, as we receive the saving benefits of Jesus and transforming work of the Holy Spirit.

Many of us are less familiar with the Psalms and find them harder to read – that’s ok. We’ll be getting to grips with the Psalms together and growing in our confidence to understand and use them in our own lives.

Here are my top six tips for getting the most from the Psalms:

(1) Psalms express God’s truth in poetry to engage our hearts:

God made us as whole people, with a mind that thinks, a heart that desires, and a will that makes choices. He hasn’t just given us truth in narrative and epistles to educate our minds and commands to direct our wills, but He also has given us the poetry to engage our hearts. The Psalms are filled with poetic figures of speech and beautiful symmetries to draw out our imaginations, emotions, affections and experiences. An epistle can say: “You can trust God when life hurts;” while the Psalms say “God is our refuge and strength, our stronghold, our hiding place, our rock, our very present help in times of need”.

(2) Psalms invite us to slow down:

Hebrew poetry doesn’t rely on rhyme or meter of words. It relies of “parallelism” (a form of repetition and symmetry of ideas) in the lines. There are three types (i) says the same thing in slightly different words, (ii) makes a contrast, (iii) develops an idea further. This repetition isn’t pointless and to enable us to skim read things faster. Rather it wants us to slow down and meditate on the idea from different angles - like lifting up a diamond to the light and turning it around to see its different facets.  As we reflect on what the Psalmist said and consider how it relates to us, we're being invited to pray to the God that the Psalmist is also addressing and use his words as our guide.

(3) Psalms identify with our experiences in different seasons of life:

There are lots of different types of Psalms (e.g. Thanksgiving, Praise, Confession, Lament, Wisdom, Royal, Hymns) that Israel and the Church would have used at different times for their public worship and personal devotions. These were composed during all the different seasons of life, with its highs and lows:

(i) There are psalms of “orientation” (when life is going well and we want to sing on the hilltops);

(ii) there are many psalms of “disorientation” (when life has been thrown into confusion and difficulty and we’re crying out to God for help);

(iii) and there are psalms of “new orientation” (when God has answered our prayers and given us a new perspective on the situation).

Whatever we are on our discipleship journey with Jesus, or whatever we’re experiencing: we are not the first ones here and we have been given words to use with God to help us walk with Him.

(4) Psalms show us how to draw closer to God:

Each individual Psalm is a “self-contained spiritual pilgrimage” – a journey towards God from wherever we are presently. In the way it has been composed there will be a flow of ideas. The meaning of each Psalm is contained not only in the words and ideas, but also in the structure. How does it start and end? What are the turning points, the contrasts, crescendos, declensions, or surprises? By following in the Psalmist’s steps we are able to come into the place of understanding and experience of God’s grace that the Psalmist also reached. In this way each psalm is its own spiritual counselling session.

(5) Psalms as a whole collection tell a story:

The Psalms are a collection of 150 songs and prayers which are sub-divided into five smaller collections. These collections were composed or selected for use during different times in the history of God’s dealings with Israel:

Book 1 (1-41): The era of David’s reign and struggles.

Book 2 (42-72): The era of Solomon, the Temple and the Kings.

Book 3 (73-89): The era of the decline of Israel into sin and idolatry.

Book 4 (90-106): The era of the exile and dispersion among the nations.

Book 5 (107-150): The era of the restoration of Israel and hopes for the Messiah.

There are often some surprises and insights that arise when you put the individual Psalm its into book context. The collection as a whole tells the story of how the blessed life is found through trust in God’s Word and refuge in God’s King (Psalm 1-2), and how one day all of creation will join with heaven’s rejoicing in God’s salvation (Psalm 146-150).

(6) Psalms are meaningful in the light of Jesus:

We aren’t ancient Israelites, we’re New Testament Christians who look back on the Psalms through the person and work of Jesus Christ. Jesus didn’t sing from Mission Praise or off a projection screen. He prayed and sang the Psalms. Jesus is sometimes spoken of in the Psalms, He is God’s promised King who is coming to suffer and save His people. Jesus is the God of the Psalter that we sing and pray to. It is sometimes helpful with some difficult passages in the Psalms (particularly when the Psalmist is claiming to be “righteous” or calling for God to destroy the “wicked”) to think of how Jesus would have prayed and sung that Psalm perfectly. And then because we are in Christ, through faith in Him, how can we join in His song as His back-singers today?

When it comes to the confusion and controversy over spiritual gifts today, we need to be careful not to impose our questions and issues onto what Paul writes here. When we read 1 Corinthians 14 we’re reading someone else’s letter, a letter which is trying to correct serious problems in this church. Paul is not so much teaching about the nature and continuing use of the gifts of prophecy and tongues, but rather is teaching general principles that ultimately apply to all our spiritual gifts about how they should be used in our Christian gatherings: corporately as the church, in smaller groups and even in 1-2-1 settings.

