Forgotten Honour - Spurgeon and the Easter Story

One of the most well-known names from more recent church history is Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892).

He has been described as the Prince of Preachers. Not only is there extensive record of his powerful sermons over 40 years of preaching at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London, and so we have much accessibility to his prolific preaching, but there is another reason why I think we should take note of Spurgeon's sermons.

His preaching and writing is saturated with looking at Scripture and life with strong realisation of the realities of honour and shame.

That might surprise you…as it did me a few years back.

Honour and Shame are not new ideas to be wary of.

In our current era of history, we can feel that the 'honour and shame' perspective is something new, novel and maybe even to be viewed suspiciously. Some suppose that this way of looking at life and the gospel could be a diversion or even departure from the 'traditions passed down' in the church through history. Some see it as possibly useful in missions, and maybe even in counselling, but to bring it into every area of Christian discipleship and Biblical exegesis is going too far and bordering on the heretical.

I know many who read this blog have travelled with us for years, and are enthusiastic about a renewed awareness of the dynamics of honour and shame, but still many are not too sure if we are making too much of something and at risk of over-emphasis and even heresy.

Yet, (as mentioned before), to not be daily living and breathing and navigating the dynamics of honour and shame, would have seemed strange and neglectful to those theologians of past centuries. It seems only we in the last century or so have forgotten its importance and priority.

Honour and Shame are 'normal', but yet even can be missed in the Easter Story

Spurgeon on the other hand has much to teach us about the 'normalness' of factoring in the dynamics of honour and shame to every page of scripture. For Spurgeon they were not concepts that were strange or or only part of 'other cultures'.

I could take you to multiple examples, but as we are about to once again ponder and celebrate the events of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection, I thought I would highlight just one rarely spoken of part of the events leading to the Cross, and how Spurgeon walks into such a verse of Scripture without hesitation that there are, first and foremost, honour and shame factors to be observed, pondered and applied.

Here is what he says in his 'Morning and Evening' devotional for the morning of April 5th

"On him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus."

Luke 23:26

We see in Simon's carrying the cross a picture of the work of the Church throughout all generations; she is the cross-bearer after Jesus. Mark then, Christian, Jesus does not suffer so as to exclude your suffering. He bears a cross, not that you may escape it, but that you may endure it. Christ exempts you from sin, but not from sorrow. Remember that, and expect to suffer.

But let us comfort ourselves with this thought, that in our case, as in Simon's, it is not our cross, but Christ's cross which we carry. When you are molested for your piety; when your religion brings the trial of cruel mockings upon you, then remember it is not your cross, it is Christ's cross; and how delightful is it to carry the cross of our Lord Jesus!

You carry the cross after him. You have blessed company; your path is marked with the footprints of your Lord. The mark of his blood-red shoulder is upon that heavy burden. 'Tis his cross, and he goes before you as a shepherd goes before his sheep. Take up your cross daily, and follow him.

Do not forget, also, that you bear this cross in partnership. It is the opinion of some that Simon only carried one end of the cross, and not the whole of it. That is very possible; Christ may have carried the heavier part, against the transverse beam, and Simon may have borne the lighter end. Certainly it is so with you; you do but carry the light end of the cross, Christ bore the heavier end.

And remember, though Simon had to bear the cross for a very little while, it gave him lasting honour. Even so the cross we carry is only for a little while at most, and then we shall receive the crown, the glory. Surely we should love the cross, and, instead of shrinking from it, count it very dear, when it works out for us "a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

(last paragraph emphasis mine)

What a refreshing, and encouraging lesson!

But the reality of the whole lesson, the impact of it, the counsel of it, the comfort of it, the motivation for perseverance of it, the glory of God in it….is lost to us without viewing from the awareness that we are meant to 'see' the dynamics of honour and shame in it and apply it to our own lives in terms of honour and shame.

We begin to rediscover the depth of meaning and blessing in the words of Scripture, when we rediscover the awareness and alertness to honour and shame dynamics that for Spurgeon and many others of his time and before him, took as a 'given'. 

Honour and shame are not just the dynamics of some cultures in the world, or the culture of bible times, but are the dynamics of life….its just that the church seems to have forgotten about them and become blind to them …and thus separated from their truth and blessing, and guidance toward seeking and finding true glory.

As we progress through the days of 'Easter' this year, let us ask the Lord to teach us afresh of the richness and 'weight' of the glory/honour that comes from Him and to Him, all that He may be exalted and lifted up.

3 Lessons from a Leopard

After over 2 decades living on the wonderful continent of Africa, as we recently headed off for a few days break to the Pilanesberg Game Reserve in South Africa, the only one of the ‘Big Five’ African animals I was yet to see in the wild, was the Leopard.

Elephant - tick ✔️

Rhinoceros - tick ✔️

Buffalo -tick ✔️

Lion - tick ✔️

Leopard - ❌

But so far the Leopard had been elusive.

(to clarify, there was one night drive I was on many years back where the Ranger guide said that two little reflections we could see way in the distance, off his super-strong spot light, were right where he knew a Leopard had been spotted and that little pair of reflective specks would probably be him.  But do I count that?  Maybe … Maybe not.  I certainly have not seen one fully in daylight clarity or even closer up under a night spotlight to be able to be sure to say without a doubt that I have seen a Leopard.)

Various friends have made even a short visit to Africa just for a couple weeks and managed to see all the Big Five, including Leopard…but 20 years and many, many Game viewing excursions in several major Game Parks and across three countries…still I haven’t seen one.

So...

I wondered, "would this be the time!?” Would 2023 be the year of seeing a Leopard in the wild?

Well, God certainly had something for me to experience this time…but it wasn’t quite how I thought it would be… 

It was related to not only to seeing a Leopard, but also seeing afresh about the nature of 

• self, 
• sin, 
• salvation.

