Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

God’s plan to Protect

Exodus 12v13 “When I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.”  (NIV)

Probably the most significant event in the Old Testament is The Exodus. It took place around 1400BC, but had been anticipated since Abraham, and was subsequently celebrated as the great marker of God’s people Israel. It was an event with two sides: firstly, the side of judgment on the people of Egypt, and secondly the side of deliverance of the people of Israel.

Egypt was under the judgment of God, because they had mistreated the Israelites, they were refusing to let Israel go to worship the LORD, and they were depending on the “gods of Egypt” (12v12). By Exodus 12, they had suffered nine plagues. Now the LORD declared through Moses the tenth and final plague: “Every firstborn son in Egypt will die … But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any man or animal. Then you will know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.” In fact, this would be the event which would propel Israel out of Egypt.

However, the Israelites had to individually do something to make the protection effective: and God told them through Moses what that was. They must kill a lamb, put some of the blood on their doorframes, and then cook and quickly eat the lamb. “Eat in haste, it is the LORD’s Passover.” On that same night, God would come and strike down the firstborn as he had said, but when he saw the blood on the doorposts, he would “Passover” and not harm any in that household.

The event is important to us as Christians because:

• Jesus’ death occurred at the Passover time, emphasising the clear link. Jesus and his disciples conducted the Passover remembrance at the “Last Supper”.
• It symbolises for us what is coming. As in the days of Moses, God has declared a coming judgment on all the “gods” of this world, and on the people entangled with them. Jesus has not stopped a final judgment, rather he reinforced the prophecies of the coming day.
• It symbolises what we need to do now. Jesus is described as “our Passover lamb” (1 Corinthians 5v7). Why? Because, as in the days of Moses, where the blood of Jesus has been (metaphorically / spiritually) sprinkled on us, then God’s final judgment will “Passover” us, and we will be released into the eternal kingdom of freedom. The time to apply the blood is now, before it is too late.

Let’s give thanks to God: he has chosen to protect us from the coming judgment as we apply the blood of Jesus.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

God’s long term planning

Genesis 22v18 “Through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed because you have obeyed me.”  (NIV)

What are you currently planning for? Many of us like to plan ahead.

As we approach Easter, it is worth reminding ourselves that God’s plan for Easter was a mighty long time in the preparation. It was on the evening of the day that human beings first sinned that we get the first inkling of God’s plan to resolve the sin problem (Genesis 3v15). The decision to act was quick, but the execution took time. And so, the Old Testament becomes the forward-marching-history to the sacrifice of Jesus. We will look at a couple of key episodes in the next weeks leading up to Easter.

One of the most dramatic prophetic episodes is found in Abraham offering up his son Isaac (Genesis 22). God said to him, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” Of course, we struggle with the morality of this story, but it probably helps to know that it is likely that Abraham was over 120 and Isaac in his 20’s – any strength was in Isaac’s favour; so we learn more about the submission of Isaac than a forcing by Abraham. And by the end of the story, we see that God is only testing Abraham’s relative loyalty: God does not let him actually carry out the killing but intervenes with an angel and the provision of a ram (22v11-13). The result of that intervention is that Abraham names the place “The LORD will provide,” and the writer (Moses) narrates, “and to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.” Though God has provided for Abraham, the action and name is prophetic – it looks forward to God will provide.

This prophetic viewpoint in the account itself is brought into focus when we consider:

• This is clearly an image of God taking his only son, whom he loved, and sacrificing him as an offering.
• The location “Moriah” and “the mountain of the Lord” was where the Jewish temple was built (2 Chronicles 3v1, Isaiah 2v3). An outcrop of rock in today’s “Dome of the Rock” is the traditional site for this event. And it is on the same mountain that the Son of God was crucified some 2000 years later.
• The account ends with God telling Abraham, “because you have done this and have not withheld your son … through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed because you have obeyed me.” (Genesis 22v18). This is remarkable: the blessing of the nations is in the coming sacrifice of Christ, and so our salvation depended on Abraham’s obedience to God. I wonder what is depending on our obedience today?

Let’s give thanks that God is not a God who acts on a whim, but whose actions always align with his long-term strategic plans of love and justice. He brings us salvation now and he will bring about our full salvation in the New Creation.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Constancy of God

Malachi 3v6 “I the LORD do not change.”  (NIV)

This does not mean that God always does the same thing, but it does mean His character does not change and His general course of action does not change.

In the context of Malachi (c. 430BC), God’s people, Israel, have given up on God sorting out the issues. They have not seen God’s hand at work either to judge the immoral (2v17), or to eliminate injustice towards the poor or righteous (3v5 & 3v13-15). They therefore say, ‘God is not concerned about evil’, and declare, ‘It is of no benefit to serve Him’. But God robustly answers them by declaring that his concern for justice and righteousness do not change. This calls for faith in who God is, in his character. And that faith enables us to live daily in his ways:

• God will purify those who seek him (3v2-4, 7)
• God will exercise justice on those who continue in immorality and injustice (3v5)
• God will bless those who seek God and his ways (3v8-12)
• God will bring a time when the righteous and wicked will be treated differently (3v13-18)

The coming of Jesus is hinted at in 3v1-4. And we now know that, for those that seek him, God’s justice was exercised in Jesus Christ when he took our sin on his shoulders (prophesied in 3v1-4). As God promised from the beginning, Jesus is The Way.

