Last night’s family service looked at the whole question of servanthood, focussing on John 13:1-17. In this acted-out parable, Jesus demonstrated to his disciples what his teaching on servants really meant. He had taught that the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve (Mark 10:42-45), but still the disciples jostled for positions of authority and failed to understand the paradoxical nature of the kingdom of God, where the first shall be last and the greatest a servant (see also Matt 16:25, Matt 23:12, Acts 20:35).

In washing the disciples’ feet, Jesus, their Lord and Teacher, performed the task of the lowliest slave. Michael Card says ‘Jesus finally gives up on words. He has told them numerous parables about slaves, now he will portray the most humiliating of slave roles, the washing of feet.’  (Michael Card, ‘A Better Freedom’) The proverb tells us ‘actions speak louder than words’, and Jesus demonstrates this in His actions. Peter protests at first, but we must learn that whatever Jesus does or offers us is enough for us.

It’s a challenge to live a life of service to others, largely because we are selfish, tainted by sin, and also because we live in a ‘me-first milieu’, where it’s common to celebrate selfishness instead of seeing it as a monster far bigger than Goliath. But it is also the way to blessing and life, because this is what God created us for. ‘We weren’t made to serve ourselves, and doing so sends us into a spiral of misery.’ (‘Faith-Mapping’, Daniel Montgomery, Mike Cooper, P 155) Such selfless service can only be practised by those whose identities and purposes are secure in God (‘Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God.’ ) As we revel in God’s love and provision for us, we are set free from the bickering and self-importance which drives the world, and we can serve freely: ‘As people who have been given everything we need in Christ, we can look at the world around us with eyes open for the opportunity to share our abundance.’ (ibid., P 154) 1 Pet 4:10 reminds us that the gifts God has given us through His grace should be used to serve others; the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matt 25) shows us that this is done by serving those in need.

‘In any ordinary place

On any ordinary day

A parable can live again

When one will kneel and one will yield.’ (‘The Basin & The Towel’, Michael Card)

Last night’s family service looked at the question of servants. Our quiz started with questions about servants (those who were fans of ‘Upstairs, Downstairs’ and ‘Downton Abbey’ did well on this!)

Then we had an egg-and-spoon race which tested our gracious servant spirits…

We had to ‘spot the differences’ on pictures of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet and complete wordsearches from this passage:

We also had to match verses on servanthood to their respective Bible passages:

In keeping with this theme, the prizes were all about minions! (featured in the recent film of that name and the ‘Despicable Me’ films):

We also had a birthday to celebrate, our first in August!

Garry started his sermon with the provocative statement ‘the promises of God are not enough on their own.’ To illustrate his point, he gave us a lesson in electricity…

A coal fired power plant takes coal, pulverises it and feeds this into a furnace; the burning coal when heated produces steam which drives the turbine which is connected by a shaft to a generator. When part of the generator revolves, this produces a current. The output of the generator feeds into cables which are connected to the power grid.

High tension pylons are required, along with transformers and lower tension pylons:

However, even with all this power, the light bulb will not light unless a switch or PIR is used:

In the same way that we cannot use the electricity to make lights work without the light switch or PIR, for God’s promises to be effective, we have to either do something (likened to flicking the switch) or be something (the PIR works by detecting movement.)

Some of God’s promises are unconditional (eg Gen 8:20-22), but others require faith to be added to the mix for them to work (see Heb 4:1-2). We need to believe and act on the promises of God, asking God for what we need (see Js 4:1-3). God’s promises are backed up by His power and they never ‘go off’ (as paint does if left unusued), but we need to overcome our fear and lack of faith if we are to see them become reality. Matthew’s gospel shows us that Jesus often referred to His disciples as ‘little faiths’ (see Matt 6:29-31, Matt 8:23-25, Matt 14:25-31, Matt 16:5-8). When we energise our faith, the promises of God can become active. Our faith and trust are like the switch or PIR which enable the power of God to become active in our lives.

Josh 1:1-3 reminds us that Joshua had to set his foot on the places promised by God in order to claim them. He was urged to ‘be strong and courageous’ (see also Josh 1:4-6). Courage is not the absence of fear and trembling, but a pressing on in spite of fear. Faith as small as a mustard seed can achieve great things; our ‘pocketful of faith’ (Nick Herbert/ Tim Hughes) is all that is required to see the promises of God come alive in our lives.

