I like films that make me think (as well as ones when I don’t have to think at all…!)  Last night I watched the 2014 film ‘Calvary’, wondering whether this would be yet another film which lambasted the Catholic church over paedophile priests and denigrated faith.

The film is not easy to watch in parts and does indeed deal with difficult situations, including sexual abuse, drug-taking, violence and attempted suicide. But it portrays these things not simply to criticise God or the church, but to show us a fallen world and how people grapple with suffering and pain. Brendan Gleeson plays an innocent man, a good priest, in the aftermath of Ireland’s devastating sex abuse scandal. ‘A late vocation, a widower with a troubled adult daughter, he’s surrounded by people he knows better than they know themselves, characters ripe with indifference, resentment and cynicism, sprinkled with just enough courtesy to mask their contempt,’ Archbishop Charles Caput writes. The film begins in the confessional, when a man, the victim of clergy rape as a child, tells the priest that he will murder him in a week’s time, not because he is a bad priest, but precisely because he is a good priest, and to kill a good priest might shock the church into considering the effects of sexual abuse.

The rest of the film charts the priest’s day-by-day life for the rest of that week, showing us how he deals with his parishioners, all of whom are deeply troubled and scarred individuals, as well as with his daughter, who has not coped well with the death of her mother and her father’s ‘abandonment’ to a religious vocation. There are no magic cures, no happy endings, no ‘perfect’ priest, but along with the darkness are moments of true faith: the priest’s kindness to an ageing writer friend; his love for his daughter; his humour and positive relationship with a young altar server; his sensitivity in dealing with a young French woman, widowed in a car accident while on holiday in Ireland. Far from giving us a black and white film about right and wrong, the grey areas of faith are discussed and in a telephone conversation between the priest and his daughter filled with mercy, reconciliation and forgiveness, we see the hope that God can bring even into desperate situations.

Faith is lived out in far from ideal conditions by people who are far from perfect. A recovering alcoholic, the priest does not always cope well with the pressures upon him and is by no means sinless. He is, however, portrayed as a men of integrity who believes that there is “too much talk of sins and not enough of virtues.” In offering forgiveness and hope even to those who would despise and reject him, he reminds us of a Saviour who ‘when they hurled their insults at him, did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.’ (1 Pet 2:23) Food for thought indeed.

‘Fill us up and send us out’ are lyrics from the Tim Hughes’ song ‘God of Justice.’ They perfectly embody Jesus’s ‘Great Commission’ (Matt 28:16-20), reminding us that empowerment from the Holy Spirit is not to make us feel good and satisfy our own needs, but to enable us to be witnesses to Jesus and hold out the word of life to those who are spiritually dead.

‘We must go, live to feed the hungry,
Stand beside the broken:
We must go.
Stepping forward; keep us from just singing;
Move us into action:
We must go.’ (‘God Of Justice’, Tim Hughes)

Stephen concluded his series on the armour of God by looking at the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. (Eph 6:12-17) In natural terms, a helmet protects the head, and in Roman times was usually made of metal which surrounded the face as well as the top and back of the head. Like the other pieces of equipment, this was a defensive piece of armour, whereas the sword was intended to attack the enemy. If a soldier had no means of attack, he would not last long on the battle ground, so the sword was a crucial weapon.

Spiritually, the helmet of salvation reminds us that we must put on Jesus, since it is only through Jesus that we have salvation. Salvation gives us total coverage or protection; Jesus gave everything for us so that we may be saved. The sword of the Spirit is the very word of God, never failing but always prevailing. Jn 1:1 reminds us that Jesus is the very Word of God who speaks life-giving words. Luke 1:37 reminds us that no word from God will ever fail, giving us confidence as we enlist in God’s army, for no matter what weapons are developed, none will be stronger than God’s very word. Jesus is the living Word who protects our minds and enables us to go on the offensive against the enemy.

Our kitbag is held together by prayer, but it is our choice whether we put on the armour of God or not. We are each vital members of God’s army, but just as in the game ‘Game of War’, when the player decides whether to equip the hero or not in order to protect the city, it is our choice whether we avail ourselves of God’s armour and stand firm or whether we allow the enemy to gain footholds in our lives. Let’s stand firm in God and put on the whole armour of God.

We also had a birthday to celebrate:

Mark’s sermon on the Holy Spirit this morning looked at how our attitudes matter enormously to seeing God move among us. If we approach God with the ‘bus stop syndrome‘, we are likely to come before Him with low expectations and desire, wondering if God will actually turn up (after all, buses don’t always…) or if we have somehow missed all He wants to do (we can miss the bus…) or if He will force us to do things we don’t want to do. We may well wonder how much longer it will take for the Holy Spirit to come or how long we have to wait, or even if we need the Holy Spirit anymore. These attitudes will hinder us, for often those who wait for buses do so with a complaining attitude, whereas God does not force Himself on anyone, but comes to those who genuinely hunger and thirst for God and who actively seek HIm.

Acts 1:4-8 gives us Jesus’s directed to His disciples as to what to do; they were commanded to wait in Jerusalem until the arrival of the promised Holy Spirit. Definite promises were made to them (that they would be baptised in the Spirit, that they would all receive power and be witnesses to Jesus.) The fact that we celebrate Pentecost at all is partly because of their obedience to this command to wait on God.