Therefore, rest assured, whether it is issues of morality or justice in our world, God is concerned. He will ultimately bring about what is right and just.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Christian Morality

1 Peter 1v16 “Be holy because I am holy.”  (NIV)

Christian morality is not rooted in a book. Nor is it rooted in a set of laws or a moral code. It is rooted in a person – God himself.

God’s call to “Be holy because I am holy” occurs frequently in the Bible.

The Old Testament law for Israel was rooted in the repeated phrases, “I am the Lord your God,” and “… because I, the Lord your God, am a holy God”.

In the New Testament, Jesus said “Love one another as I have loved you,” and again, Jesus said, “I am the Truth” … and we could go on …

Our morality is not about following a law, but a person. It is a morality based on a relationship with someone – one who is perfectly moral and perfectly holy. God has had to deal with many situations over history and he always does so in a moral and holy way. This is why the accounts in the Bible are reveal as much of God as the commands. Holiness is an essential part of God’s character, of Christ’s character.

God has chosen to reveal himself to us through the Bible and through Jesus Christ. It is because of that fact that we take what the Bible says so seriously. The Bible only has value in the fact that it is God revealing himself to us. It is a holy God who makes the Bible holy. And God is revealed in all of the Bible (even including the book of Esther where he is never mentioned).

The Spirit of God is also holy – indeed, so much so that he is usually named the “Holy Spirit”. God declared through the OT prophets, “I will write my laws on your hearts” and again “I will put my Spirit in you”. While our whole understanding of morality is rooted in God, he has now given us the ability to be holy by the gift of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit does not conflict with God’s Word.

May we be so connected to our God that his holiness flows out through us in every situation.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Romans 8v13 “If by the Spirit, you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”  (NIV)

Have you been filled with the Holy Spirit today?

God has graciously given us his Holy Spirit. This gift is possible because of Jesus. Jesus has “justified” us – that is he has taken our sins and made us holy in God’s sight. This makes us able to receive the Holy Spirit who “sanctifies” us – that is makes us holy in practice day by day.

What is your testimony of how the Holy Spirit has changed your character to be more like Jesus?

God said through the prophet Ezekiel 580 years before Jesus, “I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Ezekiel 36v27. This is now fulfilled.

Our expectation as believers is that we do not continue in sin. Rather, the grace of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit enables us to overcome temptation and our sinful desires. Repentance is to say I’m not going to sin anymore. True repentance is only possible by the transforming work of the Spirit.

You and I may well fail. But for us who believe, failure should not produce despondency but dependency – dependency on the grace of Jesus and the power of the Spirit.

Thank you Lord. What a wonderful God we serve. Ask God to fill you with His Spirit now.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Trusting in God

Proverbs 3v5 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.”  (NIV)

The question, “How much faith have you got?” is not as important as, “What have you put your faith in?”. (see Matthew 17v20)

On Sunday, Tony highlighted how God can be trusted because he is reliable, true and able.

Therefore we should not ask, “How does my faith compare to someone else’s faith?”, but, “Do I trust God more than I trust this other thing?”.  “This other thing” could be money, possessions, relationship, ability, political system, health, hard work, way of doing things … etc. Of course, none of those things are wrong of themselves. Indeed it is right to have any and all of these, but compared to God they are all ultimately unreliable. Only God is ultimately reliable, able and true.

Tragically, for people in Ukraine, Turkey and Syria this is painfully obvious this week as so many have lost so much of the things of this life. So let’s examine ourselves, “In what area of life am I needing to put my trust in God and declare it to be so?”

I pray that we will each have our trust in God before He both “gives and takes away”. (Job 1v21)

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Witnessing for Jesus

Acts 1v8 “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses …”  (NIV)

This week, a release of census results showed that the average age of people identifying as Christian has risen from 45 to 51 over the last 10 years. This is no great surprise as we know that younger people are much less likely to identify as Christian. Our culture is moving away from Christian understandings. But we also qualify these statistics with the fact that many self-identify “Christian” as a cultural label rather than a testimony of God’s spiritual birth.

This backdrop means that Christ’s gospel is becoming more radical in our culture. It is pertinent that a survey published a year ago showed that while most denominations in the UK are declining, those growing are those that proclaim God’s Word, even where different to the cultural flow.

