The laying on of hands (Part 1).

The war in Syria is moving in a very dangerous direction.

With Al Qaeda and associates on one side and Assad on the other, another screw has suddenly turned in this all-out conflict without any rules of behaviour.

It is reported that the chlorine gas dropped upon women and children this week was made in Germany, sold to Iran and used by Assad’s Syrian Government forces backed by Russia.¹ How strange! The rebels had almost been driven out of Douma; Assad was on the verge of victory, why use chemical weapons? Madness! Or is it all fake news? Who can we trust?

What a mess! The Western nations are saying that a red line has been crossed. But how many red lines have been crossed in the past seven years of war in Syria? Are there no limits to the inhumanity and destructive forces that have been let loose in the Middle East?

World War, No Rules?

Today we have reached what is arguably the most dangerous point in world history since the end of World War II, with nations primed with weapons of mass destruction taking sides in a local civil war that could suddenly explode into global destruction.

Neither side can claim to be righteous; both sides have committed terrible atrocities. Whichever side we in the West back, it seems, we are aligning with demonic forces whose adherents have departed from any elements of common humanity in their intensity of hatred and determination to shed human blood.

Today we have reached what is arguably the most dangerous point in world history since the end of World War II.

There are no longer any rules, there is no longer any compassion, no longer any consideration for helpless babies and little children – all are regarded as legitimate targets for unlimited aggression. What has happened to humanity?

Humanity Corrupted

The Bible declares that human beings are created in the image of God. Have we reached a stage in our descent into corruption whereby there is no longer the least hint of the divine recognisable in our humanity? Have we reached the point of absolute degradation?

The Prophet Isaiah foresaw a time when humanity would descend into such depths of utter corruption that God would bring judgment upon all nations.

“Come near,” he said. “Come near, you nations and listen; pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world, and all that comes out of it! The Lord is angry with all nations; his wrath is upon all their armies. He will totally destroy them, he will give them over to slaughter. Their slain will be thrown out, their dead bodies will send up a stench; the mountains will be soaked with their blood” (Isa 34:1-2)

It’s a terrible picture but it is one that we are already seeing little glimpses of on our TV screens and iPads as news from Syria comes in. But what of the future? Where will all this lead?

With unpredictable leaders at the helm of the nations, no-one can answer these questions. One false move or miscalculation could rapidly escalate the situation into worldwide destruction – such is the depth to which humanity has descended.

Is There Any Hope?

Is there any hope for humanity? Certainly, there is! This is the whole point of the stark warnings that God gave to the biblical prophets. The warnings are there for anyone to read if we want to know the truth and understand the answer to the present dilemmas facing humanity.

Have we reached a stage in our descent into corruption whereby there is no longer the least hint of the divine recognisable in our humanity?

Those warnings given in Isaiah 34 are immediately followed by some of the most beautiful words and promises in the Bible, in the next chapter, which refers to the wilderness blossoming, the glory of Lebanon and the splendour of Carmel already showing the glory of the Lord and the splendour of our God.

This is linked with good news to those who recognise the plight of humanity and turn to the Lord God for help – “strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come’” (Isa 35:3-4).

Sin and its Undoing

In the New Testament Paul recognises the plight of humanity that we all experience: we are all sinners. We all do things that we regret. We behave badly and say things and do things in the heat of the moment that we should not. Paul goes to the heart of the matter when he says “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do” (Rom 7:15).

This is the strange thing about our human nature: the godly side can rise to sublime heights of self-sacrifice and self-giving. But the other part of our nature sometimes drives us to do things that we hate. This is because we are either led by the Spirit of God or we are driven by the forces of darkness.

Paul faces this dilemma and concludes that only Jesus is the answer to this internal battle inside each one of us, because only he can set us free from the forces of sin and death. He says:

For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. (Romans 8:11)

This brings us to the heart of the Gospel, that God in Christ has done something for us that we could not do for ourselves by actually dealing with the corruption of our human nature: as Paul says, “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (1 Cor 5:17).

How Should We Pray?

So, what should Christians do in the present dilemma? Clearly, we must pray for our leaders, but how should we pray? Should we not also pray for the Syrian and Russian people and their leaders? It takes two parties to make a conflict (or in this case, many more than two!) and we should be praying that God will bring godly wisdom into the councils of human beings.

Only Jesus is the answer to this internal battle inside each one of us, because only he can set us free from the forces of sin and death.

Should we also be praying for God to hasten the day of the coming of Jesus? World events certainly look as though we are drawing closer to the times described in Scripture as leading up to the Parousia. But his coming will bring judgment upon all the nations and all people. Jesus said that before that time “the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world” (Matt 24:14) so that everyone has a chance to hear God’s truth.

It is not his desire that anyone should be lost and all of us have some loved ones who are not yet in the kingdom. We should be careful of praying for God’s judgment to come quickly: it is far better to trust our loving Father whose timing is always perfect, who knows all the circumstances and cares for all his children.

References

1 Behold Israel, Special update on Syria, April 11, 2018. Youtube.

There’s a solution to the murder and mayhem on our streets

Plans have been revealed for the launch of a new party to ‘break the mould’ of British politics. But we don’t need a new party. We need a new heart, awakened by the Spirit of God from dreams of a man-made paradise in which we all sing from same the secular ‘hymn sheet’ where nothing is absolutely right or wrong.

This kind of thinking has only ever produced a nightmare scenario of violence, lawlessness and utter selfishness.

Britain has been hit by the terrifying news that the streets of London have now become more dangerous than those of New York. And in the Middle East, the Syrian Government would appear to have unleashed chemical weapons on its own people, killing 200 and wounding 1,000 more – mainly women and children. And Russia responds by calling this a fabrication.

