Category Archives: Bible

Deal or No Deal? The Plagues of Exodus 7-11

One of the most popular game shows on TV at the moment is Noel Edward’s “Deal or No Deal” on Channel 4. If you have not watched it before, it is the game show in which any one of 22 players try and win up to £250,000. There are 22 sealed boxes with prizes from 50p to a quarter of a million pounds. A chosen candidate has to eliminate as many boxes as possible before guessing which one has the highest remaining prize. And during the programme the banker calculates the chances of having to pay out and offers the contestant a deal that will spread his own risk and hopefully tempt the contestant to make a deal. There are 22 boxes but only one question: “deal – or no deal”? The programme even has its very own website and you can go on a pilgrimage tour of the studios. Its not just a game of chance. It also involves the laws of probability and the psychology of risk.

In today’s study in Exodus God offers Pharoah a deal. “Let my people go so that they may worship me.” (Exodus 7:16)? The deal? Then “you will know that I am the Lord.” (Exodus 7:17). God’s purpose? We see this in the promise he made earlier to the Israelites: “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.” (Exodus 6:7).

Was that promise just for the Israelites? No, of course not. Otherwise, we would not be here today. “This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and human beings, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself as a ransom for all people.” (1 Timothy 2:3-6)

And the Apostle Peter writes, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

And this is not simply a New Testament idea. The Lord God says through the prophet Ezekiel insists, “For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!” (Ezekiel 18:32)

In Exodus 7-11, God is saying to Pharaoh, “I want to give you and your people an opportunity to get to know me. I want to give you a lesson on divine authority. What I want in return is for all my people, all their children, all their animals, all their property, because I want to take them into their own land.” We know that many Egyptians also came to know and fear the Lord. During those terrifying plagues, in compassion, God told Pharaoh how to avoid any loss of life

“Give an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every person and animal that has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die.’ ” Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside. But those who ignored the word of the LORD left their slaves and livestock in the field.” (Exodus 9:19-21)

Many Egyptians survived because they obeyed God. And when the Israelites finally escaped, we are told in Exodus 12, “The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Sukkoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. Many other people went up with them, and also large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds.” (Exodus 12:37-38)

Who were the ‘many other people’? Egyptians of course! God’s people have always been an inclusive people, have always incorporated those of other nations – on the basis of faith in the one true God. Membership of God’s people has never on the basis of race or racial purity (see Deuteronomy 23:7-8; Psalm 87:4), always on the basis of faith.

What we have therefore in Exodus 7-11 is an object lesson – an evangelistic call if you will – a lesson in Divine Authority – The ultimate “deal or no deal?” God said to the Israelites “Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.” (Exodus 6:7). And, chapter 7:5, he wanted the Egyptians to know Him too. “the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord…” (Exodus 7:5). And you know what, that’s the reason the story is in the Bible. He wants us to know that He is the Lord too.

Going from Bad to Worse: Lessons in Survival Exodus 5-6

Have you had a stressful week? If not, Mary Carmichael, writing in this week’s Newsweek will give you a few reasons: “If you aren’t already paralyzed with stress from reading the financial news, here’s a sure way to achieve that grim state: read a medical-journal article that examines what stress can do to your brain. Stress, you’ll learn, is crippling your neurons so that, a few years or decades from now, Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease will have an easy time destroying what’s left. That’s assuming you haven’t already died by then of some other stress-related ailment such as heart disease.

As we enter what is sure to be a long period of uncertainty-a gantlet of lost jobs, dwindling assets, home foreclosures and two continuing wars-the downside of stress is certainly worth exploring. But what about the upside? … We’ve blamed stress for a wide variety of problems, from slight memory lapses to full-on dementia-and that’s just in the brain… Sure, stress can be bad for you, especially if you react to it with anger or depression or by downing five glasses of Scotch.But … in some circumstances, it can be good for you, too…. As Spencer Rathus puts it in Psychology: Concepts and Connections, “some stress is healthy and necessary to keep us alert and occupied.” … [infact] Janet DiPietro, at Johns Hopkins University. [says] “… most people do their best under mild to moderate stress.” Carmichael goes on to explain, “The stress response-the body’s hormonal reaction to danger, uncertainty or change- …help us survive, and if we learn how to keep it from overrunning our lives, it still can. In the short term, it can energize us, “revving up our systems to handle what we have to handle,” says Judith Orloff, a psychiatrist at UCLA.”