As we drove back to our chalet at the end of our first evening Game viewing excursion, a car passed us and said if we were heading to a certain area, (which we were), a Leopard had just been spotted. But though it wasn’t far…of course by the time we got there, it was long gone…

...so close but so far!

Oh well. 

I was disappointed…but these things happen.

Then next day we were just driving along in a totally different part of the Park with the Elephant grass high on both sides, and came upon a car that had stopped. So we stopped. But we could not see what they were looking at. Eventually the car turned around and passed us …with the news….just moments before we arrived they had followed a Leopard walking along the road, but it had gone into the grass and they lost sight of it.

…so close but so far!

Oh well.

I was disappointed…but these things happen.

Just a minute or so later, another little white car came along beside us and as they passed they asked us why vehicles had been stopped…we explained that Leopard had been spotted but had gone into the grass, and now couldn’t be seen.

They slowly moved on…and we followed…and then they slowed right down and paused... and as we came alongside them about to ask what they were seeing…they silently and excitedly pointed into the grass right near us ….saying they had just seen the Leopard!

They started to slowly move along…maybe to try to follow to see where he went into the grass…but they lost sight of him….and we didn’t see him either!

…so close but so far!

Oh well.

I was disappointed…but these things happen!

SUDDENLY

Something did start appearing…not in the grass, but in my own heart! I was sad…and …needed the first of my Leopard Lessons!

Lesson #1

SELF

Just that morning I had decided to start reading through a book I had purchased a few years back amidst my honour-shame research…a book called ‘Favor’ by Greg Gilbert (which I recommend by the way).

He had a little section in that book about being content enough with the path God has for us, in whatever form that might be, to be able to rejoice with others who are blessed with what you hope for but don’t have!….He used the illustration of two couples he knew who had struggled with infertility and become firm friends…and then one couple announced at church one Sunday that they were finally expecting a baby…and the husband of the other couple volunteered to pray and give thanks on behalf of the church family, for the other couple. As I read that, I thought…yes…been there…know that feeling…and my heart thanked the Lord for how He has allowed us to also live that reality of coming to terms with the joy others have in things we have longed for, but which God has had reasons to not give us on our path. 

There was a fleeting thought of ’nailed that one’ of the issue of rejoicing with those who rejoice in such contexts.

But suddenly out in the African bush the next day, it was like the Lord said: "no you haven’t nailed it, on your own without Me you never will, and you’ll have a test that will reveal that again to you."

….and that test came on that road, as I realised that welling up was a seed that threatened to sprout forth into full blown envy, jealousy, and resentment.  I realised I was beginning to feel un-satisfied and dis-content that my hopes and expectations weren’t being met. I realised I wasn’t actually rejoicing at that point and didn’t feel much rejoicing for others either.

That Leopard was ’sin crouching at my door’ and it wanted my whole heart for wickedness and not righteousness!

I was suddenly reminded yet again that our hearts, my heart, is deceitful and desperately wicked and wretched, and desperately needs rescuing. 

Without Christ we can do ‘nothing’. While we live on this earth, the old nature, the flesh, continues to simmer away below and is ready to spew out as soon as we relax our dependancy on Christ. Once again I needed to be reminded to not set my ‘rejoicing’ thermostat by my own expectations, to not turn a leopard into an idol that could derail my peace, and steal my joy, and deflect the honour and glory that should have been going to God from my heart for the joy that others were having in His creation.

Then came Lesson #2

SIN

I was so close to seeing that Leopard. 

It was literally only meters from me for several minutes. In front, along side, and behind.

As we drove along I looked out my window and was even able to see his fresh ‘big pussy-cat paw prints’ in the sand!

I could have got out of the car and even ‘walked where he walked’….

I had now, not only heard about a Leopard, but met several people who had seen the Leopard and experienced something that will be with them for the rest of their lives. They can’t ‘un-experience’ it. It was profound. I could see the excitement, awe and amazement on all their faces.

I interacted with them and heard their stories. 

It was all ssooooooo close!

I so, so nearly saw that Leopard for myself!

But nearly is not enough!

Nearly seeing a Leopard is not the same as actually seeing a Leopard!

I still can’t say with any certainty or confidence, ‘I’ve seen a Leopard’.

I can never be a member of a club of those who have seen a Leopard.

Being in the zone of the Leopard doesn’t count as seeing a Leopard.

‘Leopard glory’ can’t be gained by ‘almost’ encountering a Leopard.

This was such a reminder about the reality of sin…

Sin is ‘missing the mark’ - it doesn’t matter how ‘close’ you get to the mark, the target, the requirement…if you miss it, you’ve missed it! My ‘Leopard sighting’ status was no different that morning to what it has been for my lifetime. Whether I was on the other side of the world in Australia, or just a couple of meters away and even seeing a paw-print just pressed into the sand moments earlier, made no difference.

When we later arrived at the Pilanesburg Game Reserve Kiosk and Admin centre, I still could not enter on their viewing records that I had seen a Leopard. 

But then came Lesson #3

SALVATION

This ‘leopard-less’ experience also had something to teach me about salvation, about becoming and being a Christian…

...we have to ’see’ Christ for ourselves. 

• Being near others who have seen him and know him doesn’t allow us membership in his family. 
• Sitting in the zone of other Christians in church doesn’t count. 
• Even trips to Israel to ‘walk where Jesus walked’ isn’t enough to say you have met Him face to face. 
• And there is a great deal of difference between those who ‘hope’ to have maybe gained something by coming ‘close’, and those who have truly met Jesus. 
• And once you have truly ’seen’ Jesus with the eyes of faith in Him, the awe, amazement, joy and excitement will be visible for all to see! The glory of being ‘in Christ’ only comes with a personal encounter with Him.

Then we can sing with John Newton’s ‘Amazing Grace' that ‘I once was blind but now I see’!

