Overcomers

And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
    and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
    that they were afraid to die. (Rev 12:11)

Last week my friend and brother in Christ, John Munro, died.

It was no ordinary death because John was no ordinary guy.

I first met him at my Bible college in Birmingham where we shared lectures and prayers and fellowship.

John was a man with an array of talents.  An olympic plumber,  a first class gymnast,  worship leader and preacher,  and much more besides. And yet he walked in what seemed to be extreme humility.

He always struck me as being a little serious and very concerned with doing the right thing.

If I am completely honest,  I doubted his sincerity at times,  because he made such an effort. It didn't always seem natural but considered and,  from my naive and youthful perspective,  laboured.

A while back our church did a series on Daniel,  and our pastor observed that Daniels battle with the lions was possible because of his efforts to live Godly in the little things.  His prayer life and observance in diet etc proved to be training ground for the bigger challenges of the den of lions.

It is a fallacy to think we will stand on the day of big challenges when we cannot stand in the face of the mundane.

I see that now in John's early days at college.

John was a faithful man.

John was diagnosed a while back with the degenerative MND.

I had lost touch with him until a couple of years ago but reconnecting,  I discovered that John, whose preaching ministry had spanned the twenty years since I last spoke to him,  was now unable to speak or move and was reliant on a ventilation machine to sustain his life. 

But through the wonder of modern technology,  he was able to type,  one letter at a time,  using a reflective dot.

And as I reached out tentatively to him, I was filled with shame at my neglect and awkwardness,  but I wondered how I might encourage him.  What on earth could I say to give him hope.

I need not have worried.

John did not need my help.

He had made a decision that come what may,  he would not hold anything against God for his condition,  because how could he question the love of the one who shed his blood for a sinner like John.  A sinner like me.  A sinner like us.

I asked him how he worshiped. With no voice,  knowing how he had loved to sing.

How did he worship,  I asked?

How?

His answer blew me away.

How do I worship? He answered.

In spirit and in truth.

And John was victorious.  All the way up till they turned off his ventilator last week.

He was in his forties,  leaving two children and a loving wife.

I choose to share his story with you because John lived these verses.

He overcame the Devil.

Yes with the blood of the lamb.

He knew his saviour.  His sin was taken away.

But John also overcame with the word of his testimony.
Those little choices he made in the early days,  to be consciencious about being righteous.
That paid off in spades.

But when the crap hit the fan,  his confession was good.  He only praised and did not curse God.
He died daily,  and though he could not walk he carried his cross better than anyone I know.

Yes,  he did not love his life so much as to shrink back from death.

And finally he has enterd his rest.
Say today with John,  that you will make the good confession,  with your mouth and with your life.

I will say of the Lord he is my refuge,
I will say of the Lord he is my strength,
I will say of the Lord he is my shelter,
My hiding place,

Amen.

Accusations Cease

 Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens,

“It has come at last—
    salvation and power
and the Kingdom of our God,
    and the authority of his Christ.^[a]
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters^[b]
    has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them
    before our God day and night.

We forget sometimes that one of the chief roles of Satan is that of accuser.

One way of looking at that is to see him as some kind of corrupt lawyer, (with us in the dock) and his job is to make anything he can stick to us.

We saw this in the story of Job,  how Satan comes before God snivelling and insinuating.

It seems quite fascinating that he accuses them before God,  day and night. 
Not sure how that works, but all I can say is what passionate venom he has against those God loves.

He is obsessed with bringing them down and undermining Gods work in them.

These accusations sometimes are utterly false.  And sometimes they, even though they are spoken by an accomplished liar,  carry the weight of truth.

Sometimes we deserve the criticism he levels at us. 
Sometimes we have to hold up our hands and say 'guilty'.

But my heart,  in great relief, is drawn to the words of St Paul in the epistle to the Romans;

If God is for us who can be against us.

Listen,  as a lawyer,  Satan has the hardest caseload ever. He faces an impossible task. I almost feel sorry for him.

Look. The Judge is utterly baised. Satan's chances are non existent.  He is on a hiding to nothing.  He has a snow man's chance in Hell. No, he has the devil's chances in Hell.

Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.  Who then is the one who condemns?

No one.

Get this. We are cleared and the debt is paid before it ever goes to trial.

God himself justified us. He sent his only Son as a ransom. Do you think he would turn his back on that kind of price?
It would be to make a mockery of the blood of the Son he loves.

Oh my God,  how the odds are stacked in our favour.  You need never be more certain than of any other thing in all creation.

No.  That is a price that God the judge deems paid in full.  He puts  higher value on that than on any sin.

Satan's accusations in hope of catching us out are laughable. Literally laughable.

And who is the lawyer defending our case?

The only one who could condemn.  That's who.

Christ Jesus, who died- more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God...
AND IS ALSO INTERCEDING FOR US

He is pleading our case.  The only one who could make an accusation stick is the one who defended us with his own life
....and he is pleading our case to His father,  who orchestrated the whole rescue scheme and paid the price of the most precious thing he had,  his beloved and only sinless son.

Seriously.  Satan is screwed.

And nothing.  NOTHING, In all creation, can separate us from this love.

But sometimes it is not the devil that condemns us.

Sometimes it is our hearts that condemn us.

But listen again to the words of John, in 1 John 3;

Whenever our hearts condemn us,  God is greater than our hearts.

See all the above.  If Satan's attempts at accusations can't stand in court,  then neither can our own hearts.

His love has overcome all.

No, nothing.

Not death.
Not life.
Not Angels or Demons.
Not present nor future.
Not any powers.
Not heigh nor depth.

No. 

Not anything else in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.

Hallelujah.

Amen.

