Boring? Untrue? Irrelevant? Reading: John 2. 1-10.

Today I hoped to tackle some questions "sent in by the audience" but didn't receive any. So decided to look at what I suspect are some of the questions people are asking, or maybe felt too polite to ask.

Question 1: 
"Isn't Christianity a lot of boring old mumbo-jumbo?"  Why should I bother with Church when it's so boring?

I'm afraid to admit that sometimes Church can be Guilty as charged! But it shouldn't be!

 The Church has managed to pull of a major miracle by turning wine into water.  Jesus' life and work was all about the "Kingdom of God" - and that meant healing for the broken, freedom for the enslaved, justice of the oppressed, a challenge for the greedy and the oppressor. It all sounds pretty exciting, exhilarating, far from boring. Too demanding, maybe; but boring?

And Jesus said his "Kingdom" was like "New wine" that was still alive, fermenting, growing... but the church has turned "the Kingdom of God" into religion, turned excitement and challenge into manageable routine, turned wine back into water.  So, if the Church has given you the impression that Jesus and the faith that bears his name, Christianity, is boring, I can only apologise, and assure you that it doesn't have to be that way.

A few years ago a guy from Edinburgh – in fact he’s a Christian and goes to Barnton Baptist Church – was into serving a charity by driving trucks full of aid  to Eastern Europe.  As an ex-fireman he realised that the emergency services in some Balkan countries were inadequately equipped and trained for dealing with road traffic accidents – even to the point of having nothing better than crowbars and screwdrivers to get victims our of smashed cars.  The result was a project that got loads of Scots working together to buy up retired fire engines, restore them and donate them to eastern European countries, driving them over and training local rescue workers in the right techniques.  That has been a hugely demanding but also exciting project.  Definitely not boring!

Question 2
Isn't Christianity just a bunch of myths?   Why should I sign up for something that means I have to leave my brain at the door?

There are a number of things to say about that.  We're going to have to think hard, so keep your brain in gear!

Firstly, let me give you a philosophy lesson... The "scientific method" of finding things out uses what is called "Inductive reasoning."  It begins with observations about specific things that happen in the world, and creates a general rule.  Someone observes that water freezes at 0ºc under normal pressure. That is observed over and over again.  So we have a rule that the freezing point of water is 0ºc.  That is reached by the scientific method.

Once you have a rule, you can use it to answer questions about specific events, like, "What will happen if...?"  and "What made this happen?"  What will happen if I use water (without any antifreeze) to cool my car and the water cools down to below 0ºc? It will all freeze up.  That's called Deductive reasoning. It's about predicting outcomes.  On the other hand, if I take my car to the garage because it is leaking water, and the mechanic tells me the radiator has split open, he might say that happened because there was no antifreeze in the system and the water froze up. (That, for those who are curious is called Abductive reasoning.)  It's concerned with determining causes.

Now when you encounter a book that talks about the miraculous, the supernatural, if you have a rule that says "There is no such thing as the supernatural", then you are going to explain the so-called supernatural in some other way. You are going to say that the book was written by simple, credulous people.

Albert Einstein receiving US citizenship

But, what if that "rule" isn't right?  This week the CERN lab in Switzerland reported observing particles moving at more than the speed of light.  So rules can be wrong. CERN stated that this is at odds with well-established laws of nature, though science frequently progresses by overthrowing the established paradigms Maybe E>mc2(!) If there is a God, the "law" that there is no such thing as the supernatural is suddenly highly suspect. As comedian Frank Skinner - who is a Christian said, "If you believe in God, all bets are off..."

But what about those places where there seems to be a direct conflict between the bible and science? Where the Bible apparently says one thing and science says another?

We need to get rid of the idea that the people who wrote the Bible were somehow stupid.   The book of Genesis contains two different perspectives on creation: two different versions of the same story.  Did the person who put them together in the same book not notice?  Or maybe he did it intentionally.  Where did Cain - Adam and Eve's son - get his wife from?  A favourite question from people who are trying to knock Christians off their perch.  But do you think for one moment the literary genius who wrote Genesis never noticed the problem?  He is unperturbed by the fact that there were other people in the world, besides the people mentioned by name... that should tell us something - he isn't writing a scientific textbook but a history with  "God-story".

So, maybe there isn't  so much of a conflict as you think. The bible - properly used - and science - properly used - dovetail together, telling different parts of the same story.  As one wise poet wrote long ago, "the heavens are declaring the glory of God" (Psalm 19. 1)

Question 3

What is the relevance of all this to my life?

