Andy le Roux's Blog

Conditional Christianity

2010-07-16T04:48:00.000-07:00

How do you understand Psalm 37:4 - "Delight your self in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart"? We tend to think this means if I delight in God, he will give me what I have always wanted. So the single person may think "if I delight in God, He will give me a partner"; the frustrated employee "God will give me a better job"; a pay rise; health; wealth..... whatever.

This is a misinterpretation of the verse. It makes our love of God conditional, like being good a few weeks before Christmas so Santa will give us what we want.

Martyred missionary Jim Elliot wrote in 1949 on this verse: "It does not say He will give you what you want. It does say he will give you THE want. Delight in Christ brings desire for Christ." In other words delight in the Lord does not somehow trigger God to answer our indulgent prayers; instead, delight in the Lord transforms the desires of our heart. We come to see the pettiness of our earthly desires and how insufficient our limited dreams are for ultimate fulfilment.

God is calling us to find a deeper fullness in Him - not by fulfilling our desires, but by discovering His.

2010-06-07T03:36:00.000-07:00

Thoroughly enjoyed reading "The Unquenchable Flame - introducing the Reformation" whilst on holiday last week. (IVP; ISBN 978-1-84474-385-8). A brilliant introduction to the most formative period in our nation's history.

The doctrine of justification by faith alone affects everything - our confidence, our worship, church life, art, music....

Interesting that Johann Sebastian Bach was an ardent Lutheran all the way down to his tapping toes. Hence his version of "Hosanna" is strikingingly different from the Catholic version sung dutifully since it was penned in 1555. When the exact same piece was given Bach's lutheran treatment 190 years later:

"It has an entirely different resonance:now the hosannas are belted out with an unmistakable, unbounded enthusiasm and joy. Such was the natural effect of believing Luther's doctrine of justication (pg. 172)."

And how about this quote from William Tyndale who gave us our first bible in English:

"Evangelion (the Gospel) is a greek word and signifieth good, merry, glad and joyful tidings, that maketh a man's heart glad and maketh him sing, dance and leap for joy."

The Glorious New Covenant

2010-05-18T03:56:00.000-07:00

Here is my summary of 2 Corinthians 3 on the glorious new covenant:

There is nothing like the glory of the life giving, non-condeming, righteousness-imparting, all-surpassing, everlasting, eye-opening, freedom-giving, life-transforming, Christ-exalting new covenant of the Spirit.

2010-05-18T03:54:00.000-07:00

"Scan the book of Acts to find the Apostolic liturgy. You'll come up empty. What you will find are people moving in spontaneous obedience as they are propelled by the fresh wind of the Holy Spirit" - quote from Jim Cymbala, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire.

fruit of the Spirit

2010-05-14T08:42:00.000-07:00

When I said last post that I would blog each day this week on the fruits of the Spirit, I forgot I would be away for 2 of those days and playing catch-up the rest of the week. Sorry.

In the upper room Jesus promises these very 3 things to His anxious disciples:

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled(Jn 14:27)

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love 15:9

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. 15:11

And Paul speaks of these very same qualities as benefits of being Christ in Romans 5:

Romans 5:5 - God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Rom. 5:2 - we rejoice in hope of the glory of God

Rom. 5:3 - and hope does not put us to shame

Finally in Romans 14:17 we read that the kingdom of God is a matter of "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit".

SO, Jesus promised love, joy, peace, delivered them, and pours them out through His Holy Spirit. Enjoy!

fruit of the Spirit

2010-05-07T06:24:00.000-07:00

Studying Galatians 6:22-23. Read in conjunction with FF Bruce, there are some real gems that help take you beyond the familiar "fruits of the Spirit" treatment you may associate with Sunday School:

I especially like SH Hookes comment on v. 23 - against such there is no law. We are in a sphere in which law has nothing to do. Law may prescribe certain forms of conduct and prohibit others, but love, joy, peace and the rest cannot be legally enforced.