…….So I was reminded that :

...there is something greater than having set my eyes on a Leopard,

 …. it’s more important to have my eyes set (and fixed) on a LION !  

And not just on a four footed African mammal (some of those I have seen), nor on the one who acts like a lion - the devil who prowls around wanting to devour and destroy (1 Peter 5:8).

No,….I will forever need to have my eyes set on a more profound Lion... the Lion of the tribe of Judah…the Lion who is the Lamb, the one who saves and delivers and deals with my eternal destiny…I need Jesus. 

It’s so easy to get caught up ‘wanting’ something that is less than what God really has on offer in relationship with Him through His Son.

I was then also reminded again of something I ‘know’ every day in one way or another…but still need to also ‘learn’ every day. 

We grow from one degree of glory to another…we are a work in process in the Potter’s hand. The Lord knew I needed to be reminded that we cannot afford any confidence in our own spiritual growth even for a second. Our hope is not in what temptations we think we have conquered or what issues we think we have worked through or what fruit we think we are now managing to produce (ie joy), but our hope in in Christ alone who is our hope of glory. It is only in His power and grace that we live and walk. Without constant leaning on Him, I am doomed to my own sinful desires focused on self. So I say with Paul in Romans 8…that it is only Jesus who can and does rescue us from this body of death and our own wretchedness. What a wonderful Saviour!

So, no I still did not get to see a Leopard…

Are you sad for me?….Don’t be. 

Rejoice with me instead that many people that day got to see one of God’s amazing creatures. 

And rejoice with me that God had lessons for me to learn and a new level of ‘leaning’ on Jesus to rest in and find joy in.

(and you know these were definitely divinely ‘appointed’ lessons…because we weren’t even going to be on that road. We had chosen a different road and a semi-sleeping elephant who had stopped on the road under a shade of a tree refused to move. 

And rule no 1 in the bush is do not drive near elephants, and never pass right beside them or they might flip your car! So we had to turn around and double back and go a different route…that took us to the Leopard Zone)

It might have been nice to say all this…and then say…'oh and then the next day we saw a Leopard'…but we didn’t. 

However, God’s blessings during those few days were wonderful and we still saw new sights in the African bush.

And some of those I hope to share in some future blogs.

PS....we did however buy a calendar featuring 13 photos of leopard, in support of the Leopard Project of the Reserve...will be a good ongoing reminder of my 3 Leopard Lessons!

Fluttering Reminders of God's Presence

One of the ‘side-effects’ of having a holiday break can be reluctance to launch back into regular life. 

This hit home for me after a recent mini-vacation. Especially as it meant we left a cool-quiet-bush-thatched-cottage environment to come back into a very hot house on one of the hottest days of the season in a noisy, village location. Then to add ‘insult to injury’ as the saying goes, it happened to be also a day without power due to an area fault and no water due to a pump breakdown for the area. Then on top of that the guys who were house-sitting for us, enjoyed the fact we have a back-up water tank but forgot to make sure it got refilled if they had to use any of it…so our normal ready water supply was unavailable due to that, as well as not accessible because the pump couldn’t work with the power out! 

As much as I love ministry and continue to be so excited about all that God is doing…part of me didn’t want to be back. I actually haven’t felt quite like this after any other break away.

But then the goodness of God overwhelmed me!

I was home alone and had to go and adjust something on the tank and as I did, I passed some flowers that had been profusely blooming in our absence. I picked some to enjoy inside. And as I did so, I noticed a type of butterfly I hadn’t seen for a while - a ‘Dotted Border'. So I grabbed the camera and came back to take a few photos.

But as I did, another type of butterfly also arrived - a particularly beautiful one called the Blue Pansy, which reflects light in various ways on its spots depending on the angle of the sun. I had not seen this one at all in the years we have lived at this house, and it was one of the first that I photographed years back when I first started photographing butterflies. 

Then suddenly several other large Citrus Swallowtail butterflies also ‘turned up’ all at once. 

I seemed to be surrounded with fluttering colour and all within good photographing distance, with hardly moving my feet at all!…and it was just like God was saying…’I am here’. Not that I don’t know that as a fact. But to have visual reminders is always wonderful. 

God fills our world with reminders of His presence but also knows our every situation and how to cheer us and encourage us to rest in Him.

Christ is Coming! The Cradle, Cross... and Crown of Christmas

Christmas is Coming!

with its season of traditions of Trees, tinsel, songs, food and presents.

But we could also say 

Christmas has Come

 - 2000 years ago Jesus entered this world as a baby in a manger cradle as - Immanuel - God with us.

- we remember that first Advent of Jesus when we celebrate Christmas each year (although sadly our world thinks little of the fact that Christmas is about Christ!)

- and yes, the Cradle led to the Cross, Jesus was born to die, for us and thus Christmas is also about Easter, and then about the Ascension of Christ too.

Yet there is a Coming we can often forget, that is truly still to come, a Coming that is the whole purpose of Christmas….

But I rarely hear this talked about at Christmas … this is the 'Coming' spoken about at the end of the last chapter of the last book of the bible - Revelation 22...and I would encourage you to read the whole of the book of Revelation in the lead-up to Christmas Day.

(it is interesting that Handel's 'Messiah' links the gospels to words from Revelation, and is sung at Christmas)....

It's the second Advent, the Coming of Jesus again, his second Coming, not as a baby to die, but as a King to reign.

So maybe we should be saying….Christ mas is Coming

Interestingly enough, for anyone who uses a 'read the bible through in a year' bible reading plan, Christmas lands right at the last book of the Bible. Yet we rarely, if ever, pause to make the connection.

But the cradle and the cross were not the end of the story. The end of the story is yet to come. The purpose of the cradle that led to the cross is yet to come. A shame story is yet to end in full glory.

