Meet Your Neighbours

Recently we were catching up with some friends and talking about settling in to the neighbourhood where we are living and ministering. Our friends remarked at how many neighbours we had met, and the fact that we already knew their names.

For us getting to know our neighbours is a fundamental aspect of our ministry, and we are intentionally pro-active about it. Yet the conversation got us thinking: why is it 'typical' for people to inhabit a dwelling but not meet or know their neighbours, even those just a door or two away? And why do Christ followers seem to accept this status quo for themselves? Of course we can say that this is just a 'British' phenomenon, or the outworking of an increasingly individualistic society ... but with every Christ follower an ambassador for Christ should we as Christians simply be the same? Are we not called to be different?

To be different is going to take some effort, however. That effort might be summarised as follows:

1. Be intentional - backed by prayer. Start by simply praying for openings, and pray blessing for the neighbours anyway. Then look for opportunities, and even if natural opportunities don't arise be ready to take initiative.
2. Make the effort to knock on the neighbour's door, or divert across to them if you see them on the street. Of course you cannot guarantee you will be well received, but you can still and try offer friendship.
3. Go ahead and break the ice! Introduce yourself, and ask for their name. In any case express welcome.

For us being new to the neighbourhood, the 'newness' affords opportunity. The natural fear for most people is that the more time has passed, the more awkward it is. If time has passed, then a little ingenuity might be required ... which basically means inventing an excuse to knock on their door! Using a festival or seasonal event can work, taking some chocolates or other simple treat as part of the seasons greetings. Any which way it still requires praying, the intentionality, the effort, and the willingness to go ahead and ring the bell in the hope of breaking the ice.

None of this guarantees becoming great friends, or being able to share faith, or anything like that. Yet it does communicate that you are there, and that you are there for them. That is surely among the most basic of building blocks for community, the most basic layer of salt, and is a step to live contrarian to an individualistic society that isolates and compartmentalises to everyone's detriment.

Acts 16 - A lesson in Pioneering

In Acts 16 Paul travels into Greece, making his way quickly to Philippi where he then embarks on witnessing locally. This results in the conversion of Lydia, the baptism of her household, and her house becoming a base for the ongoing local mission.

Paul has a strategic head. He apparently skips Samothrace and Neapolis in order to reach the key city of Philippi. Yet remember that his original strategy was to turn back into Asia, until interrupted by the 'Macedonian Call'. Strategies are good, but we should continually put them before the Lord and allow the Spirit to interrupt us!

Once in Philippi he and his small team go to a place that they have heard is a place of prayer: presumably Philippi has no formal synagogue and on asking around they hear of this place where people gather. It is instructive for us to note how in each place Paul initially heads for where there is already some kind of (monotheistic) faith. Perhaps in his mind he figures that this is the best place to get started since people will already have a notion of seeking God, and a knowledge of God's promises. Paul is looking for people to join the cause of Christ, and in this way he looks for 'low hanging fruit' first of all. He does this expectantly, underpinned by that call of the Spirit that took him across the water to Greece.

At the place of prayer they discover Lydia and get into conversation. We are told that "the Lord opened her heart to Paul's message". This hits on another principle - that the Spirit is ahead of us, preparing people so that they are ready and open. Fundamentally we can be as slick in our conversation as we like, but unless the Spirit is at work we will see little movement.

Things then appear to move rapidly. Perhaps it was all 'same day', perhaps Luke has truncated the story. Either way Lydia invites the team to use her house which apparently becomes a base for the ongoing work. She does this with the words 'if you consider me a believer in the Lord', in other words 'do I qualify?'. Culturally she had the disadvantages of being both a woman and likely Gentile background - but in God's eyes they answer is a resounding 'yes'! Paul and the team have the wisdom to go with what God is doing rather than being boxed in by their own cultural assumptions, and so the base is established. 