There's one more thing about stories like Adam and Eve. In the way they describe the human condition - the terrible sense of loss of Man thrown out of the Garden, the idea that we are made for something better - they have a ring of truth. We just know  - we instinctively feel - that we are different from the animals, that there is something "missing".  It seems being human involves seeking a deeper dimension.  When you see a bunch of teenagers getting drunk in the local park you just know they were made for better things, When you see a Somali refugee child too weak to flick the flies away from her face, you just know she was made for better things. A human death is a tragedy. Loss is loss because there was something better.

When Jesus turned water into wine - it was more than a neat conjuring trick. It was care and love for the practicalities of life for a poor and embarrassed young family: it was highly relevant to that young bridegroom's life.  It was a reminder that the kingdom of God is meant to spill out through our lives to bring refreshment, healing and hope for us and for our world. It's meant to be life changing and it's meant to be world changing. It takes us back to live with the purpose and dignity we were made for; it promises a reversal of all the injustice and pain in our world. It's highly relevant.

© Gilmour Lilly September 2011

The Spirit and Gifts: Tongues and Interpretation

The Spirit and Gifts: Tongues and Interpretation
1 Cor  14. 1-28;  and 12. 8-10, 28-30

Background. We have been learning about the gifts God stirs up among his people by the Holy Spirit, beginning with the list in 1 Cor 12. 8-10.  Today we look at the gifts of tongues and interpretation.

Firstly, what are these gifts and what are they for?
Tongues is speech that is unlearned and beyond the scope of the rational mind. On the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, they all spoke in other languages, so that all the visitors in Jerusalem for the feast heard the Christian message in their own languages.  Sometimes tongues is like that. Sometimes it isn't: the speaker simply speaks out in a flow of praise or prayer in no known language.  Paul talks about "tongues of men (known languages) and angels (unknown languages)" - and scholars talk about a language miracle, and about ecstatic speech.   Both are possible: ecstatic speech probably more possible than a language miracle. (Some of the earliest Pentecostal missionaries came a cropper because they presumed that when they arrived in a tribal area the Holy Spirit would enable them to speak in the local language - to they never bothered to try to learn a language before going out! And in fact, they forgot that the tongues that were spoken on the day of Pentecost were not used in a conversation. There is no suggestion that those who spoke in tongues were able to understand what the people from all over the world said, or to decide what they wanted to say in their new languages. Just that they were able to speak. This was never intended to replace language learning or to enable a conversation to take place. It was there to let people hear the Good News in their own language and so have a demonstration that God really cared about them).

You might ask, "What possible benefit might there be in my being able to speak in a language I've never learned: unless I am able to say something in a language someone else will understand.  Even than, I can't have a conversation.  All I can do is say make my voice available for God to speak.  Actually, that would be good enough. I have heard testimonies of people being dramatically impacted by events like that.  But what possible use could it be to be able to speak in a completely unknown tongue?

Paul in fact answers that question:
1. see 1 Cor 14. 4: "He who speaks in a tongue builds up himself." - meaning promotes growth in character, virtue, holiness, blessedness. Through the release that comes from tongues,  the personality of a person can be built up: that is a faith statement, but one borne out by research.
2. see 1 Cor 14. 14-17: tongues can be used for prayer.  We can use the gift of tongues to speak out God's praises.  There may be moments when you are overwhelmed with the majesty, greatness and glory of God.  Those are the moments to let that new language come into its own.  There may be moments when, as Paul suggests in Romans 8. 26-27: "The Spirit helps us in our weaknesses: when we don't know how to pray as we ought the Spirit prays inside us with groans too deep for words.  I don't know for 100% certain that Paul was thinking about the use of tongues when he wrote these words. He may well have been. But I do know for certain that tongues is definitely one way in which those groans too deep for words can be presented before God as prayer.

Interpretation is a rendering of the tongue, into a language that can be understood. It is not a translation. It is an interpretation.  It explains, makes sense of the whole tongues event. Bittlinger says "Interpretation is not an accurate translation nor a commentary on prayer in the Spirit. Rather, it is  a presentation of the essential content in the mother tongue."

It is given so that there may be some understanding of the event that has taken place. It is important that we engage all of our being.  Paul talks about praying - or singing - with the spirit and with the mind (1 Cor 14. 15).  It is good to come to God and just engage with God, Spirit to spirit.  But it is good to engage the mind as well.  Interpretation enables the minds of others to engage with our prayers and praises and to agree with them.

A mission question?  
Paul raises a question about the impact of tongues as they were being used in Corinth - the kind of tongues that are not any human language - on "outsiders", those who don't trust in Jesus and have not had the things Christians do explained to them. Paul's argument is difficult but we should make the effort to understand it...