The Garden of Eden began in glory and quickly descended into shame after only a couple of chapters. From there, until the last couple of chapters in Scripture, that shame of sin stays present in our human story. In the midst of that, from Adam and Eve's sin that ushered in shame for this world - to the shame filled birth of our Saviour laid in a manger - to the shame filled cross on which our Saviour died, it is the  mess that fills the story of humanity's hopeless state. 

But alongside this was another story, one of hope in the midst of hopelessness. 

Jesus let go of his heavenly honour to be born into an honour-less situation in the eyes of people of the world. 

But God gave a glimpse, for those who cared to think and see,

that the road to restored honour had begun. 

For though laid in a manger for a cradle, 

Jesus' birth was announced to the lowly shepherds with a huge angelic choir from heaven, and    

     surrounding them with the glory of the Lord, 

and then he was brought highly valuable gifts from kings. 

Joseph and Mary were willing to endure a life of shame in the eyes of their community 

in order to glorify the Lord and say, 'be it unto me according to your word'.

Then after the most shameful death after a shaming lead-up to death, 

Jesus was given the tomb of a wealthy man from which death could not hold him and he rose again on the third day as he had said

and then he was received back into heaven to the place of honour at the right hand of the Father's throne.

Yet, we who follow Christ, and are found 'in Him' and belong to God's Kingdom family, still endure the shame and suffering as servants of the Master who endured for us.

But we are told that though we experience sin in this world, we have already been given the positional place of glory in Christ, seated with him in heaven.

And the story hasn't yet ended…..

It is the end of the story and the ultimate glory yet to come which delivers our true dignity, defines our lives on earth, drives our perseverance, and determines our destiny. 

It is in the last chapters of Revelation that we see the hope fulfilled of the glory that flows through the story of Scripture, where Satan is defeated to suffer and be shamed forever along with his workers and followers on earth and his demonic forces, and where the saints that make up the church are adorned, and rewarded with crowns, as the full glorification of Christ's body is completed and brought into the presence of God forever and ever.

Immanuel - God with us isn't only a Christmas cradle story, and doesn't even end with the cross, 

but culminates with God's purpose to dwell with man forever (Revelation 21:3) in unhindered glory. 

And yes that is only possible as the holy glory of man, lost at the Fall, is restored in the holy glory of Christ 'in whom we live and move and have our being', so that man and God can dwell together in eternal glory and honour. 

The purpose of the manger-cradle and the cross is not just to have our sins forgiven as an end in itself, but so that the purpose of God's glory story can be fulfilled. 

The shameful cross is only filled with glory and honour for the Christian because the resurrection and ascension leads us to look to the ultimate second Coming of Christ, with his Crowns of honour as King of Kings….where we are not just going to attend a Christmas day roast turkey and ham, but we are called to an eternal marriage supper of the Lamb, as his bride the church, and with the example of the 24 elders, honouring him by laying our crowns at his feet. 

It is as the true glory of man is restored - through being 'in' the glory of the Son and his glory lived out through us, and brought to completion (all to God's glory and honour), that God's glory plan is fulfilled.  Christ's crown of thorns is yet to become the multiple crowns of Revelation 19  (not just in victory over all the kingdoms of the earth, but from the saints crowns given back to him our King).

As the coming year is set to be the crowning of the new King Charles III and media has just announced the late Queen's crown has already been taken to begin alterations to make it fit for the new king, maybe we need to turn our thoughts to much greater crowns and the King of Kings!

Jesus is yet to return to this world with the golden crown of honour as King. We are yet to receive our reward crowns. He is yet to ride and rule with his multiple crowns as King of Kings. We are yet to have the true Christ-celebration feast. We are yet to leave suffering and pain and sin's presence behind. Satan is yet to be judged. Full glory is yet to be known and full honour is yet be given to our God.

But that day is coming!

But also, let us also remember that while we are still on this earth, the Christmas trees and tinsel, songs and presents, must remind us that Jesus is coming again. It means hope for those of us who are found in the glory of Christ. But it also means there is an urgent message to bring to those still in shame and without hope. Let us be spurred on in motivation to share Christ and to more eagerly look toward His Coming again.

Amen, Come Lord Jesus!

Resting in God and His Word

Cats,…. the purry, furry companions of so many….including myself, have a habit of demonstrating their friendship by coming to sit on a piece of paper that is the page of the book or newspaper that we happen to be reading right at that very moment!

My cat is no exception.

However, today she didn't quite sit right on top of the page I was reading (as I was at the time reading on my laptop), but she did choose to sit right on top of my bible, laying open beside me at the page I was regularly referring to.

But as she covered up the very section of Scripture I was periodically looking back at, and then relaxed back even further and began to have a 'bath', I had an object lesson from God right there! (and yes, I took some quick pics!).

As she rested right on top, and then cleaned, and then went to sleep, it was a good metaphorical reminder that we too should be quick to go to the pages of Scripture and rest in the truth of all that God shows us in those pages that he truly is.  

It should be the rock, the resting place, the source and security of all our lives, whether sitting, working (cleaning) or sleeping!

As we look at the mess of our world this is a good reminder…especially considering my time in God's Word is currently in Paul's letters to Timothy. Paul tells Timothy toward the end of his second letter that in the last days sin will abound (chapter 3). We shouldn't be then surprised when we look at the world…

But I am reminded that we should also take note of Paul's other directives to Timothy after this…that he is to remember God's inspired Word and keep on preaching and teaching it (Chapter 4). Though some might not like it or welcome it, as we keep eternity and Jesus' return in mind, the response to the sinful mess of the world is not to be shocked about it, or just ignore it, or try to escape to some quiet corner of this earth where we think it might be less, or spend all our energies fighting it, but to continue to evangelise, to preach the Word, live the Word, teach the Word, and not neglect the gifts that God has given us for his Kingdom work, so that souls might be saved.

It was a short lesson with significant reminders, but those are sometimes the best!

Flowers might be weeds - garden lessons for life!

