In 1 Cor 9:19-27, Paul continues teaching the Corinthian church about his passion for the lost, an all-consuming passion which leads him to ‘become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.’ (1 Cor 9:22) The freedom he has expounded upon at length in previous chapters serves this one purpose. His desire to reach all people with the gospel of Christ is challenging to us today, for we have inherited the same mandate, Jesus having told all disciples that we are to go and make disciples of all nations (see Matt 28:18-20).

Methodology will always vary. Paul behaved very differently in different circumstances (teaching Jews about the God of their fathers and Gentiles about the God of creation), as did Jesus (talking to Nicodemus about spiritual birth in John 3, since Nicodemus had a religious, Jewish background, but speaking to the Samaritan woman about living water in John 4.) Flexibility and adaptability will always be key tools of evangelism, but what must never change is this passion for the lost or the message we preach. As Thomas Jefferson once said, “In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.”

This has obvious implications for missionaries, whose cross-cultural ministry demands flexibility. Hudson-Taylor, missionary to China, said, “Let us as far as possible set before them a correct example: let us in everything unsinful become Chinese, that by all things we may save some. Let us adopt their costume, acquire their language, study to imitate their habits, and approximate to their diet as far as health and constitution will allow. Let us live in their houses, making no unnecessary alterations in external appearance, and only so far modifying internal arrangements as attention to health and efficiency for work absolutely require.” For everyone, however, this presents the challenge of working out in our situations what methods God wants us to use to reach people with the good news of Jesus Christ. There are no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solutions here. Prayerful contemplation and passionate action have to go hand in hand. Our job is to find out how God wants us to make disciples in Goldthorpe, Thurnscoe, Bolton-on-Dearne and the Dearne Valley in 2016, but we will only do this as we contemplate mankind’s desperate need for salvation, to be ‘saved from God’s wrath through Christ.’ (Rom 5:9; see also John 3:36) Without Paul’s passion for the lost, we will have no urgency and no desire to see others saved.

I am reading a commentary on ‘The Song Of Songs’ by Charlie Cleverly, the long-awaited sequel to his ‘Epiphanies of the Ordinary’, which had a chapter on this book. I believe Song of Songs speaks to us on many levels: the personal level, as a picture of marital love and as a picture of God’s love for the church and our relationship with the God of love. On all these different levels, God’s Word speaks into our hearts, challenging us to keep the fire of our first love alive.

In the book, commenting on Song of Songs 2:14-15, Charlie Cleverly writes ‘a mark of renewal is that the language of prayer begins to flow.’ I am well aware that loquacity in prayer is not an essential sign of spirituality (see Matt 6:7); I am well aware that God speaks to us in the silence of the heart and that our prayers do not necessarily have to be articulated outloud to be heard by God. Nonetheless, the words of the Bridegroom in this passage are ‘let me hear your voice’, and anyone who has ever been in love knows the beauty of hearing the beloved articulate thoughts and feelings in a manner which can be understood by the other.

It seems to be something that British Christians find difficult to do, this praying outloud, especially in public. Perhaps we are embarrassed when others are present, not wanting to seem too fervent or outlandish. Perhaps we are afraid that others will laugh at us if they hear the achings and longings we feel expressed in words. Perhaps we are afraid to ask God verbally for things in case His answer is ‘no’: how foolish we would seem then to others! More frighteningly, perhaps we are silent in prayer because we don’t know what to say, or worse still, we have nothing to say. The fire of love which causes lovers to whisper ‘sweet nothings’ to each other may well have died down to the point where we are indifferent to the God we serve and indifferent to the plight of people around us. John Piper, writing of Paul’s passion for evangelism which was fuelled by his awareness of the wrath of God, says ‘If this is a minor part of your thought world, if you don’t think about this very much, then it will be hard for you to feel the sense of sorrow and urgency that Paul felt for the lost people around him. What we need to do is ponder the wrath of God that is coming—to meditate, think about, reflect on, mull over, turn over in our minds, and dwell on—the reality of the wrath of God. Until this figures as largely in our worldview as it did for Paul, we will not have the passion for evangelism that he had.’

Prayer involves fervency, and when renewal comes –  when we catch a glimpse of God’s love for us and are wooed by that divine love – the language of prayer begins to flow with new urgency and fluency. Let’s allow the wonder of God to fill our minds and hearts and be moved to pray with passion, fervency, fluency and fire.

So often, it is fear which holds us back from stepping out in new ways for God. We are afraid we’ll look foolish. We’re afraid of what people will say. We’re afraid of opposition. We’re afraid of ridicule and scorn, afraid of appearing radical or different (the British character hates looking different, it seems; bland anonymity seems to be our highest aspiration at times.) We’re afraid of getting it wrong, to the extent that we’re paralysed into doing nothing.

