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Farquhar's Midweek Message 7th April 2021
Relying on the One who
raises the dead
Midweek Message – 7 April 2021
Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed!
Once
we grasp that the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is a historical event (not
just a nice metaphor, as some would like to portray it), then we realise we’re
dealing with a God who has the power to raise the dead, a Saviour whose every
word has been vindicated and who longs to unite us to himself in his
resurrection life! This should impact every area of our lives. One of those
areas is that of suffering.
I know we’ve just finished 4 weeks of reading
Jeremy Marshall’s terrific booklet, Hope in the Face of Suffering, but I’m
not sure we can ever have too much teaching on how to faithfully respond to and
endure suffering. So, I hope you’ll allow me to share something from Scripture
that I’ve found helpful to me in recent weeks. It’s what the Apostle Paul says
in 2 Corinthians 1:8-9:
(v8) We do
not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the
province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to
endure, so that we despaired even of life. (v9) Indeed, in our hearts we felt
the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves
but on God, who raises the dead.
We don’t know
exactly what hardships and pressures Paul is specifically referring to. They
were certainly intense to the point where he ‘despaired even of life’ (v8c).
He did say in his first letter that in Ephesus he ‘fought wild beasts’ (1
Cor 15:32) so that may have been what he was referring to. But we know too
that he faced real hostility from many different groups as he proclaimed the
news of the risen Christ in that city for two years. He also suffered from a
chronic health condition. Furthermore, he taught constantly and must have been
pastoring new believers and on top of all that making tents as a source of
income. So there are many things that could have led him to feel ‘under
great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure (v8b)’.
Paul says ‘Indeed,
in our hearts we felt the sentence of death.’ (v9a). So why would a loving
God allow one of his faithful followers to go through these sufferings and the
associated heart-wilting experiences of fear and despair?
Well Paul
discovered the answer to that question: ‘But this happened that we might not
rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead’ (v9b).
He recognised
that God was using these sufferings to stop him relying on himself and to give him
an ever-greater trust in God. As Jonathan Lamb says in his book, Strength in
Weakness:
‘In
desperate times we learn to hold him fast. God’s purpose in our lives is not to
bypass difficulties but to transform them. He does not magically remove us from
the pressures, but instead uses those very events to expose our complete
inadequacy and demonstrate his complete reliability. If we fail to learn these
lessons, then the real tragedy of Christian suffering is the wasted
opportunity.’
Whatever
suffering you or I are going through right now, or will face in the future, it
is a God-given opportunity for us to turn from our self-reliance and our need
to be in control and to hand over everything to the powerful and compassionate One
who raised our Lord Jesus from the dead. Easier said than done, I know! But by faith
we’re united to Christ in his resurrection power and are given the Spirit who enables
us daily to rely on God not ourselves.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than
all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him
be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever
and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21)
Love to you as we seek to live in the light of the resurrection,
Farquhar
Mens Breakfast
Men's Breakfast
24th April 2021
Alternate Saturdays hosted on Zoom 8.30 -10am
If
you’ve never been to a Men’s breakfast before, please join us with
the link is on the Wednesday Update email or contact the church officeHome Groups
Home Groups meet again in 'Zoom' Gatherings on
Wed 28th/Thu 29th April 2021
Dates after Easter break
Wed12th/Thu13th & Wed 26th/Thu 27th May;
Wed 9th/Thu10th & Wed 23rd/Thu 24th June
It's a chance to catch up and see each other and
think more about the Sunday sermon.
Not part of a Home Group and would like to give it a try?
CONTACT THE CHURCH OFFICE 01463 226727
Farquhar's Midweek message 17 Mar 21 'Lifting up our eyes'
Lifting up our eyes in
suffering
Midweek Message – 17 March 2021
We’ve
been reading the daily devotions at family worship and although my children may
not necessarily follow everything he’s saying I think they are getting to grips
with two things that I believe are so important for us to grasp at any age as
Christians:
(1)
that ‘Christians should expect to suffer’ (p22); all Christians will
find a ‘crook in their lot’ (p18).
(2) when we do suffer we can be sure that God is still on the throne (p20) and ‘uses our crooks to draw us to Himself’ (p18).
When we grasp these two truths, then life for Jesus-followers (whatever our age) is no longer a game of who can dodge-the-suffering, but involves preparing our hearts for suffering; persevering and praising God as we suffer; and encouraging our fellow-believers as they go through suffering.
I have a Beyond Suffering Bible with notes and devotions written by Joni & Friends and I came across something in it this week that amplified this hard but glorious truth: that suffering helps us turn our eyes away from the temporary things of earth and to God and our eternal hope. I attach her message below for your encouragement.
Whatever we’re going through today, may we set our minds on things above.
Yours
Farquhar
|
What God Wants by Joni Eareckson Tada |
|
"Set your minds on things above, not on
earthly things." Colossians 3:2-3 This is what God wants -- hearts burning with a passion for future things, on fire for kingdom realities that are out of this world. God wants His people aflame with His hope, a "consider it a pure joy" outlook which affects the way we live on earth. God wants us to be "cities on a hill" and "lights on a lamp stand" so that everyone around us will be encouraged to look heavenward (Matthew 5:14-15). A perspective like this doesn't happen without suffering. It is affliction which fuels the furnace of heaven-hearted hope. People whose lives are unscathed by affliction have a less energetic hope. Oh, they are glad to know they are going to heaven; for them, accepting Jesus was a buy-and-sell agreement -- place your sins on the counter and get an asbestos-lined soul. Once that's taken care of, they feel they can get back to life as usual -- dating and marrying, working and vacationing, spending and saving. But suffering obliterates such preoccupation with earthly things. Suffering wakes us up from our spiritual slumber and turns our hearts toward the future, like a mother turning the face of her child, insisting, "Look this way!" Once heaven has our attention, earth's pleasures begin to pale in comparison. What has suffering taken away from you? What has it diminished or robbed? Don't allow your heart to dwell on earthly disappointments. God permits suffering to draw our attention on heaven where that which was lost -- and more -- shall be restored. Suffering forces us to look forward to the day when God will close the curtain on all disease, death, sorrow and pain. Until then, we have work to do! John 9:4 says, "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." Lord of heaven, turn my heart toward You this day. I set my mind right now on things above. Blessings, Joni |
Annual Stated Meeting 11th March 2021 -POSTPONED
postpone our ASM tomorrow evening (Thurs 11th March).
We invite you to read the accounts on the link below and send your questions to the
church office.
Accounts for year ended 31 December 2020
Click here to read/download the Accounts
Annual Stated Meeting Tuesday 5th March 2020
Click here to listen to/download the audio file of meeting