Scripture uses quite a number of 'garden' and nature contexts for teaching us truth - from the parable of the soils, to going to the ants, and the wheat and the tares, to the vine and the branches.

And so I guess it is not a big surprise that I continue to find our garden is full of lessons for life, and this week it taught me some more as I strolled through it. 

Having SO much rain interspersed with sunny days has meant everything is growing profusely in our garden….including the weeds.

Weeds are popping up from soil we had brought in from other sources, from areas that seemed barren when we moved in but where seeds are sprouting and pushing through, and from seeds in the sludge (filled with goat and cow poo from the village 'road') that has washed in via the flooding through our front gate onto the driveway.  So there has been lots of 'weedpulling' lately. We have had thorny weeds, spikey ones, sharp ones, super-spreader ones, short rooted ones, long rooted ones, short ones and some have managed to get quite tall because they were hidden behind other garden plants or were well camoflauged... (can you spot the long stemmed large 'weed' in the middle of the photo below?)

But there have been a couple of other kinds of weeds too - even more subtle but no less problematic - from which I realised important lessons can be learned.

The first is 'grass' and the second is 'flowers'!

Learning from the 'grass' weeds:

When we arrived to a plot without a stitch of visible grass, we were concerned that our cat would have no grass when she needed it. So when the first little bits of 'grass' type 'weeds' emerged we thought we would leave some of one particular type growing in one area and pull out the rest.

Well something interesting happened. Our minds had in them that 'some grass was allowed'. But after a few months and lots of rain, we realised we had lots of grass coming up everywhere and too much to pull (especially as we were both lower in normal energy in recovering from COVID). And day by day the situation was not getting better as the grass continued to grow…and started to also seed!  Additionally our gardener had been on Christmas/New Year leave and then had some business to attend to which meant he was not able to come for a few weeks.

Thankfully though he came this past week and with relief, the grass overgrowth is gone (well as far as we can see at this point!)…I don't think it will be long and some more will appear so our cat won't be forever without grass (and there is probably already some hiding in the plants that she will find)…but we are going to have to make sure to stay more vigilant with our grass-pulling and less tolerant of 'just leaving a bit here and there'.

This reminds me of those more subtle forms of sin. The grass was not thorny or spikey nor did it first appear super-spreader. It didn't feel dangerous or risky to have some. We left only one type so it was easy to spot and it was the one that was easy to pull out and seemed to be the cat's favourite. 

But in thinking the sin and weeds analogy though further...

what are weeds really?

….as they are not necessarily inherently 'bad' plants. 

Some of our weeds were tiny thorn trees growing from a seed that maybe a bird dropped. Some were grasses that in another location in the village would provide a good ground cover. From our years living right in the bush I realised that what I might have once termed weeds in my garden are actually wild-flowers or other native plants with many useful qualities. 

So I had to ask myself what really makes a plant a weed?…

Really its because it is growing somewhere that the garden owner and designer does not want. The place it is growing it is not appropriate or desired. It's presence and/or activity does not please the gardener.

This is so much like sin…sin—ie falling short of God's standard of living. Because when we sin, fundamentally we are doing things with life that were never meant to be done in the way that the designer and creator of life and thus the owner of life purposed for them to be done. 

Weeds are plants that are not serving the purpose of the garden (life) designed and desired by the gardener. I remember spending hours and hours as a kid helping my parents dig out dandelion plants from their front lawn because they were 'weeds'….but dandelions are actually good plants. Yet in the middle of my parent's lawn they were mis-placed and thus unacceptable.

That's like our sin. Every type of sin is a mis-placing of something - not accidentally losing it, but a 'mis-placing' in the sense of wrongly placing it. 

• Worship is not wrong but when it is mis-placed and not according to God's standard and toward him, it is wrong and needs to be 'pulled out of our lives'. So worship of another 'god' instead of the one true God is mis-placed worship. 

• Sex is not wrong, but mis-placed sex so that it becomes adultery or any other form of 'illicit' sex makes such sexual sins 'bad'. 

• Seeing the gifts or blessings God gives to others and rejoicing with them or seeing their lives as an example and longing for God's good purposes to be experienced in our lives is good, but seeing the blessings of others and coveting them for our own greedy self-seeking and self-honour desires is bad. 

• Bearing witness that defends our neighbours and endorses the truth is a good thing, but bearing witness that is false and favours evil is no longer a right kind of witness. 

• Even speaking truth can be 'bad'  or 'mis-placed' when it is not said with love, and in love, or if it is said in a time or way that serves only self-promoting purposes.

My 'grass' weeds, have also reminded me that 'leaving a little bit of something' in my life that isn't a good thing—in the hope that I will be able to control it—is risky and dangerous. And from this came three lessons for me:

1. attitudes and actions that should be got rid of all together cannot still 'have a little bit on the side' with the hope I will just keep it in control. 

2. If it is something that God doesn't want in my life it is better that it goes completely. …and if help from others is needed to keep accountability or assistance to enable and support such decisions it is worth getting it. 

3.If there is something that is in my life that is not sin in itself but I don't want it to dominate, I will have to put extra measures in place to keep it in control. Some good things can become bad things when they become dominating things. Any good gift of God can become an idol if we don't keep it in its proper place.

And that leads me to the 'flower' lesson.

Learning from the 'flower' weeds:

The second issue of flowers is even more subtle than the grass. Flowers are beautiful and they provide food for bees and butterflies. In our yard that started so 'barren' to have the colour of many flowers around fills the heart with joy, improves the mood and benefits God's little flying critters. And our Madagascar Periwinkles fulfill all these criteria. Additionally they don't take any maintenance to produce an almost continual show of colour. Yes we know they can multiply and shoot their seeds all over, but they don't reproduce as fast as grass, and they are more beautiful than plain grass.  They are kind of part of the plan/design of our garden. We actually want them in the garden as part of the 'good' garden. 

However, they are prone to go beyond where we want them. 