A vine does not produce grapes by Act of Parliament; they are the fruit of the Vine's own life; So the conduct which conforms to the standard of the kingdom is not produced by any demand, not even God's, but it is the fruit of that divine nature which God gives as a result of what He has done in and by Christ.

WOW!

And I like W. Barclay on love: "Christian love springs to life when Christ is incarnated again in a man or woman who has given himself absolutley to Him."

I am preaching on Sunday around this and into Chapter 6, but my plan is blog each day for the next week in detail on the various fruits of the Spirit.

Some quotes worth remembering

2009-05-19T01:40:00.000-07:00

Some bible verses worth remembering, from my readings today:

1. "Contend for the gospel which was once entrusted to all the saints" - Jude 1:3
2. "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ" - 1 Tim. 2:5
3. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but of power, of love, and of self discipline" - 2 Tim. 1:7
4. "You then my Son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus" - 2 Tim. 2:1
5. "He has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace" - 2 Tim. 1:9

And one from Mark Driscoll (Vintage Church, pg. 43):
"You can be baptized in the church, raised in the church, confirmed in the church, serve in the church, marry in the church, die in the church and have your funeral in the church, and still wake up in hell if you are merely in the church and not in Christ."

Tim Keller

2009-03-02T07:58:00.000-08:00

Getting some helpful insights from a Tim Keller day in London last week, and now from his book "The Reason for God". Here's the first:

1. It is common for people to say that "fundamentalism" leads to violence, yet the reality is that ALL of us humans are fundamentalists, including atheists. We all have fundamental, unprovable faith commitments that we think are superior to those of others.

So the real question is which fundamental beliefs will lead a person to be most loving, humble, and receptive to other people and thus be most conducive to a peaceful world? The answer is Christianity. Unlike other systems of belief we believe that no-one is good enough and therefore all need to humble themselves. For example most people in our culture take a "moral improvement" view to life - that if there is a God then we can relate to him and go to heaven through leading a good life. Christianity teaches the opposite - we need forgiveness, grace, help, salvation. Hence once saved we should be humble and gracious, forgiving and helpful to the rest of humanity.

Historical example: The Graeco-Roman religion were very tolerant and open - everyone had his or her own God. At the same time the Christians fundamental view was that there is only 1 true God, Jesus Christ. OK, so which set of fundamental beliefs lead to more tolerance? One culture was brutal, the other not; one led to a huge divide between rich and poor, the other led to generous sharing a giving to their own poor and those of other faiths; In one women had low status with female infanticide, forced marriages being common, in the other there was far greater security and equality for women; During the terrible urban plagues of the 1st 2 centuries, who cared for the sick and the dying, even at the cost of their lives?

Answers on a postcard.

To be sure there have been terrible injustices inflicted in the name of (false) Christianity, but who can deny that Christianity's fundamental beliefs are a powerful impetus for peace in our troubled world?

2008-09-22T05:58:00.000-07:00

Conducted a funeral last week for a man who committed suicide. It was a first for me, and I hope the last! Broke all our hearts, and reminded me of my all time favourite (extra-biblical) story, Acres of Diamonds:

A farmer lived in Africa, owned a nice big farm with a river running through the middle. One day a visitor, an expert in precious stones, told him how, all over Africa men were discovering diamonds. Bedazzled at the thought of making his millions, the farmer promptly sold his farm and headed for the diamond line. Sadly the months and then years passed and he found nothing. Wandering the length and breadth of the contintent he ended up poor and destitute, finally thowing himself into a river and drowning.

Meanwhile back on the farm he had sold, the new owner stumbled across an unusual looking stone by the river and placed it on his mantlepiece as a curio. The original visitor came calling again and, spotting the stone, asked to inspect it. Through his magnifying glass,beneath the dirt and grime, he realised he was holding the biggest diamond he had ever seen. The farmer soon discovered he was in fact sitting on acres of diamonds.

If the first farmer had only stayed and realised what he had right there, under his feet, things would have been so different. Do we appreciate the acres of diamonds we have right here right now? Relationships, beauty, life....above all the multifacted, pure, dazzling person of Jesus Christ. Do we stop and savour what we have?

