Augustine's confession

For those of you interested, here's the full prayer from Augustine I mentioned last Sunday night. It may be 1600 years old, but how powerful still?   

“Too late have I loved you, O Beauty of ancient days, yet ever new! Too late I loved you! And behold, you were within, and I abroad, and there I searched for you; I was deformed, plunging amid those fair forms, which you had made. You were with me, but I was not with you. Things held me far from you—things which, if they were not in you, were not at all. You called, and shouted, and burst my deafness. You flashed and shone, and scattered my blindness. You breathed odors and I drew in breath—and I pant for you. I tasted, and I hunger and thirst. You touched me, and I burned for your peace” (St. Augustine, Confessions).

The Scandal of Repentance

To be called to repent is surely one of the severest and sweetest things to come from Jesus lips. Severe in that it involves a fundamental acknowledgment of our worthlessness and need and sin. Sweet in that the one who repents experiences great joy and confidence because Christ and all his blessings are now freely theirs to enjoy. So repentance it is both scandalously hard, and scandalously good at the same time.
Last Sunday’s talk: Outraged by the Scandal (Luke 13:1-17) was one of the more difficult for me. It is hard to be faithful to the text and to bring out the severity and the sweetness at the same time. But it is even harder knowing there are people in our midst and in our lives who have not yet yielded to the call of Jesus and so God’s judgement hangs over them. To those unwilling to submit to the wonder and authority of Jesus the news from passages like this is not good. Yes it is doom and gloom…forever. But to the one willing to trust the unfailing and merciful gift of Christ for us, there is perfect joy and comfort….forever.
Please pray that more and more people would both feel the gravity of Jesus warnings and the wonder of his work for us. It will mean being brought to our knees in great sorrow. But it will also mean we will stay happily on our knees in awe and praise.

The Parable of the rich fool

Anthony writes the following for this week's blog:

The parable of the rich fool cuts to the heart of the sin of our age, living without a deep reference to God. The rich fool makes no account of the fact that it is God who makes the land produce bountifully, he finds security in wealth rather than knowing God and he operates with a godless perspective limiting time to the here and now rather than eternity. But like the rich fool we are fools if we live without a deep reference to God in all we do and all we have. Jesus will not arbitrate between two fools both of whom are living without deep reference to God, because Jesus' kingdom is not of this world, and it isn't concerned with the things of this world. It is in Jesus' kingdom that we find true security that lasts for eternity. So the scandal of wealth as Jesus portrays it is that wealth can lead a person who treasures it away from God as surely as I can lead a thirsty dog to water. The scandal of wealth is that rich people who trust Jesus can and do enter his kingdom. The scandal of wealth is that in our society and our culture there are countless millions of rich fools. Don't make the rich fool's mistake.

Further thoughts on the disaster of religion

     Luke's Gospel really does have one of the sharpest critiques of religion. The amount of meals, confrontations and explicit teaching from Jesus that undermines our natural approach to God is staggering. Chief tax collectors and criminals find there way into the Kingdom of God - religious experts find themselves excluded. It is a confronting read. 

     In reflecting further on Jesus rather confrontational dinner tactics in Luke 11:37-53, (remember those woes?) I can't help but think ahead into Luke 15 and how Jesus nails the religious yet again. But do we miss it?  This chapter contains the much loved Prodigal Son story, but I think calling it this can lead us into the very religious trap Jesus is seeking to demolish! Really it should be called the "Prodigal God" for the one who is excessive (prodigal means excessive) in the story is not the younger squandering Son, but the gracious forgiving Father. I think this title may help us sit up and take more note of the strong warning about 'older brotherness' that is highly likely to be alive and resident in our "churchy" hearts.

    We easily see the rebellion of the younger son who represents an open defiance to God expressed in immoral excess. However we don't often consider that the older brother is just as sinful. He needs salvation too - from his 'damnable good works' done is self righteousness.

