Let’s be honest, while there are some good reasons for leaving a church, there are a lot more bad ones. As a pastor, I hear some of them every now and again. Here are five really bad reasons to leave a Church:

1. “I’m not being fed”

As a pastor with a teaching gift I take my job of feeding God’s people VERY seriously. But there are also lots of other things vying for my time: managing staff, meeting needs, putting out fires and developing leaders – all while overseeing the overall vision and direction of the church. Years ago a man in our church had a vision. He saw adults sitting in baby highchairs with a dummy in their mouth. God showed him that many Christians are like that – big babies who still cry every time they want someone else to feed them.

To leave a church because you’re not getting “enough” is a cop out. Your primary call in the church is to contribute, not just to consume. As a Christian, you shouldn’t require spoon-feeding for the rest of your life. Eventually you need to learn how to feed yourself so that, in time, you can actually feed others. Remember, your call is not just to be a disciple but also to make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20)

2. “It’s getting too big”

I can appreciate the sense of loss that accompanies growth. When Bayside Church began 22 years ago we were a small band of Christians who could all fit into one living room. It feels very different now that we are a large church spread across multiple services & sites. There are moments when I miss the intimacy and simplicity of those early days. But remaining small is a sad and unbiblical goal.

When churches are faithful to the Great Commission, lives will be changed and people will be added to their number. Growth is inevitable for faithful and healthy churches. If you have a problem with big churches, you really wouldn’t have liked the first church, and you definitely won’t like heaven.  Instead of seeing size as a negative, learn to appreciate all the variety and influence that a big church can achieve.

3. “I don’t agree with everything that is being preached”

Guess what? Neither do I and I’m the pastor. As such I fully reserve the right to disagree with myself. And every now and then I do exactly that, because I’m learning, growing & asking questions, and my hope is that you are doing the same. I trust the pulpit at Bayside Church to our team members & visiting ministries and I don’t always agree with everything that is said or the way they say it but, unless it is rank heresy, I just let it slide because we’re all learning and growing together.

Chances are you are not going to agree with everything that is preached anywhere. We need to learn to disagree on secondary issues.

4. “My Needs Aren’t Being Met”

People who use this as an excuse to leave a church have bought into the lie that, when it comes to church, it’s really all about “me.” Here’s the problem: the Church actually isn’t about you. It’s about Jesus. It’s His Church. He came for it. He died for it. He redeemed it. He continues to build it. And one day, He’ll come back for it. It’s His.

This is the same Jesus who came to seek and to save the lost and then commissioned his Church to go and do the same. The Church doesn’t just exist to meet your needs. You are a part of the Church that exists to meet the needs of the others. Put away the shopping trolley and pick up a shovel!

5. Unresolved Conflict

This is the number one reason people leave a church and of course wherever you find imperfect people you will find conflict. The Church is one big family full of characters and misfits. Sometimes sisters argue and brothers fight. But despite it all, family is supposed to be the place where you stick together even when it’s hard – especially when it’s hard.

Paul addressed a lot of church conflict in his letters. Nowhere do we hear him encouraging believers to bail on one another or move on down the road to a different church where it’ll be easier. Instead, much of his letters are his encouraging and coaching these ragamuffin communities in how to do this very hard and messy thing together.

One of the key aspects of the gospel is forgiveness and reconciliation. How will we ever demonstrate these things to the world if we don’t practice them ourselves?

Based on an article written by Aaron Loy in Relevant Magazine

The prophecy of Malachi is the last book in the Hebrew Scriptures. It is God’s last word before His last Word – Jesus.

In this short prophecy Malachi points out a number of ways in which the lives of His people were displeasing to God:

  1. They were marrying wives outside the community, thus introducing ideas that were contradictory to Judaism.
  2. They were divorcing their ageing wives so that they could marry younger ones (2:10-11)
  3. They were being careless in their offerings (1:6-2:9)
  4. They were failing to pay their tithes (3:8-10)
  5. They were being neglectful towards the poor (3:5)

Overall things were not good. And so God sends Israel a messenger to remind them of His love, grace and expectations (like any good parent).

The prophecy is set out as a series of questions and answers. For example, in Malachi 3 God challenges His people to return to Him. The people ask, ‘how are we to return?’ It’s a fair question that receives an interesting answer. I mean, if you asked me how you were to return to God I’d suggest things like repentance, prayer, studying the Bible, and being connected to a good church. But God addresses their giving – or rather their lack of it.

The same happened when people came and asked John the Baptist about how they could get right with/return to God (see Luke 3:7-14). No one asked him about money and yet the three answers he gave all addressed the people’s attitude to money – including giving, greed, contentment and sharing.

