Prophetic Ministry

The prophets, Haggai & Zechariah, encouraged people to rebuild the temple, after returning from exile, and faced opposition and discouragement (Ez. 5.1). In the New Covenant, such temple imagery is transferred to the body: Christ’s physical body in history (Jn. 2.19-21), and his body now in the church (1 Co. 3.16 & 2 Co. 6.16).

Of all the spiritual gifts, however, it is only prophecy which is said to “build up” (edify) the church (1 Co. 14.4-5) – although all gifts are for the “common good” (1 Co. 12.7). Prophecy gives the assurance that God is present, and is speaking (1 Co. 14.24); whether manifested in charismatic utterances or anointed preaching.

False Contextualisation: The Dream of the Rood

 The Dream of the Rood (available here) is a classic piece of Anglo-Saxon poetry, from the 8^th or 10^th centuries. Rood is the old English word for ‘rod’ or ‘pole’, and came to be used of the Cross. The poem narrates a dream sequence, in which the author sees a tree being cut down, and eventually used in the crucifixion of Christ.

The Church in Wales

We visited a Church of Wales service while on holiday. There was an assortment of locals and tourists. No singing, because of Covid; just the liturgy. A lay-leader explained to us, that they had a tradition of supporting pilgrims, passing through, some as corpses for burial, to the holy island of Bardsey, which was known as a “thin place”, to be near the resurrection.

The Spiritual Dimension of Mission

I was challenged to think missiologically by the recent City-to-city conference, on reaching Europe, especially its cities. I was impressed, particularly, by their honesty about the difficulty of the task, faced with the indifference and even hostility towards the gospel in secular Europe. So, I written several blogs reflecting on what it might take to do mission here. One factor, which I think much western missional thought misses is the role of the Holy Spirit in mission, and especially the Pentecostal dimension: that is, signs and wonders.

Capitalism, Modernity, and the Gospel

Reflecting further on why the gospel is hard to communicate in Europe today, it is not only that Christianity is old, but that it is now identified with power, with the establishment. This is in part due to the Constantinian settlement, whereby church and state became allied in a co-dependent system of ideological legitimation, which eventually produced Christendom. 

New Beginnings for the Gospel

Building upon my last blog, how can we make the gospel fresh again, refresh our presentation? Writing about apologetics, Os Guiness comments that people are not really asking questions; they are simply not interested in what we have to say. We must, he says, find ways to intrigue them, awaken their curiosity, and provoke thought.

Failing the Gospel in Europe

I’m listening to some of the discussion in City-to-City’s Evangelism Project. Specifically, their honest inquiry into why it’s so hard to share the gospel in Europe, and if there are any lesson from the European experience? There is a perception that evangelism is difficult in Europe, both to do, and to get any results, in terms of conversions. 

Mission By Accident?

Several decades ago, I was interrupted by a phonecall from a Christian community worker I knew. Could we accommodate twenty Kurdish refugees from Turkey? They’d just arrived at Heathrow and the government didn’t know where to put them.

Over the next six months, a hundred came and slept in our church building, as our small congregation (20-30 people) gave money, and helped practically, to look after these arrivals. Other churches joined in: from Protestant and Catholic, Evangelical and Liberal, backgrounds. 

Pioneering and Planning in the Pandemic

There is an old Jewish joke: how do you make God laugh? Tell him your plans! Certainly true of this year. How many churches in January toyed with the cliché of ’20:20 vision’? How many of those ambitions now lie in tatters? Even as believers our presumption has been exposed by circumstances. We need to submit again to God’s sovereignty (Jas. 4.13-16).

Filling the Religious Vacuum

We met them while we were recording our worship songs in the church garden.  They had heard the sound and come over to investigate – largely I suspect because, during lockdown, there was little else going on. A young couple in their twenties, they explained their interest in spirituality, the laws of attraction and such like. They realise there was something missing in our pre-Covid society, with its hollowed-out materialism and consumerism. Instead, they hoped, the crisis, through disrupting patterns of shopping and working from home, would enable people to realise the true inner values. As we discussed where people might find these spiritual values, while they pinned their hopes on this amorphous non-specific spirituality, I was able to suggest it could only be through Christ.

Roofworks

‘Roofworks’, in a church context, usually means repairing leaky roofs. But under conditions of quarantine, it sometimes takes a more creative turn.

Coronavirus & Its Social Effects

As I cycle through semi-deserted streets of London, I’m reflecting on the state of our planet. I feel a little like Frodo in ‘Lord of the Rings’ – a very small person, moving amidst giant forces at work in the world. For this is not a small problem, affecting one country, but an entire way of life.

We have built our civilisation on sand, instead of the rock. I don’t believe it is situation of God’s direct judgment, as some Christians are claiming. But we are reaping, as a species, what we have sown, in a kind of Christian version of karma.

Coronavirus

Last Thursday, the American team who were supposed to lead our evening meeting, had to return home. Their Mission Board recommended this action, as a sensible response to the Coronovirus pandemic, so that they wouldn’t become stranded in the UK, if the travel restrictions were extended.

We were sad, because we were looking forward to their ministry among us. But, as it was then too late to cancel our meeting, we went ahead. I am glad we did. Although, humanly speaking, we did not have a lot of time to prepare, we were able to worship God, led by Rebecca and Allan, where we experienced a powerful anointing of his Holy Spirit. People really entered into the felt presence of the Lord, with many visibly moved.

A Catholic Jesus

Last week I met an old friend. He used to be my spiritual director, some years ago, and is now retired. He is (still) a Catholic Priest. You don’t actually retire from this, but remain a ‘priest for ever’. Nevertheless, he is now adapting to life without responsibilities, although still able to conduct Mass in several local churches, to keep his hand in.

We had a coffee and catchup chat in Costa, and reminisced. But what I really like about him is his cheerfulness and positivity, and above all, his infectious love for Jesus and the Gospel. I reminded him of an ecumenical conference he had been to, where, he had observed, none of the speakers once spoke about Jesus. And that is his abiding concern for the church, in general not just Catholics, that although we discuss many worthy subjects, we’ve stopped talking about Jesus – the Lover of Our Souls.

Sorry, J. John...

I write this with a heavy heart. I hate disagreements, and when people criticise me, so I am loathe to do it here. Nevertheless…

J. John is a superb evangelist, and a very funny man. However he has just written a blog on the Premier Christianity website. He’s taking issue with the matter of political correctness; responding to the BBC’s declared support for diversity, criticising for example the white middle class male, erstwhile counter-cultural heroes, like Monty Python.