As we pioneer, looking to bring gospel witness across an area, it is therefore worth keeping in mind:

• The original sense of Spirit given call
• Being strategic in method and yet submitting that to God's ongoing direction & re-direction
• Asking around for a sense of what is already there to be found 
• Looking for people who are already seeking, who are open, and in whom the Spirit is already working
• If newcomers are moved to do so, letting them host the base for the next phase of work 

Paul is strategic and methodical, but it depends on following the call of the Spirit and joining with the work of the Spirit for progress to be made.

The True King

Recently it was Ascension Day - when Christians remember the moment the disciples had their last resurrection encounter with Jesus. From this point 'he was taken up' and disappeared from their sight.

It is easy to just focus on quaint images of the risen Christ somehow floating up into the sky, eventually disappearing behind the clouds and saying 'that is Ascension'. Maybe it physically happened exactly that way, maybe it didn't - but either way there is more to it than that!

Through the cross, resurrection, and subsequent ascension Jesus was moving into his true and rightful place - as the Sovereign King of the whole earth, with all principalities and powers to be under Him. The physical ascension is therefore the final scene of the whole 'Ascent to Title' drama. It is the completing moment in a sequence from which springs the glorious message to the world: "There is a new King on the throne!".

The writer of Hebrews captures this key theological concept in chapter 1 verse 3: "... he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in Heaven".  

The apostles and initial believers who clung together immediately after his death and resurrection were given the task of 'sent messengers', to be witnesses to this new King (Acts chapter 1). They were to take the message far and wide (across the Roman empire and beyond) that there is this new King. The language used throughout the New Testament exactly matches the Greek/Roman language for announcing the crowning of a new king or emperor across the conquered lands. It is the root of the word 'evangelist' ('evangelion') - the one who brings the good news of the new rightful ruler.

Ascension is therefore not merely a somewhat romantic notion of the physical Jesus disappearing from view - it is a geo-political statement of cosmic proportions. All our witness to the world (in whatever form) stems from this new reality. It is good news, with good news ramifications for all the world down through the ages, today, and for ever.

Re-set and Re-run

Recently we moved house - staying in the same overall area, but moving from one block to another about ten minutes walk away. Naturally amongst the upheaval it has been hard to maintain normal rhythms and the prayer focus for neighbours that we have had over the past 22 months.

Our original near neighbours are not that far away, but now we have new near neighbours to meet, bless and pray for! Therefore part of emerging from the chaos of moving house has involved a kind of 're-set and re-run' of our intentional prayer & incarnational living dynamic. It has meant starting afresh:

• meeting & discovering people who live close by. This includes meeting people who will live close by - their house is not finished yet so they will be moving here in weeks to come
• walking around the area prayerfully, being open to notice and pay attention to whatever we might see
• starting to map out who is who, and put names of neighbours on paper slips so we can pray for them from time to time
• praying into and working out how to make diary space to be able to meet up and get to know neighbours better

We are just getting this re-set going, but it serves as a good reminder of the basic rhythms & practices of incarnational living - the desire to live among and minister to whoever is around us, seeking the Spirit's lead and unfolding.

A key difference to last time is that being in the same area, we already have a diary of community activities that we are plugged into and serving among, and we have a whole number of contacts and people we are working with (accumulated from the last 22 months of mission activity). In that sense we are not totally starting again from scratch, so we could easily devote our energy and focus to maintaining those good good efforts. But the personal calling we feel is to intentionally make space and time for our nearest neighbours: so the re-set and re-run of the basic practices listed above warrant our attention and priority.

The Great Pardoner

A feature of the US presidential handover last January was a flurry of pardons. Biden proactively pardoned those closest to him, and Trump pardoned people with well documented crimes of riot. Naturally there was much debate about the appropriateness of both sets of pardons, and the precedents they set.

In the week of Easter we have an episode of huge injustice, sentencing, punishment, and then vindication - all happening to Jesus. As Christians we understand that this brings and even bigger deal of pardon - so big that it's scale can extend to all humanity, can apply retroactively to sins & people past, and also proactively to sins & people future. It really is the Great Pardon, from Jesus the Great Pardoner.

