We had two birthdays to celebrate last night:

Ezekiel 37:1-14 is a familiar passage, but one which speaks again and again into hopeless situations. Israel was in exile and in despair, but through Ezekiel, we see God speaking to His people and to the nations, showing them where they have gone wrong and showing them the way back, showing them His desire for faithfulness and obedience and promising restoration. We can be reassured that even when we are faithless, God is faithful. (2 Tim 2:13)

Ezekiel’s vision of a valley of dry bones speaks of death and decay; there is no coming back from this situation, naturally speaking. Into that bleak situation, God asks Ezekiel a question. ‘He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”’ (Ezek 37:3) Ezekiel’s answer is honest and rests on God’s sovereignty. Naturally speaking, the bones could not live and Ezekiel is not glib about the possibilities. He is, however, obedient to God’s commands and speaks out God’s words – something which must have seemed frankly crazy.

God uses words to speak life into what is not alive. God spoke in the beginning and created the heavens and the earth. (Gen 1:1-3) Jesus sustains everything, all life, by His powerful word. (Heb 1:3) The Son of God is known as the ‘Word.’ (John 1:1) Paul reminds us that we serve ‘the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.’ (Rom 4:17) We may not understand why words are so powerful or why God uses words, but the fact remains that words are the means God often uses to do things. As Paul says, ‘It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.”’ (2 Cor 4:13, quoting Ps 116:10)  He goes on to tell the Romans, ‘“The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,”  that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: ⁹ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.’ (Rom 10:8-10) Speaking words is often the way God works, and He gives us also the opportunity to work as He did by telling us to speak words, His words, into situations.

Ezekiel’s speaking came in two stages: first, to the bones, then to the breath. The message of life from death was one which gave hope to the people in exile, and this message was communicated by God’s servant, speaking God’s words. God consistently gives us the words and the confidence to speak; ‘whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.’ (Mark 11:24) Faith is the fuel that will open our mouths and cause us to speak out what God has said to us; faith is what will keep us believing when we do not necessarily see anything happening. Faith and speaking go together; we need to learn to speak out what God has said to us so that we can see it come into being.

Stephen spoke this morning from Acts 17:24-28, Paul’s sermon to the people at Athens. There, he addressed the people as ‘very religious’ and introduced them to the unknown God. Often, people perceive Christians as ‘religious‘, but there is much more to a life of faith than being religious.

A life of faith is not confined to services in a church building (as has been made very apparent during the pandemic.) Our God is not confined to a building or to any one space. ‘Church’ is not God’s home address; it’s the name given to His family! He does not need religious rituals or services, because He is the Lord who gives everyone life and breath. God is with us wherever we are (in English, the words ‘where’ and ‘there’ all contain the word ‘here’, and God’s presence with us is what makes us different.)

Rather than getting caught up in the trap of religiosity (which tends to put an emphasis on external rituals and outward behaviour), we need to be caught up in God’s presence. God’s presence is what makes the difference in our lives and will make a difference to those we meet.

In our Bible study tonight, we looked at the book of Jonah, an unusual prophetic book which is referenced by Jesus to the extent that Jonah’s experience in the great fish (NOT a whale!) is likened to His death and resurrection (see Matt 12:38-41). We all know about Jonah’s rebellion against God (choosing to go to Tarshish instead of Nineveh, and ending up being thrown overboard when a storm arose which threatened the lives of all on board the ship), but the fact that he slept through the storm reminds us of Jesus (Mark 4:35-41) and is a reminder also that however much he may have disobeyed God, he was a man of great faith. In Jonah 2, we see how he comes to the end of himself and calls out to God in repentance, and how God gave him a second chance. (Jonah 3:1)

Second chances… the mercy of God to both Jonah and the Ninevites… the fact that there is nowhere we can run to where God cannot find us are all themes found in this book. Some have doubted the veracity of the book (how could a man remain alive after three days and three nights in a fish?!), but we have to admit that God is able to work in ways that are beyond our understanding. Perhaps what is even more incredible is the response of the Ninevites (who actually listened to God’s message through Jonah and repented, quite unlike the typical Israelite response to prophetic messages) and Jonah’s subsequent anger and frustration at God. He would rather Nineveh have perished than experience God’s mercy and forgiveness, a timely reminder to us all that grace and compassion are undeserved and must never become something we feel are exclusively ours.

Jonah reminds us of God’s forgiveness, love, mercy, faithfulness and tenacity. It’s pointless trying to run from Him; it’s pointless trying to live self-centred lives. Only as we obey God and do His will (however odd that may seem to us) can we find fulfilment.

It’s always good to have things to celebrate (especially these days!), so it was a privilege to welcome the Mayor of Barnsley to the Railway Embankment this week to officially open the art mural there.

It was good to welcome local councillors to the site and for those who have supported the project (such as Network Rail) to see the finished mural.

It was also good that so many who had been involved in the painting could be present, although unfortunately work commitments kept artist Lydia Caprani from attending.

If you’d like to see the mural and visit the site, Dearne Churches Together will be opening the site on Tuesday 3rd and 17th August between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. for the public to enjoy some peace and quiet in this lovely outdoor space.

When I was at university, I learned a lot about 17th century French literature, particularly the plays of Racine and Corneille. My tutor was an expert on that period, and it was a culture shock for a 20th century teenager. Concepts such as honour and virtue featured highly in these plays which were often a contemporary (at the time!) re-telling of classical and biblical stories.

I found it difficult to engage with this kind of literature. Plots often seemed ridiculour and contrived, emotions volatile, and solutions to problems tightly constructed with little bearing to reality, despite the French obsession with ‘vraisemblance’ (making something intelligible or true to reallity!) Duty, nobility and honour all seemed very odd concepts to a 20th century teenager.

As I have grown older, however, I have understood more the complex interplay between emotions and actions, and the effect of principles and beliefs upon behaviour. Our worldview shapes us in more ways than we realise, and although I will never feel comfortable in a 17th century worldview, I have also come to understand that a Christian never feels entirely comfortable in any secular worldview, because every secular worldview will clash with God’s principles and ideas. Every -ism (communism, fascism, totalitarianism etc.) and every solution to the world’s ills (including democracy) will fall short of the kingdom of God. We are all strangers and pilgrims passing through this world, destined for heavenly citizenship and therefore struggling to fit into a society which neither acknowledges or understands the life of faith. The sooner we realise this, the better, as we save ourselves from the bewilderment I felt as a teenager studying French literature! We can stop trying to make sense of the world’s ideologies and learn to live with the tension of having two homes, one a temporary home and the other our ultimate destination. (1 Pet 2:10-12, Heb 11:13-16, Phil 3:20)