J Day

The nations were filled with wrath,
    but now the time of your wrath has come.
It is time to judge the dead
    and reward your servants the prophets,
    as well as your holy people,
and all who fear your name,
    from the least to the greatest.
It is time to destroy
    all who have caused destruction on the earth.”

I spoke, two days ago,  of  D-Day and VE-Day.  Today I want to bring to your attention 'J-Day'.

Scripture informs us that it is given for a man (or rather human)  to live once,  and then to face judgement.

We are told that we must give account for every word,  thought,  deed and every life we have taken.
These words,  this promise,  to destroy the destroyers, is electric.  It raises the hairs.  That justice is coming.  Oh yes.

Those who think that they will get away with whatever they want to do.  Those fools who have decieved themselves that there is no God to give account to. 
Those who claim,  as a slight to those who criticise their life choices,  that 'only God can judge me'.

That is not a comforting thought. As if God's standards were less exacting than humans.

Woe to us who do not fear God.

Woe indeed.

And as much as I look forward to seeing my Saviour honoured and my life vindicated,  and those that I easily view as truly evil being righteously cast out of heaven, these words do not only bring a thrill,  but a chill also.

Because of sin,  we are all on the wrong side of God's judgement.

And sin is not the sole preserve of dictators such as Hitler and Stalin. Evil is not only present in the violence of a rapist or a suicide bomber.

Sin is looking the other way. It is lying to enhance your image.  It is lusting after your friends girlfriend.  It is cheating your employer.  It is stealing office supplies.

These all have the same route.

We are all sinners.

We all fall foul of his judgement.

And how much worse for those who claim to know him and to still not have honoured him.

How to face judgement then?

And I would not want,  frankly,  to worship a God who turned a blind eye.

I want this exacting standard in my God.  I want a Holy God. Despite myself.  I do.

I know, in the same breath that I say I want to see the look on the scoffers faces when they finally see why I have followed Jesus all my life,  that I am no better than they.

But for one crucial difference.

I understand that, in the same way a loving God is also Holy, that a righteous God is also merciful and full of compassion.  He gives chance after chance for repentance,  and he provided forgiveness with his own blood.

And that blood is the difference.

I can face judgement with confidence,  not because of my deeds but because of one deed of one man. The man Christ Jesus and his death on the cross on a hillside on the outskirts of Jerusalem,  over 2000 years ago.

That one act was the antidote to the  sins of the whole world.

And he is coming.
His reward is with him.

From the least of us,  to the greatest.  He will reward those who fear him.

I think to live in the light of that is my greatest aspiration.

Lets live today,  knowing we will have to give account for all our actions and thoughts.

But not in the light of giving account to the fearsome judge of all who will cast into the pit the unrighteous.
No. Not that.

Let us live in light of giving account to our saviour,  who spilt his blood to redeem us.  He who knew no sin,  but became sin for us. How do we answer to that?
How do our deeds look in that light?

It is grace (love)  that taught our hearts to fear,  and grace our fears relieved.

How precious does that grace appear,
To those that now believe.

Amen. 

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

The twenty-four elders sitting on their thrones before God fell with their faces to the ground and worshiped him. ¹⁷ And they said,

“We give thanks to you, Lord God, the Almighty,
    the one who is and who always was,~ Revelation 11

In the garden of Gethsemene,  the soldiers who came to arrest him asked 'are you Jesus of Nazareth? '

'I am' he says

And they all fall down.

Jesus had used his sacred eternal name.  I am.  When Moses asked who he should say had sent him, when telling the Israelites of his mission,. God told him,  tell them 'I am' has sent you.

You see,  the Israelites, enslaved in Egypt for generations,  had almost lost touch with the faith of the patriarchs,  and to some,  this God would have been all but a complete unknown.

God could have said,  I am the one who revealed himself to your father,  Abraham,  and of course,  he did this at various times,  because the past faithfulness of God is a great source of strength.

But he reveals his name to Moses as the present continuous I am.

Not I was.

Not I will be.

But I am.

And this present in the words of the elders.  Who is and always was.

And Jesus,  we are told in Hebrews is the same yesterday,  today and forever.

I think we face the future better with our back to it,  looking to the past at Gods faithfulness.  I am
Not suggesting that we be ignorant or naive about the future, but rather that we face it with a perspective gained from the past.

God got me through.
He will do it again.
That is who he is.

And we see this exemplified in David,  who when insulted with the arrogance and disrespect of Goliath,  says,

When I was shepherding my father's sheep,  God delivered me from the Lion and the bear.

He shall be like one of these.

You see how he draws on the past help of the present God.

Your situation may have changed

That is true.

But your God hasn't.

His love and care are undiminished.

He is true to his unchanging nature.

And he is almighty.

And just as the soldiers in the garden fell down on their faces, and the elders fell down before the throne,
We ought to, too.

Fall down before him this morning and acknowledge,  He Is.

And he is present.  In this moment.

He always has been.
He always will.

Thank you Lord.

Amen.

Kingdom Come

Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices shouting in heaven:

“The world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ,^[c]
    and he will reign forever and ever.”~ Revelation 11:5

The chronology of the prophecy is,  as I have stated previously,  very hard to track.

I have heard theorys saying that the whole of history is covered several times.
And then at what point do we determine whether numbers are used symbolically or literally?  I am pretty sure that both are used,  but trying to understand when and how is not a simple task.

Time is pretty messed up in Revelation.

And this proclamation that the world has now become the kingdom of our Lord and his Christ,  does not seem to herald,  within the narrative,  any immediate perceptible change. 

In fact,  it all seems to kick off again.

Wars in heaven,  the dragon on earth,  the war-making beast from the sea drawing worship from all the people's on the earth. All following this proclamation. 

And yet,  we are told in this proclamation that the Kingdoms of this world have become his Kingdom.

Now there is a sense in which everywhere,  everyone and everything are his Kingdom,  and always have been.