Unhealthy fears (‘phobia’ comes from the Greek word for ‘fear’) are disproportionate to the dangers posed (‘false evidence appearing real’, as the saying goes) and leave God out of the equation. They focus on hypothetical situations (the ‘what ifs?’ of the imagination which rob us of peace and are devoid of grace, since grace is real, not imaginary) and leave no room for faith to flourish.

In Matt 10:1-31, Jesus commissions the disciples, sending them out to preach the gospel and giving them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness, as He Himself had done. He is realistic about the opposition they will face and the hardships ahead (including alienation from family members, flogging and persecution!), yet He urges them not to fear (Matt 10:26, 28, 31). The antidote to fear is not an insulated, trouble-free existence, as we often mistakenly believe. The antidote to fear, paradoxically, is a healthy fear-of-God: ‘Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.’ (Matt 10:28) Nicky Gumbel comments that ‘it is no coincidence that as the fear of God has decreased in our society, all the other fears have increased. We need to return to a right relationship with God.’

When we fear God with the reverence, awe and wonder described in Proverbs as the beginning of wisdom, we are set free from other fears which would tie us in knots, and we can then step out in boldness and faith. We may fail, but failure is not the worst thing that can happen to us. The worst thing is disregarding God and hardening our hearts when He speaks to us. Let’s learn to take steps of faith (getting out of the boat), secure in the worth God places on us (Matt 10:31) and in the guidance of His Spirit. (Matt 10:19-20)

Dave spoke tonight from Matt 4:19 which says ‘Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men.’ Throughout 2015, God has been working in the lives of people in the church, but as we enter 2016, there is a renewed sense that God wants us to see people saved; this is the day of salvation! (2 Cor 6:2) How does God work through us, however, in bringing people to Himself?

Jesus models for us how to make disciples. Initially, there is a call to follow Jesus: we need first of all to be in right relationship with God. Then, His disciples watched Him at work, before Jesus then sent them out in pairs to do the work themselves. We have to step out in faith to do the things God calls us to do – which inevitably means leaving our comfort zone behind, for Jesus worked through healings and miracles, even though His primary mission was to seek and to save the lost.

Our first ‘mission field’ is our friends and relatives, but the fact remains that after the resurrection, Jesus issued the Great Commission to His disciples (Matt 28:18-20), a command to make disciples of all nations. Evangelism is not an optional extra, but the primary purpose of the church, and we need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in order to be able to fulfil this purpose.

Success depends on our following God’s direction and instruction; we need to make this our core mission. Nothing else will do; we are not saved simply to receive God’s blessing but (as Bryn Haworth puts it) to pass it on!

Garry spoke this morning at Cherry Tree Court on the subject of adoption. In a natural realm, the child who is adopted has full legal rights and becomes as much a member of the family as any children born naturally. Spiritually, we are adopted by God (Gal 4:4-5) and become God’s children (see John 1:12-13), taking on the nature of our heavenly Father.  We are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ and become citizens of heaven (Phil 3:20), being born into a family of brothers and sisters which spans not only geographical boundaries but time ones too! This amazing offer is available to all: the question is ‘do we want to be adopted by God?’

We are now getting back into the swing of routines and are looking forward to God doing extraordinary things this year! There is an expectation that God will move in new ways this year and that we will see people coming to faith and God working in amazing ways. At the prayer meeting on Thursday, we were encouraged to realise we only have one life and that we need to live this well, being totally committed to God’s ways for our lives.

The Thursday midweek meeting is an important one for us as a church. Alternating between prayer meetings and Bible studies, this is where we share, pray, worship and learn together and in a small-group setting, it’s often easier to discuss issues and pray for personal matters than in larger gatherings. This coming Thursday (14th January), we’ll be looking at the end of 1 Cor 9, where Paul talks of his passion for evangelism and the all-consuming desire he has to see people won for Christ. This needs to be our passion and desire too!

Dates for ‘Churches Together’ meetings in 2016 have also been arranged with leaders from other local churches. The next meeting will be on Saturday 20th February at 6 p.m. at the Salvation Army on Straight Lane. These meetings are great opportunities to meet Christians from other churches and to realise both the differences in style and common areas of doctrine we share. Come along and bring family and friends to these meetings which are very informal and give people the chance to see the unity in the church as a whole. Other dates for 2016 are:

• the Easter ‘March of Witness’ around Goldthorpe on Saturday 26th March, leaving church at 10 a.m.
• Saturday 14th May, celebrating Pentecost at Furlong Road Methodist Church in Bolton-on-Dearne at 6 p.m.
• Saturday 17th September at our church on Market Street

God is moving and we want to be part of all He is going to do in Goldthorpe this year!