They can also easily 'fly under the radar' when they are small and so we don't realise how prolific they have become until they are more well established. Though their flowers stand out clearly, as small green plants they blend in easily and are not always so easily spotted, especially when its green leaves are against a backdrop of other green plants. 

Not only that but our garden helper has no idea (at this stage) that we don't want them so he doesn't point them out or pull them out.

Again this has so much to teach me….Even the most beautiful and wholesome things cannot just be left unchecked and unmonitored. 

We can't think that its only the 'bad' things or the 'risky' things or the things that we know we need to monitor (like the grass) that needs our attention in regard to holiness in our life. We need to also be watchful on the 'good' things to make sure they are rightly placed in our lives. Good things can become bad things when they are out of sync with holy priorities, or begin to dominate areas of our lives that should be stewarded differently. 

These are really subtle areas which are much harder to discern….like helping others is a good thing, but if that starts to dominate my life so that my kids or husband don't get the time God wants me to share with them and have good communication with them, then helping others in the way I am doing it has become 'sin'. I am falling short of God's full and ultimate design and that 'helping' no longer pleases him.  These are areas which others are less likely to point out to us as sin, or are less likely to be mentioned as an example of sin in a Sunday sermon, so are even more 'subtle' in their ability to overgrow our lives and smother out our Creator and Redeemer's design and purpose for us, without us realising.

Even more subtle is that these flowers are the only flowers in some local yards, so for our gardener such flowers are not only 'allowed' but they are desired and in his home garden such flowers may fulfil his garden design. In our lives, we have to remember that the priorities in some areas of our lives which may be fine for one person, may not be God's plan for the next person. So these issues are subtle.

What about you?….what are the weeds in your life?….but also what are the grasses and flowers in your life that need closer watching if you are to truly be and become all that God desires for you?

A Few Reminders From Mr and Mrs Sparrow

Sometimes the ordinary things in life can give us quick little lessons or encouragements, and that was the case in the yard a couple of days ago when I watched two little Cape Sparrows on our boundary wall.

We had had some rain storms and many birds were out and about happily preening themselves, and among them were these... who I will call 'Mr and Mrs Sparrow'.

As they moved around the wall, and I snapped a few pics, it was interesting to see how they stayed ‘together’ side by side. 

Reminded me of marriage and weathering storms together and coming out the other side still ‘together’, and that if God cares for sparrows, how much more he cares for us (Matt 10:29)

Even when one turned around and faced the other direction they still stayed ‘together’ - 

Reminded me that in marriage we can be taking different perspectives on things or focusing on different issues, but still be together, supporting each other.

One of them (the male) was more busy preening himself after the rain and the female just sat quietly and waited as he stretched out his wings or fluffed his feathers to rid himself of excess water.

Reminded me that in marriage as one is busy or needy the other one can sometimes best help just by ‘being there’ and patiently waiting. 

Sometimes they weren’t up as close to each other as other times, but they were still obviously very much ‘together’

Reminded me that there are always times in marriage where we have to give each other ‘space’, but yet we are still very much together in heart and our loyalty and love is still for our mate rather then flying off with the crowd.

This pic below was actually of the male still preening but with both their heads down it... 

Reminded me that the key to a good marriage is…heads bowed in prayer toward God. Dependance on God and keeping him front and centre is more important than anything else.

Whatever one of them was doing, these two little birds just seemed so content and happy to just be together, side by side facing the world, with their Creator’s eye watching their every move.

Reminded me that, not least in pandemic years, we need not fear, because if our Creator cares for sparrows, 

how much more does our Heavenly Father care and watch over us and our marriage, and our lives in general.

Butterflies, Remembering and Blessing

Today in the UK there is a flypast with a Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft to remember the Battle of Britain.

We need to take the time to remember events and special moments from the past, because in the busyness of life we are so apt to forget. 

I believe that’s partly why we are given instruction to celebrate the Lord’s Supper/Communion/Eucharist - because we need reminders, we need to pause and remember the value of what Christ did for us in his death and resurrection.

This morning in our devotional/prayer time together my husband and I were reading the verse from Scripture to ‘forget not all his benefits’ (Psalm 103:2), and Spurgeon’s reminder on the topic was to pause and consider all that God has done in so many ways in our lives…and to praise Him.

Remembering gives our mind a point of pause, of considering, thinking, pondering and of re-visiting past events, experiences and people. It’s a point of learning and looking beyond the first glance. It’s letting old truths, lessons and joys sink in, as well as discovering new ones.

Well today I also did some ‘remembering’ and used my garden butterflies as the catalyst - as the tool for a journey of remembering….I first thought about a very brief wander in the garden a few days ago with my trusty camera, to see what new butterflies I could photograph. Since then I hadn’t even bothered to download the photos off the camera as I figured there were no new butterflies as all I managed were a couple of shots of a species of butterfly I have seen many times. In fact it was one of the first species of butterfly I ever photographed back in July 2017. 

It felt a bit boring.

However, I was challenged that maybe instead of looking for the ‘new’ I should take the opportunity to look again at this ‘Pansy’ butterfly and just remember how pretty it is, and be ready for some fresh joy from ‘remembering’ and ‘re-looking’!

As I took a first look at the photos as I downloaded them, at first they didn’t even seem so great. I didn’t immediately see anything particularly interesting - although I was reminded how beautiful its iridescent ‘spot’ is.

But then in taking the time to just re-visit, I not only was reminded of his beautiful ‘spot’, but was blessed with some new lessons from this little creature.

1. This particular butterfly this time was a bit ‘broken’. He had bits of his wings missing. 

Yet despite his broken-ness and being a bit ‘battered’, he (or she) was still beautiful. It’s easy to think that such photos are not worth keeping. It’s easy to want to aim for only photos of ‘perfect’ butterflies. 