But the Bible speaks of the Kingdom as now and not yet.

It is here,  and yet it is to be realised.

I live in a place called the United Kingdom.

It only really struck me for the first time, just a few days ago, that we do not live in a Republic but in a Kingdom and under a monarchy.

I was looking at Europe and realising that the vast majority of nations in the EU are democratic republics,  but we are a Kingdom.

The domain of a King.

Except of course,  we have a queen right now,  but presuming nothing changes we will have a King again,  in the not too distant future.

But why did that word  kingdom, in all my years as a subject of the same, not impress itself on me?

Because the reign of our Monarch is largely, if not entirely, a symbolic one.

 

She has no real power.
She passes no laws in person.

Her Kingdom is ineffectual and token. 

And the temptation is to,  subconsciously perhaps,  view the Kingdom of God in the same way. 

We see precious little of his influence on the Government's of the world,  we do not see his laws enforced,  we do not see him revered. 

He could,  if we look without the eyes of faith,  seem an ineffectual monarch. 

But we do not regularly acknowledge that it is his invisible power that sustains all life,  merely by the power of his word. 

This is truly his Kingdom. 

But yet it is not yet come in full. 

The devil has lost his place in heaven,  but one day he will lose his place on earth too. 

The 'God of this world' will be cast into the pit of hell for all eternity,  and the physical reign of Christ on earth will come. 

And not just for a while. 

No. 

Forever. 

And ever. 

And ever. 

My pastor uses this analogy of world war two to explain the situation of the Kingdom to come. 

From the moment of the D-day landings in Normandy,  the outcome of the war was determined. Hitler could not win. But the war dragged on until VE day.  The outcome was assured,  victory a tactical guarantee,  but it still had to be worked out.  

Battles were still to be fought.  Casualties were to be had on both sides.  But victory was coming. 

And The cross,  for us,  is our D-DAY. 

King Jesus is the rightful King. 

He conquered sin and death. 

Victory is assured. 

But it is still being worked out. 

That is why so much suffering presently continues...  

But one glorious day we will see it crushed once and for all,  and we will have a coronation ceremony the likes that has never been seen in all of history, when King Jesus takes his throne and every knee will bow and every tongue confess. 

Until then. We battle on,  bringing his Kingdom where we are. 

Make your today the domain of King Jesus. 

And your tomorrow. 

Amen. 

Secrets and Mysteries

When the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Keep secret^[b] what the seven thunders said, and do not write it down.”~ Revelation 10

 

So, it goes like this;

 

Me, just about to put down the phone - "Okay,  call you later".
My son - "what was that about Dad?"
Me - "I can't tell you.  Well I can,  but I am not going to tell you!"
My son - "Why can't you tell me?"
Me - "If I told you why. I might as well have told you?"
My son - "but why can't you?"

And round and round we go.

So there could be a number of reasons why I couldn't share certain thoughts or conversations with my ten year old and he will never understand why not. Well, not now,  at least. It could be something personal that I couldn't trust him to be discreet about. It could be something too adult for him or it could be for many other reasons.

Sometimes I can give him the parameters,  such as "it's personal",  or "it's adult stuff" but invariably that just stokes the fires of curiosity.

But I know that some things are not good for him to know,  in a way that I cannot explain Without giving him specifics that would actually create the repercussions that I am trying to avoid.

He doesn't like it,  and believe me,  he is persistent,  but in the end he has to trust me that I know what I am doing (ahem) and I cannot yield.

There are also times in which it is appropriate and, indeed,  necessary to share information with a trusted individual that it is essential that they do not pass on.

John is in such a position.

He sees the seventh angel,  astride the sea and the land,  with a rainbow on his head and pillars of fire for feet.

This angel is the seventh in a series of angels trumpeting various disasters.

Seven is the number of completion.
This angel is heralding the end and the revelation of the mystery of God.

And this mighty angel (as he is described) roars,  and as he does,  John records that seven thunders utter their voices.

John tells us,  teasingly tantalising,  that he was about to write down what they said,  but I voice from heaven stops him in his tracks.

In the version I have quoted (NLT) at the top of this blog,  John is told to

Keep secret what the seven thunders said.

In the NKJV he is told to seal up the things that they uttered. The seal concept brings the same kind of seriousness to this secrecy as the seals on the scroll opened by the Lamb do. It is a royal seal,  and it is forbidden for us to know.

There is a strong biblical precedent for the withholding of key knowledge.

Paul speaks of being caught up into the seventh heaven,  but of not being permitted to speak of what he saw.

And Jesus himself,  who prophesied many of the elements of the end times which shape our understanding,  was not permitted himself to know the day or the hour.

And not knowing,  not understanding is hard.  It is really hard.

Bad things happen.  We want to know why.

 
Why was this promise not kept?
Why did they have to die?
Why can't I know?
Why do I have to blindly trust when everything around me screams out that you have abandoned me?

Why,  oh my God,  hast thou forsaken me?

And this thirst for answers is right there at the beginning. This is the blessing and the curse of the human race.

We need to understand.
We need to touch the flames to experience them.
We need to prod the sleeping lion with a stick.

It was the tree of knowledge that was our original downfall.

And we feel we have a right to know.  We are owed understanding.

And the scriptures promise the trusting faithful,  that then we will know in full, even as we are fully known.

One day.
On that day.

But can I suggest,  that we need at times,  to lay down our right to understand and trust our heavenly father,  that when he says,  I can't tell you, that it is only for the best of reasons.

We need to acknowledge his sovereignty even in this.

Sometimes, like Job discovered,  we need to simply bow before him and acknowledge.. Yes be still..... And know,  acknowledge,  he is God.

And God is good all the time.
We believe in the sun, even when it is obscured by the cloud,

And so we too,
Trust God's love,
Even when questions obscure it and mystery seems to hide it.