Tragically our friend couldn't see what he had. God open our eyes to SEE.

Assurance leads to performance

2008-09-04T13:33:00.000-07:00

It's amazing what a bit of assurance and security can do. Reminded of this in the cricket arena this week. Been to a couple of matches this year at The Rose Bowl, Southampton, Hampshire cricket's home ground. But last week got to see our heroes play against Durham at the intimate Mays Bounty ground, Basingstoke. A lot at stake. Durham aiming for a County Champsionship win, Hampshire trying to avoid relegation.

My boys got to play on the outfield as part of a juniors promotion on day 2. By the time we left that afternoon it looked like Durham had it in the bag, after Hampshire were out for 96 first innings. There was no way they were going to get 130 runs off the last 5 tail ender wickets on a wicket strewn pitch like this.

Ervine seals dramatic victory

Then up stepped Ervine. After two days of clatter, May's Bounty fell silent as Sean Ervine stood firm for more than three hours to steer Hampshire to an unlikely victory.
When Imran Tahir hit the winning runs to take Hampshire to the 240 target, Ervine was unbeaten on 94, easily his best championship score of the summer, having faced 169 balls and studiously seen off the continued threat of seamer Mark Davies.

The Zimbabwean all-rounder, who last week signed a two-year contract with Hampshire, said it was one of the best innings he had played: "I had to keep my nerve when wickets were falling all around me, so I was very pleased with my performance."

Here's the point - Talking to the Hampshire junior coach the day after, he commented that Ervine has just signed a new contract with Hampshire - "It's amazing how your performance improves when you feel secure" he said. WOW! Hit me between the eyes.

The Guardian Newspaper confirms - "Ervine, who put his innings down to a new bat and the confidence that came from signing a new two-year contract last week, survived some more playing and missing to win the day."

THAT's why I'm preaching through Ephesians - because if we can only know the assurance that we are chosen, adopted, redeemed, forgiven, loved, secure - HIS FOREVER.... Greater assurance leads to greater performance.

Contrivances to waste time

2008-09-03T01:27:00.000-07:00

Here's my problem - I am an enthusiast! I love life, I like to say yes to things. Family life is full on, Church life increasingly so, oh and then there's my Governor duties at Mayhill Junior school, the list goes on. And now there's more opportunities coming my way...

Been reading about another enthusiast this summer - the new biography of John Newton by Jonathan Aitkin. Enthusiast back then was a religious term refering to the evangelical mob, Wesley, Whitfield etc. Today I came across a letter written by Newton to the young parlimentarian William Wilberforce. In advising Wilberforce on how to be productive as a Christian in his call, Newton encourages him to "avoid worldy amusements", meaning "contrivances to waste time and banish reflection" (whilst at the same time not becoming an austere and unsociable figure.) Seemed a bit harsh at first, but it struck a chord.

Later I starting reading "Visoneering" by Andy Stanley. "The average person has the right to dream his own dreams and develop his own picture of what his future could and should be. But at the cross those of us who swore allegience to the savior lost that right. After all,we are not our own. We have been bought with a price. Remember the rest? We are to glorify - or honour - God with our bodies (1 Cor. 6:19-20)".

Next page Stanley says "As Christians we do not have the right to take our talents, abilities, experiences, opportunities, and education and run off in any direction we please. We lost that right at calvary. But then why would we dream of such a thing? God has a vision for your life. What could possibly be more fulfilling than that?"

So back to my problem - there are so many opportunities in front of me. I think I'm going to have to say no to something! Paul prays for the Phillippians that "They may be able to discern what is best" (Phil. 1:10).

We need to discern the best over the good. We need to "throw off everything that hinders" (Hebrews 12:1), so that we can run the race that is marked out specifically for each of us. This may include legitimate activities, except that they might be for you "contrivances to waste time and banish refelction".

I hope my new blog is not such a contrivance, but rather an oppurtunity for reflection.

On the other hand I guess that's a no to the cricket coaching training course that I have been offered then?!