A little further south, on the border of Gaza, rioters provoke the Israeli Defence Force with a so-called ‘March of Return’. Some would have us believe this is a legitimate protest at Israeli brutality and oppression, and for the right of refugees (and their descendants) to return to the Jewish state. But what is the truth?

Self-Inflicted Crisis

Well, the protestors deliberately chose the Jewish feast of Passover to mount their frustration, no doubt particularly mindful of the imminent 70-year celebration of Israel’s re-birth as a nation.

Actually, the refugee situation affecting the Palestinian people is a crisis of their own making, resulting from fierce opposition to the creation of modern Israel by her surrounding Arab states who immediately set upon the newly-born nation with the full force of their armies (like the dragon depicted in Revelation 12), warning Arabs living there to flee the country so they wouldn’t get caught up in the impending invasion.

The refugee situation affecting the Palestinian people is a crisis of their own making.

Israeli leaders, however, tried to persuade their Arab residents to stay, but to no avail – hence creating a totally unnecessary humanitarian crisis. And those who promised their swift return in the wake of Arab victory refuse to take any responsibility for their welfare. They are simply used as political pawns enabling anti-Semites to point the finger of blame at Israel for almost everything wrong with the world.

Palestinian protesters at the Gaza border. Stringer/Xinhua News Agency/PA ImagesMalcolm Powell, who was 12 at the time of Israel’s re-birth (in 1948), recalls reading and hearing at the time “that the Israelis were touring the Arab Muslim villages with loudspeakers urging them to remain, and to ignore orders to flee from the Muslim countries about to attack the new state.”

And while these self-inflicted refugees are estimated to have numbered some 800,000,¹ little is discussed in media circles about the 846,000 Jewish refugees forced out of Arab countries at the same time, who lost land and property equivalent to four times the size of Israel² - not to mention the many Holocaust survivors from Europe who had lost everything.

Land for Peace?

Quite apart from the refugee issue, Gaza was very much part of Israel until the world’s politicians managed to persuade former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to pull out of the enclave in a ‘land for peace’ exchange.

But ever since the 2005 withdrawal, terror group Hamas has used Gaza to launch a constant volley of rockets into Israeli territory, where frightened residents have hardly had a moment’s peace in more than a dozen years. They have also been subject to the constant fear of terrorists tunnelling under their homes with the intention of taking hostages and killing civilians.

Little is discussed in the media about the 846,000 Jewish refugees forced out of Arab countries in 1948.

Welsh photographer Grace Fryer has just opened a month-long exhibition depicting the suffering of children in Israeli communities close to the Gaza border.³ Some of those pictured are totally traumatised and unable to live normal lives. Grace witnessed mortar and rocket attacks herself when visiting the area as a child and returned as a student photographer in May 2016 to help others understand what these people are suffering. What sort of peace is this?

Truth Turned Upside-Down

Wherever you look in world politics, truth is being turned on its head. In my country South Africa, for example, Palestinians are being depicted as “the crucified, hanging body of Jesus today”.⁴ This was part of a ‘Good Friday statement’ by the Economic Freedom Fighters political party which ACDP (African Christian Democratic Party) leader Rev Kenneth Meshoe has described as “insidious, inflammatory, highly offensive and blasphemous”, adding:

Jesus was a Jew. Jerusalem has belonged to the Jews for over 3,000 years, from the time King David first established it as a city of Israel…I encourage persons not wanting to be deceived to research the truth for themselves and, if given the opportunity to travel to Israel to see the vibrant democracy that she is, to do so!

He further rounded on the “hypocrisy” of Palestinian leaders “who would rather spend the billions of dollars they receive from the international community to fund a mission to destroy Israel instead of investing in the health, education and economic development of their own people.”

What is the Problem?

We could all do with following the wisdom of legendary author GK Chesterton who, in response to a question from a major newspaper – “What is the problem with the world?” – is reputed to have submitted a brief handwritten note to the editor, saying: “I am. Sincerely yours, Chesterton.”⁵

We are the problem! We are all sinners, but there is a remedy for our sin, and his name is Jesus, who died on a cruel cross to take the punishment we deserved. Trusting in his death brings us life, health and peace – and, yes, it is also a recipe for changing a world gone wrong.

As Rev Meshoe put it, “Jesus’ death on the cross was an expression of the highest form of love; he gave his life for the salvation of all mankind. Palestinians are not being crucified.”

The answer to the problem of “I am” is the great “I AM” – the name God applied to himself and which Jesus also owned, as suggested by his many divine claims, such as: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no-one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

The answer to the problem of “I am” is the great “I AM”.

The Ultimate Answer

As for the streets of London, where more than 50 people have been murdered in the first three months of this year, the ultimate answer to the problem is just the same as outlined above. And for a helpful illustration, reference what has been happening in recent weeks just down the road from where Rev Meshoe has been speaking so courageously in the South African Parliament.

A huge prayer rally called It’s Time drew up to 150,000 people to Cape Town. It was the biggest recorded event in the city’s history, but when the organiser assured police there would be no incidents, the police chief laughed at him, explaining that 10,000 had attended the Mitchells Plain venue only a fortnight earlier and there had been 48 stabbings and over 100 robberies.

What’s more, he added, those attending the prayer event would have to park up to 4km away and walk through some of the district’s most dangerous areas.