Amen.

Calm Before the Storm

When the Lamb broke the seventh seal on the scroll,^[a] there was silence throughout heaven for about half an hour.² I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets.

³ Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold altar before the throne. ⁴ The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out. ⁵ Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake.

Sometimes,  when it is quiet,  you get that sudden sense of foreboding,  especially if there are kids involved.

And so it proves in this text,  that the half hour silence that we spoke of yesterday,  is the calm before the storm.

The seven seals seem to wait for Seven Angels with Seven trumpets,  bringing about 3 terrors.  And this is all before the Beast arises out of the bottomless pit.

The more I read this, the more lost I feel in terms of any sort of narrative.  All I can really ascertain is that there is a whole lot of trouble coming that is being described,  and the only comforting thing I can see is that God will win in the end,  and he has,  contrary to all appearance,  never lost control.  And for the saints who remain faithful through these times a great reward awaits.

But before the Angels get busy with their trumpets,  (unleashing all kinds of slaughter and misery),  there is an interesting description of the scene before the throne.

Out of the reverent silence of the billions of saint's and angels,  and with all those eyes on him, one angel mixes the prayers of the saints with incense (representing worship) and burns them on the altar.

Now let's be clear.  The context of the prophecy of Revelation is persecution and suffering.

These prayers are not very likely to be requests for a better job,  or that a dental appointment goes well.

I can only speculate,  but I imagine these prayers are outcries for God to save his people and put an end to the misery.

And the smoke of the prayers mingled with the incense goes up before God.  This is code for,  'God heard'.

And seemingly,  as a direct result of their prayers,  the angel takes fire from the altar,  still burning off the incense and prayers, and throws it to the earth,  and there is thunder,  lightening and earthquakes.

The prayers of God's people have a direct impact on earth. 

But not always the impact we might have hoped for.

I can't say today's message is encouraging in the conventional sense. I can't because my message is;

Sometimes it gets worse before it gets better.

I have known quite a few people who have prayed about situations,  felt they were in great faith and then seen them deteriorate even more!

The cup is not always taken away. 

The answer is that there is not always an answer.

Sometimes there is more of a question than an answer. 

We have our questions.

God has his.

I remember once,  about 11 years ago,  singing the Matt Redman song,  'blessed be your name', which speaks about praising God through the good times and the bad.

Every blessing you pour out I will turn back to praise,  we sang.

When the darkness closes in Lord,
Still I will say,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord.

I was in a good place at this time.

My first child was about one year old,  I had recently moved back to my countryside town which I had been pining for for years. We had moved back to be near family, so our son would have a relationship with our respective set of parents.  I was in the best paid job I have ever been in.  Had been married for ten years or so,  and I felt like things were on the up.

I became conscious as we sang that song that I had never had anything really bad happen to me up to that point. It was all very well singing this song, but I had not been tested. 

You give and take away,  we sang.

And as I declared my intention to keep praising,  even in 'that desert place' a little chill ran down my spine.  A sense of foreboding,  that out of the stillness of this contented moment,  something bad was coming.

It was just a month or so later that my mother was diagnosed with cancer.

She died three months later. 

A year after that I was sacked from my well paid job.

2 years after that,  my marriage disintegrated.

Okay,  hardly like Job, on whose experience the song was based on ,  but nonetheless a tough and turbulent time for me.

But I knew,  as I have always known,  that whatever my lot, whatever befalls,  my God is in control and is worthy of praise. It is well with my soul.

Lots of good things have come out of the trauma of what happened.  It doesn't make it better.  I would trade it all to have my mum back,  but I acknowledge,  not my will but thine be done. 

In the end,  this pearl of great price is worth hanging onto.

Like Job can I say, 
Will I receive only good from the hand of the Lord?

Like I said, not answers but questions.

We have our questions, 

And God has his. 

How much do you love me?
Were you just paying lip service,  or are you willing to see this through to the end? 

And the encouragement here is that the prayers and outcries of the saints,  arise before God.

He notes everything. 

He notes it and still works out his will for our good. 
And ultimately,  even our troubles are working for us an eternal reward.

Hang in there.

We win in the end.

Whatever comes,

We are more than conquerors, through Christ who loves us,  and gave himself for us.

Amen.

Silence in Heaven

 When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. ~ Revelation 8:1

Every so often,  quite rarely in fact,  our church service will go quiet after a song.  There seems a heightened sense of the presence of God,  and we just stay for a moment or two in hushed reverence and silent worship.

These times are very precious,  especially in amidst all our evangelical, charismatic, noise.

And I am someone who likes noise.

I fill just about every silence with talking,  (whether people are present or not),  praying,  singing and music.

I write this for you now,  sat in a café,  with music in the background,  and my earphones in to play preferable music so that I may concentrate,  and when there are lulls in my superior tunes,  the cafe's piped pop breaks through the gaps.

I am no fan of silence.

But at times,  a holy and comfortable silence in worship is utterly mind blowing.

Like when you are really comfortable in someone's presence and feel no need for words.

As Gabriel Oak says in Far from the Madding crowd, to his love,  Bathsheba Everdene, describing a future scene of cosy comfortability, reading by the fireside in silence;

"When I look up,  there will you be.  And when you look up there will I be. "

And this quiet stillness in the company of another is really a sign of deep intimacy.

Unless of course,  you've just had a row and aren't speaking to each other!

But silence speaks volumes.

Think of Remberence Sunday.  The two minute silence. 

In our little market town,  which is nearby a military base,  the square is packed out.
And the sight and sound of hundreds of people gathered,  simply holding their tongues and breathing in and out,  is a very powerful one.

And here in heaven,  John has recorded,  that there is a silence in heaven.

Just remember how many beings are gathered round the throne.