When the people of Malachi’s day asked the question, ‘how are we to return?’  God answers with another question, “will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘how are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings.” You are under a curse — your whole nation — because you are robbing me.”

That’s the problem, now for the solution:“bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”

The remedy for spiritual drifting was for the entire community to recognize their responsibility. The WHOLE nation was to bring the WHOLE tithe. This was something the WHOLE community was to do, “that there may be food in my house.”  When they all did this the WHOLE community would be blessed.

God throws out the challenge, “test me in this.” The Hebrew word for test, Bachan, refers to the testing of metals to see how valuable they are. God is challenging His people: you be generous with your tithes and offerings to me and my work and see how valuable I will be to you in return. I will “throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”

In Scripture, the phrase the floodgates of heaven is used in relation to Noah’s flood (Genesis 7:11; 8:2) and the supply of Manna for Israel in the desert (Psalm 78:23-24). Both are acts of abundance.

And so to apply this prophecy to the New Testament church: bringing the whole tithe, in addition to offerings, is the responsibility of all believers in order to make sure the Church community that they are part of is fully provided for, healthy & effective in outworking the vision God has given it. In return, God promises to abundantly bless and protect that community to such an extent that even those outside the community will take note.

Being part of a church community is an enormous blessing, and every blessing carries with it responsibilities. I encourage you to take the responsibilities of tithing, generosity and giving offerings seriously. You won’t be disappointed!

A couple of weeks ago someone from our church posted a John Wimber quote on my Facebook page. Wimber wrote, “I’m concerned the Church has become more of a theatre experience, rather than a meeting place for people to encounter & interact with God. People don’t need more entertainment; they need to encounter the King.”

It’s a great quote, and I certainly agree with the sentiment of it, but I felt there was a reason this man posted the quote – a reason that was more than it being just a great quote. I asked him and I was right. He said he came across the quote when I was promoting our recent Good Friday service and it appeared to him that the service could perhaps contain entertainment.

All of this got me thinking about the question “Is it wrong for the church to entertain people?” Before I give my thoughts on this let me say that I agree with John Wimber in that entertainment is not the church’s purpose or goal.  He was observing a phenomena that was rising in his day when the church was becoming increasingly a “theatre” experience that was more seeker-sensitive than Spirit-sensitive. I believe the main reasons we are to gather are to encounter God, grow deeper in our relationship with Him as well as to strengthen our relationships with each other.

But is it wrong to entertain people in the process of achieving these goals? Are they mutually exclusive? If we entertain people do they not encounter God? Can people only encounter and interact with the King if they are not entertained?

For answers to these questions we need look no further than the way Jesus taught as well as the content of the Bible. The vast majority of Jesus’ teaching was in story form (Parables). Telling stories was the primary entertainment of the masses in Jesus’ time. After a long discourse (recorded in Mark 12) that contained stories, an amazing answer to religious leaders who were trying to trap Jesus, and then a blunt rebuke to one of the leading religious sects (the Sadducees) the people were enthralled.  Mark says, “The large crowd listened to him with delight” (Mark 12:37). Were they entertained? Absolutely! They were rapt. Their emotions were stirred. I can hear them whooping and cheering. Jesus entertained people and, while they were engaged, they encountered and interacted with God.

The Bible is full of language and writing that entertains people – there’s history, poetry, stories, drama, suspense, hyperbole, miracles, sinister plots (think Haman and Esther), proverbs, songs, fantasy, humor and a whole lot more. God could have given us a two-sided A4 page with “Things to do” on one side and “Things not to do” on the other, but instead He gave us a book that engages and entertains the imagination and enables us to encounter Him on every page.

Unfortunately many churches today see life in black and white and shades of grey. What a shame when the very nature of God in creation is so full of colour and entertainment that engages our senses. See the incredible variety of animals and plants, taste the amazing foods, smell the aromas of coffee & freshly baked bread, hear the sounds of birds singing their song, let sand run through your fingers on a warm day. God’s creation entertains and engages us and through it we can encounter Him. Should not the church gathering reflect these same qualities? I love encountering God in our church and all of the ingredients of our services make this possible.

In Jesus’ day people were entertained by stories. Today telling stories is still a big way of engaging people and communicating truth. In Today’s society however, we are blessed with technology. We can communicate, engage and yes, entertain people through film, social media, drama, dance, music, lights, pictures, artwork and so much more. In an age where the adult attention span has reduced to an average of six minutes I believe that entertaining people is even more important because if they tune out how will we communicate life-changing truth?

Is it wrong for the church to entertain people? Not at all!

I love the perspective that children have on things.  Check out these comments from some kids when they were asked what happened on Good Friday?  And why did Jesus have to die?