But at the de-briefing following the rally, held to confess the country’s sins, the same police chief reported, with tears in his eyes, that not one single incident – no assaults, no robberies, nothing – had been recorded!⁶

Stop blaming everyone else for all the problems around you, and start to build a new world by dealing with your own sin. Jesus said something similar, telling his listeners to take the plank out of their own eye so they could see clearly to take the speck out of someone else’s eye (Matt 7:3-5). But don’t try doing it by yourself; only Jesus can help you!

Notes

1 Hancock-Watts, C. Understanding Gaza. ASSIST News Service, 11 April 2018.

2 Leaflet promoting The Hope photographic exhibition – see www.fathershouse.wales

3 The exhibition, opened on 12 April, is being held at the Theatre Clywd Education Gallery, Mold, North Wales.

4 Gateway News (South Africa), 3 April 2018.

5 Mohler, RA, 2018. The Prayer that Turns the World Upside Down. Nelson Books.

6 Joy Digital, 9 April 2018.

A personal testimony. Chris Foster shares about how she met with God while celebrating Passover for the first time.

I had an amazing encounter with God recently, which I wanted to share!

I was in church one Sunday, listening to the sermon. The preacher said that in the Book of Leviticus there are a number of feasts listed, which Jesus celebrated, and that significant things about His life, death and resurrection occurred at those times (Lev 23).

She said, although those times are translated ‘Feasts’ or ‘Festivals’ in our Bibles, the Hebrew actually means ‘God’s appointed times’, and that God has ordained ‘appointed times’ throughout the year when he ESPECIALLY wants to meet with his people!

As the preacher was saying that, something stirred in my spirit - I wanted to explore this some more.

God’s Appointed Times

A few days later, I had a book put into my hand, The Messianic Church Arising: Restoring the Church to Our Covenant Roots! by Robert D Heidler.¹ It’s a book about the biblical Feasts, written for modern-day charismatic Christians.

The book says this:

From my studies in seminary, I knew the Bible devoted a lot of space to a series of feasts, but I had never taken the time to study them. I had always assumed these feasts were just for the Old Testament era, and had no relevance for Christians today. For the first time in my life, I began to seriously study the feasts. I WAS AMAZED at what I found! As I began to study the feasts, I discovered that…they were not just holidays or Jewish rituals. God called them His “appointed times”. In a very real sense, these feasts are “appointments” with God: times set by God to meet with His people…

As I studied the feasts, I was surprised to find that these appointed times were not just for the Old Testament era! God’s Word repeatedly tells us that these appointed times are eternal, “for all generations”, and cannot be changed. (p100)

The Hebrew Feasts actually translate ‘God’s appointed times’ – times throughout the year when he ESPECIALLY wants to meet with his people!

Now some might say, ‘We have the Holy Spirit inside us, to be with us ALWAYS, so why would we need Appointed Times now?’ And I would say: yes, He is ALWAYS with us, whatever we’re going through. Psalm 23 tells us that even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, HE IS WITH US!

But I would put it like this – I have been married for almost 43 years, and my husband is around a lot of the time. But we also enjoy special times, when we escape the demands of life, dress up a bit and go out for a meal or something, and we sit and talk and talk – and that’s special! I thought, maybe these ‘appointed times’ are like that!

Getting Rid of Hidden Leaven

While musing over this, I suddenly realised that one of the appointed times, Passover, was just a couple of weeks away. I thought: I’m going to be aware of this date.

In Heidler’s book, it says that one can make preparations for Passover by cleaning your house and getting rid of any ‘leaven’ (symbolic of sin), showing that you want to get rid of sin in your life. Leaven is yeast, used in bread-making, but as I don’t make bread, I didn’t think there was any yeast in the house, except in the bread we were eating at that time!

However, I realised that yeast is a type of mould and, as I stood in our bathroom, I spotted some mould getting into corners of the room where there had been condensation, so I cleaned that out. Then it seemed right to start a thoroughly good spring-clean. As I was vacuuming under the bed, I realised that I was cleaning places that are hidden from view to most people, and that this was about saying to God “I want to get rid of any hidden sin in my life”.

Passover involves getting rid of all leaven (sin) – even that which is hidden.

Being Met by God

The book says that before Passover it’s also good to go round your house, asking the Holy Spirit to reveal anything ungodly and anything else which, though not overtly ungodly, may be a distraction to you in your worship of God. So I went round my house praying and asking Him to show me those things. There were a couple of things He pointed out to me, so I got rid of them. Finally, it was suggested that you go round each room in the house, and pray a blessing on each room, and on the things that happen there.

So as Passover approached, I started praying round the house, to pray a blessing on each room. As I did so, within a minute or two of starting praying, suddenly there was a sort of WHOOSH, and an overwhelming sense of the presence of God THERE and WITHIN ME, showing me what to pray, and getting me to pray about things in my life that I had NEVER thought to pray about before!

For the rest of that day and in the ensuing days, throughout the time of Passover, I felt an almost unprecedented sense of God’s presence and blessing upon my life! I had several big answers to prayer, and I felt God’s Strong Presence and anointing on me as I was able to minister to people I encountered. The things that I had never thought to pray about before – yes, they were answered in miraculous ways too!

Throughout the time of Passover, I felt an unprecedented sense of God’s presence and blessing upon my life.

Wow! It was special! And the good news is, these ‘appointed times’ occur at other times of the year too! I’m looking forward to remembering these times more regularly, waiting on God and letting my life be more enriched as I celebrate those times in the future with Him!

References

1 Click here to read our review.

Tolerance leads to compromise.

"To the angel of the church in Thyatira write:

These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. 2I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan's so-called deep secrets, 'I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.'