Baptism in water is a key practice of the church. Baptism was part of Jesus’s Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20) and on the Day of Pentecost, Peter urged the crowds ‘Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.‘ (Acts 2;38) Paul wrote about the topic at length in Romans 6:3-14 and baptism remains, along with the Lord’s Supper, one of the two sacraments of the Protestant church everywhere. We may disagree about the manner and means of baptism, but its importance in symbolising the new life to which Christ has called us is undisputed.

Since our move to Beever Street, however, we have not had a baptistery in which to baptise people. We believe that baptism is for believers rather than infants (we dedicate infants to the Lord and pray He will lead them into a saving knowledge of Himself as they grow) and so this has been of concern for us. We have had a baptismal service since our move, but used our old baptistery to hold that service. Now that the old building has been sold, that’s no longer an option.

The solution to this problem arrived today: a portable baptistery!

A plastic lining fits inside the wooden baptistery and a heater will heat the water so that baptism by full immersion isn’t too breathtaking! When not in use, the portable baptistery can be packed away and stored in the building. Now we are excited about having this tool to baptise people and hope that anyone who has not yet taken that step of faith will consider doing so. We long to see more people coming to faith in Jesus and proclaiming Him as Lord over all!

Another busy day…

Staining the new notice board:

Touching up walls

Another coat on the box:

Starting work on the corridor:

Then, of course, there was all the cleaning and tidying up to do!

Many thanks to those who have worked so hard this week. There is still much to be done (some more glossing in the community room and the rest of the corridor to tackle, not to mention the completion of the notice board and painting the outdoor railings), but the progress made has been fantastic. Come along to the coffee morning tomorrow at 10 a.m. to see for yourselves!

Last night’s Bible study looked at the end of 1 Corinthians 4, which probably contains one of the most challenging verses in the whole Bible: Paul tells the Corinthians, whose squabblings and immaturity towards leaders reflect their lack of Christlike thinking, ‘I urge you to imitate me.’ (1 Cor 4:16) Paul and the apostles truly lived like Christ: they were homeless as He was (see Luke 9:57-58); they faced rejection and abuse and slander, but responded graciously, seeking reconciliation (see 1 Pet 2:18-25 for how Christ reacted to those things); they knew what it was to be despised and rejected (see Is 53:3-6). They were living out the life of Christ as we are all commanded to do and Paul knew the power of a good model or example (see also 1 Cor 11:1, Phil 3:17, Phil 4:9, 1 Thess 1:6, 2 Thess 3:7-9 for other places where he urges Christians to follow his example.)

Paul likens his role in wanting to see the Corinthians mature well to that of a father who takes the time and effort to help his children mature. His intention is not to shame them, but to point them to the right way of thinking and living. A good father helps his child to mature and learn valuable life lessons through encouragement, comfort and exhortation (see 1 Thess 2:11-12). He will also warn and advise (1 Cor 4:14, see also Eph 6:4) and will model good behaviour: children mimic their parents in everything! At times, a good father will also discipline (see Heb 12:7-11), something which is not pleasant but is necessary if we are to see a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it! As Jarrod Kintz says, ‘She called it a slap, but I called it a high-five to my face. Love is so encouraging!’

Mentoring is a buzz topic these days in the workplace and we need mentors who will show us how to do things. Jesus was the ultimate mentor to the twelve disciples, who learned through being in His company, through watching Him and ultimately through working alongside Him. We are urged to be mentors to others (see Titus 2:1-8), giving our time, our attention and our care to others. Good mentors will listen well, will value people and will be open and honest with them. Christianity is not meant to be restricted to ‘fellowship’ on a Sunday only, but we are to share our very lives with each other, as Christ (and Paul and the apostles) did.

Paul concludes the chapter with a reminder that how the Corinthians respond to his warnings and advice will determine how he comes to them (see 1 Cor 4:18-21). Their arrogance (being inflated like helium balloons!) means they have a higher opinion of themselves than is warranted. Paul reminds them that the kingdom of God is not about talk but power. We have to walk the walk as well as talk the talk. How we respond to discipline will determine if we have to be treated with a ‘rod of discipline’ or gentleness and love. Prov 22:15 reminds us that children learn through discipline; the same applies to us as Christians!