“Jesus had to die because the Prime Minister didn’t like him. He didn’t like him because everybody liked Jesus and nobody liked the Prime Minister. At Easter, we have eggs because chickens are born at Easter time” (Bella, 7).

“We have chocolate eggs to celebrate Easter because the tomb was empty and most eggs are hollow, except when they have chocolate buttons in them” (Piers, 8).

“Jesus died because of God’s love and at Easter time we have eggs because they are a sign of new life. They’re made of chocolate because chocolate is really nice and Jesus was a really kind person” (Molly, 8).

What did happen on Good Friday?  And why did Jesus have to die? If Jesus died on this day then why is it called GOOD?

It’s important to know that it was, in fact, religion that killed Jesus.  The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were jealous of the support and following that Jesus had and so they plotted a way to get rid of him – and they succeeded (for three days!)  Not much has changed; religion is still trying to kill Jesus today.  In fact, some religious institutions kill Jesus every week – some kill him every year.

This is highlighted in a response to a blog I wrote over a year ago.  Speaking of Good Friday the person wrote:“This is the day of the year that I wish would end quickly for it is a day of mourning and grief. Every minute of this day I am constantly thinking about His suffering. We call this day good only because of ourselves. We are to die with Him on this day … on this day of remembrance, mourning, and grief, are we not going to remember, mourn, and grieve? Sadly, for most people they will not remember, they will not mourn, and they will not grieve … on this day of sadness, I hope the Lord keeps me a little more subdued and a little more humble. For Christ died on this day of darkness and I am grieving a bit now…”

But what does the Bible say about Jesus sacrifice?
Hebrews 7:27, “Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.”

Hebrews 9:26, “Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.”

Hebrews 9:28, “so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

Hebrews 10:10, “And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

Get the message?

Jesus doesn’t need to die again every week or every year.  His death on the cross two thousand years ago was enough.  On the cross, Jesus took the punishment that belonged to us.  We are the ones who have broken God’s Law.  We deserved to be punished.  But in his love and mercy, Jesus bore our punishment for us. The sacrifice he made was enough and to prove that is was, three days later God raised Jesus from the dead – and he didn’t die again.  That’s why Good Friday is GOOD!

My prayer for you this Easter is that you will come to know, appreciate and experience the power and value of the sacrifice Jesus has made for you on the cross.

Some years ago, a 14-foot bronze crucifix was stolen from Calvary Cemetery in Little Rock, Arkansas. It had stood at the entrance to that cemetery for more than 50 years. The cross was put there in 1930 by a Catholic bishop and had been valued at the time at $10,000. The thieves apparently cut it off at its base and hauled it off in a pick-up. Police speculate that they cut it into small pieces and sold it for scrap for about $450.  They obviously didn’t realize the value of that cross.  May we not be so blind!

 

Money, especially the giving of it, is one of the most often-mentioned topics in the Bible. It is also one of the most controversial and likely to provoke a response, which is often a negative one. Many years ago I attended a Christian financial seminar in which the speaker presented some simple but powerful truths about handling money. I have put his “two basic rules” into practice ever since: (1) Spend less than you earn; (2) Tithe on the first fruits on all your increase.

Tithing is the Biblical principle of giving one-tenth of all our increase, income or possessions to the Lord, so that His work can be accomplished in the world (tithe = tenth). About tithing Dr. Billy Graham wrote, “God’s blessing upon the nine-tenths helps it to go further than the ten-tenths without His blessing!”

The most frequent objection to tithing is that it’s part of the Old Testament Law that doesn’t apply to Christians today. I’ve found that this statement is often used as an excuse not to tithe. But tithing predates the law. The first mention of tithing in the Bible is Genesis 14:18-20 in which Abraham willingly gave King Melchizedek 10% of all his increase. Where did Abraham learn this principle? Did he just pluck 10% out of thin air, or was he privately instructed by God on a universal principle of life? I would suggest the latter because God later included the tithing principle in the Law of Moses. The final mention of tithing in the Bible (Hebrews 7) refers back to the first mention – to the story of Abraham and Melchizedek. Here the writer relates this mysterious King- Priest to Jesus the eternal King-Priest. As Abraham willingly paid tithes to Melchizedek we willingly pay tithes to Jesus.

It should also be said that Old Testament truth is still applicable to us today unless the New Testament presents truth that supersedes it. For example, Jesus cancelled the Old Testament food rules in Mark 7:17-19, but did not present truth, which superseded tithing. In fact He endorsed it. Have a read of Luke 11:42 & Matthew 23:23.

The New Testament actually increases the conditions of the law (read Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” in which He increased the definition of murder and adultery amongst other things). If a tenth was required under the law, no less than a tenth is required under grace.