An interesting aspect of some of the Biden pardons were that they covered future crimes not yet committed - a kind of ultimate speculative insurance policy. That has a curious parallel with the pardon we receive through the death of Jesus on the cross. When we as Christians repent and believe, we typically are sorry for sins past and are grateful for His forgiveness. Yet the reality is that we will sin again, of course. Thankfully, the pardon of Jesus covers those future wrongdoings ... at least on the assumption that we remain in Christ.

The pardon of Jesus is not of course license for us to live however we choose (and I don't think Biden intended that for those he pardoned either), but rather a covering for fallen broken lives. Our shame for previous wrong-doing is removed, enabling us to venture forward in life with heads held high - to do our best to follow Him in His ways. We will not be perfect, but in remaining in Him there is already pardon granted for future failures on our part.

Destination is not Guaranteed

A feature of working with people through a series of Discovery Bible Studies to help them journey towards seeing Jesus and putting their faith in Him, is that there is no guarantee of reaching the desired destination. That destination - for each individual - is them embarking on a life-time following Jesus, finding their own momentum to keep going long after your sessions have stopped. The fact that we have to face is that whatever our best efforts, people may drop out, change direction, or drift away for a whole host of reasons.

We have to give people the freedom and space to do that, since the series of studies are intended to enable someone to discover for themselves - at their pace and readiness. To not give that freedom would mean that ultimately people are not making their own spiritual-heart choice to trust Jesus and follow Him as Lord.

Reassuringly for us, Jesus had to face the same issue. At the end of John chapter 6 a number of 'disciples' were finding his teaching too hard (verse 60), and some turned back and no longer followed (verse 66). Jesus apparently let them go, wondering if even the twelve might reverse direction. Remember also subsequent visits to his home town discovering a lack of belief despite all the healings and miracles in previous visits.

When we try to sit down with people to do such studies, we are praying and looking for those who seem to be open in the first place. That is not an exact science, unless the Spirit graciously gives spiritual discernment or words of knowledge! People who appear open may turn out to be less so, and even those who are more genuinely open can still change direction - much to our frustration. Yet this goes with the territory, and is an occupational hazard as part of the work.

Our role, through it all, is to continue to give opportunities for people to discover Jesus as best as we can, and to be faithful to that endeavour.

Do Not Fret

Psalm 37 verse 1 reads "Do not fret because of those who are evil ..." and exhorts the hearer to trust God even as threat and wickedness swirl around in ever greater measure.

Such words are poignant for our times, as the phenomena some theologians are calling 'The Great Unravelling' plays out at different levels. Many of our established Western churches find themselves facing difficulties, even closure, because their congregation numbers (and cash income) continue to fall away - the existing ways of being church no longer working for them. Also at the international political level we are now living into an unravelling of a world order that we assumed secure from the outcomes of the 2nd World War. We now have Western nations openly advocating policies of mass ethnic cleansing (rather than just quietly funding oppressive actions away from the public gaze) and apparently gearing their responses in ways that align with indicted war criminals of foreign oppressive regimes.

As followers of Christ, we have to re-ask ourselves "Where do we find our security? In whom do we put our trust?". In the past we might have doctrinally declared trust in God through Jesus Christ, yet in practice trusted in our Western nation national and international structures. That must now change! Clearly nations of whatever status cannot be trusted ... the only entity truly trust-worthy is God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Great Unravelling may make you feel quite alone and highly vulnerable. You may well be asking yourself 'Can I make a difference?'. Remember Jesus talked of His Kingdom - a different kind of Kingdom, one unlike any earthly nation state, regime or empire. He described it as the mustard seed, the tiniest of seeds ... that planted in the ground and grew ... continuing to grow ... eventually into a very large bush (or tree) which provided a place of shelter for birds etc. to come under its shade.

There is our clue! "Lord Jesus start with me - may I be firmly planted as your Kingdom agent". Yes the world is literally falling apart all around us, be it established churches, governments, nations and whole international systems ...

But the Kingdom of God will prevail, so do not fret in the midst of all the evil!