But if God only remembered his creation if it could present itself perfect, he would have abandoned it long ago. Despite us as human beings rejecting him, God loves his creation, he loves you and me, and despite giving him every reason to reject us forever, he took the initiative to make a way to offer us welcome back, in Christ.  Yet this butterfly was also a reminder that in Christ, God doesn’t see our messed up state, he sees Christ’s beauty and perfection. But in that, he doesn’t ignore the brokenness but redeems the brokenness we experience because of this world’s sin.  He chooses to remember our humanity (that we are but dust), but also to remember his Son’s sacrifice for us that enables him to look past our sin-ridden brokenness and instead at Jesus’ righteous beauty, which enables him to ‘remember’ our sin no more. This isn’t a perfect analogy, but it was good to be prompted to ‘remember’ what God ‘remembers’.

And thus praise Him.

2. Then as I looked further at my photos and remembered how this butterfly was one of the first that I photographed and was amazed at the spot that changes colour from white to mauve to purple and then to blue, I noticed that these new photos seemed to pick up the detail of the butterfly eye - something that I hadn’t noticed before.

So I zoomed in and took a closer look…and did a bit of research on the butterfly eye. 

It really is an amazing piece of equipment!

Can you see the multiple ‘dots’ within his eye?

Butterfly eyes are made up of many smaller image forming eyes called ommatidia. One of the main advantages of these eyes is that it provides the animal with increased wide field of vision. In fact, it is said that a butterfly can see approximately 314 degrees around itself. This helps them identify potential predators and food or water sources. (https://australianbutterflies.com/butterfly-eyes-how-do-they-see-colour/)

In my other web-searching about butterfly eyes, I discovered that butterflies are also able to see polarised light and ultra-violet light which humans are not able to see.

Flowers have ultra-violet patterns that are invisible to humans but which can be recognised by butterflies. These UV patterns guide butterflies to the source of nectar in much the same way that runway lights guide an aircraft in to land.

I also learnt that along with most insects butterflies

have a pair of spherical compound eyes, each comprising of up to 17000 "ommatidia" - individual light receptors with their own microscopic lenses. These work in unison to produce a mosaic view of the scene around them.

and

The laws of optics show that it's likely that everything from about one centimetre to 200 metres will be rendered in sharp focus by butterflies, as their ommatidia are of very short focal length.

and

The sensitivity to changes in their visual field, combined with a high flicker-vision frequency of about 150 images per second, may also help butterflies to piece together the thousands of elements of the mosaic image produced by the compound eye. It is not known whether butterflies and other insects are able to merge these mosaic elements into a single image. If are able to do so, it would render them capable of distinguishing patterns at close distances.

Furthermore I discovered that a particular type of butterfly which I have previously photographed in our garden called the ’Skippers’ have an extra feature:

The eyes of Skippers are different from those of other butterflies. They have a space between the cones and rods which allows light from each ommatidium to spill into neighbouring rods, effectively increasing their resolution and sensitivity. As a result Skippers can fly very accurately from one spot to another. This different type of eye structure is one of the reasons why taxonomists place them in a different super-family to all other butterflies - the Hesperioidea.

This too was cause for me to ponder…that firstly, while the ‘thing’ I see or the situation I’m in might be non-debateable as to its existence, how I see it might not be the only way to look at it, to understand it or to benefit from it. Other perspectives might have validity. I might be able to learn something from another perspective. My vision is limited.

Secondly, it is a reminder that how God sees situations, reality, right and wrong, what is best, my life, the world, and the universe, is not how I see it. While my vision is limited and other people’s perspectives might have validity, I need to most-of-all trust, and submit to, and learn from, the One who is my Creator and the Creator of others and Creator of the world I live in. It is his perspective that matters most and is the primary lens through which I need to view the world, my life and others. 

Pausing to re-look at the butterfly from the past, and remember its beauty was worth it.

AND

Remembering God’s perfect vision and his watching over my life, and how I can go to his Word to learn to see life through his perspective, was good for my heart. It was good to remember his loving care and guidance…

And thus praise Him.

What a blessing it is to take the time to remember…to look back…to recall God’s goodness, love and to ‘forget not all his benefits'

Saving the best till last....Honour, Shame and Jesus' miracle at the Cana wedding.

As part of my current post-graduate studies regarding the intertwining of healing and honour, I had been pondering over the context of Jesus' first miracle.   Despite Jesus' ministry being filled with healing miracles of a physical nature - blindness, lameness, leprosy etc, his first miracle was not one of physical healing.

His first miracle was turning water into wine.  

...That seems like nothing to do with healing. 

John the Baptist felt that healing was the 'sign' that Jesus could be the Messiah and Jesus seemed to confirm such signs affirmed his Messiahship (Luke 7), so it is interesting out of the myriad of options he had for his first miracle, that healing doesn't appear to be part of it. Yet, the 'first' event of anyone's ministry or new vocation is significant and sets the tone and focus for what follows and usually exemplifies your mission.

So what is going on here? 

There have been a myriad of interpretations which I have come across over the years in books and sermons, as to the significance of this first miracle: 

Some have postulated that it reflects Jesus' concern for everyday events, 

others that marriage is foundational to life and society and approved by God, 

others that he was not against total abstinence from alcohol, 

others say that Jesus loves parties, 

others that he just loved people and wanted them to enjoy the celebration, 

others have said it shows that unlike the Roman Catholic teaching Mary is not the means to get Jesus to act but that he will only do his Father's will on his Father's timetable and anyhow she would point people to just do whatever Jesus says to do, 

...others that he chose to provide wine in his first miracle because it represented his coming provision of shed blood for sin.

But my recent study raised a further perspective. One author noted that Jesus' first miracle rescued the family from 'embarrassment'….in other words shame…it was a healing, and was greater than a physical healing, in that it was a social healing from shame to honour. 