What God taught Abraham about tithing was adopted 400 years later in the Law. The Law of Moses presents truth on tithing that, if implemented today, gives excellent advice on giving and saving. Under the Law there were three tithes:

  1. The Lord’s tithe: 10% of gross income that went to support the priesthood and temple (Numbers 18:21).
  2. The Family tithe: the next 10% that was saved for the future support of the family (Deuteronomy 14:22-27).
  3. The Poor tithe: every third family tithe was given to the poor (Deuteronomy 14:28-29).

It’s fascinating to note that 4% of the American population today is Jewish and yet they own 40% of the wealth; the reason being that many of them follow these principles. Revivalist John Wesley put it this way, “make as much as you can, save as much as you can, give as much as you can.”

Another question people ask about tithing is, “should I tithe on my gross or net income?” Jesus often answered a question with a question so I’ll follow in His footsteps: are you looking for a way of giving more or less to God? I have always made it a practice to tithe on my gross income because I believe it is the right thing to do. In any case this is only a question because of our taxation system. Until just over a hundred years ago people were paid their full wage and were then responsible for paying their tax. It’s still this way in some countries today. The question that flows on from this then is “who should be paid first – God or government?”  Jesus said, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” (Mark 12:13-17). He also taught us to seek God’s Kingdom FIRST (Matthew 6:33). That leads onto the next question, how should I tithe? Three principles should be followed when tithing:

  1. The First: as mentioned above, we are to put God first in our giving, “honour the Lord with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase” (Proverbs 3:9). Throughout the Bible the first of anything was sacred to the Lord.
  2. The Best: in Old Testament times the people of Israel often fell into bad habits. One of those was to start giving to God lame, blind and imperfect animal sacrifices. This was as displeasing to God as an imperfect gift given as an afterthought would be to any of us. Lamb sacrifices were always to be a firstborn, unblemished male (Exodus 34:26; Numbers 18:12-13; Ezekiel 44:30). This flows through to God’s sacrifice for us in Jesus, the firstborn sinless Son. God gave His best for us, should we not offer Him the same out of pure appreciation and love?
  3. The Lot: out of any increase we receive we are to give a tithe to God first – salary, lump sum payments, inheritance, superannuation pay outs, gifts, holiday pay, share dividends, bonuses and so on. God calls us to honor Him with the first fruits of ALL our increase. Any less dishonors him.

Where should I give my tithe? As mentioned already, The Lord’s tithe (10% of gross income) went to support the priesthood and temple, “bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house”  (Malachi 3:10).  God expected His people to provide for His work that they and others would benefit from. Nothing has changed. In the New Testament Book of Acts people brought money and laid it at the apostles feet (Acts 4:34 – 5:2). The placement of the gift “at the apostles’ feet” was an indication that the money was for the work of the church and not meant to be a personal gift. Both the Old and New Testaments teach that God’s people have a duty to give to God’s work through the leaders He has placed over them (1 Cor. 9:9, 14; 1 Tim. 5:17-18). These leaders in turn will be called to account for the way they have distributed this finance in order to further God’s kingdom on earth.

Why should I give a tithe? We tithe out of gratitude for the past. “God, I realise that everything I’ve achieved up to this point, anything I have, all belongs to you anyway. I want to give 10% back to you as an act of gratitude.” We tithe to keep our priorities right in the present. Deuteronomy 14:23 says, “the purpose of tithing is to teach you to put God first” (TLB). It’s a reminder that God is really first in my life, and it helps me set my priorities.  We tithe as a statement of faith for the future. When I tithe I’m saying, “God, you’ve taken care of me in the past, so I trust you and I’m giving this to you as a demonstration of my faith that you will provide in the future.”

Tithing is a great floor but a lousy ceiling. Giving the first 10% of our increase to God’s work through our local church is a good place to begin, but this principle is meant to be freeing rather than restrictive. C.S. Lewis used to give away 2/3 of his income. R.G. LeTourneau (Mover of Men and Mountains) gave 90% of his. The more God blesses us the greater percentage we should give to him.  Finally, J.D. Rockefeller wrote, “I never would have been able to tithe the first million dollars I ever made if I had not tithed my first salary, which was $1.50 per week.”  It’s got to start somewhere and at sometime.  Why not start today?

One of the stories trending this week on Facebook concerns Fred Phelps, the founder of the highly controversial Westboro Baptist Church, who is said to be dying at a hospice center in Kansas.

The news originated from Nate Phelps one of Fred’s estranged children, who wrote this on Facebook a few days ago.