4 creatures,
24 Elders,
A hundred million Angels
144 000 from the tribes of Israel,
A multitude too vast to count.

And here they are,  at the opening of the last of the seven seals,

Silent.

Wow.

And not for two minutes.

In a prophecy that time-hops throughout all history,  as we are in and out of the present moment with John,  a decision is made to record the exact time for which all heaven (where the praises of God never cease) is silent.

It is for half an hour.

I bet that felt like eternity.

Back to my noise.

When the Icelandic volcano erupted a huge ash cloud a few years back,  and all the planes were grounded for days,  I remember walking out in the countryside and being astounded at how clear the skies were,  and how comparatively silent it was.

Their noise is continuous drone in the background,  and I was previously unaware of how much I had filtered it out.
But with them gone,  I had a better idea of what silence was like.

And about four years ago I found myself in the little wooden office of a minister of the Northumbrian Community,  for the first of many sessions with he who was to become my 'spiritual director'.

Not all spiritual directors operate in the same way,  but mine is from a reflective tradition.

He explained the parameters that are now intrinsically understood in our sessions.

This is a safe place.

You can say anything.

It will remain with those present in this conversation.

There are three people in this conversation.

Myself.
You.
The Holy Spirit.

And it struck me that the the Holy Spirit was there.

Like he was stood in the room the whole time and I just saw him for the first time.

He is always 'there'.

He is often seen as silent.

On the face of it,  from the conversation that followed,  you would think that we were doing all the talking.
I certainly felt as though I was.

But he is speaking in the silence,  all then time.

But back to the start.

After explaining the parameters, we sit for a moment,  and my Spiritual director just smiles at me. 

Then there is a big sigh,  and he asks me the question.

How are you with God?

And the silence followed was one of the most powerful things I have ever experienced.

All that noise?
That is to drown out this question.

I have been sacred of the silence,
Because I have been scared of that question.

I had drowned out that question with so much activity and noise.

Okay,  I wasn't scared of the question.
I was scared of the answer.

In the silence that followed I became aware of God's presence as though he were sat in a third chair in that poky little room.

I also became aware of his love and acceptance superseding my fear.
And I became aware that in the silence he searches me.

It was the beginning of a new start and a wonderful journey.

Do you need time to be silent.
Really silent.
Before the majesty.
Sit with who you are,
And with who he is.

It really is transformative.

Come to the silence.

Make space for God and for reverence and for intimacy,

Today
And all days,

Be blessed.

Amen.

Post Tribulation Whites

Revelation 7

¹³ Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴ And I said to him, “Sir,^[b] you know.”

So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵ Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. ¹⁶ They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; ¹⁷ for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters.^[c] And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

We have just come out of two weeks of Wimbledon tennis tournament.  And a rule of Wimbledon,  which makes it distinctive,  is that the dress code is white.

You won't get away with very much variation on the white theme.

And Wimbledon always takes place in the summer,  albeit a British summer.
I remember watching as a kid,  because my mum was fanatical about the tennis, and the old analogue TV barely seemed to cope with the brightness of the sunshine reflecting from the white of the players clothes, and the players almost seemed at times to be little white smudges on our screen.

Well that was one or two players.

In this scene we are told that gathered around the throne are a great multitude,  from every tribe and tongue,  too vast to count,  all dressed in white and holding palm branches.

I think poor John would perhaps have benefited from some Ray-Bans to gaze at all that.

A multitude too vast to count must be an awful lot.

That seems an understatement,  I know,  but there is no way to do it justice.
Remember this.

God promised Abraham that his descendants would outnumber the stars,  even the grains of sand on the beach.
And remember earlier,  John numbers a hundred million angels. And this crowd are too many to number.

I think it is safe to say,  there are rather a lot of them.

I am told that there are more people currently alive than all those who have lived in history.

I don't know the truth of that.  But it is quite a thought.

If God were to save all the people currently on the planet, there would be more people in heaven than not.

I like that thought. A lot.

And how much room is there around this throne!!? 

But who are these people?  Who are the ones in white?

These are the ones,  says the elder,  who come out of the great tribulation.

And how did they get this white?

They washed their robes,  not like Andy Murray's tennis whites are washed with Daz,  but in blood. The blood of the Lamb. 

Still makes the best whites ever.

Nothing cleans up our stains like Jesus blood.

Nothing like a little irony,  is there?

Blood is messy.  

It stains.

To this world,  metaphorically speaking, you wouldn't want to get covered in Jesus blood.  And to this world,  Jesus' blood makes a mess. 

But from a heavenly perspective,  it removes all stains.  There is no more powerful detergent in all eternity.

What can wash away my stain,
What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

I don't know if or when the great tribulation is coming,  but I do know that regardless,  we will face trouble.  I know that following Christ still requires some luggage. Cross bearing is an essential prerequisite.  And faith costs.  It is as simple as that.

To be loyal to Christ is costly

In this world you will have trouble.

"Blessed is the one who does not fall away on account of me."

If you are struggling,  you must occasionally ask yourself;

Is this worth it?

And none us know what heaven will be like,  not really.  But we are given a hint.

And how does this sound?

Day and night in the presence of your God.

Unlimited access to the Throne.

No hunger.
No thirst.
No more being assailed by the elements or wearied through heat.

Jesus himself shepherding you to a place of eternal refreshment.

Every tear being wiped away from your eyes by God himself.

How potent is this?

Every tear.

Every time you ever cried. 
He was there all along.
And he will erase the pain of each of them.
He will touch your face and heal your heart.

Just wow.

And the blood that achieves all this.  The messy crime scene of the crucifixion,  the gore that we are currently sliding around in, 
this blood is achieving all this,  as we live for him.

So be of good cheer.

He has overcome the world.

Amen

See, hear, come, look.

Revelation 6;

Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals;^[a] and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, “Come and see.” ² And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.