Dr Joshua Bogunjoko, the SIM International Director in a recent devotional sent to SIMers during this COVID-19 period referenced this same 'shame' element as present in this miracle. He also noted that this miracle teaches us that Jesus cares about our needs and situations even when we don't realise their significance (since it seems the bridegroom possibly didn't even notice he was about to be shamed). He also noted that God can turn what was heading toward shame, into a situation of honour and praise.

Maybe we can learn some more by looking at the honour-shame factors in this miracle and what they tell us about Jesus' ministry….but which, as Westerners, we can so easily miss.  

1. Firstly I want to say I am 100% on board with the significance of shame and honour in this event…in fact honour is the purpose of Jesus' miracles/signs, so says the Apostle John in chapter 2:11 of his gospel. Their purpose was to manifest/reveal Jesus' 'doxa' - his honour and glory.

2. My recent study has been looking at the place of disability in African culture and what biblical honour might have to say in such situations.  

There is too much to write about here, but suffice to say that current global disability theory hovers between what is known as a 'medical model' (focusing on physical needs) and the 'social model' (focusing on acceptance and inclusion needs).  Many say the 'social' side is more important.

However, when I look closely at the 'social' model, what is really being sought is 'honour' - dignity of respect, inclusion, acceptance, value, worth etc. Writers such as Randy Alcorn in his book 'Heaven' feel that when people seek healing, they are, more than anything, seeking social healing.

Yet, the healing Jesus brings is both. Physical healing on earth brought social inclusion in Jesus' Jewish and Mediterranean culture - it brought honour and acceptance where there was shame and isolation. It demonstrated the purpose of Jesus' mission that was shown first in the turning of water into wine at the Cana wedding - to bring honour where there is shame.  

3. But the wedding in Cana, also showed that the honour Jesus brings is not the earthly kind - its part of a countercultural upside-down Kingdom. 

On earth the best wine was put out first and the bad wine left till last. But Jesus brought out the best last. Does this ring any bells about other passages in Scripture where the last will be first? (Matthew 20:16). 

Not only that, but the wine Jesus made was of a far superior kind - it made the 'first best wine' of this wedding look like the cheap stuff in comparison. The best honour that man can produce falls so far short of God's honour that ours looks worthless. Does this ring any bells about our righteousness looking like filthy rags? God's definition of what is good, far surpasses ours!

4. Not only is what Jesus brings beyond the 'normal' earthly ideals, he gives honour that is totally unreliant on the 'quality' of what he is given. 

It's not all on us to produce our best in order to receive God's best. 

In fact at this wedding, they had nothing left except water. 

We might think our lives are so little worth or so inadequate that we don't even qualify as any kind of value, just like water has no value in comparison to even poor wine. 

But Jesus took what didn't meet expectation, was valueless and wouldn't even have been considered worthy to serve at the wedding—water, and turned it into something that far surpassed expectation and became of highest worth.

It would have taken a great deal of 'faith' to fill all those wine jars with water. Serving water may have been even more shameful than running out of wine! It was certainly something the Master of the occasion hadn't even considered as a possible option. Sometimes we have to be willing to lower ourselves and risk our 'pride' even further when Jesus comes along. 

But if we are to partake of what is greater than we could imagine, we might have to humble ourselves to lower than we thought we could go. But when we lose our life for Jesus' sake, it's then we will find it! (Matthew 16:25).

5. So although this miracle doesn't look like a 'healing' miracle, it is a picture of the most profound 'healing miracle' there is. 

It is providing what is at the heart of all desires for healing - restored honour. 

Jesus came as the supreme healer. He came to bring honour like no-one had conceived it could be had. He came to bring it in such a way that it would embrace social healing not just with our fellowman, but more importantly with God our Creator from whom we were eternally separated and before whom we were eternally shamed (Daniel 12:2). 

One day, when we share the resurrection with Jesus, we will know full physical healing and full social healing where sin no more destroys physical function or relational harmony. 

But Jesus' coming taught us that the physical and social healing we long for on earth is but a shadow of the spiritual healing we need. 

We need an honour far above our earthly ideals, and we need to restore honour 'with' Someone far above those on earth. Jesus came to be the one who would be 'The Way' to that restored honour with God, who would bring us a level of honour that provides our greatest need even before we know it! All we have to do is accept it from his hand, and partake of it.

6. Yes, all the metaphors and images I had read about as suggested for this Cana wedding miracle have value and significant importance…

...but ultimately they are part of a whole which is…

... Jesus' coming, dying, rising, ascending, and sending the Spirit to sort out our biggest problem - the need for restored honour to deal with the condemnation of the path of shame we are on. 

This is a level of shame that we don't fully comprehend but eternally separates us from God and God knows needs to be dealt with. And he has done so by inviting us to experience and partake of a level of honour, which the earth does not, and cannot, produce.

7.  So lets think about this a little more

….John tells us that the purpose of Jesus' miracles was to reveal his glory/honour 'doxa'….and to do that poignantly Jesus did something that removed and covered shame. And he did it in such a way as to remove the shame even before those who had it, realised. 

Not only that but he enabled a way for those ones to receive unexpected honour above and beyond what they ever even considered in such a way that not only blessed them, but flowed over in blessing to those around them too. 

Therefore, if Jesus' miracles exemplify his ministry and point to his identity as Messiah….maybe we need to stop to think that the purpose of his coming, the 'definition' of being the Messiah/Christ, is to demonstrate his honour as the one who brings the honour in place of our shame…an honour that exceeds any level of honour that we have on earth, and an honour that has already been prepared for us even before we come to understand we lost it! 

So, since in God's plan, we celebrate Communion/Eucharist/Lord's Supper using wine (or representation of it)….let us use that time as just one reminder of Jesus' first miracle of providing wine and how it represents the purpose of his coming in bringing the opportunity for restored honour for all we shamed ones who come to him - an honour that far surpasses anything we have ever known or the world can offer.