Well, my stress levels went up this week, first on Monday, I was chopping wood and missed and cut the top of my thumb off and spent 3 hours in casualty. Then on Wednesday someone sent me an email asking me to check my Body Mass Index (BMI) on the National Health website. I did, and for the first time ever, I now have a clinical assessment of my body mass index. All I will reveal is that I’ll be spending longer in the gym in future. In each case the stress was good for me. On Monday it got me to hospital singlehandedly… and on Wednesday it got me on the ski machine for an hour and a half. I know my goal if I want to survive, mentally and physically. But what about spiritually? How do we survive spiritually? How do we test our fitness here as well? In just the same way – under stress. The Apostle Paul wrote about it to the Romans, “we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (Romans 5:3-4)

The Exalted Christ: Philippians 2:8-13

A teenager had just got his driving licence. He asked his father, if they could discuss the use of the car. His father took him to his study and said to him, “I’ll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up, study your Scriptures a little and get your hair cut and we’ll talk about it.” After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father if they could discuss use of the car. They again went to the father’s study where his father said, “Son, I’ve been real proud of you. You have brought your grades up, you’ve studied your Scriptures diligently, but you didn’t get your hair cut!” The young man waited and minute and replied, “You know Dad, I’ve been thinking about that. Samson had long hair; Moses had long hair, why even Jesus had long hair….” To which his father replied….”Yes, and they walked every where they went!”

I think we would agree that God wants us all to grow. It’s a no-brainer. But have you noticed how different the word “grow” sounds when someone adds that little word “up”? “Grow up” It has negative connotations. It implies a degree of immaturity. It suggests we are not there yet. And that is the point. We are not there yet. We have not arrived. There is work to do, growing up. The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 2:1 and 5, “Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ…In your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind Christ Jesus had.” (Philippians 2:1, 5)

Because we have some way to go, in our reading today, Paul introduces another “Therefore”. Verse 12, “Therefore… continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” (Philippians 2:12-13)

Our heavenly Father’s goal is that we mature and become like Jesus Christ. But spiritual growth is not automatic. It takes time and energy. We must want to grow up and we must persevere in growing. Discipleship is another word to describe growing up or working out our salvation. Salvation is actually three dimensional. It involves my past, my present and my future. Let me illustrate this…

World Peace : Isaiah 9:1-7

If you were the real Father Christmas and you happened to visit a few hundred thousand churches today on a pre-Christmas dry run, I suspect you would find a common theme running through many sermons preached this morning.

Marc Lawrence and Katie Ford wrote one of my all time favourite films Miss Congeniality. It’s about an FBI agent, played by Sandra Bullock, who must go undercover in the Miss United States beauty pageant to prevent a group of terrorists from bombing the event. It has some classic lines – like when Stan Fields asks Miss Rhode Island, “please describe your idea of a perfect date”. She replies, “That’s a tough one. I would have to say April 25th. Because it’s not too hot, not too cold, all you need is a light jacket”. Or when Miss New Jersey is asked why it is called “The Garden State”? Gracie Hart replies, “Because “Oil and Petrochemical Refinery State” wouldn’t fit on a license plate?” Each of the contestants is asked the same final question “what is the one most important thing our society needs?” They all reply “world peace” and the crowd cheers ecstatically. But when Sandra Bullock the undercover FBI agent is asked she replies, “That would be… harsher punishment for parole violators.” And then after a long pause, she adds, “And world peace!” and the crowd cheers ecstatically. What does this world need most?

“World Peace” will be a common, predictable message we will hear on the TV and radio, in charity adverts and from pulpits over the next couple of weeks. The question is – how to achieve it? I believe the UN Declaration of Human Rights to be the finest and most important document devised by mankind. But human words will not bring about peace on earth. I support the humanitarian work of the United Nations wholeheartedly, but the UN will never achieve world peace through passing resolutions and by intervening with peace keeping forces.

This week the Archbishop of Canterbury and other Church leaders in the UK called for military intervention to stop the killing in the Congo. I support that call, and similar initiatives in Afghanistan, Kurdistan, Palestine, Iraq, Zimbabwe, Somalia and Columbia, and a hundred other places in our world where people are hurting one another, but the UN cannot resolve the underlining causes. That is because hunger, ignorance, poverty and disease are the symptoms not the causes.

Only one person can bring world peace and one day he will. Jesus Christ. Among his people, among those who recognise him, who own him, who submit to him, he serve him, we can experience a foretaste of that peace he will most surely bring one day soon. Please turn with me to Isaiah 9:1-7 and let us meet him, let us learn from his names and learn of his purposes for us, for our families, for our world and for the future.