Instead of the bus stop syndrome, we need to ‘call for the cops’ (Acts 1:14): Continue in One accord (demonstrating unity) in Prayer and Supplication. God wants us to have a real desire for Him and to plead with Him, often with tears and emotion, if we are to see God pour out His Holy Spirit.

Waiting for God is not something we usually enjoy, any more than we enjoy waiting for a bus! Ps 27:13-14 reminds us that as we see God doing things and witness His goodness, we can be strong and take heart as we wait for Him. Is 40:31 reminds us that those who wait for (and hope in) the Lord will renew their strength and soar like eagles. We’re not supposed to be on a bumpy bus journey, but need to be waiting at the airport, for God to allow us to fly!

Lam 3:24-26 reminds us that the Lord is good to those who wait for Him and whose hope is in Him. He changes our souls as we seek Him, restoring and recharging us, always turning up at the right time to take us where we need to go. Is 25:9 reminds us that as we wait and trust in God, He will save us and we will see great things. The key to seeing the Spirit move in our midst is in our attitudes. Let’s ditch the bus stop syndrome and adopt the COPS syndrome instead!

This week we have had a letter from the pastor of the project which supports Bedline, our Compassion child. Jean Dieumarc is pastor of the Church of the Nazarene of Sarrazine, ministering to Bedline at the Child Development centre in Mirebalais.

The community of Sarrazine has about 30,000 people who live mainly from agriculture. They face problems such as illiteracy, unemployment, low self-esteem, teenage pregnancy, inadequate health conditions and juvenile delinquency, and the church seeks to minister to the whole community in a variety of ways. He says ‘the church evangelises the community, engages in maintenance, helps widows and visits some prisons and hospitals’ as well as ministering in the Child Development Centre, which Bedline attends. There, 300 children are able to go to school, receiving the bread of instruction given and engaging in games, films, training and Bible studies. Since the opening of the centre last May, all of the children who attend have changed considerably as they are guided in ‘their spiritual, physical, and socio-economic growth.’ The centre aims to ‘prepare them to become responsible citizens and productive in their work for God and for the community in general.’

We are privileged to be able to sponsor Bedline and help to make a difference in her everyday life. Jean writes, ‘the church has the responsibility to spread the Gospel around the world under the power of the Holy Spirit; it would be impossible not to impact the community where it operates.’ We too believe that the church needs to do this and our partnership with this church in Haiti and with Bedline in particular is part of our commitment to spreading the Gospel around the world under the power of the Holy Spirit. Please keep praying for Bedline and for Jean, her pastor, that God’s word may be established in Haiti and lives changed.

The Bible often uses pictures to help us to understand God. The Holy Spirit is described as wind, fire, water and as a dove to help us to understand more of His nature and purposes.

Spirit, wind, breath

The Hebrew word for spirit (ruach), like the Greek word (pneuma), can also mean wind or breath. The Holy Spirit is often likened to breath (which we associate with life, because when we stop living, we stop breathing and vice versa!) or to wind. In Acts 2:2, we read ‘a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.’ The Holy Spirit is, in many ways, ‘like a breath of fresh air.’ He brings life and newness and freshness to all that we do. Job says that ‘the Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life’ (Job 33:4), and we need the Holy Spirit as breath or wind to give us life. Jesus used this metaphor when talking to Nicodemus (John 3:1-8) and reminded us that we need the breath of the Holy Spirit if we are to be born again as God’s children. Our prayer is ‘breathe on me, breath of God, fill me with life anew’ every day. Not only does the Holy Spirit breathe on us when we first come to know Jesus, He continues to breathe on us and make us spiritually alive as we continue our journey of faith.

Fire

On the Day of Pentecost, ‘they saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.’ (Acts 2:3) Fire is wild and uncontrollable and can seem terrifying to us. It is often used to describe God (who is a ‘consuming fire’ Heb 12:29) and speaks of purification and purging. It also symbolises the energy and fuel for our service. Rom 12:11 tells us ‘never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord’, allowing His energy to burn within us.

Living Water

Jesus said ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink’ (John 7:37) and told people ‘Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’ (John 7:38), a reference to the Holy Spirit. God is the only One who can satisfy all our longings and our thirsts. We often try to find satisfaction in all kinds of ways, but God wants us to know that He will never disappoint us, never let us down, never abandon us or forsake us. The crowds were bewildered by what they saw and heard on the Day of Pentecost, to the extent that they made fun of the disciples, thinking they were drunk! God’s life is better than wine, better than anything we can ever imagine. He wants to give us living water that satisfies.

Dove

When Jesus was baptised, ‘heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.’ (Matt 3:16; see also Mark 1:10-11, Luke 3:21-22, John 1:32-34) The dove was a symbol of gentleness and peace, but to the Jews it was also a sin offering which the poor could give to God if they could not afford to give a lamb. (Lev 5:7, Luke 2:22:24) Jesus’s sacrifice paves the way for us to be reconciled to God (see Heb 7:27) and because of this, we have peace with God. The dove is the symbol of peace, a peace God brings which transcends all understanding (see Phil 4:4-7). The Holy Spirit is able to give us peace even when all around us is in turmoil and our hearts are anxious and fearful.