Yesterday I attended a community event at Monk Bretton Priory known as ‘Medieval Mayhem’. A combination of historical entertainment and educational information was present, with people showing us about making arrows, the use of archery in medieval warfare and medieval weaponry and armour. Medieval entertainment in the form of jesters and jugglers were present and there was the opportunity to have a go at diabolo, plate spinning, archery and axe throwing. It was great fun and historically very informative.

As someone who loves history, I greatly enjoyed the event, but it set me thinking about the differences in life between then and now.

We often feel we are living in a ‘different world’ nowadays. Clothing, entertainment, travel and warfare certainly look very different in the 21st century. But interestingly, all these things still exist. The form of these things may have changed, but the fact of these things remains.

Medieval sanitation and healthcare may leave us feeling blessed to live nowadays rather than in the 15th centruy, but I find that levels of gullibility and superstition have not really changed (even if the expression of these has). It’s still much easier to ‘go along with the crowd’ than it is to think independently and live by faith.

People who questioned official propaganda in medieval times were often tortured and executed; an ‘executioner’ was present at the show with instruments of torture for us to see. We may feel smug that such things no longer happen….until we watch an espionage film or until we reflect that vilification, slander, ‘cancelling’ and other methods of persecuting mavericks are just as prevalent nowadays as ever.

The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is nothing new under the sun. (Eccl 1:9) We can be grateful for every advancement and improvement to ordinary life that has happened since medieval times, but we can also see that the condition of the human heart has not fundamentally changed at all. Sin, superstition and prejudice still exist. Fear, anxiety, worry and dread are still present. Warfare is still ongoing. People still need a Saviour, now as then.

Garry spoke tonight about the church of God. The church is a people who assemble together because they are called by God. God knows the best way for us to live and if we are to live well (thriving instead of just surviving), we need to live according to His ways. God calls all people to Himself, offering us an open invitation to come (see Matt 22:1-4). We are God’s assembly, joined together by this common call from God.

The church in action is seen in Eph 4:14-16. Growth is God’s goal for us all, but this involves effort on our part, as we are called to rid ourselves of all malice and deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander. (1 Pet 2:1-3) These attitudes have to be replaced by a desire to do good to all people, especially those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10) We are called to live not by lies, but to allow the truth of Jesus to govern our behaviour. This will mean getting rid of hypocrisy (double standards), envy (resisting the advertiser’s lure) and slander (running people down and making false statements about people.)

Peter goes on to say we should crave spiritual milk, getting a taste for spiritual things. Paul told the Corinthians that they needed to grow and move beyond milk, though (see 1 Cor 3:1-3). Growth gives stability. It enables us to withstand the storms of life (see Matt 7:24-27), including the fear of death and war, the rising costs of living and so on. Growth comes from good soil (Matt 13:3-9, 22); we have to understand that God calls us to be warriors, nor worriers. When we are afraid, we can put our trust in God (see Ps 53:1-4), understanding that His peace enables us to live without being tossed about by events all the time.

When our granddaughter was just one, she was knocked over by a wave which would not topple her now, two years later. She has grown and developed and could easily stand up against such a wave now. As we walk with God and grow and develop in our spiritual lives, we too can be strong. We are the church; God is alongside us!

Dave spoke this morning from Philippians 1:6, a verse that resounds with Paul’s confidence that God will complete the good work He had begun in the Philippians. The letter to the Philippians is one which, despite being written from the chains of prison, is full of joy and hope. Paul is confident that God will not give up on the work He has started. Ultimately, this work is not something which originated with his ministry, or even with their response; it is a work begun by God. He uses people and churches to reach others, to be sure, but it is God who works in and through us. God does not give up on those He calls; He continues working in them. Spiritual rebirth is the start of this work, but He continues to plant the life of Christ in the soul of man and implants us with everlasting life.

All who are in Christ Jesus are new creations (2 Cor 5:17) and God works transformation in us, rather like a sculptor who chisels away at the stone until the perfect shape emerges. God will chisel off everything in us that does not look like Christ. He has a purpose for our lives that goes beyond our deaths, for this work will only be completed on the day of Christ Jesus, the day when the work of salvation is finally completed and there is restoration of all that has been tainted by sin.

Just as Paul could be confident for the Philippians, so Dave spoke of his confidence that God will complete His work in Goldthorpe. He is still working in our midst and we know He will not give up!

William Carey (1761-1834) was a cobbler who became a missionary to India and one of the most influential men of God this world has seen. Yan used his life as an example to us of someone who lived beyond their limitation, showing how positive expectation, practical preparation and persistent determination were key factors in his achievements.

William Carey is perhaps best known for the quotation ‘Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God.’ He is an example of someone who did not let discouragement or the opinions of others affect his fire or zeal for God. He knew God had called him to spread the gospel and prepared thoroughly for this work.  Despite leaving school at the age of twelve, he learnt Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, Dutch and Bengali and taught himself many practical skills which became useful to him in his work in India. He persevered there through many personal troubles, including the insanity of his wife, Dorothy, who attacked him on more than one occasion and had to be restrained at times because of her mental health issues. He faced sickness on many occasions and lost his children at young ages. Yet despite all the setbacks and trials, he continued in persistent determination, saying ‘I am just a plodder for God.’

Yet the things William Carey achieved in India were phenomenal. He founded over 100 Christian schools, including the first school for girls in India. He translated the Bible ito 8 languages, built a printing press, opened saving banks and introduced the steam engine to the country. He founded the Baptist Missionary Society, founded a Christian college in India and also the first Agri-Horticultural Society there. He shows us that God honours His promises and can help us to live beyond our limitations if we will trust Him and work with Him.