The Alpha and the Omega: Revelation 22

When do you think about eternity? About your own mortality? I think about eternity whenever I turn my car ignition key. I think about eternity whenever the cabin crew ask me to fasten my seat belt. I think about eternity whenever I stand before a coffin at the crematorium, or before an open grave. I think about eternity whenever I look in the mirror and see the lines and the grey hairs. Watching the tragic events unfold in Mumbai this week again brought home this reality. God has put eternity on our hearts, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Him. Its tempting to ignore the news, avoid looking in the mirror, live busy lives in our own little bubble and believe that it would never happen to us, that this life is all there is, that this life is the only one that matters, that this life will go on forever. Only it isn’t and it won’t, will it? It’s a lie and we need to call it that.

Eternity became very real to me when my father died suddenly and I became the oldest male member of our family at the age of 28. It came mid way through my theological training. God in his wisdom, dealt with the one thing I was most worried about in becoming a vicar – coping with death and supporting others in their grief. I could now empathize. It is never too early to prepare for eternity. That is what Jesus has been teaching us in this series. We have been examining his great “I am” statements.

“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35). “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12). “I am who I am” (John 8:58). “I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:7). “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me.” (John 10:14). “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even though they die.“ (John 11:25) “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6). “I am the true vine.. I am the vine, you are the branches” (John 15:1, 5). Today is Advent Sunday, when we think about the return of Jesus. It is therefore appropriate that we come to the final “I am” in the Bible in Revelation 22. Please open your Bibles and turn to it with me: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the last, the Beginning and the End… Yes, I am coming soon.” (Revelation 22:13,20)

Let us consider this final great “I am” statement made in the closing sentences of the last chapter of the last book of the Bible. As we stand on the edge of eternity, thinking about the return of Jesus, three questions:

1. Who is this Jesus?

2. What will Jesus do when he returns?

3. How then should we respond?

John 15:1-17 “I am the Vine”

“Jacob came for a bride from his own people. He desired Rachel, but he did not get Rachel at first, but Leah. After he learned to love Leah as much as he did Rachel, he got Rachel as well. In the beginning Leah had all the babies, her womb was most fruitful. But then Rachel conceives. Israel shall be a fruitful vine. Jesus came for Israel. He wanted to marry Israel, but He did not get Israel. He ends up with the bride He did not desire at first, the Gentile church. After He learns to love the Gentile church, then He gets Israel. In the beginning, the church has all the babies. But in the end, Israel becomes a fruitful vine.” (Jacob Prasch).

What is the relationship between Israel and the Church? Does God have one ‘chosen people’ or two? What is the relationship between God and his people? Who is the fruitful vine?

These were the subjects addressed at a conference in Johannesburg, I attended earlier this month. It was sponsored by Messianic Good News, an organisation dedicated to take the good news of Jesus to Jewish people. It was a great encouragement to spend a week with Jews who love Jesus and who have a passion to make him known within the Jewish community. I hope we can build on this relationship and support their work in the future. Following our day with Chawkat Moucarry looking at Islam earlier in the year, and with Juge Ram on Hinduism and Sikhism yesterday, I hope that early next year we can arrange a teaching day on Judaism and learn how to share our faith with Jewish people.

Please turn with me to John 15 and let us examine the meaning of this image of the vine and the branches.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:1-2)

Jesus makes three main assertions: God the Father is the Vineyard Owner. God the Son is the Vine. God’s People who remain and bear fruit are the Branches.

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“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life” John 14

Hands up if you own one of these? (a GPS unit). If so, do you remember what life was like before you had one? I do. Painful. The low point for me came the day I got lost in Bedford. I had gone there for a meeting and forgot the location of the road. After a fruitless half an hour trying to find my way, I was ready to give up and drive home. Then James Hughes, the former curate, phoned. “Where are you” he said. “I don’t know” I replied.

“Let me help you” and he then proceeded to open up his computer which had street maps of England. Having identified the name of the road I was parked in and the name of the road I was heading for, he literally talked me there road by road, on my hands free phone, of course. That is what made me realize I needed a GPS. I never leave home without Sean Connery now – or at least a digitized version of Sean Connery’s voice. You know when you have arrived because he says “shaken not stirred”.

Do you know how GPS works? You turn it on and type in the post code. No, that is not what I mean. Do you know how it works? “When people talk about “a GPS,” they usually mean a GPS receiver. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is actually a constellation of 27 Earth-orbiting satellites (24 in operation and three extras in case one fails). The U.S. military developed and implemented this satellite network as a military navigation system, but soon opened it up to everybody else.