To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— that one 'will rule them with an iron sceptre and will dash them to pieces like pottery'—just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give that one the morning star. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

The letter to the church in Thyatira is one of the less well-known letters of Revelation 2-3, being hidden in the middle of the list. However, it is also the longest letter and carries a message of such vital importance to our culture and generation that it would be careless of us not to give it the attention it deserves.

Thyatira Then and Now

Thyatira (modern-day Akhisar, Turkey) was a small commercial city about 50km inland from the coast of Asia Minor – a crossroads town situated at the junction of two major trade routes. As the messenger carried the letters of Revelation northwards from Ephesus, through Smyrna and Pergamum, he would then have arced back down to Thyatira on the next leg of his journey.

As with many settlements in Asia Minor, Thyatira has a long history stemming back thousands of years to Hittite rule. It has changed hands many times since then, coming under the authority of the Persians, Greeks, Romans and many others. A Christian community existed there from the very early days of the apostolic era and flourished for many hundreds of years, until the Ottoman Empire took over in the 14^th Century.

Thyatira was infamous in ancient times for its dyeing facilities and its role in the purple cloth trade (the Gentile convert Lydia, who welcomed Paul, Silas and Timothy into her home in Philippi, was originally from Thyatira and known for her successful trading in 'purple', Acts 16). However, it was also a commercial hub for many other industries including wool and linen textiles, leather work, pottery, bronze-work, agriculture and the slave trade.

In the World, But Not of the World

Culturally, Thyatira was a Gentile, pagan city with a 'work hard, play hard' ethos. It was known for its mercantile prosperity and its trade guilds, which would host lavish festivities for members with drink, sex and idolatry in abundance.

For Christians in Thyatira, though not facing the threat of dreadful persecution, there was constant temptation back into the ways of the world – indulging in unGodly revelry and being tempted into compromise by the comforts and social requirements of the good life. Indeed, refusing to give reverence to pagan gods or Caesar worship as part of guild celebrations could have led to expulsion from one's trade guild (and therefore unemployment), so it would have taken a lot of courage for believers to stand against this kind of activity.

Thyatira was a Gentile, pagan city with a 'work hard, play hard' ethos.

Ruins of a Byzantine church in Thyatira. See Photo Credits.The faithful in Thyatira had to learn to be 'in the world but not of the world' - how to take their stand against the flow of peer pressure and not let worldly values infiltrate the Church. This is exactly the theme the Lord Jesus chose for his letter.

From Tolerance to Compromise

In fairness to the Thyatiran church, they were doing a lot of things right - as the letter openly acknowledges. Jesus Messiah begins by congratulating the group for their good deeds, their love, faith, service and perseverance – and for the obvious growth in their dedication.

However, he loved this band of believers too much simply to pat them on the back for their good deeds and ignore the issues that needed addressing. He knew that though they were doing all the right things on the outside, there was compromise in their hearts.
At the time, the issue in hand was the influence of a certain 'Jezebel' who was leading God's people into sin, telling them it was fine to go along with the rest of the pagan city, experimenting sexually and partaking in idolatrous festivals. This seduction into sin may also have involved some element of occult, with believers being deceived and tempted by the promise of being given knowledge of "Satan's deep secrets".¹

This was the immediate, surface issue for the Thyatiran Church – and God's message was a tough one. She who had refused to repent (the letter implies she had already been given ample opportunity), along with her children (this may refer to her followers, cf. her biological children), would be subjected to suffering and even death as a consequence of their sin. God had had enough of their wilful disobedience; He was going to bring judgment upon them.

The Thyatiran church were doing a lot of things right - but the Lord Jesus loved them too much to ignore the issues that needed addressing.

But the underlying issue here was neither sexual immorality nor the eating of food sacrificed to idols, as much as both needed addressing. The fundamental issue was that the community of faith in Thyatira were being led down a road of compromise because of their attitude of tolerance towards those who were sinning and leading others to sin.

The word used for 'tolerate' in verse 20 means to permit, to allow, to not hinder. In other words, it is not restricted to those who joined in with the Jezebel rebellion, but also includes all those who stood by and watched it happen - too afraid to say anything.

Mixture is Not an Option

This is where the letter shouts so very loudly to our church culture today: tolerance of worldly values, pagan idolatry and false doctrine within the Church, even if we ourselves do not participate, is not an option for Christians. We cannot serve two masters – if we try, we will end up denying the Lord Jesus.

According to Clifford and Monica Hill in their book Ephesus to Laodicea, Christians in Thyatira "had learned the practice of tolerance in order to survive in a multicultural and polytheistic society, but in so doing they had compromised their faith".² Arguably, exactly the same thing has happened – and is happening right now – with Christians in Britain.

Relative wealth and freedom in Britain have left Christians exposed to the seductive pull of materialism, individualism and living for pleasure. The encroachment of suffocating, secular humanist 'tolerance' has made it virtually impossible to talk about universal rights and wrongs without being labelled judgmental or a bigot – so it is easier to stay quiet, to live out the faith in private.

To top it all off, many congregations in this country (like the Thyatirans) are doing well in their good deeds, their love, faith and perseverance; but this often makes it easier to justify doctrinal complacency or sinful behaviour. Believers are too tired, too busy, already doing their bit.

The fundamental issue for the Thyatirans was that they were being led down a road of compromise because of their attitude of tolerance towards those who were sinning and leading others to sin.

And so, comfort has led to complacency – to the point where the Lordship of Jesus is downplayed (even denied), his righteous ways are made light of, and his call to holiness is ignored, in case we offend others. Only last week, verses from the Qu'ran were read out in St Mary's Cathedral in Glasgow as part of a Christian Epiphany service!³ We are already on a very slippery slope.