We’ve seen in chapters 12-13 Paul correcting the wrong views of spiritual gifts. There are divisions in the church, because of pride. In the early days of the church, when the church was being established by the apostles, when the New Testament was being written, the Holy Spirit often worked in miraculous ways. Those who had been given what appeared to be more impressive or miraculous gifts seemed to think they were better than others in the church.

Imagine the scene, you’re in church on Sunday morning – then suddenly someone falls down and starts speaking excitedly and loudly in a strange language. Everyone is going to stop to notice it…and there’s something in human nature which makes us marvel at the miraculous. Some people thought that this was a sign of them being a very spiritual and mature church. They said unless you are able to speak in tongues you aren’t as good a Christian. However, Paul warns them that they are behaving childishly, spoiling their worship of God and witness for God. In fact, Paul is worried that their behaviour and fascination with these spectacular spiritual gifts shows that they are behaving more like they used to in their pagan religions when they dabbled with evil, than as Christians.

All this disorder was bad for the health of the church and was bad for God’s reputation in the world. We represent God as His ambassadors to the world. The world looks at the church and makes conclusions about God and the gospel. The problem was Corinth looked on at the church and saw it in a mess, that looked like the crazy cults of their day. But “God is not a God of confusion” (v.33) – their disordered worship damaged their witness.

God’s desire for the church is that it represents Him to the world, as it grows up and reaches out.

(1) God Wants the Church to Grow-Up Strong & Healthy (14:1-20, 26-32):

It’s interesting how Paul says a number a times that he wants the Corinthians to grow up: “Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature” (v.20). He says how they’re thinking about and using their spiritual gifts is not evidence of maturity but immaturity. They’re behaving like selfish children, rather than as responsible adults. Rather than seeking the most spectacular gifts for themselves to look good, Paul encourages them to seek the gifts that are most useful for helping the church to grow up strong and healthy: “strive to excel in building up the church” (v.12)…“let all things be done for building up” (v.26).

How do we grow up? It’s as God’s Spirit works through God’s Word: “the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation” (1 Peter 2:2). God’s Word gives us life, it feeds and sustains us, it teaches and guides us, it helps us to grow and serve God more effectively. A baby grows up into an adult by being fed food, and so it is how a young Christian grows up into a mature Christian as God works through the Bible: as we read it, as we think about it, as we pray about it, as we hear it being taught, as we discuss it with each other, as we live according to it, as we share it with others.

In those early days of the church, when the New Testament was mostly not yet written, God spoke His Word to the church through both the gift of tongues and prophecy. However, these two gifts were not equally valuable for the church to be built up and grow strong. That’s because they were not equally intelligible to the church. Listen to Paul’s instruction: “earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. [WHY?] For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God, for no one understands him…on the other hand the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding, and encouragement and comfort” (v.1b-3). Clearly and intelligibly sharing God’s word encourages God’s people, it builds-up or helps to grow God’s people, and it comforts God’s people when they’re hurting. BUT Tongues is like a coded message…it’s useless unless you know how to decode it. During World War Two both sides could intercept each-other’s messages, but they could not READ what the coded messages said. A great turning point in the war was the capture of a German Enigma machine from a submarine which let the British read German messages for the first time as they had the decoding machine. Paul uses a series of examples to show that unless tongues is interpreted then it is useless for the church. In v.7-8 he talks about musical instruments: I am totally useless when it comes to music…I cannot play anything properly. I can make lots of noise on a guitar or piano, but I cannot play a tune: tongues is like that unless it is later interpreted. I don’t know many words in Romanian. You could say something very kind and encouraging to me today, but unless someone interprets it will not bless and help me “if with your tongue you speak words that are not intelligible, how you anyone know what is said? … if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me” (v.9-11). That’s why even though it looks impressive and special it’s not the best gift to desire in the church.

Instead, Paul contrasts tongues with prophecy: “the one who prophesies builds up the church” (v.4)… “the one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up” (v.5). Now don’t misunderstand Paul. He’s not saying tongues is useless. Paul speaks in tongues (it’s a great gift for a missionary who goes to foreign countries where he doesn’t naturally know the language and the Spirit gives him the words to communicate the gospel to people)…but he says the focus when we come together as the church should be on serving and building-up one another and that is best done through prophecy than tongues: “I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue” (v.18-19).

With this in mind, Paul orders the church to change the way they behave when they gather together. Rather than selfishly showing off and seeking the gift of tongues, they must “let all things be done for building up”- everyone must not only be willing to use their gifts but also be self-controlled to not use them if not appropriate. If there was no one able to interpret the gift of tongues then they were to remain silent (v.26-32), because it could do no good for the church.