Bow the Knee

In the whirlwind of political scenes witnessed in the last couple of weeks, one event was the head of Meta announcing new vetting policies and approaches for posts on the social media platforms operated by that company. As this was reported in the media, one of the lines that struck me was: 'Zuckerberg bows the knee to Trump'. This went hand in hand with many headlines and articles caricaturing Trump as the un-rivalled king of America (and perhaps in his mind other countries too!).

This description of 'bowing the knee' sums it up nicely. In the final analysis who do we bow the knee too? The world will have its leaders, pretend leaders, and outright tyrants ... all of whom will demand allegiance. We can probably also say that the greater the 'tyrant-ness', the greater the insistence for total allegiance!

Bowing the knee to these leaders is the same as handing them the keys to your life, how it is to be lived, the decisions you will make and so forth.  You may still have clear ideas on 'the right thing to do ...', but these will be compromised in practice by this allegiance.

The Christian realises that these human leaders, regardless of whether we like their politics or not, are not the ones to bow the knee too. We might respect the position they are in, but they cannot command our total allegiance. That is because the Christian realises that these people are at best provisional, and the real Kingdom work (and thus the potential for improving society 'in the now') ultimately flows as a consequence of individuals committing their allegiance to Christ.

Allegiance to Christ also declares at levels above human authorities - to the principalities and powers (Ephesians 6:12). It announces that the horribly subverted human rule (represented by Adam after the fall) no longer commands allegiance from all people. Instead the real King is now enthroned - Jesus is Lord! To Jesus the real King we willingly bow the knee, and we will bow the knee to no other.

Uniformity vs The Work of the Spirit

As you read Deuteronomy you can't help thinking that God is calling for both absolute unity and uniformity in worship. The people are to come to the place God will choose for their sacrifices rather than any old high place. They are to interact with the Levitical priests who will perform the key worship elements on their behalf. It is all to be tightly regulated.

Compared to the time in which we now live, this seems rather strange. Jesus commissioned his disciples (us) to scatter outwards, leading people to Jesus (and thus worship) wherever they went. Movement organisations flourish when disciples make disciples wherever they are, birthing diverse networks of micro-churches that have different expressions, a multitude of practices, and probably variations in their precise theologies.

Has God somehow changed between the time of Deuteronomy and the time of Jesus onwards? Has He changed His mind, or come up with a fresh plan B? How do we reconcile what appears to be exact opposites?

Of course Deuteronomy is concerned with the formation of the people Israel, whereas with Jesus it is the global Kingdom. The first might be characterised by law, whereas the second is characterised by grace ... but these understandings, though valid, still leave us with questions about the nature of God then compared to now.

It seems to me a key difference that helps explain is the giving of the Spirit. Back in the time of Deuteronomy the Spirit was active, but seemed to be on specific people (and perhaps also for specific purposes). The cosmic disruption of Jesus opened the way for the liberal outpouring of the Spirit. That outpouring enables a multitude of individual believers to know directly what God requires (see Jeremiah 31:31 - 34).

Without the outpouring of the Spirit a high degree of human-system-control is required - keeping everyone on track, avoiding wandering off back into false belief. The restrictions of one central place, Levitical procedures etc. effect all this. With the outpouring of the Spirit a wide variety of individuals (and small groups) can be led and remain in the Godly (Jesus) Way without requiring such systems ... if people grow in direct obedience to Jesus, i.e. to the leading of the out-poured Spirit. A variety and diversity is now possible, because the unity lies in obedience to Christ.

In such conditions the need for law evaporates, since Godly order is now being restored (akin to before the Fall). Grace was always there at the beginning, but Law was temporarily necessary for such a large social system (i.e. a nation of people). Now with the Spirit, the social system can multiply and diversify infinitely as long as unity of the Spirit is maintained, i.e. people living in obedience and operating in the work of the Spirit.

God did not change through any of this. He remains the same yesterday, today and for ever. The era has changed (pre- Spirit pouring / Spirit now liberally flowing). The event of Jesus made the change of era possible.