If believers do not live in ways that challenge and change the culture around us, that culture will end up changing us. Note that the two major aspects of the compromise in Thyatira – sexual license and compromise with other religions – are also the two that most deeply divide the Church in Britain today.⁴

Living Victoriously in Babylon

Learning to live distinctive Christian lives in the midst of a secular/pagan culture is difficult. What is it alright to 'tolerate' in order to build bridges with our neighbours for the sake of the Gospel? How do we grow a Church culture that is not soft on sin, whilst avoiding both legalism (on the one side) and liberal compromise (on the other)?

There are many questions here and no easy answers – this is a path that can only be walked with the help of the Holy Spirit. But it is important to note that the process starts not in word or deed, but in the heart.

It is in the heart that the choice is made whether or not to stand against deception or falsity within the Lord's Body. It is in the heart that tiny decisions are taken to stay silent when brothers and sisters go astray, in case they are offended by our speaking out. It is in the heart that compromise in our own behaviour is pursued, in exchange for the good life or for acceptance by others.

In sum, it is in the heart that tolerance blurs into compromise – before any words have been uttered or actions [not] taken. No human sees these small, imperceptible choices – but God does.

Sifting the Church

The time is coming when the Lord will sift and test us all, as he undoubtedly did the Thyatirans. Those who do not turn will end up suffering – not because God is a sadist, but because he knows we have hard hearts that often need to be broken before they can be changed.

It is in the heart that tolerance blurs into compromise.

Ideally, this judgment will produce a fruit of repentance and a return to obedience and righteousness. This may or may not happen – but what is certain is that it will become increasingly difficult in this nation to exist as a Christian with one foot in the world and the other in the Kingdom. It is either/or, not both/and! What will it take for us to choose the Lord?

Those who do, who hold on faithfully to that which they have been given whatever the cost - the overcomers - will participate with the Lord Jesus in His ultimate rule and reign at the end of time.

They will be given the bright morning star – Messiah Jesus Himself – whose eyes are a blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. He is the King of Kings who will reign for all eternity, when all other kingdoms with their seductions of wealth and prosperity have been blown away like chaff on the wind. It is this perspective that we need – a healthy fear of the Lord's glorious supremacy and power – to keep us from sinning.

References

1 Cf. Luke 8:17; Ephesians 5:11-14. See also commentary here.

2 2005, Handsel Press, p75.

3 See news coverage from Christian Concern.

4 Interestingly, the diocese that oversees all Greek Orthodox adherents in Great Britain (established in 1922 when Greek Christians were driven out of Asia Minor into diaspora by Turkish nationalists) is called the Archdiocese of Thyateira [Thyatira] and Great Britain! Culturally, we have a lot in common.

Click here to read the rest of the articles in this series.

Why didn't God intervene in Aberfan? Greg Stevenson offers some thoughts on the classic question of why suffering is allowed.

Many people suffer disasters from external events that come unbidden into their lives, from illness or injuries (whether caused by ourselves or by others), to overwhelming events such as volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis, or extremes of weather like flooding. The natural question that is always asked is: Why? - as if we know that there must be a reason!

The Bible tells us clearly that God is in complete control of his world and its events. There is no god beside him (Isa 45:14, 21). Indeed, he intervenes in many situations to save, to heal, to deliver. So it's a good question to ask when disasters happen - where is God? Why does he allow it?

God Calls and Forewarns

The Bible tells us that God is righteous in all his works and holy in all his ways (Ps 145:17). So this means that everything God does and allows is for righteous reasons. What were the righteous reasons for which he allowed the terrifying tragedy in Aberfan 50 years ago?

When we look at God's dealings with his people Israel, we find that he gave them teaching and instruction (Torah) by which to live, so that the nations roundabout could see a righteous lifestyle that resulted in prosperity and security. When his people failed to live up to this standard, he disciplined them in all sorts of ways (1 Chron 21:13) to bring them back to him, and maintain this witness.

Many of these efforts to discipline were Sovereignly-ordained events (storms, pestilence, earthquakes, enemy attacks, etc), but several were the product of the people's own sin, including their blindness or deafness to his teaching/commandments.

Yet we see that God gave his Name (his character) to his people so that they might know him (Ex 34:6 – the most quoted verse in the Tanakh): "The LORD, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished". This speaks of the love and justice of God. So in each case of their turning away from him through sin (and consequently stepping outside of his blessing and protection), he gave them warnings about the consequences of their actions – Choose whom you will serve!

God is righteous and holy in all his ways, so this means that everything he does and allows is for righteous reasons.

The warnings were given so that they knew ahead of time the results of their choice. But when the warnings were ignored, God was patient with them. Again and again he called to them – "I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen. I called you but you did not answer. Day after day, again and again, I sent you my servants the prophets" (Jer 7:13, 25 – Heb. 'rising up early in the morning, and speaking'). He also sent examples of his sovereign power to bless or curse (Amos 4).

