Garry spoke this morning from Gen 41:53-57, looking at how Joseph met the needs of people through the seven years of famine. This was possible because of the dream which God gave to Pharaoh and which Joseph interpreted, which meant that during the seven years of plenty preceding the famine, provision was made for the lean years to come. Clearly, other nations had not saved and prepared as Egypt had; God had seen what was coming and prepared accordingly. He has done this also regarding our salvation, seeing ahead and choosing the way of the cross even before the foundation of the world (see Eph 1:4-6).

God’s offer of salvation is freely given to all, but we have to choose to accept God’s offer. We can become adopted into God’s family; but this is not ‘automatic’; it requires our response, just as the nations had to choose to humble themselves and come to Egypt for help. So too we can help other people on their journey towards God, asking questions, sowing seeds into people’s lives. If people do not realise their need of salvation, they will have no interest in a Saviour; we have to be the ones to give the ‘wake-up call’ to people or to explain not only the presence of sin but the provision of a Saviour.

The answer to the nations was found in coming to Joseph for the provision of food. The answer to the problem of sin is to come to Jesus, the good shepherd (John 10:9-11). We are urged to come to Him when we are weary and heavy-laden and find rest for our souls. (Matt 11:28-30) People are in need of a Saviour; our job is to make that Saviour known to others. That can be through organised events or through personal contact, but the need is great. Will we respond to the call?

As we continued our Bible studies on ‘the end of the world as we know it’, we looked at the start of Revelation 1, the introduction to possibly the most misunderstood book in the Bible. A ‘revelation’ (or ‘apocalypse’) simply means an unveiling, and in this book, a vision given by God to the apostle John as a letter to seven churches in Asia, we see an unveiling of the person of Jesus Christ, described in this first chapter as the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the one who was, and is, and is to come. (Rev 1:8) There is much we do not understand in this book, but the centrality and importance of Jesus – who He is and what He has done for us – remain at its heart, and at the heart of world history.

The vision is given to John while he was in exile for his faith, a reminder to us that circumstances do not have to define or control us. Though he was physically in exile and a companion to Christians in suffering for the gospel, he was also ‘in the Spirit’ and able to receive this wonderful message from God. In these opening verses, we are reminded of the grace and peace of God, won for us by Jesus through His sacrifice on the cross, and that we are loved, freed from our sins and set on a new path of service for God. Who we are always needs to be interpreted by whose we are and by what God says of us.

Even before John sees Jesus in this great vision, He hears a voice speaking to him, a voice like a trumpet. God’s voice is powerful (see Psalm 29); it is often described as louder than rushing waters (Ps 93).Jesus is described as the Word of God, the Father’s way of speaking to the world (see John 1, Hebrews 1); He is the Good Shepherd whose sheep know His voice (John 10). A voice is intensely personal and recognisable; we need to learn to listen for God’s voice (even when it comes as a gentle whisper, as it did to Elijah in 1 Kings 19). God’s voice and His words are what make the difference in life.

Yesterday I attended a community event at Monk Bretton Priory known as ‘Medieval Mayhem’. A combination of historical entertainment and educational information was present, with people showing us about making arrows, the use of archery in medieval warfare and medieval weaponry and armour. Medieval entertainment in the form of jesters and jugglers were present and there was the opportunity to have a go at diabolo, plate spinning, archery and axe throwing. It was great fun and historically very informative.

As someone who loves history, I greatly enjoyed the event, but it set me thinking about the differences in life between then and now.

We often feel we are living in a ‘different world’ nowadays. Clothing, entertainment, travel and warfare certainly look very different in the 21st century. But interestingly, all these things still exist. The form of these things may have changed, but the fact of these things remains.

Medieval sanitation and healthcare may leave us feeling blessed to live nowadays rather than in the 15th centruy, but I find that levels of gullibility and superstition have not really changed (even if the expression of these has). It’s still much easier to ‘go along with the crowd’ than it is to think independently and live by faith.

People who questioned official propaganda in medieval times were often tortured and executed; an ‘executioner’ was present at the show with instruments of torture for us to see. We may feel smug that such things no longer happen….until we watch an espionage film or until we reflect that vilification, slander, ‘cancelling’ and other methods of persecuting mavericks are just as prevalent nowadays as ever.

The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is nothing new under the sun. (Eccl 1:9) We can be grateful for every advancement and improvement to ordinary life that has happened since medieval times, but we can also see that the condition of the human heart has not fundamentally changed at all. Sin, superstition and prejudice still exist. Fear, anxiety, worry and dread are still present. Warfare is still ongoing. People still need a Saviour, now as then.

Garry spoke tonight about the church of God. The church is a people who assemble together because they are called by God. God knows the best way for us to live and if we are to live well (thriving instead of just surviving), we need to live according to His ways. God calls all people to Himself, offering us an open invitation to come (see Matt 22:1-4). We are God’s assembly, joined together by this common call from God.

The church in action is seen in Eph 4:14-16. Growth is God’s goal for us all, but this involves effort on our part, as we are called to rid ourselves of all malice and deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander. (1 Pet 2:1-3) These attitudes have to be replaced by a desire to do good to all people, especially those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10) We are called to live not by lies, but to allow the truth of Jesus to govern our behaviour. This will mean getting rid of hypocrisy (double standards), envy (resisting the advertiser’s lure) and slander (running people down and making false statements about people.)

Peter goes on to say we should crave spiritual milk, getting a taste for spiritual things. Paul told the Corinthians that they needed to grow and move beyond milk, though (see 1 Cor 3:1-3). Growth gives stability. It enables us to withstand the storms of life (see Matt 7:24-27), including the fear of death and war, the rising costs of living and so on. Growth comes from good soil (Matt 13:3-9, 22); we have to understand that God calls us to be warriors, nor worriers. When we are afraid, we can put our trust in God (see Ps 53:1-4), understanding that His peace enables us to live without being tossed about by events all the time.

When our granddaughter was just one, she was knocked over by a wave which would not topple her now, two years later. She has grown and developed and could easily stand up against such a wave now. As we walk with God and grow and develop in our spiritual lives, we too can be strong. We are the church; God is alongside us!

Dave spoke this morning from Philippians 1:6, a verse that resounds with Paul’s confidence that God will complete the good work He had begun in the Philippians. The letter to the Philippians is one which, despite being written from the chains of prison, is full of joy and hope. Paul is confident that God will not give up on the work He has started. Ultimately, this work is not something which originated with his ministry, or even with their response; it is a work begun by God. He uses people and churches to reach others, to be sure, but it is God who works in and through us. God does not give up on those He calls; He continues working in them. Spiritual rebirth is the start of this work, but He continues to plant the life of Christ in the soul of man and implants us with everlasting life.

All who are in Christ Jesus are new creations (2 Cor 5:17) and God works transformation in us, rather like a sculptor who chisels away at the stone until the perfect shape emerges. God will chisel off everything in us that does not look like Christ. He has a purpose for our lives that goes beyond our deaths, for this work will only be completed on the day of Christ Jesus, the day when the work of salvation is finally completed and there is restoration of all that has been tainted by sin.

Just as Paul could be confident for the Philippians, so Dave spoke of his confidence that God will complete His work in Goldthorpe. He is still working in our midst and we know He will not give up!