“I’ve learned that my father, Fred Phelps, Sr., pastor of the “God Hates Fags” Westboro Baptist Church, was ex-communicated from the “church” back in August of 2013. He is now on the edge of death at Midland Hospice house in Topeka, Kansas.”

The Westboro Baptist church was pioneered by Fred Phelps in Topeka, Kansas, in 1955. To this day the church remains small in numbers but big in impact because of its controversial statements and pickets – over 52,000 of them since the church began. Its websites include “God Hates Fags,” “God Hates America,” “God Hates Islam,” “Jews Killed Jesus,” and “Beast Obama.”  You get the idea. God’s pretty ticked off with just about everyone except the people at Westboro Baptist. There’s even a “God Hates the World” website which lists all the countries and why God particularly hates each one. The Westboro website includes a tally of the “people whom God has cast into hell since you loaded this page.”

The church has become particularly well known, and despised, for protesting at the funerals of high-profile people as well as American soldiers who’ve died in combat. A number of laws have been passed in order to keep these misguided “Christians” away from grieving friends and relatives.

As a Christian I have found the Westboro Baptist Church to be a great embarrassment over the years. I frequently find myself disappointed with their hate filled rants as well as all the media attention they receive. They present God in a way that only repels people away from a Creator who loves and cares for them. They will be remembered in history in the same category as those who misquoted the Bible to defend slavery (think “Twelve Years a Slave”), the subjugation of women, and the persecution of scientists.

So how should we respond to such a hateful man as Fred Phelps as his life draws to a conclusion? It would be easy to cheer and spew the same hate back at him that he and his family have dished out over the decades. After all, he’ll reap what he’s sown right? But does that reflect the teaching of Jesus? I think not. Jesus constantly encourages us to take the high road in our reactions towards those who mistreat us. He said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). In chapter 9 of his gospel, Luke recounts the story of a Samaritan village that rejected Jesus and His disciples. James and John asked Jesus, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?” After all, God hates Samaritans!  Jesus “turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.”

The apostle Paul picks up the Master’s teaching when writing to the Roman Christians, “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse … do not repay anyone evil for evil … do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12).

A friend of mine posted this on Facebook last night, “Can you imagine what a powerful statement it would be if the LGBT community showered the Phelps family with love during Fred Phelps’ funeral?”  I replied, “Well said, that would be awesome to see and hear – unexpected, unpredictable and a whole lot better than spewing hate back at hate.” This guy suggested a response that takes the high road – a response that Jesus encourages us to choose. Is it easy? No, it’s difficult. But the world will never be a better place if we only fight fire with fire. There’s got to come a time when we stop firing hate, bullets, bombs and harsh words at one another.  Fred Phelps will pass away and there’ll be plenty of hate-filled people to take his place. We can’t stop them, but we can choose the higher road of love that Jesus taught us to take.

Jeremiah’s prophecy in the Hebrew Scriptures is pretty dark. It’s full of warnings to the Nation of Israel because of their ungodly behaviour. Like any good parent, God warns His kids when they’re going off track and let’s them know the consequences if they don’t change: “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place…” (Jeremiah 7:3). But they didn’t listen or change their ways, so God disciplined them by taking them into exile into Babylon.

Jehoiachin, king of Judah, was captured by King Nebuchadnezzar and taken to Babylon, along with some 10,000 of Jerusalem’s principal citizens in 597 BC (see 2 Kings 24:12-16). There they stayed for 70 years. They settled down, built homes, grew in numbers and sought the prosperity of the city where they were in exile.

In Jeremiah 29, God gives some good news and hope to His people: This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

The Prophet Isaiah picks up the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy (almost 300 years before it happened) in Isaiah 43, “For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? 
I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. The wild animals in the fields will thank me, the jackals and owls, too, for giving them water in the desert.
Yes, I will make rivers in the dry wasteland
 so my chosen people can be refreshed.”

This is a wonderful promise of God’s provision as He led His people back to their homeland. They would need to travel through the wilderness, the dry wasteland, the desert but this land would be transformed by God’s provision of refreshing water for His people.

What was prophesied over 2,700 years ago is still being fulfilled in Israel today. What God did supernaturally for Israel then, they now put into practice so that Israel has gained a worldwide reputation for its ability to turn barren desert into useful and arable land. They redirect floodwaters to desert areas, they use solar power, they have fish farms that thrive on brackish desert waters, and they plant trees and alternative crops that reverse desertification. It was Israel that developed modern drip irrigation now used by many nations, and 50% of water used in desert areas is recycled wastewater – higher than any other nation. Such ingenuity has reclaimed land that was once considered useless.

Click here to see some of the amazing things this nation has achieved:

The ingenuity that the people of Israel have demonstrated to turn sand into land can be employed by each of us in our everyday lives. What can you do this year to redeem areas in your life that you now consider unproductive, wasteful or dry? Use your God-given wisdom and refresh yourself and others in 2014!