Aberfan: Warnings Ahead of Time

According to a recent BBC documentary,¹ the tragic events in Aberfan on 21 October 1966 that killed 116 children and 28 adults were preceded by many warnings:

1. 1939. A few miles from Aberfan, 180,000 tons of a coal waste tip in a privately-owned mine slipped. New guidelines about tipping over a water source were given, but not passed on.
2. 1944. Another tip near Aberfan moved.
3. January 1955. Flooding in the valley below the mountain of tip No 7 above Aberfan. The children presented a petition to their headmistress about the slurry moving, which was passed on, but ignored.
4. 1963. A slurry movement that didn't quite reach the village. Tipping on the site of No 7 tip was continued. No map or guidance was given to the engineers responsible for No 7 tip.
5. July 1963. A letter from Merthyr Tydfil council was sent to the National Coal Board (NCB) concerning the danger from coal waste being tipped above the Pantglas school. Despite assurances that tipping would cease, it was not stopped.
6. January 1964. Again concern was expressed by the council about the slurry - "If the tip moved, the entire school could be threatened"
7. January 1965. A petition was raised by mothers at the Pantglas school, and passed to the council by the headmistress. But there was no NCB action resulted.
8. 26 March 1965. A further slip at a nearby tip nearly went down the mine shaft. Warnings were given but ignored. The memo was sent to the civil and mechanical engineers but poor working relationships resulted in the memo not being followed up. A long list of concerns was sent to a senior NCB official about the tip safety but was not forwarded to the NCB.

Finally, the main reasons given by the NCB for not moving the No 7 tip after the disaster were the cost and the time it would take. In the Tribunal, senior NCB management denied any knowledge of the potential for slips from coal waste tips, but eventually changed their stance and admitted that the disaster was preventable. Of the £1.75 million that was raised for the disaster fund, £150,000 was taken from the fund for removal of the tip, and the NCB agreed to pay £500 for each child who died was offered as compensation (the value of a child's life?).

This list is not given to apportion blame, but to emphasise that God gives many warnings of the consequences of man's selfish and sinful ways. George Bernard Shaw said appositely: "The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them. For that is the essence of inhumanity". Much is sacrificed to financial profit, and safeguarded by keeping a distance from the site of responsibility.

Whenever people turn away from God, stepping outside of his blessing and protection, he gives them warnings about the consequences of their sin.

Natural Disaster - or Natural Consequence?

Some of what we call 'natural' disasters are clearly the result of the shaking of the earth (and eventually the heavens also) that God has warned us of in Hebrews 12, and Scripture tells us that these tragedies are part of the birth-pangs that will bring in the end of this age. The whole creation has been 'groaning' as in the pains of childbirth, on account of man's sin.

But many disasters are the result of man's selfishness, or of rebellion against God's laws, and these are especially severe among nations that God has blessed and called to serve him, but which then turn away from him in disobedience.

God is sovereign, but he warns us about the consequences of the choices we make. Paul's letter to the Romans is very clear about this. Those who reject his way, he will give over to their 'shameful lusts' and to the consequences of those choices. But his love is always expressed by warnings first, proclaimed by those who see right action, so that mercy and justice can be evident. This was perfectly demonstrated in the life of Jesus, and ultimately at the Cross.

In order to avoid a potential tragedy from self-seeking in many forms, or from indifference to our fellow-man, we (individuals, families, businesses, governments and nations) simply have to set the choices that we make against the goodness and righteousness of God. In this, Jesus is our model.

We can't always know why God allows disasters (why he brings prosperity and creates disaster – Isaiah 45:7) but we do know that he desires to dwell with us, and that we live in his blessing and under his protection.

We cannot know the whole answer, but God has done all that is necessary to deal with our sin, our self, and our indifference, at the Cross. As we expend time, energy and resources for those who are caught up in the tragedies and disasters that are part of this fallen world, we can remember that what God does is always for righteous reasons, even when it takes the form of allowing loss, pain and death. For he has been there himself also.

References

1 Aberfan: The Fight for Justice. BBC, first broadcast on 18 October 2016. Available on iPlayer.

Clifford Denton turns his attention to a sensitive topic.

The 'problem' of suffering is, of course, a big and sensitive subject, but it is not as complex to understand as we might think. The difficulty comes when it is suddenly brought close to home; when we or someone close to us is going through a difficult patch - perhaps through sickness - perhaps through some other pressure of life, temporary or permanent. Where is God to be found? Why is he seemingly silent?

The Big Picture

In What the Bible says about the Judgment of God we began with the big picture, which is also the best place to begin here. We live in the period between the Fall and the coming Kingdom of God. We wait for the return of Jesus and the blessed time (pictured in Revelation 21) that eventually will come when there will "be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away" (Rev 21:4).

But in the meantime, the free will of mankind, through the mistakes of Adam and Eve, has led us all to live for a period in a world where Eve was promised pain in childbirth (Gen 3:16) and Adam was promised toil, hard work and difficult circumstances symbolised by thorns and thistles (Gen 3:18-19). Furthermore, the earth was designated a place where satan, the tempter, would be active, living in enmity with mankind (Gen 3:15).

Nevertheless, God made covenant with Abraham which would be fulfilled through Jesus the Messiah, made manifest in terms given through Jeremiah (31:31-33). Despite the Fall and all its consequences, we who live in faith are on a pilgrimage, as it were, to a destination beyond this world's problems, waiting for all the promises of God to be fulfilled in our lives.

Even when the suffering of this world reaches the high pitch of Luke 21, Mark 13 and Matthew 24, Jesus' exhortation to us is not to look at the problems all around but to "look up and lift your heads, because your redemption draws near" (Luke 21:28).

We journey through a temporary world where all our experiences become prompts to seek God, personally and together, for help on the way. If there is a primary purpose for all the suffering in the world, it is that we will earnestly seek God. Our priorities should be balanced towards eternal life, but God also sends us help in this life according to his best judgements for us - personally and within the 'big picture'.

If there is a primary purpose for all the suffering in the world, it is that we will earnestly seek God.

Kingdom Now...or Kingdom Coming?