I feel an imminent departure from the overall narrative of the Prophecy is coming.

Much of what we make of what follows depends on theological interpretation,  and I am scarcely qualified for that kind of speculation.

I must admit that I find completely unsatisfactory,  the approach that says that it doesn't matter what happens or what future is being predicted because the message of Revelation is that we 'win in the end '.

This book is here for a reason, and part of that is some kind of foretelling.  There are signs and events and things that must pass before Jesus' final reign on the earth.

And without understanding such things as 'the mark of the beast',  how would we discern these things in order to live faithfully.

And we are told later that, 

Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy and understands them

Yep. Blessed and rare.

But it is there to be got to grips with.

However.

Where we don't understand,  we can take one overarching message from the whole book,  and guess what that is?

That's right.

We win in the end.

God is in control,
The Lamb has triumphed,
Don't worry when things get nasty,
And they are going to,
Because you reward is unsurpassable and......
We win in the end.

Revelation 6 goes on to describe the opening of the seven seals and what they contain,  and I have to be honest
It gets weird and kind of depressing (if we are not reading with the aforementioned victory filter) and it does so fast.

The passage I have posted pertains to the first of four horsemen, each representing an aspect of destructions to be released upon the earth.

But its always returns to the throne room and to the victory of the Lamb.

But the chief reason I believe we are told these things is that we understand that God is in control.  That he is permitting them for a time,  but that time will end and rewards await those who hold on.

So in the midst of turmoil and tribulation I want to point out four things exemplified by John's interaction with this vision.

I SAW

Now,  John says that he saw when the Lamb opened the seal.
And it's pretty obvious really. In order to see,  he has to be looking.

And where are we looking?

Easy to look about us at what we see,  and,  with natural eyes  to despair or to miss what God is doing.
John was in the Spirit,  and he was looking at what God was doing.
If we keep our eyes on the Lamb and on the throne then  we are better poised to deal with anything. The kind of perspective we need comes from judging temporary sufferings against an eternal God.

I HEARD

John was listening.

Are we listening to God's voice?
How often do we cram out silence with distracting noises,  the voice of the world almost like a spiritual tinnitus.

We need to be listening to God.

Above all other voices.

Do you hear the voice of despair?  Do you panic and worry?
Or do you hear that still small voice thats whispers peace to your soul ; Do not fear,  I am with you.

Do you hear critical voices telling you that you are worthless and amount to nothing?
Or do you listen to the voice of the Father saying 'Child you are mine,  I have called you by name'.
Yes the creator of the universe,  the vast and expanding universe with galaxies and galaxies of stars and planets,  one that would take a billion lifetimes to cross,  is intimately and emotionally involved with you.

The psalmist says,

When I consider the heavens,  the moon and stars which you have put in place, what is man that you should even think about him, or the children of men, that you should care about them?

But he does.  And loves them so much that he sent his only son.
And he loves you. 

Every hair is numbered.  Every tear recorded.  Every day is written. 

So who are you listening to?

I CAME AND LOOKED

The voice of the living creature says 'come and look '

I know that I have kind of been here with the first point,  but this is slightly different.
This is an invitation.

Sometimes we need to take a step towards God.  To step into the vision,  to come and look.

Take the time to enter through the door that is opened. 

We visited this at the beginning of chapter 5. Come up here,  we are told.

Call to me,  says God,  through the prophet Jeremiah,  and I will show you great and unsearchable things.

Some times we have not because we do not ask,  and we see not,  because we do not look,  and we miss out because we do not come.

So come.

And like John,  no matter what transpires,  we will see the victory of the Lamb,  both in history,  and personally.

Remember it may not always look like victory at first,  but we need to see with the right eyes.

God bless you today, 

Lord,

Open our eyes and ears,
And give us feet shod in readiness to come at your invitation.,

For your glory and honour,

Amen.

Everything That Has Breath

¹³ Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
    be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!”

This morning I want to,  in a sense,  step away from the concept of the worthiness of the Lamb.  We seem to have looked an awful lot at that,  and rightly so. It is a subject we will possibly ponder and marvel over, eternally.

The Lamb is worthy.
That's a given.

But for today,  let me focus on the universality of his praise.

The scripture says,  not only will every knee bow before him and acknowledge his lordship,  but also those creatures without legs or knees to bow.

Every creature

In heaven,
On earth,
Under the earth.

That about covers it.

I believe it is the Westminster confession that states that it is the chief end of Man (kind) to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

And not only mankind but all of creation was made to serve the purposes of his praise.

And it is certain. We were born to give him praise.

In our doubt and unbelief, in our self absorption and ambition,  we so often miss it.

But there are moments when praise is so encompassing,  when we lift our heads,  and praise through the pain,  or praise in celebration of all that he is to us and has done for us that the world around us seems to fade into the background shadows,  as we step into his light.  The pain and weight of this life of sorrows just drops off of our shoulders and we know this is what we have been missing.

Psalm 150 tells us ;

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord

And we are told that the very heavens pour forth speech,  day and night,  of the Glory of God.

When Jesus is asked on his triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Luke 19) to silence the crowds with their Hossana's he tells the detractors,

If they were silent,  even the rocks would cry out!

And we are told elsewhere that all of creation groans for the unveiling of the sons of God.

Why?

Because it is hindered by the curse from praising as it ought until that appointed time.  It yearns to be free of those chains of silence.

Revelation describes a time,  when every being will declare the praise of Jesus.

All that he has made will praise and love him.

This nightmare of inhibition will finally end.

And,  as one of our popular worship songs asserts, 

One day every tongue will confess,
One day every knee will bow,

But still the greatest treasure remains for those,
Who gladly choose you now.

This morning,  look up.  Look away from strains and mess and trauma,  and release your praise.

