STAND for the Gospel Conference: 22-24 July 2011 (Howick, Auckland)

Keynote Speaker - Geoff Thomas (Alfred Place Baptist Church, Aberystwyth, Wales)
Theme: The Person and Work of Jesus Christ
Venue: Howick Baptist Church, c/o Picton & Wellington Street, Howick, Auckland
Cost: FREE entry if registered by 1 July (Freewill Offering will be taken up)

For more info, visit STAND Conference

Christchurch earthquake - Why would a good God "allow" this?

Just before 1 pm on February 22nd, the 6.3 earthquake hit. Many people have been killed or injured and widespread devastation has been caused. As I write, it is not over yet!


So many questions are being asked right now - "Why did this happen? Why did a good God allow this to happen? Did God cause this earthquake?" As human beings, we seem to put God on trial every time disaster happens!

It is important for us as Christians to have a Biblical perspective on the situation - to get our own feet on rock because people all round us will want something solid to hold onto, not mush...  As Christians we cannot allow our experience to warp our theology, ie. what we know about God from the Bible.

Romans 5:12 says that "sin came into the world ... and death through sin ..."  That's the reality - we live in a world tainted by sin and the effects of sin. The earth groans under the effects of sin (Rom 8:22) - earthquakes being one result.

We also need to acknowledge the sovereignty of God over all things - He is in control and nothing happens by accident. Did God know this earthquake was going to happen? Yes! Did God allow it to happen? Yes! Did God make it happen? Yes! (Amos 3:6) "Does disaster come to a city, unless the Lord has done it?" Did God make it happen because the people of Christchurch deserve it? No! No! 
When the tower of Siloam fell, killing 18 people (Matt 13:4-5), Jesus set aside any thoughts that people may have had that the people who were killed were worse people than others around them in Jerusalem. There was another reason for this tragedy and Jesus states it in verse 5 - "Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." This tragedy happened as a warning to people to turn to God in repentance and for forgiveness - while they could! The time for God's mercy was going to come to an end! "The very fact that you weren't killed," says Jesus, "is because God is rich in mercy and wants to give you an opportunity to still turn from your sin."

Through these tragedies, God is calling the world back to Himself - and to repentance. This is a call to the people of Christchurch, the people of New Zealand and all who see / hear of this tragedy in the world to turn from our godlessness - to God and not to presume on His mercy! How often do we stop and thank God for the peace and prosperity we enjoy the majority of the time? "God's mercy is displayed in that His wrath is withheld ... God is not into sparing people from pain but He is into bringing people to Himself." (John Piper - Radio interview Boxing Day tsunami). God mixes mercy and judgement!

Pain and crisis in our lives tends to focus our minds and lives on what is important - A natural disaster should point us to the God who has made the natural elements and should drive us to repent from our self-reliance and "God belittling neglect" (Piper) of worship, obedience and thanklessness.

How do we as Christians respond to this situation?

• "I don't blame God ... At the end of the day, there's trust and faith." (Wally Behan - former vicar at St. John's, Latimer). Wally is so right! We can only have trust and faith - trust in an all-powerful and sovereign God who is good and faith that God does not change and has promised good to all those who love Him and have put their trust in Him. Have Christians died in Christchurch? There may be some - but in God's wisdom, good will still come out of this! We may not see it now - through all the devastation - but we can trust in the God of the unseen! "Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, 'It is well, it is well with my soul.'" (Horatio Spafford)
• We can thank God for His mercy - that not more people were killed or injured
• We can actively pray for those affected
• We can roll up our sleeves and help in any way we can - monetary donations (automatic $20 donation to Red Cross Canterbury appeal by phoning 0900 33 200), by donating blood, by supporting families round us with relatives who have been affected.
• We can proclaim the Gospel message to those we come into contact with - lest anything catastrophic come our geographic way and people die without Christ. ( Gospel message )
• We can take comfort from Romans 8:35 "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?"

God is good and He is in complete control - He fully knows what He is doing! In His mercy, He is calling all men, women & children to repentance before He brings this whole world and everything on it, to an end - when there will be no more time to turn to Him! He is mixing His judgement with mercy!

The Real you...

“For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.” (2 Corinthians 5:10)

Since Facebook was started, nearly 450 million people have become members – making it possible that you are one too. There are positives and negatives to Facebook. I find Facebook great for keeping up with friends and generally just knowing how everyone is going. I have to be careful, however, to ‘count my words’ when writing. Generally, it is better not to “post” what I am feeling when grumpy or upset, as words are impossible to take back once made public. There is a danger, however, that I will always appear ‘bright and happy’ to my “friends” on Facebook – when in reality that can be far from the truth. People may build up an entirely untrue image of who I really am and I may even build on that false image and start to believe it myself.  Who is the real me?