Jesus warned us that there would be false expectations concerning his return (Luke 21:8-19, Matt 24:4-14). The parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matt 25:1-13) warns us that a wrong view of his coming will possibly lead to a falling away for some, through giving up, losing focus and even losing hope. Even in Paul's day, there were those among the Thessalonians who were confused and some who were losing hope (1 Thess 5:1-11; 2 Thess 2:1-17).

So, what are we to expect prior to the Lord's return? A careful reading of Acts 3:18-21 is helpful here - it is like a three-point sermon.

• Point 1 (v18) concerns the prophecies that were fulfilled through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.
• Point 2 (v19) exhorts us in the era between his first and second comings to seek the Father through faith in Jesus so that our sins may be blotted out and seek him for times of refreshing.
• Point 3 (v20-21) concerns Jesus' return. He remains in heaven until the time appointed by the Father. The Kingdom of Heaven will not come in fully until then. It is not in the hands of the Lord's disciples to bring in the Kingdom for him. When the King returns he will bring in the complete restoration that we all yearn for - more so as the suffering of the fallen world is magnified. There will be no final Kingdom without the King.

Meanwhile, as Paul also said (Rom 8:23), we have the first-fruits of God's Spirit in us, sufficient for our pilgrimage, our growth in faith and love as we go on to complete our journey. There is no suggestion that the completion will come before the Lord's Kingdom is fully with us, when we will even have new bodies:

I consider that the present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us...we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies...we wait for it patiently. (Rom 8:18-27)

While we await Jesus' return, we are exhorted to seek the Father for forgiveness, sanctification and times of refreshing. We also have the first-fruits of God's Spirit in us.

Word Study

There are two main Hebrew words that are related with the word suffering, each with a somewhat different emphasis.

One word is natan, meaning to give, cause, perform, allow. Jesus said (Mark 10:14), "suffer the little children to come unto me." This has the sense of allowing something to take place. This is not the same as the other main Hebrew word for suffering, nasa. Nasa has a wide range of meanings including, to bear, exact, stir up. This is the sort of suffering we are considering in this study - the sort of life experience that is a burden and requires perseverance. It is not, however, a punishment.

A corresponding Greek word for suffering of this kind is pasho. It is the suffering of Jesus in Luke 9:22 – "the Son of Man must suffer many things." It is also the suffering referred to by Peter relating to our own pilgrimage (1 Pet 3:14), "if you should suffer for righteousness sake..."

We can bring suffering on ourselves of course, but outside of this if someone is suffering in this world (whether through sickness or some other burden), it should not be seen as a personal judgement of God for their sins. It should be understood in the more general context of the fallen world through which we are all pilgrims.

Some Examples

The Book of Job has been given to us to show that a person may suffer sickness and bereavement and it is far from a punishment for sin. Indeed, much personal suffering is part of one's personal walk with God and may promote questions, test faith and lead to personal growth. This may not always be the case, but there is a message for us all in the experiences of Job that prompt us to be careful of our conclusions and also be careful how we counsel others. A suffering person needs comfort but not misguided comfort from unwise friends!

Whilst we sometimes bring suffering on ourselves, outside of this individual suffering should not be seen as judgment from God for their sins. Job is a prime example.

When Jesus healed the man born blind (John 9), the Lord showed us that some suffering, and the testimony which it produces, brings glory to God and is not to be linked with personal sin (John 9:3). When a faulty tower, perhaps of unsound construction, fell and killed 18 people in Siloam (Luke 13:4), it was a lesson that sin is not necessarily attributed to those who suffer most from the consequences of a sinful world.

Sickness or suffering of other kinds, though not always so, can be a result of satan's schemes, for example, the man in the caves of Gadara (Matt 8:28) and the infirm woman (Luke 13:16). We must be careful when to discern the direct workings of satan and when not.

Jesus went about healing and delivering many people, to demonstrate the power of the Kingdom and as a testimony to who he was – the Lord, with power to forgive sin and to heal (for example, Matt 11:2-6, Matt 9:1-8). Yet, some he healed and some he did not heal. He healed as a response to faith (eg Luke 8:48) and also when he was filled with overwhelming compassion (Matthew 9:36). He gave us no expectation that all sickness and suffering would be removed from the world prior to his return, yet showed us that God does respond to faith – which itself is a gift from him (1 Cor 12:9).

Suffering, Testing and Comfort

A wide-ranging study of this subject would show that there is no easy formula to explain why a person is suffering in some way. We are taught not to be downcast, but to look up. We are exhorted to grow in faith through the exercise of our experiences. In our individual lives we will have unique opportunities to seek God and help one another, exercise the gifts and ministries we have been given (1 Cor 12) and grow together in the midst of a suffering world. Furthermore, when we ourselves are seen as suffering we are in a position to both sympathise and witness to a real faith in Jesus.

Returning to questions we posed at the beginning: where is God to be found in our sufferings - and why does he sometimes seem silent? The answer is that he is always close (consider again the testimony of Job). It is a surprising experience of those with faith in Jesus that suffering brings us to seek God more rather than less. It is an evidence of overcoming and an exercise of our faith. Those without such faith are more likely to draw further from God. The seeming temporary silence of God is all part of this process of testing our faith, exercising it and growing it.

In suffering, God is always close – and for those with faith in Jesus, suffering brings us to draw even nearer to him.

We cannot do what Jesus did for us on the Cross, but we are able to witness to it in this world of suffering. It is our privilege to identify with the suffering of Jesus, as pointed out by Paul (Galatians 1:24), who filled up in his flesh "what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church."

Just as the apostles rejoiced "because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name" (Acts 5:41), so we can come to a point of maturity where we "consider it pure joy whenever we face trials of many kinds, because we know that the testing of our faith develops perseverance" (James 1:2). Of course this does not mean we should artificially look to bring suffering upon ourselves to seem more holy; rather it means that we have a wise perception of the subject of suffering in this world.