That’s what Paul was saying to the Corinthians, but what does God want you to do with this teaching in 21^st century Romania? Forget for a minute the question of whether the Holy Spirit still gives gifts of tongues and prophecy – that’s controversial in the wider church. I don’t think there are prophets any longer today – Hebrews 1 says that God has already spoken through the prophets and has spoken His final and full words in Jesus His Son, whose gave the Holy Spirit to the apostles to finish writing the Bible. But I do think that God continues to speak to us through His Word – He doesn’t give us NEW WORDS (to add to our Bibles), but His Spirit helps us see how THESE WORDS already written in our Bibles apply to OUR LIVES and NEW SITUATIONS TODAY. The key principle is that we need to seek to bless and build up other Christians by speaking clearly and intelligibly to them about what God has said in His Word. Some people have particular gifts for preaching and teaching in churches, in Sunday school classes or youth groups. But all of us should seek to speak God’s truth into one another’s lives: to give each other Godly biblical advice, to comfort each other with God’s promises, to challenge each other to live holy lives and work hard for God, to point out sin. We can do this on Facebook, in e-mail, in letters, or in person. We don’t have to be in church to do this. But as you get older you’ll start to be the older people in your church, you’ll be the leaders, you’ll be the people that younger people look up to. And you need to be able to speak and share God’s Word with them in a way that will help them to grow up and serve Christ in the world. One of the most important things for the church to work well is our ability to understand and share God’s Word together.

(2) God Wants the Church to Reach the Lost (14:21-25):

In our times, many Christian writers are reminding us that the church is the only organisation that exists for the sake of those who are not its members. The mission of the church is to reach the lost in the world. Everything the church does needs to remember our calling to be missionaries, locally and globally.

The church is always sending a message to the world – the question is what message are we sending? Is it something that witnesses well to Christ, or something that dishonours Christ?

The Corinthians by focusing on having their wild spiritual gifts parties had forgotten that the church is not just there for them to have special experiences…it is there to reach the lost. Some would like to sit in church enjoying speaking in tongues all day, while never going out on mission to their neighbours. They have forgotten that first of all Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit comes to make us missionaries: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes…and you will be my witnesses, in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:7-8). Our spiritual gifts are to help us serve God’s mission in the world – we are part of the body of Christ, His hands and feet on earth going and working in His name to see people brought into His kingdom. The Corinthians were sending mixed and unhelpful messages by their misbehaviour with spiritual gifts. By over-emphasising the gift of speaking in unknown tongues, they were failing to communicate the good news about Jesus to the world in a way it could be understood as saving good news.

Paul says two things about tongues:

(a) It’s a sign of judgement for unbelievers: “tongues are not a sign for believers but for unbelievers” (v.22).

(b) It doesn’t help communicate God’s word to unbelievers: “if the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds?” (v.23).

Firstly, Paul quotes from Isaiah 28 in v.21 to show that when God sends people speaking strange foreign languages it is not a sign of good news but bad news. If you were an Israelite living in the Old Testament then God was warning that you would know He was displeased at your sin and was sending judgement upon you when you heard foreigners speaking in their foreign languages. This was what happened when Israel was invaded by her enemies and taken off into exile. Tongues are a sign of judgement on unbelievers – they don’t communicate the good news of how to be saved and made right with God.

Secondly, Paul points out that if non-Christians visit your church and hear everyone speaking in strange languages then that is going to look weird. They’re going to think the Christians have gone mad and not take seriously the gospel. Remember what happened in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost when the 120 Christians began speaking in tongues many in Jerusalem thought that they were drunk – although many of the international visitors heard in their own languages praises to God - it was only after that Peter began to preach the intelligible good news about Jesus which resulted not in awe or confusion but in salvation (cf. Romans 10:11-14). Rather than lead the non-Christian to worship, it will lead them to mock God. Instead Paul says that when the church gathers together they should focus on prophecy (preaching and teaching!) – that is clearly speaking God’s Word in a way that unbelievers can hear, understand and respond in worship: “if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you” (v.25).

Preaching, teaching, speaking, sharing God’s Word in simple and understandable ways is the way Christians grow in faith and the way non-Christians come to faith. God saves people as they hear the gospel, understand the gospel, are convicted of their sin, and place their trust in Jesus. This requires us to be able to clearly share the gospel with people.

A truly Spirit-filled church is not defined by the presence of incredible miraculous spiritual gifts ... it’s where the people are growing in their love for Jesus and their concern for reaching lost people with the gospel of Jesus.

When you think about the Holy Spirit remember that He’s come to equip and enable you to be a missionary right here where you are: in your family, with your friends, in your school, college, university, in your workplace.  You are called to represent God, which is both a great privilege and a great responsibility. Thankfully you don’t have to do it alone or in your own strength, as God’s Holy Spirit is alive inside of you to help and enable you to do it with Him in His strength and power!

Conclusion:

So as you think about the Holy Spirit and His gifts remember that He has given you all gifts for a reason. These gifts are so the church can grow up strong and healthy, which it needs to be to serve God’s mission in the world. Just as it’s difficult to do heavy lifting unless you do some weight exercises to build up muscles, so the church cannot carry or accomplish the big task of telling the whole world about Jesus unless we are all exercising our gifts.