Off-centre sparklet 5) You are not your own ( 1 Cor. 6:19)

This is the last I am taking from John Hutton's book.  He recognizes these words 'You are not your own' belong in a passage about sexual immorality but he sees it as a big principle on which to stand.  That we can never act as though we are independent of one another and certainly of Jesus Christ.

He concludes by including the next words in 1 Cor. 6:20. We are not our own, for we are bought with a price even the passion and sacrifice of our Holy Redeemer...It is not a matter to argue about.  If you do not feel that so it is then in the meantime nothing more is to be said. I am quite sure that if any of us knew all the love, all the care, that a loving mother had felt for us, all the pain she bore for us first and last, we should feel it as our deepest act of honour to spare that mother the grief of a broken heart.

What St. Paul meant to say, I take it, was in effect just this: if people had only the imagination, the seriousness, the detachment from their own hot interests to see the Son of God, bending in Gethsemane, and bleeding on Calvary in order to bring God into our lives, they would understand the shamefulness of all careless and useless and sinful living; they would see that is was like striking Him on the cheek, crucifying afresh the Lord of life and putting Him to an open shame.

Off-centre sparklet 4) Hold fast (Heb 10:23)

This is a less off-centre two words!  Hold fast occurs several times in the AV and Hutton particularly focuses on Heb 10:23: Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering.  He begins: The first word of God to us is always 'believe'; the second and last word of God to is is 'hold fast' 'hold on', 'endure' to the end. At first we may need no extra motivation but as we get older, or certain things happen, the pull of circumstance can be away'.

He warns how easily we can drift from early enthusiasm in matters of the soul...to grow cold,...at least cool and careless...to become tired of the strain, of the little duty here and the little scruple there and the little self-denial all the time....the danger of becoming indifferent, becoming less easily excited...yielding ourselves to the powers of decay and death which threaten our thoughts and religious principles long before we die.

To this depressing reality he says: First,  be forewarned: 'When this happens the need has come for us to think, to deal firmly with our own moods and half-formed purposes'.  Be put on our guard.

And second, remember how Heb 10:23 ends 'for he is faithful that promised.'  If this fails everything fails. Jesus will never let us go as we hold fast.

I am reminded of the words Spurgeon took as his Latin motto for his college: Et teneo Et teneor - 'I hold and I am held'.  The two sides of God's grace in action.  That he holds onto us in his faithful love yet needs us to hold fast too.

Off-centre sparklet 3) At that time (Matt. 11:25)

I know I mentioned some statistics and my discouragement..,...but I am easily cheered up by humans!  Just a couple of people said try again!  So I have with these three words: AT THAT TIME.  Who would base a sermon on these?  

Jesus is about to praise his Father because he has hidden truths from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children.  Matt. 11:25 begins 'at that time',  For John Hutton these words are worth pondering.

First, it's 'as though it were just then and not before that Jesus reached a new understanding of his future. The whole passage bears the interpretation that, just there and at a certain point our Lord saw clearly and accepted it as the will of God....that his message would find a welcome NOT in all hearts'. Was it part of Jesus' experience that setting out with happy confidence that people only needed to hear his words about God to accept them with joy he was later amazed at people's unbelief and rejection?  And at this time it breaks in how God's truths are hidden from some self-confident people.  This is the moment of learning a new truth as he praises God. Jesus was living and learning.  And so are we.

Second, he challenges about us seeing the principle that 'truth lies not upon the surface of things, but always beneath the surface, and nearer to the centre.' True, there is much 'darkness to dishearten careless people...but at the same time there is light enough for those who are patient and humble and sincere.'  And this principle means that we must keep awake. "The true purpose of life is that there shall remain alive within us a reverent and awakened attitude, our reach ever beyond our grasp.'

You never know what fresh truth will break into your life. 

Statistics!

It's (somewhat cynically) said that statistics is the art of never having to say you are wrong. There's a BBC radio programme called "More or Less" which examines the veracity of statistical claims and it is fascinating when experts drill down into the realities behind headline statistics to discover how misleading they can sometimes be.

However, with my blog I have daily statistics about viewings.  I cannot be sure how they stand up to a reality check but I have had to take it seriously when my last postings received zilch viewers day after day. I had wondered whether I was beginning a lively series of 'off-centre sparklets.' Certainly it would pump a little life into some of these volumes of old sermons before they are pulped.  But the statistics have brought down to earth.  So, I bury this idea. 

But what else could I move onto next  that might create more interest?  I have been thinking about an all together different theme on growing older successfully/ So, perhaps that will appear shortly.  Perhaps!

 

Offcentre sparklets 2) 'where no oxen are the crib is clean'

How would you apply these 7 words from Proverbs 14:4? Hutton comments that ' there is one way in which you can have a clean crib and that is if you cease keeping oxen'. And that's not what cribs are for!  Uncleanness means unrest and turbulence but also life and action. Indeed, quietness, tameness and regularity  may be signs of death. 'Our religion prepares us not for a kind of life which shall be like a well-trimmed paddock, but for life which shall always demand heroism and supply the material and opportunity even for tragedy....The fact is we must take care of allowing ourselves to be afraid of the legitimate signs of life'.