A word to be held in tension with suffering is comfort. Isaiah 40:1-2 speaks of the comfort to be given to those suffering for the outworking covenant purposes of God. No-one has suffered more than Jesus in this respect, though Israel has had its share of suffering. We too must learn to live with the suffering in this world and comfort one another. Paul said (2 Cor 1:3-7):

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings as we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

This is a brief study on a huge and central subject in our lives as pilgrims journeying between the Fall and full restoration. Let us seek to achieve a balanced perspective as we go into testing days ahead, constantly seeking God - each on our individual journey.

In our series on the Jewish High Holy Days, Helen Belton examines Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

What do we learn from the current investigation into the hidden life of our former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath?

Sins of the Nation

It is interesting first to note our initial reactions, even before police enquiries are complete. Most of us are not at all surprised! We are getting used to exposure after exposure of the sinful hidden lives of those who should be trusted in the nation.

Already the well-known entertainers Rolf Harris, Stuart Hall and Jimmy Saville have been exposed as having dark sides to their lives: whilst having an acceptable public profile they were also involved in sinful acts that should not exist in a righteous nation. The recent conviction of Tom Hayes in the Libor banking fraud illustrates that the sins of our nation extend into other areas as well as child abuse. Now we wait to see if the accusations levelled against a former Prime Minister will reveal further dark secrets.

On the one hand we can be reassured that we still have a legal system that will bring justice relating to serious crimes. Our nation, despite all, may not have slipped beyond recovery. On the other hand we may be witnessing the tip of the iceberg of sin in our nation. Could it be that the Lord God himself is uncovering these sins to show us the danger that our nation is in, before he acts in further judgement?

Layer Upon Layer

During the 1990s, we carried out some research on the New Age Movement for Prophecy Today. In doing so, we discovered deep and demonic darkness taking footholds in the nation. Satan's lies usually start with harmless-looking temptations: after all he is called lucifer, the angel of light. His traps are subtle and what seems like 'fun' or even beneficial in some ways can gradually be a luring of a person into utter darkness and sin. Such sin is then kept in the secret recesses of a person's life – a trap.

That is how even a prominent leader can be drawn into ritual abuse of children and even into satanic rituals. That is how a banker can be tempted to exploit the wealth of the nation for personal gain. That is how any of us can turn from the ways of God to the ways of sin and evil. The thin end of the wedge of sin is very narrow, but the wedge thickens as sin deepens, sometimes imperceptibly to the one caught up in it.

Satanic lies usually start with harmless-looking temptations, but gradually and subtly lure people into utter darkness and sin. Such sin is then kept in the secret recesses of a person's life."

Consider, for example, the way the so-called 'New Age Movement' attracts a person through subtle means. Doorways include the lie that all religions lead to the one god, promises of healing through alternative therapies such as with crystals and counterfeit meditation, and a lie that "we are all gods" with no such thing as sin. Step by step, one can then be trapped, with the potential of believing ever deepening lies of satan.

A Tangled Web

When we carried out our research on the New Age Movement, one of the things we did was to draw a diagram linking together various organisations and activities. If we found something in common, such as a particular group of people who belonged to two seemingly separate organisations, we would draw a line to link the organisations together. By studying these links one could understand how a person involved in one activity would meet others belonging to another, thus enabling a person in one area of interest to move to another, and move deeper and deeper into areas of deception. On this basis we were also able to warn others of the traps that should be avoided.

In our research on the New Age Movement, we often found hidden links between seemingly unrelated organisations, groups and activities. We traced connections between apparently useful, innocuous activities and others of great concern."

This process of tracking potential links often showed up connections between seemingly useful, innocuous activities and others of great concern. A person, for example, could start with an interest in ecology, or some modern evolutionary science, or alternative medicine, and wander into other areas through personal contact with others or through widely circulated written material. A person could experiment with something relatively harmless and move on to other things, including false religions and even witchcraft and satanism. Of course this is not inevitable - but the potential is there.

The 'spirit of the age' is one of relativism and experimentation. Is it any wonder that some people end up in the deepest darkness when their guard is down and when they are personally vulnerable, and mix in circles that can mislead them?

Satan's Cleverest Trick?

One of Satan's cleverest tricks is to blind the eyes of people to his very existence. Then he can get away with almost anything, degree by degree. James had the weakness of men in mind and also the schemes of satan when he wrote:

...each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. (James 1:14-15)

Our Response

Whilst those being seduced may be blinded by satan to the consequences of their sins, even thinking the sins to be pleasurable, those who set up opposition enter an unrelenting spiritual battle. Those who sin may go into the dark depths quite unaware, whilst others fight a battle, knowing how dark these depths are.

The Lord Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by satan (Matt 4). By contrast he taught us to pray: "lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (Matt 6:13). Jesus disarmed satan for those who live by faith, so that the injunction of Paul might also be fulfilled:

...brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things. (Phil 4:8)

For this reason, having sent our warnings out in Prophecy Today we have also turned to a positive response to the wickedness of the age in which we live, wickedness found even in our own nation. We will keep on warning but will also promote deeper Bible study and the ministry of prayer. Many may go astray in our nation but we must be stronger in the things of God. With many revelations of wickedness coming to the surface - even accusations concerning a past Prime Minister - repentance across the nation is still possible. Let us pray for the things of darkness to be exposed, as God has started to do. Let us also be strong in the Lord and ready to serve, as we are called to in this age of growing deception.