This morning, turn every blessing and happiness to the praises of the one who gave them,

And don't hold back,

Enter his courts with Thanksgiving in your hearts,
Enter his courts with praise,

Yes,
Enter his presence,
With praise,

Because,

He who sits on the throne,
Who purchased you with his blood,
He is worthy to receive it all.

Be blessed this week, starting today,  by fulfilling the very function for which you were made,

Praise him
In all things.

You won't be sorry,
You will be liberated.

Amen. 

A Hundred Million

Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. ¹² In a loud voice they were saying:

“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
    to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
    and honor and glory and praise!”

Last summer I had the privilege of attending Soul Survivor, a Christian festival where some 8-10 thousand young people and their youth leaders, gather to worship God. 

It's a great experience,  not just for the young people,  but for me too,  to see what this kind of worship looks like. 

My church is hardly a mega-church.  We would struggle some Sundays to muster a hundred. 

But during my time at soul survivor,  three of the talks centred around the description of the throne from these scenes found in revelation. 

And there was one point in the sweaty,  enthusiastic and all encompassing passionate worship, where I felt compelled to stop singing and just listen to eight thousand youngsters singing their hearts out to God with a passion we can only dream of seeing on a Sunday. 

And it's not the occasion that makes the difference.  It's the same God. I can be just as passionate amongst 80 people as I can 8,000.

Or even on my own. 

But I can in no way replicate that sound.

The sound that is a foretaste of heaven. 

And maybe because we have been talking about it,  or maybe just in a kind of vision,  when I close my eyes and listen,  I start to picture this very scene from revelation. 

I am kind of transported in my imagination to an aerial view of the throne, 

And there it is in the centre of my vision,  surrounded by angels. 

Now when I am in the crowd of eight thousand,  I can hardly see the other side of the crowd. If it were a hundred thousand I wouldn't stand a chance. 

In this vision,  I am way way above the throne and surrounding it, in a sea of brilliant white,  are a hundred million angels. 

That's right. 

A hundred million. 

For some reason the phrase ten thousand times ten thousand,  just doesn't have the same impact on me. 

I kind of think, ' yeah,  yeah.  A vast multitude.  I get it'. 

But I didn't.

A hundred million was more picturable. 

Think what one angel did to those it appeared to. 

People trembled with fear. 

Frequently they had to be told ; Do not be afraid. 

But here are a hundred million of them surrounding the throne. 

Once when we were worshipping in my local church,  we had the most amazing time of freely singing in the spirit. 

Some times these things don't really take off.  But this time it did. 

And how.

And as we sang,  I heard Angels harmonising. 

I thought maybe I had imagined it. 

But on talking to some friends,  others had heard it to. 

And it was heartachingly beautiful. 

Tears flowed. 

And now,  in my vision,  a sea of a hundred million angels,  as far as the eye could see,  in all directions,  singing (which they were made for by him who made music)  and not just humming along, but singing with a loud voice,  worthy is the lamb. 

I remember when Elisha told his servant,  those who are with us are greater than those who are against us. 

And he opened his eyes to see the angel armies. 

Listen.  

Today or any day,  you do not need to be afraid. 

God has this. 

Remember this throne has always been the centre of this kind of worship. 

The angels are always at his disposal. 

Join in their song today. 

A hundred million angels,  flat on their faces in worship. 

Greater are they that are with us than those against. 

And the worthy object of their worship,  the Lamb at the centre of the throne, 

He is living inside you. 

And if the army of angels that are for us are greater than all our foes,  then so is the object of their worship greater than even them. 

And he dwells in you,  making you his temple. 

No wonder we are told to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. 

And greater is he that is in you, 

Than he that is in the world.

 

You may not have realised. 

You may not know it yet, 

But victory is a done deal. 

Bow with me, 

Be lost in the worship of him who was slain for you. 

Worthy, 

Worthy, 

Worthy is the Lamb, 

To receive power, riches,  wisdom, strength, honour, glory and blessing.

Amen. 

From Every Tribe

 ⁷ He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. ⁸ And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. ⁹ And they sang a new song, saying:

“You are worthy to take the scroll
    and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
    and with your blood you purchased for God
    persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.
¹⁰ You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,
    and they will reign^[b] on the earth.”

So,  the language of this prophecy is partly symbolic.  I am sure we can agree on that.  But we should never forget that it is evocative and sensual.

Sometimes unsettling. The Lamb with seven horns and seven eyes.  Not the pastoral and comforting picture we like to imagine. But when we reduce the Lamb to our preconceptions and preferences we miss out on much of the essence of him. There is far more to him than we have even begun to understand. 

The seven horns and eyes represent his omniscience and omnipotence.  I am pretty sure that is their purpose. 

And this all powerful hero takes the scroll. 

Don't forget the weeping beforehand that none was worthy. 

But he has taken it. 

And the creatures and Elders,  with worship in one hand and intercessions of the saints in the other,  fall before the Lamb.  They get it. 

They get it big time. 

And they sing a 'new song'. 

This song has never been sung before.  

Why?

Why were the scrolls concerning the future left unopened until now? 

Did the whole of heaven marvel and wonder at the seemingly unknowable fate of the earth and it's people's? 

Maybe. 

Until now. 

Now one who is worthy has taken the scroll. 

And heaven feels like rejoicing.  With a brand new song! 

The lyrics?  You are worthy. So worthy. Worthy to open and unlock the future.  You are the key.  You are the seal breaker. 

Why is the lamb worthy? 

Because he was slain.  And because with his precious blood he purchased for God (note the past tense.  It's a done deal for those he saves) persons from Every tribe and language. 

There is no discrimination of background.  Whoever you are,  what ever you have done, it doesn't matter.  He has purchased you. There was nothing you could have done to earn it and you could never have paid the price. You could not have even chose him unless he called you first. But He first loved you,  and so now you are free to love him.