The real me is going to be exposed one day when we all stand before Jesus Christ to give an account of not just how we lived while on this earth but also of who we are – ‘in’ Him or ‘outside’ of Him. Then there will be no electronic face we can put on ourselves or Facebook behind which we can hide. We will be utterly exposed – our words, thoughts, deeds and emotions. 

You will be there with me – What will the ‘real you’ of your life show?

As a Christian, I ask myself – Does my everyday walk match my Christian ‘talk’ – on Facebook; before God Himself?

Getting out of 'the pits'...

Every one of us gets into those situations where the whole world seems to have caved in on you –and you find yourself in ‘the pits’. It may be the pit of loneliness, financial insecurity, on-going sickness, destructive habits or personal defeat. There seems to be no way out – and it can be a very lonely place!

I am encouraged every time I read of a ‘super-saint’ like King David, in the Bible – when I see that even he hit ‘the pits’ every now and then.

In Psalm 40, David describes how he gets out of it. He firstly acknowledges that he cannot help himself – In humility he cries out to God. He doesn’t demand from God or moan at God. He cries out in humble dependency. He then waits on God’s help. In our instant age – we find it hard to wait. We want answers NOW! However, God answers us in His time – not ours.

Almighty God  answers Davis’s cry by taking him out of that place of lonely helplessness and ‘setting his feet on a rock’ – from desperation to security! Sometimes God changes our circumstances and at other times we still have to work through difficult times – but throughout - God gives us stability and hope. He is the rock in our storms!

What about you? Do you know God personally, through a relationship with Jesus Christ? If so – His help is always at hand! If not, you’re on your own! The best help you can get is human help – which is so temporary and imperfect.

" O Death, where is your sting? "

As we prepare to bury my dearly loved father-in-law, a man who lived faithfully for God and 'fought the good fight' - there is sadness at his passing on but also great hope! His body may be "deceased" but he is alive in Christ. His suffering is over for all eternity - He will NEVER suffer again! His hope has now also become reality! Death has truly lost its sting! It is not darkness he has entered but glorious light! 

God is so merciful - even in this time. The day after we lay him 'to rest', we celebrate new life as seven people are baptised and give testimony of Jesus Christ's life-giving miracle in their lives! From death to life... the perfect picture of what is illustrated through baptism. 

God is glorified - in death and in life! What a Saviour! What a God!

A Firm Foundation...

In this uncertain time of earthquakes in New Zealand, especially in Christchurch, my thoughts immediately turned to one surety in life - Jesus Christ - a sure foundation. As I saw pictures of people walking around damaged or destroyed homes, my heart cried out for them. And yet, I wonder how many eyes were turned to God - the One who uses nature to proclaim His greatness but to also warn people to turn to Him and not presume on His mercy! He is the one constant when all around us in life is in turmoil. And yet, how easily don't we as people want to look past God to our own resources and efforts...
The other thought that came to mind was the suddenness with which it all happened. Just past 4am, when no one was suspecting anything, the first violent quake hit. There was no warning. No instruments could warn of something that hadn't happened yet. There wasn't even an indication that it could happen where it did. There was peace and then it struck. Reality.
The sad thing is that the Bible has long been warning that Christ is going to come to earth again - suddenly - unexpectedly - while we are still about our everyday business. And yet, knowingly, people turn off the alarm sounded by Scripture and walk straight towards their judgement...
"Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts..." (Ps 95:7b)

Life and Living... at full tilt or full drag

Quote from Michael Wells' book 'Heavenly Discipleship' - "Is life living you or are you living life?"

So true - we often allow life to get the better of us instead of getting the better of life and living life to the full. This applies especially on Monday mornings and when the sky is grey and it's raining constantly...
How can we live life to the full? God's answer - "The Truth will set you free...". Once you have God's gift of a new nature instilled in you, you can start to really LIVE!! As a friend of mine always says, when asked how he is doing, "I am riding life with loose reins and at full tilt - and loving it!!" I know what he means because he is a Christian who is living his life IN Christ. Christ has lived his old life already and paid the debt oweing on that life 2000 plus years ago and now he can live this life to the full because Christ is living IN him and THROUGH him. Christ now has become his life - his old life has been crucified! There has been a supernatural takeover! Now, instead of going through life like an unwilling dog being taken for a drag by an enthusiastic owner, you and I can be the enthusiastic one - seeing life through new eyes of boundless and exciting opportunities - and life will be the slipstream created and the wake left behind us...

"I came that they may have life and have it abundantly..." (Jesus Christ - John 10 verse 10)