I’ve heard many Christian people over the years – including preachers – talk about how God calls us to live a “selfless” life. But is that true? Is that what the Bible demands? I would like to suggest not.

It’s true that Jesus taught self-denial: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”

The Bible also teaches self-control as one of the products of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives (see Galatians 5:23).

Neither of these things means that we are to be selfless though. In fact the Bible also teaches us to look after our own needs as well as the needs of our family. The apostle Paul was very blunt when he wrote, “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Tim 5:8).
Paul hit the nail on the head when he was writing to the Macedonian Christians from prison: “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Philippians 2:4).

There it is – look after your own interests, just don’t stop there! And that’s the problem. Most people just look after their own interests. The Bible doesn’t teach against leading a selfless life, it teaches against living a selfish one. The Bible has much to say about having a good work ethic, being a good employer / employee, providing for your own needs. There’s nothing selfless about that. But we’re instructed to want more than enough. One of the most selfish statements I hear is, “I just want enough to get by.” Sometimes it’s said by people with a sense of pride like, “See how little I need. See how holy I am.” But God wants us to have more than enough to get by so that not only will our needs be met but we have some left over so that we can meet the needs of others. Consider this verse in 2 Corinthians 9 where the whole chapter (and the next one) deal exclusively with money: “Moreover, God has the power to provide you with every gracious gift in abundance, so that always in every way you will have all you need yourselves and be able to provide abundantly for every good cause …”

All you need yourselves AND be able to provide abundantly for every good cause. That’s not selfless and it’s not selfish either. Daniel Goleman put it this way in his book Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships, “Self-absorption in all its forms kills empathy, let alone compassion. When we focus on ourselves, our world contracts as our problems and preoccupations loom large. But when we focus on others, our world expands. Our own problems drift to the periphery of the mind and so seem smaller, and we increase our capacity for connection – or compassionate action.”

Much of the First World is embroiled in selfishness. Like Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky said, “I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.” We may be shocked by such honesty but do our lives reflect anything different? In 1998 the United Nations put out a statement that if everyone in the developed world gave the cost of a cappuccino each week to combat world poverty we would be able to eradicate poverty completely. The fact that 14 years later poverty is still rife is testament to the fact that most people live selfishly. For just $4 per week poverty could be banished. It starts with you and me. Will you take the challenge? Don’t be selfless – but don’t be selfish either!

The birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus are well documented by the first century eyewitnesses Matthew, Peter (Mark’s gospel) and John, as well as a very thorough doctor by the name of Luke. These are the first four books of the New Testament.

But I realise that not everyone trusts the Bible or believes it to be an accurate account of actual events. So let’s take a look at what is said about Jesus in secular historical sources of the time.

First Century historian, Josephus, wrote of Jesus in his Jewish Antiquities in AD 93, “Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was the Christ; and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct to this day.”

The Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus in one of his most acclaimed works the Annals which covers the period from Augustus Caesar’s death in AD14 to the death of the Emperor Nero in AD68, alludes to the death of Christ and to the existence of Christians at Rome: “But not all the relief that could come from man … availed to relieve Nero from the infamy of being believed to have ordered … the fire of Rome. Hence to suppress the rumour, he falsely charged with the guilt, and punished with most exquisite tortures, the persons commonly called Christians, who were hated for their enormities. Christus (Christ), the founder of the name, was put to death by Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberius: but the pernicious superstition, repressed for a time, broke out again, not only through Judea, where the mischief originated, but through the city of Rome also” (Annals XV: 44).

Suetonius, the Roman historian and court official during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian wrote in his Life of Claudius: “As the Jews were making constant disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus (Christ), he expelled them from Rome” (Life of Claudius 25.4). Claudius’ expulsion of the Christians from Rome is mentioned in the Bible in Acts 18:2. This event took place in AD49. Assuming Jesus was crucified in the early thirties, Suetonius places Christians in the Roman capital less than 20 years later and he reports that they were suffering for their faith and dying for their conviction that Jesus had really lived, died and that He had risen from the dead.