He begins by quoting (1 Cor 14. 21) from Isaiah 28. 11, where Isaiah says in effect to Israel, "Because you have not turned to God when you heard me speaking to you in Hebrew or Aramaic, God is going to speak to you through people who speak foreign languages - the Assyrians. Maybe when they come and invade the land, you'll wake up and repent of your sins."  In other words, when God speaks to Israel through "men of strange languages" he is speaking judgement.  So, says Paul, tongues is kind of like that. It's real, and it's God, but if everyone is shouting out in an unknown language, to unbelievers it sounds like gibberish and confirms them in their unbelief.  So tongues is a judgement-sign for unbelievers. Prophecy - that speaks clearly and incisively and exposes what is really going on in people's hearts - can turn unbelievers pretty quickly into believers.

This is an important passage, because it wrestles with the missional impact of the Church's ordinary day-to-day life... What do we look like, how do we come across, to the uninitiated?  We may tell ourselves that our society has turned its back on God; that men and women are under judgement.  But if, by whatever means - tongues that can't be understood or a little routine that doesn't make sense - we present ourselves as a stupid, self-indulgent minority who are busily carrying on our little rituals and don't care about our world, we are helping people along the road to judgement.

So what are we to do?
We need to be open. Paul says "I wish you all spoke in tongues" (1 Cor 14. 5) and adds that he uses the gift more than any of the Corinthians.  (1 Cor 14. 18)  He says at the end of the chapter, just in case anyone thinks it would be better not to bother with tongues after
all,  "Don't forbid speaking in tongues." (1 Cor 14. 39)
In private.  If Paul says he speaks in tongues more than anyone else. People need to be told that; it's not a well-known fact - because Paul uses the gift,  mainly in private. We need to explore and unpack the gift in private prayer and praise. It can be deeply releasing to our souls as well enabling our prayers.
In the body.   "In the Church I would far rather speak five words in prophecy." (1 Cor 14. 19) There needs to be proper functioning in the Body of Christ, the church, so we do what we do for building up one another not just ourselves.  (v. 17)  that means
* Pray for the power to interpret. (1 Cor 14. 13)
* Only two or three at most should speak out in tongues in public worship (1 Cor 14. 27)
* and if you don't believe there is someone with the gift of interpreting the tongue, and you don't feel you will be able to do so, you keep quiet. (1 Cor 14. 28)
* Space needs to be made for the interpretation as well as the tongues. 
What if you haven't got tongues?  You can always ask (1 Cor 14. 1: "Earnestly desire the spiritual gifts"); but don't be uptight about it. If you haven't got the gift, it means what? Precisely this: you don't speak in tongues. It's not the proof of anything. It's not evidence of being more spiritual than someone else. Jesus said "he who believes in me, out of his inner begin shall flow rivers of living waters." (John 7. 38)  It's not something to force yourself to do, something to squeeze out of you. If it doesn't flow, don't worry about it. If God wants you to have it, it will come.

© Gilmour Lilly September 2011

Faith Gifts: 1 Corinthians 12. 8-10, 28-30 with Romans 12. 6-8

We're learning from the Bible, about God at work, in our lives by his Spirit. We're learning about his gifts - not things we own but God-breaths - events that happen make us like Jesus and equip us for God's kingdom. The list in 1 Cor 12. 8-10, is divided into three groups of two, five and two. It begins with the "Word" gifts (wisdom and knowledge).  The headline for the middle five is "Faith".  The faith gifts are faith, healing, miracles, prophecy and discernment.

Faith 

Faith moves mountains.
Schiehallion in Perthshire, Scotland

The New Testament talks about faith a number of different ways.  Faith is about trusting in Jesus to be your saviour.  We are told to believe the Good news.  Secondly faith (or faithfulness - the Greek word is the same) is part of the fruit of the Spirit; the attitude that will "believe all things" is part of the outworking of Love (1Cor 13) so faith is part of Christian Character. It is the flip-side of being trustworthy and having integrity, that you avoid a cynical attitude to people around you.  That's not a gift: it's part of Christian character, something that should be present in every Christian.  We are responsible for the exercise of faith in order to trust in Jesus, to begin the Christian life. And we are responsible for the exercise of faith as we pray and get along with other people.  Becoming a Christian is a step out, a leap of faith - not a leap against the evidence, not becoming irrational but choosing to accept the evidence. It may be counter intuitive but it is not anti intellectual. We are all exercising faith as Christians. We are all trusting Jesus. We all pray with faith.  We are all to be trusting towards each other. We are all responsible for quenching words of cynicism and unbelief.  That's Christian character.

But Paul talks about a gift of faith. That is different.  It is, says Joseph Brosch, "a supernatural conviction that God will reveal his power, righteousness and mercy in a specific case."  Jesus and Paul talk about the faith that could move mountains (Matt 17. 20, 1 Cor 13. 2). It's the faith that does not doubt that God is at work.  We see Jesus moving in that kind of faith when he prays at the grave of Lazarus, in John 11. 41f.  "Father, I know that you always hear me..."   There is a conviction that God is at work in the situation.  That gift-of-faith is given to strengthen the faith of other people. It's infectious.  It's not something to be worked up and it's not something that will be present all the time. It's a God-breath, given at a specific moment. He could give it to you.