My sense is that our Hope church family actually do pretty well at witnessing to those around us. Some have shared stories on Sunday mornings, while others have quietly had opportunities in their daily lives. For some, this has meant speaking out to strangers. For others, this has meant loving their neighbours and being ready to open conversations about Jesus over a drink or to offer to pray to “the God who can”. For still others it has meant watching a Christian programme with someone or giving out gospels. May God enable us to continue in this as a family and to encourage one another in it.

So just coming back to the above verse:

• Am I a witness? Well I am, if I have experienced something! In this case, God at work, the power of Jesus to forgive and the work to the Holy Spirit to change me.
• How can I be effective? It is not about me, but the Holy Spirit working through me with his power. Remember too the words from last Sunday – Love, Listen, Learn and Lord.

May God bring much fruit in your life this year.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Obeying Jesus

John 14v15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”  (NIV)

Tony continued our series on spiritual “GROWTH+” on Sunday. He took us to this powerful passage in John 14 where Jesus repeatedly teaches his disciples that our obedience is a mark of our love for him.

Our culture is high on seeking love and low on seeking to obey. We don’t want to be under authority, we want to live in freedom. We consider we know how freedom works and how to gain it, but we take no regard of Jesus’ statement “the truth shall set you free” (John 8v32). Further, we choose love without regarding what love really is.

Jesus calls us to love him. Because of who he is, that love is shown in our obedience. Love manifests itself in different ways depending on the relationship. A parent doesn’t love their child by obeying them, but by providing for them; the reverse is also generally true where a child loves their parent by obeying rather than providing. When it comes to Jesus, he is our Shepherd, Guide, Lord and Master. In that relationship our love is expressed in submissive service to Him.

When Jesus challenged Simon Peter after the resurrection “Simon, do you love me?”, he replied “Yes”. In response to Peter’s affirmation of love, Jesus gave a command, “Feed my sheep” (John 21v15-17). What is Jesus’ response to your affirmation of love?

Our love for Jesus is manifest in each decision we make each day.

• Q: How can I increase my obedience?   A: By loving Jesus more than anything else.
• Q: How can I increase my love for Jesus? A: “We love because he first loved us,” (1 John 4v19) and so as we receive more of his love, our capacity to love increases.

May God pour out his love in our hearts so that “what he says we will do”.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

GROWTH+ : Read the Bible.

Psalm 1v1-2 “Blessed is the one … whose delight is in the Torah of the Lord and who meditates on His Torah day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water.”  (NIV)

On Sunday we considered two particular ways of reading the Bible: reading as a narrative or story a reasonable section; or meditating on a small section.

The New Living Translation replaces the religious language of, “Blessed are those …” with, “Oh, the joys of those…”. Wow – this is a good place to be! Meditating on the word is not a drudgery, nor is it, “if I have to”, but it is a joy, a delight, a source of great blessing!

I have taken the liberty of replacing the word “law” in the NIV with actual Hebrew word “Torah” which is broader than our English understanding of “Law”. It more clearly points us to the whole of the first 5 books of of the Bible which was their Scripture at the time. Here is the interesting thing though: The Hebrew origin of the word “Torah” is a word which literally means “to flow as water”. That makes the imagery of “a tree planted by streams of water” so natural and has all sorts of implications – let your mind flow with that one!

Meditation is to plant ourselves in the Word of God, and so allow ourselves to grow spiritually as its nutrients pass through our spiritual and emotional system. The Message paraphrases this phrase, “chew on Scripture day and night”, which conveys a different imagery, but the same thought of getting the goodness out of the Word. Am I swallowing or chewing?

When did you last meditate on God’s Word? If not for a while, here is a verse to start with. Think on the words, “That person is like a tree planted by streams of water.” Ask questions like: What is it like to be a tree planted by streams of water? Is that my desire for my life? How does this passage tell us we can be that person? Bring your thoughts to God and receive his blessing.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Go to God in Prayer.

1Peter 4v7 “The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.’” (NIV)

As Tony spoke on Sunday, the first element of spiritual “GROWTH” is going to God in prayer. And this is not just at set times or us talking, but a continual conversation and in particular listening.

In the above passage, Peter is explaining how, as followers of Christ, we can live for the will of God in an evil world (4v1-6). Let’s look at what Peter says …

“The end of all things is near”. The most important events in history are now nearly completed. The fulfilment of the Old Testament is now complete in Christ. He has come and lived an earthly life; he has died and been raised from the dead; he has ascended and sent his Holy Spirit on the church; we are now just waiting for his return.

“Be clear minded and self-controlled”. It is very easy for both personal news and global news to distract us from what God’s main plan is. It takes “self-control” and a real presence of mind to turn to God and focus on his plan in Christ.

“So that you can pray”. What has been your purpose for today? What is your purpose for tomorrow? Here is a purpose: so that you can pray. That is, remain in communion with God, keep in conversation, keep listening, keep expressing your feelings to him, keep sharing your thoughts, keep hearing his heart. You have been made for conversation with God.

Wow God! – you have made me to have conversation with you; give me a heart and mind to pursue this, your purpose for me.

With love and blessing,

Roland