He has taken people from every tribe and tongue,  from every nation,  and made them a nation together. 

We who are Christ's are one people, regardless of skin colour,  genes or social background.  We are one,  and we are loved. 

Our Kingdom on earth may not be united.  People of different backgrounds may be at odds with each other. Their may be division and even hatred. 

But not so God's people.  We are all his,  and we belong to one another. 

Hallelujah. 

And in this Kingdom we are not idle subjects,  passively paying taxes and surviving. 

No. 

We are invested.  We have a part to play and a role to fulfil.

We do not serve an indifferent, faceless master. 

But all of us are priests  with a mission to serve our God. Our loving heavenly Father and our gracious saviour. 

And,  as Jesus said the first will be last and the last will be first, so as we are servants of our God,  we are to reign on the earth. 

How cool is that?! 

I think it is worthy of singing a new song. 

Worthy is the Lamb. 

Amen and amen.

At the Centre of the Throne

⁶ Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. ~ Rev 5:6

A very simple meditation this morning.

This lamb, this sacrificial substitute,  this God -man who was despised for our sake,  abandoned and forsaken,  beaten,  humiliated and executed,  this King became poor,  this almighty eternal divine being become flesh, flesh that sweats and bleeds and cries,  this person who though being God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,  but rather took on human form,  being found in appearance a man, not a wealthy man or a powerful man,  but a humble carpenters son,  become teacher and sofa surfer; This Lamb,  this innocent lamb, 

This Lamb,

Is at the centre of the throne.

Therefore,  since he lay down his life for us as our redeeming sacrifice,  our ransom and our reward,

Therefore, (and this was the joy set before him) God not only saw fit to raise him from the dead in full vindication of his righteousness and innocence, 

And give him the name that is above every other name,

That at his name,  every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that he is Lord,  to the Father's glory.

He is at the very centre of the throne.

Be in no doubt. 

Jesus is God.

This Lamb. 

And if this lamb is at the centre of the eternal and universal throne,

Then his person,  his purpose, his presence and his praise,

And his supreme example,

Should be at the centre of our lives and minds this day,

And all days.

Crown him.

Bow the knee.

Confess it,  in word and deed,

He is Lord.

Glory to God.

Amen. 

From Lions to Lambs

 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the centre of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders.~ Revelation 5:5-6


The thing about Christianity is that victory often doesn't look like victory.

When I think of the heroes of the last century, my mind is drawn immediately to the American  missionary Jim Elliot. Jim, as is well documented, died on the  8th of January, 1956, when he, along with four other missionaries (Ed McCully, Roger Youderian, Pete Fleming, and their pilot, Nate Saint), was speared to death by warriors of the Huaorani people of Ecuador , whom he was attempting to evangelise.

And I bet no one involved in that outreach, least of all his family, felt victorious when the news came in that his body had been found floating in the Curaray river.

But Jim's sacrifice, along with the others, eventually led to the whole tribe being converted, when his widow, along with other missionaries returned to the Huaorani people.

And I think of the First Christian martyr, Stephen. His death at the hands of the Sanhedrin initially looks like a horrible blow to the church, which unleashed a potentially crushing city-wide persecution of Christians in Jerusalem.

On reflection though, it was not as though they had stamped out the fire but merely spread the sparks further afield, and the church began to grow at an exponential rate.

And Stephen's death brings into the picture, the zealous Saul of Tarsus, the man who would eventually become the Apostle Paul, arguably the most influential and effective Christian that has ever lived.

And his life too, lauded as it is, does not exactly have the ring of victory about it;

Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. ²⁴ Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, ²⁶ I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. ²⁷ I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. ²⁸ Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. ²⁹ Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?~ 2Cor 11:23-29

I love how this talk of victory and triumph in Revelation 5, quickly moves to the image of the Lamb.

I think we need to ponder on how inextricably linked those two things are.

At no point was Jesus only a lamb. In his laying down of his life, he was a lion.
And whilst he will always be the Victorious lion of Judah, he always bears the scars of his sacrifice.

The devil roams the earth posturing like a lion, but he is not one. He doesn't have the courage to lay down and die. Sacrifice is an anathema to him.

Not so, our precious Lamb. In his love he held nothing back.

I would be very suspicious of anyone who told me that the Christian life is all about gain and prosperity.

How can it be, when all our heroes and founders were men and women who paid a price. Who had weighed the cost of sacrifice and found it not worthy of the comparison with the glory to come.

No sooner has he been introduced as the triumphant Lion of Judah, then he is presented to us in the vision, as a lamb, looking as though it had been slain.

We wear our scars.

We should wear them well.

I know in Heaven that there will be no more pain. But there may well be scars.

But the scars we bear that speak of sacrifice, are far, far removed from ugly. They are actually beautiful.

And the risen Lion, the Lord Jesus, walks into the room where the frightened disciples are hiding, and shows them his scars. Let's them put the fingers into the wounds.

Yes.

That sacrifice will be honoured forever, and ever, and ever.

Today I feel like I am looking as though I have been slain.

I make light of it, but even just surviving takes it toll.

But serving Jesus at a cost, is a price worth paying.

We put our hand to the plough. We dare not look back.

We weighed the cost and found the price not worthy of comparison.

A famous quote attributed to the aforementioned Jim Elliot goes thus;

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose."

And like Aslan, the lion that represents Jesus, in C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia, we need to understand the deeper magic. That sacrifice is victory, and not the defeat it appears.

And they will overcome this world,

by the word of their testimony,

And the blood of the lamb,

That they did not love their lives so much as to shrink back from death.

For they who seek to keep their lives shall lose what they think they have,

but those who lose their lives for my sake shall find true life, in all it's abundance.

Lions and Lambs they will be.

Amen.