Healing
Actually, Paul talks about "Gifts of healings."   Different gifts, different healings.  I could talk about this all day but I will restrain myself!  We are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139. 14)  Our minds and bodies affect each other, in ways that are hundreds of times more complex than we imagine.  The connexions between body mind and spirit are almost universally accepted. In his book "Fear no evil" the late David Watson explores the relationship between emotions, chemicals produced in the brain, and physical health. He quotes one man who found that "ten minutes of belly laughter would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep" John Wesley suggested that as well as through word or touch, God's healing "may exert itself also, though to a lower degree, where natural remedies are applied".

Rontgen's first ever medical x-ray,
of his wife's hand with a ring.

So what is a gift of healing? It's not an ability to heal that resides in a Pastors or evangelist. It is an occasion when God moves to bring restoration of health of the whole person, body, mind and spirit. Gifts of healings can affect us at the different levels of mind, body and spirit.  That may be totally supernatural. Some healings may begin with the mind and affect the body. it may that prayer releases the natural healing mechanisms in the body. It may a touch from God that goes along with medical or counselling skill.  Some healings may be partial, repeated over weeks or months.  Some may be a combination of different factors.

God knows all about us. Gifts of healings are times when God says to a sick person, "Today, I have a gift of healing for you!"  But any of us might be the person God uses to pass on that gift!

Miracles 

This is an unhelpful word: it doesn't translate the Greek properly.  Philosophers define a miracle as a "violation of the laws of nature" and the Catholic Church says that a miracle can only be claimed if there is clear evidence. We talk carelessly about miracles and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge is reported to be trying out a new "miracle cream" that costs £57 per 30 ml bottle! (By the way, it's been tested on 34 women!)   None of that is what the Greek word means.  

Paul says literally "workings of powers".  These were "power-events", power encounters between the power of God and the power of the evil one.  Jesus not only healed the sick, but raised the dead, clamed the storm, fed the five thousand.  There are moments when the power of God is dramatically seen.  These moments are the "workings of powers" Paul talks about.  Again, the emphasis is on the moment not possession of the gift.  To some people in the church, these moments are given. "Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?"  The workings of power events are something God does - in response to faith.  (Gal 3:5 ESV) 

Prophecy 
Prophecy is literally "speaking out."  It may involve foretelling but it always involves forth-telling, saying something because it is what God is saying.  Some preaching may be include a prophecy, but we shouldn't confuse the two. Preaching says, "The Bible says and means this; the truths of the faith apply like this." Prophecy says, "Thus says the Lord." It is direct, from God.

Prophecy may include insight, encouragement, information about the past, the present or the future, that the speaker hasn't worked out or learned. It could come in the form of a picture. It could simply be a sense of being led to share a verse from the Bible. It could be for the gathered church or an individual. The gift that we sometimes call a "Word of knowledge" - the person who says, "there's someone here with toothache" - is more like a word of prophecy.

Paul gives a number of pointers for the use of prophecy:
1. This gift - like all the gifts - is under our control. We can decide whether to speak out, and how loudly to speak.  If we're out of control, it's not the Holy Spirit; it's the flesh.
2. The person who prophesies should do so in accordance with his faith. In other words, you speak out what God gives you the faith to speak out. You don't go beyond it for any reason. If you are not sure, but think God may be saying something, admit it as you share the word.
3. Prophecy should be assessed, by the body, according to the gold standard of Scripture.  If it runs contrary to the clear teaching of Scripture, it's not prophecy: God never contradicts himself.  If the body discerns something not right, it's not prophecy.

Discernment of Spirits
This is the ability, when dealing with the supernatural, to tell the difference between what is from God, what is from the enemy, and what is just someone's human ideas.  Jesus used discernment on a number of occasions.  See Matthew 16. 23, when he tells Peter (the "Rock" who's just had the amazing revelation that Jesus is the Son of God) "get behind me Satan, your thoughts are not God's but man's."   Discernment means we will reject lies, even if they are being spoken by usually good people.  It also means we won't accept nice things, if they are being said by wrong spirits (see Mark 1. 24f)

We have God's word as the ruler with which we measure everything; but sometimes we just need an inner nudge from the Spirit.  We need discernment when prophecy and other gifts are used. We need discernment in healing: otherwise we try to heal sin, drive out illness and repent of demons. And when discernment is needed, God gives it!  As he does the other gifts

© Gilmour Lilly September 2011