     It means there are two ways you can rebel against God. You can either be really, really bad...or you can be really, really good! How can a legalistic really good religious life be a way of rebelling against God? Well it's a way of effectively shutting who God is out of our lives. The older brother syndrome believes that God owes us something. We force God's hand of favour...and we get cranky when God doesn't pay up. God becomes a means to an end. Indeed what happens is the legalist will end up railing against the God he/she says they serve.

     How the Pharisees and scribes hated Jesus....to death. How Jesus shattered their world. 

The  question Luke would ask us is this: Is the real Jesus shattering ours...for the better? Are we allowing the scandalous Jesus to be  reprogramming our natural religious default setting so we relate to God in humbleness, confidence and joy. This is something religion promises, but can never deliver.

    

Some thoughts on blasphemy against the Holy Spirit

Have I done it?
    I suspect just about every Christian has worried at least a little about Jesus words in Luke.12:10 “…everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.”(see also Matthew 12:32 & Mark 3:29). This is so full-on, so final, so scary. And some people are brought to the point of thinking, “Have I committed this sin and so am I not a real Christian”, “Am I disqualified from heaven”, “Am I not really chosen by God”.
    Of course these questions arise because we’re unsure of what Jesus means and in particular how can Jesus distinguish between blasphemy against the Son of Man (himself), as being forgivable; but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit as being unforgivable?
    Well, as I hinted at on Sunday night, if you worry about this issue, I suspect it’s a clear indication that you haven’t done it. Indeed to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit will lead to you having no authentic interest in Jesus at all.

What’s the context?
    When Jesus mentions this issue it is always closely tied to his dealing with his religious opponents. In Matthew 12 and Mark 3 Jesus is being accused of sourcing his powers from Satan. That is, the religious leaders, in defiance and desperation at Jesus wonderful powers to heal and restore, attribute it to the devil. It is a terrible evil to deliberately call something that is so good to be bad; or to accuse the innocent and pure of being in collusion with the devil.
    In Luke, Jesus warns the religious leaders that they stand condemned for their failure to hear the prophets and for their hypocrisy. They of course retaliate and Jesus once again brings up this issue of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit.

Blaspheming Jesus Vs Blaspheming the Holy Spirit – what’s the go?
    Jesus makes a clear and deliberate distinction between blaspheming against him and blaspheming the Holy Spirit. And I think he does this because instant rejection of Jesus is not as significant as we might first think. Have not we all rejected Jesus in our past? Does not Peter reject Jesus and deny him three times? (Luke 22:65) Did not Paul reject Jesus to the point of killing Christians?
    The more important issue I believe Jesus is pointing to is continued rejection of him in defiance of what the Holy Spirit is revealing. And if we go into Acts we see examples of this very thing where rejection of Christ is solidified and unyielding. Acts 7:51,13:40-49 & 28:23-28 are all examples of hard-hearted Jews who have refused to listen to the Spirit’s teaching and revelation in the Scriptures about Jesus. They just will not soften their hearts to the Spirit’s Word of truth. This ongoing refusal means the door to forgiveness is closed because they have categorically denied the Spirit’s testimony to the one who brings forgiveness.

The vast extent of forgiveness
    What I find remarkable as I think about this issue is that even those who were involved in Jesus murder at the end of Luke’s gospel, are able to receive forgiveness and indeed do! It’s harder to find a more blasphemous event to have been involved in than the crucifixion of God’s own Son. And yet at Pentecost these men are forgiven and blessed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:36- 41).
    How amazing that those who killed Jesus are brought to eternal life by Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit? They are moved and respond in trust to Jesus. Which means even the worst of sinners can be forgiven.
However, if you continue to discount any need for forgiveness, or so ridicule what the Scriptures are pointing to when the speak of Christ – what possibility is there of being forgiven? You have ruled out the one you need, and offended the one who reveals him.

The bottom line: Don’t continue to refuse the Spirit’s call for you to trust Jesus. Come and seek life and forgiveness in him…no-matter what you may have done in the past, (even if you have rejected Jesus) God will forgive all who come to Christ.