Pliny the Younger who was Roman governor in Bithynia AD112 wrote to Emperor Trajan to seek advice as to how to treat the Christians. He recounts that he had been killing Christian men, women, and children. He is concerned that so many have chosen death over simply bowing down to a statue of the emperor or being made to “curse Christ, which a genuine Christian cannot be induced to do” (Epistles X, 96)
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Tallus was a secular historian who, in AD52, wrote a history of the Eastern Mediterranean from the Trojan War to his own time. The document no longer exists but other writers like Julius Africanus, who wrote around AD221, quoted it. He quotes Tallus’ comments about the darkness that enveloped the land during the late afternoon hours when Jesus died on the cross. Julius wrote: “Tallus, in the third book of his histories, explains away this darkness as an eclipse of the sun unreasonably, as it seems to me (unreasonably of course, because a solar eclipse could not take place at the time of the full moon, and it was at the season of the Paschal full moon that Christ died” (Julius Africanus, Chronography, 18.1). The importance of Tallus’ comments is that the reference shows that the Gospel account of the darkness that fell across the earth during Christ’s crucifixion was a well-known event.

Another secular scholar, Phlegon, wrote a history called Chronicles in which he also comments on the darkness at the time of Christ’s crucifixion: “During the time of Tiberius Caesar an eclipse of the sun occurred during the full moon.”

Mara Bar-Serapion was a Syrian stoic philosopher who wrote a letter from prison to his son about AD70. He compares Jesus to the philosophers Socrates and Pythagoras.

Lucian the Greek satirist later half of 2nd century spoke scornfully of Christ and the Christians but never argued that Jesus never existed. “The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account …” (The Death of Peregrine, 11-13).

The Babylonian Talmud states: “It has been taught: On the eve of Passover they hanged Yeshu … they hanged him on the eve of Passover.” Yeshu (or Yeshua) is the Hebrew name that is translated as Joshua or Jesus. “Hanged” is another way of referring to a crucifixion (Luke 23:39 and Galatians 3:13).

A fascinating news item dated 27th November 2013 details a very significant discovery from the 1st century AD Historical archaeologist Ronald Stewart is stating that he has possibly uncovered hand-struck coins minted sometime between 33-47AD which have images and depictions of Jesus Christ – many which correlate to well-known Biblical events including Jesus healing the blind man, Jesus raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead, and Jesus being bound and dragged on His way to Pontius Pilate.

And so there we have it – lots of secular evidence of the birth, life, death, resurrection and power of Jesus Christ: He’s still alive today and He’s still changing lives, and His life-changing power is available to all – including you!

One of my pet hates is when I hear people taking Bible verses out of context. You can make the Bible say anything you like if you take a verse or a line and quote it on its own without considering the wider context in which it appears. Like the Puritan preacher who denounced the lofty hairdressing of the time, taking as his text “topknot, come down.” When the Scriptures were examined it was found that he was misquoting Matthew 24:17, “Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house.”
By misquoting the Bible you can even prove there’s no God. Scripture says, “There is no God.” Yes, those four words are found in the Bible. The actual quotation is this: “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 53:1). Instead of saying God doesn’t exist, the Bible says the exact opposite!

One of the verses I most often hear misquoted is 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” This verse is frequently ripped out of context to teach that, when you become a Christian, you become a totally new person – that the old has gone and we become completely new. While it is certainly true that when Jesus becomes our Lord and Saviour He forgives our past, our point of conversion does not make “all things new.” We don’t become instantaneously perfect. That’s why the Bible speaks of sanctification – the process of change that is activated by the Holy Spirit and continues for the rest of our life (see Philippians 1:6).

So what is the context of 2 Corinthians 5:17? In this chapter Paul the apostle is teaching on how our view of God and people changes when we become Christians. His theme is the fact that God has reconciled everyone to God through Jesus: “that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them.” In verse 16 he says, “So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.” What does this mean? Paul is referring to the way we view God and people before we become Christians and the fact that our view changes when we are converted.

Before I became a Christian I was an atheist. I didn’t believe in God and, to me, Jesus Christ were very expressive swear words. Then I had a powerful experience in which God showed me that He is real and that He really loves me. He didn’t count my sins against (in other words, He didn’t wait for me to become perfect before He accepted me). With unconditional love He came into my life and started a process of change that is still taking place.

Before I became a Christian I lived a very selfish life. I’ve always liked people but I didn’t look for opportunities to help anyone. My life was all about MY happiness, MY satisfaction and ME. After becoming a Christian that all changed. Suddenly I was a new person. The old selfish Rob Buckingham had gone and the new Rob Buckingham was interested in helping people, making the world a better place, and letting others know that because of Jesus, they can be reconciled to God as well – that He won’t count their sins against them either, and neither will I.

That’s what Paul is teaching in 2 Corinthians 5:17. Not that we become perfect but rather that our attitude to God and others becomes new when Jesus is in our lives.

May I encourage you, as you read and study the Bible, to always consider the context of the verses you read. Ask yourself what the original author wanted to communicate with his original readers and then find how that truth or principle can work in your life today.

