As we studied 1 John 4:1-6 last night, we looked at the sometimes difficult question of how we can be ‘shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.’ In Matt 10:16, Jesus uses a variety of images of animals which seem (in His usual style!) somewhat paradoxical. He sends out His disciples as sheep among wolves. We know that in the natural, wolves are predators who will quickly destroy sheep, so it seems bizarre to think that we are sent as sheep among wolves. What chance do we stand of survival in that hostile environment? How can we preach the gospel in those circumstances?

Jesus then goes on to say that we have to be as shrewd as serpents (a symbol of all that is cunning, sly and devious in our understanding) and as innocent (or wise or harmless as doves.) Again, we wonder how you can have this combination of characteristics, but clearly He wants us to be shrewd (not sly or devious), familiar with the world’s ways of working, not gullible or naive at the same time as being genuine, devoid of cynicism and wise with spiritual wisdom. His followers are not called to be gullible fools, believing everything they hear, but we are called to operate in hostile territory, empowered by God’s Spirit. Sometimes, wolves penetrate the church, dressed in sheep’s clothing (Matt 7:15), and both Jesus and John warn us against false prophets.

As a Pentecostal church, we long for God to move by His Spirit and for the gifts of the Spirit (1 Cor 12:1-11) to be manifested in our meetings. We eagerly desire spiritual gifts, including the gift of prophecy (1 Cor 14:1), which we understand as being a speaking out of God’s heart (prophecy is not necessarily the same as being a prophet, but we also recognise that God still appoints prophets, along with apostles, evangelists, pastors and teachers to lead His people.) Nonetheless, we recognise that many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John 4:2) and that these can be seen even within churches. It is important, therefore, that we learn to rely on God’s Spirit to lead us and direct us and that we come back to the Word to find our direction and guidance. It should also be noted that prophets are generally people who can bring words of chastisement and rebuke as well as encouragement. Just because prophecy may make us uncomfortable or challenge us does not make it false! In all things, we need God’s wisdom and help, being confident in His goodness and mercy and sure that He will not give us anything that is not intended to build us up and draw us closer to Him.

Last night’s Bible study looked at 1 John 4:1-6, where John gives us further advice on how to discern between what is true and false. Once again, there is an inextricable link between the Spirit of God and the person and work of Jesus Christ, for the test of truth will always focus on Christ’s identity as the Son of God and on His mission of salvation. Both of these are fiercely contested in the world, from those who deny God to those whose ‘paths’ to God ultimately lead away from Him because they do not recognise the deity of Jesus or that salvation is only found in His name. (Acts 4:12, John 14:6)

John urges us to be discerning and to ‘test the spirits’ (1 John 4:1), for we can be led astray not only by Satan but by our own spirits. The world’s way of doing things will never be the same as God’s, but it will always appeal to our own natures. We need to test prophecy against the Word and understand that false prophets exist, but we do not need to be fearful and anxious. God is a loving Father who longs to give the Holy Spirit to His children (see Luke 11:9-13). When we yield to His Spirit, we must expect the spiritual to be in control and for unusual things to happen as God moves in power, which can be unnerving to say the least! Nonetheless, He is a God of peace and order and has given us freely of His Spirit so that we may understand what God has freely given us. (1 Cor 2:12)

False teachings arise and can lead us astray if we are not discerning. The plethora of religions and cults in the world today reveal this all too clearly. Nonetheless, God’s Spirit within us is more powerful than he that is in the world and we have been given spiritual tools to discern truth from falsehood. We can live confidently because of this, knowing that love for God and obedience to Him count for more than fine-sounding words which are not true to God.

Mark spoke on the topic of ‘Shining Like Stars’ at the September family service.

Gen 1:16-17 makes it clear that God made all the stars and we know that He made a vast number of stars, each one different, but each one known by God (Ps 147:4 reminds us that He counts them and knows them by name.) The vastness of the universe and the splendour of all these stars reminds us of our true position in life (Ps 8:3-4), but just as stars are named individually by God, so He too has named us. (Eph 3:14-15) He chose to dwell with us, however, and His presence abides with us. God has placed us in time and space, just like the stars, so that we can shine for Him (Phil 2:15) and can reflect His light and glory in a dark world. We are called to be love  and hope and peace in this world and can hold out the word of  life to all around us. God’s glory shines through us. (2 Cor 3:18)

Last night’s family service looked at the topic of stars.

First of all, we had a quiz about the stars in the sky…

Our scientific knowledge was indeed tested!

Then we had a quiz about celebrities.

(If you’re interested, the answer to the first of those was Steve Jobs and the second Madonna!)

There were prizes to be won:

Then we had a belated birthday to celebrate:

We also had birthdays for the actual day and week to come:

All in all, a very busy evening!

Stephen spoke this morning from Romans 5:1-2, reminding us that God’s Word is food to our souls and needs to be digested:

Just as condensed milk has all the goodness of milk for us, so too God’s Word feeds us with all the goodness we need to grow in God:

We stand in God’s grace and are privileged people, for we stand in Christ’s righteousness, no longer having to approach the throne of God through ceremony and ritual but can approach with confidence and boldness. We are able to stand in God’s presence at all times. In the Old Testament, God’s presence was associated with the Tabernacle and later with the Temple and now is often associated with a church building, but God’s presence dwells within us. We are His house. 1 John 4:15 reminds us that if anyone acknowledges Jesus as the Son of God, God lives in them and they in Him. God’s presence with with us constantly, wherever we are.

We also stand in the blessing of peace, knowing that we can claim God’s peace which transcends all understanding.

Fredrick and Reeba, missionaries that we support in India, have sent us a recent update on their work. Reeba is involved in a ‘sewing empowerment programme’ which helps women to learn tailoring skills. 35 of these completed their training in July and 10 were given sewing machines on their completion of the programme. Their aim is to give every woman who complete the programme a sewing machine as an investment into their future work. One lady (Zakira) was a Muslim who had had to be the sole breadwinner for her family, working in the paddy fields. She has since come to faith in Christ and is able to earn money through tailoring.

A new facility was opened in July in a slum area called Vanarpet. 30 candidates were enrolled on this programme and altogether there are 65 women now being trained in different areas. Reeba writes ‘Our greatest challenge is to keep both the training centres functioning and bring the women to the knowledge of God and equip them to spread the gospel and love of Christ to the unreached and also give them a hope for the future.’

Consider how we can best help this ministry through prayer and giving and let’s be grateful for all God is doing in India!