And what particularly should we be afraid of for the best reasons?  In every age, the most authentic signs of life, and of new life, must come naturally from those who are young...the 'rising generation'.  We must take care not to be afraid of youth.  Such fear or suspicion of youth on our part is not fair. We were once young ourselves; and it is to our shame if when we were young we never had the passion to change something. An old head on young shoulders is a sad sight.

Therefore we should cultivate an hospitable way of looking at things....it is true that we who are older might combine to thwart the impulses of the rising generation and to turn back into darkness the venturesomeness of those who are now young. But even if we could succeed in such a policy, it would be one of those successes which would be more costly than any defeat. We might have a clean crib, but no oxen. The thing might serve our day and have the semblance of quietness.  But we do die; and if we do not cherish and invite and honor and trust the generation which just now is fresh and restless, why, it is not peace that we have secured but only a silent wilderness'. 

I know the language is dated but what a challenge.  Our church is currently seeing increasing influence of the rising generation!  Oh, to welcome the unrest and turbulence!

Off-centre sparklets 1) An explanation

I have a theory about preaching in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This was a great time for massively influential preachers and transformative sermons.  In my 12 volume series 'Twenty Centuries of Great Preaching" eight of the volumes focus on this period. (I will not sidetrack onto issues raised by editor's choices!) Great biblical themes are sounded out with significant outcomes for church and culture.

During this time of largely 'Christianized' culture preachers could assume that the big biblical themes were well known.  This allowed them at times to focus on unusual Scripture verses or even a few words to weave a sermon.  I call such sermons on unusual Scriptures off-centre sparklets!   Off-centre because they surprise by novelty of choice and sparklets because they sometimes radiate truth in surprising ways. 

I still possess a number of old preaching books from this period many of which I have bought for small amounts over past years.  As I gradual dispose of these (!) I have noted some particular off-centre sparklets which perhaps are worth preserving.  They often show originality of thought and connection.  My preaching students will tell you that one of my mantras in class was: Authenticity not Originality.  I was always concerned about students attempting to produce something original to impress than to speak God's truth from the heart. But these earlier days of Christianized culture with full and knowledgeable congregations allowed scope for preachers to quote learnedly and to imagine vividly.  

For example, John Hutton (Westminster Chapel 1923-25) has a sermon collection 'Discerning the Times which contains several off-centre sparklets.  Like his sermon on Proverbs 14:4  AV 'where no oxen are the crib is clean'.  Incidentally, he never gives any Scripture references...ever.  Does he assume that listeners will take his word for it or (less likely) already be able to place it?   Anyway, onto the next post.

Back in service 5) Follow-ups

 After my sermon on prayer two emails arrived. The first came the next day querying the parable in Luke 11: 5-13 about the friend's persistence winning through as he kept knocking on the door.  'It makes it sound as though God doesn't really want to answer our prayers ' wrote the emailer.  Certainly, it is an unusual not to say daring story. We must be careful about unpacking it.  As a prayer about intercession it is about how our prayers for others, like the friend knocking on the door for loaves for his visitor's sake, takes us into a maturing process by which we come to understand more of the ways that God works out his purposes.  The mystery of prayer must always leave the outcome to God.  How many times have urgent prayers for healing, for example, not seemed to have a positive outcome.  And then some do have a glorious answer. What matters is our continuing dependency and faith as children of a living Father - that he hears us and will answer in his own way.

When I initially introduced the idea of 'five' prayers for persistence I met criticisms that it made prayer some sort of mechanical exercise or worse a manipulative practice.  As though we were insisting God answer our way.  The truth is that we always needed to pray about what we should pray together. From the outset we sought the prayers to be in God's will.  I like the way in the parable that its a question of feeding a hungry guest with three loaves specifically required.  That does sound like something which God approves! 

The other email referred to George Müller the nineteenth century intercessor whose persistent prayers resulted in extraordinary work with orphans in Bristol. It contained his advice for believers...

‘Be slow to take new steps in the Lord's service, or in your business, or in your families: weigh everything well; weigh all in the light of the Holy Scriptures and in the fear of God. Seek to have no will of your own, in order to ascertain the mind of God, regarding any steps you propose taking, so that you can honestly say you are willing to do the will of God, if He will only please to instruct you. But when you have found out what the will of God is, seek for His help, and seek it earnestly, perseveringly, patiently, believingly, expectantly; and you will surely in His own time and way obtain it.’

That drove me back to my copy of his autobiography; subtitled: A Million and a Half in Answer to Prayer.  It's a dense book and, no surprise, it tracks well with Luke 11: 5-13!