How do you go with being interrupted? I’m not too keen on it personally, especially when I’m busy or working to a deadline. I tend to see interruptions as something of an enemy rather than a friend. But when I look at the life of Jesus one thing that stands out is the number of times something amazing came out of Him being interrupted. Now I know He lived in a different – and probably slower – time and culture. But I sometimes wonder whether we miss great things because we live such busy and uninterruptable lives.

Mark’s Gospel chapter 15 tells the account of Jesus’ torture and crucifixion. Right in the middle of this story is a verse that almost seems out of place – a verse that speaks about divine interruptions. It’s verse 21, “They forced a man coming in from the country, who was passing by, to carry Jesus’ cross. He was Simon, a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus.”
Simon was coming in from the country for Feast of Passover. There he was just minding his own business, on his way to a religious feast and completely unaware of the life-changing event that was about to take place.

Roman soldiers had the right to force citizens into compulsory service much like our police can do in co-opting your car if they need to. Jesus was already severely weakened by His torture and so the soldiers forced Simon to carry the cross for Jesus.

Simon was a Jewish Cyrenian from the north coast of Africa. He was so impacted by this event, and no doubt by what he witnessed in seeing Jesus crucified and all the ensuing events, that he became a Christian as a result. The next time we come across Simon he is listed as one of the leaders (a prophet and teacher) in the Antioch Church. In Acts 13:1 we read of Simon (or Simeon) whose nickname was Niger from the Latin word meaning “Black.” (This later became a derogatory term referring to black people but was here probably used as a term of endearment). Simon was a black man from Libya in Northern Africa.

It is likely that Simon and his family accepted Jesus as their Messiah, settled into the Jerusalem church and then scattered when persecution broke out.

Simon’s encounter with Jesus not only changed his life but also the life of his family. Mark makes special mention of Simon’s sons: He was “the father of Alexander and Rufus.” The next time we hear of Rufus he is one of the leaders in the church in Rome (Romans 16:13).

Tradition states that Rufus and Alexander became missionaries; the inclusion of their names in Mark’s gospel suggests that they were of some standing in the Early Christian community at Rome.

Simon was interrupted on his journey but his whole family became Christians as a result and were instrumental in the early development and growth of the Christian Church. There was probably nothing further from Simon’s mind as he walked into Jerusalem that day. He had probably never even heard of Jesus. And yet he just happened to be in the right place at the right time and was interrupted and had the entire course of his (and his family’s) life changed as a result.

I’m challenged by this story, as well as by the life of Jesus, to live an interruptible life as well as to live a life of awareness of God’s presence in every moment of every day. Who knows that the next time you’re interrupted could be a collision of destiny for you or someone else. Let’s be open to divine interruptions.

I woke up early this morning and started my day by reading the Bible. In my daily reading I was up to the prophet Malachi – the last book of the Hebrew Scriptures. I’ve read this many times but this morning something jumped out at me in Malachi 3:7-8, “Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’…In tithes and offerings.”
In this chapter, Malachi the prophet is addressing the fact that many of God’s people had drifted away from Him. Malachi encourages the people to return to God. The people ask the question, “How shall we return?” The answer is not what they – or I – would expect. The first thing God addresses is their financial giving: “In tithes and offerings.”

This is a recurring theme in the Bible because our attitude towards money and material things is a good indicator of the spiritual temperature of our hearts.

Money is such an important topic in the Bible that it is the main subject of nearly half of the parables Jesus told. In addition, one in every seven verses in the New Testament deals with this topic. The Bible offers 500 verses on prayer, fewer than 500 verses on faith, and more than 2,000 verses on money. In fact, 15 percent of everything Jesus ever taught was on the topic of money and possessions – more than His teachings on heaven and hell combined.

Why does the Bible have so much to say about money? The answer is simple, because there is such a strong connection between our spiritual lives and how we think about and handle finance.

I’ve heard it said that you could get a good feel for someone’s spiritual commitment by looking at two pieces of tangible evidence – their diary and their credit card statement. While this may be a bit simplistic, it’s certainly true that how we spend both our time and money is a good reflection of who we are. Given this, is it really so surprising that the Bible talks so much about financial issues?

Jesus put it this way: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Jesus also said, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Mammon is an Aramaic word that is wrongly rendered “money” in some translations. The word means more than that though. Mammon is literally “the worship of material things.” Jesus was teaching that it is impossible to worship material things and God at the same time. No one can serve two masters, He said.

This brings us back to Malachi’s answer to the people’s question “how shall we return” to God? “In tithes and offerings” replied the prophet. That is, by bringing to God the first tenth of any increase or income as well as giving offerings/contributions, we conquer the inbuilt human love of money and we make sure our hearts are focused in the right direction by placing treasure in the right place. It’s really quite simple!