Day 25 - “And to my wider fan base I say…”

Reading: John 12:20-50

You are about to disappear. You have an encounter with death booked. You are increasingly being asked for help by an ever-expanding group of people. The demands seem endless, but you have so little time. Really you want to spend what little time you have left with those closest to you. What final message would you send out to your wider range of associates – to your public?

That’s the situation in which we find Jesus within this passage. The crowds are still confused about who Jesus is, and unwilling to accept all of his teaching. He points out what we all find so difficult, that it is only by living with a focus outside of ourselves, specifically on Jesus, that we will truly gain the spiritual vitality that is God’s eternal life (verses 25-26).

Notice that Jesus is approached by some Greeks, when his mission was first of all to Jews. The author, John, makes this incredible link from the Old Testament prophecy of Isaiah chapter 6, when he confirms that Isaiah actually saw Jesus in his vision (Isaiah 6:1). But the problem is that most of the Jews still didn’t believe in Jesus (verses 37-43).

So Jesus gives out a final last public call for response (verses 44-50). It’s a very positive one, linking him with his Father, two personalities who work as one being.

Jesus (sent by his Father), by being lifted up on the cross, offers to lift any of us out of hopelessness into life. All of those Greeks — the same is true of all non-Jews – will also have that same offer as a result of Jesus’ death and resurrection. But of course for those who reject Jesus, there are clear and unequivocal warnings of condemnation at the last day.

Response

Lord Jesus, help me to demonstrate my trust in you:  by my gratitude for your death, by my concern for others who face judgement for rejecting you, and by choosing daily to prefer serving you rather than myself.

Ian

Day 24 - Missed opportunities

Reading: John 12:1-19

Have you ever misread or misinterpreted situations, only to find out later that you have missed out on God’s clarity for that particular moment? I know I have. I remember once taking a short ship up a very long river. My focus was on making plans for when we would arrive and getting the ship to its destination as quickly as possible so that it could start to deliver urgently needed medical care.  Unfortunately, I completely missed the opportunity that half the crew had no faith and that being cooped up with them for 3 months could have been an ideal opportunity to get real about my faith with them.  Regrettably, this story definitely gets filed in my ‘missed opportunities tray’.

In today’s reading we are privileged enough to read about Jesus’ final day or so on earth.  We see Mary’s complete belief in Jesus as she displays the perfect example of humility and servanthood by bathing Jesus’ feet in valuable perfume and then wiping his feet with her hair.  We see the polar opposite from Judas, as he demonstrates his complete unbelief in Jesus as he rebukes Mary for pouring a year’s wages over Christ’s feet.  The following morning we read of Jesus’ final journey into Jerusalem, as foretold, right down to the mode of transport, in Zechariah 9:9.  Even after seeing Jesus enter Jerusalem in this way, we are still told that many of the disciples did not understand who Jesus really was and why he was with them.

Is there a danger that we might stray so far from our relationship with God that we start to lose his sovereign perspective on our lives? Judas’ agenda at the time was money. What’s yours today?

Response

Let’s pray today that we are prompted to forge an even closer relationship with Christ so that we may avoid missing out on God’s agenda for our lives.

James

Day 23 - “Oh my word!”

Reading: John 11:38-57

What an emotional punch it must have carried when Lazarus first appeared from the tomb.

But I can’t help feeling that after the event the family had a bit of a chuckle about it. You’re familiar with the scene, I hope. Something deadly serious has happened in the past, but when you relive it, maybe even years later, you find yourself crying with laughter at some of the details. “Do you remember?” Martha says to Mary, “when Lazarus waddled out. Ha ha! He had so many linen strips around him he walked like a duck!” “Yes,” says Mary, “and then you asked him how he was feeling, and he said, ‘Mmph mmph mmph!’ Hilarious!”

I’m sure they saw the funny side. The chief priests and Pharisees, however, didn’t. It seemed to them that this was the final proof that their actions so far had been totally ineffective. As they contemplated the implications they came to the conclusion that Jesus had to die. Amazingly Caiaphas, no friend to Jesus, prophesied that his death would actually benefit everyone. None of them could have imagined how the number of Christ followers would explode after his resurrection.

Hindsight, as they say, is a wonderful thing. Decisions that were difficult seem obvious. Momentous events seem trivial. Much, but not all, is seen with greater clarity when we have the benefit of perspective. Like someone getting to the end of a book, we can see to some extent how life’s various threads tie up to make something meaningful.

But we’re not at the end of the book yet, are we? (Some of you might think you’re in the last chapter, but who knows!). And until every story is completed and God puts the binding on the great tomes of history, we will never fully understand or appreciate why things happen (the good or the bad) or how important they are in the grand scheme of things. And so until then we trust: trust in God because of what he reveals about himself in his Word, in his world, and in his dealings with us.

Response

Take a book, place a bookmark in it, and put it in an unusual and prominent place for the next few days. Remind yourself each time you see it that God’s story is not yet finished.

Roger

Day 22 - Patience is a virtue?

Reading: John 11:1-37

It is said patience is a virtue. I’m not so sure about that. I think it depends what is meant by ‘virtue’… Margaret Thatcher perhaps summed it up best when she said, “I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end.”

In our passage today Lazarus is seriously ill and his sisters Mary and Martha send word to Jesus. The news reached him and Jesus dropped everything he had planned and set off to Bethany to be with his good friends. Except he didn’t. He stayed put. For two days. In fact by the time he arrived Lazarus had already been dead four days. It seems a cruel way to treat good friends.

How must Mary and Martha have felt during those long days, initially expecting Jesus to arrive quickly, then as each day passed thinking maybe it will be today… And then their brother dies. With still no sign of Jesus. Doesn’t he care? Has he forgotten them? Have they upset him in some way? Or did he never really love them at all?

When something does not happen when we want and the way we want – the way we prayed – we become frustrated, annoyed, maybe doubting God’s love for us. Life should always pan out the way we want… as if we are the ones in control. But we aren’t. God is. And sometimes he needs to take us through things we’d rather not experience. Because what we naturally think is that it’s always about me. We forget we might be part of the answer to somebody else’s prayers – but to be that answer God has to change us first. In today’s passage when Jesus talks with Martha as he nears Bethany she makes the most amazing confession of faith in verse 27. Even in the midst of her raw grief. Imagine how God can use her now...

So when we have a bit of a rant at God for not doing things the way we want let’s pause and remember that it’s not him who needs to change.

Response

Paul suggests a good recipe to follow: “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12).

Chris

Day 21 - You’re in his team

Reading: John 10:22-42

Many unemployed youngsters in big cities are drawn into gangs. They find some comfort in ‘belonging’ and it is true that most of us need to experience the same comfort, that of being accepted. The problem is that all human belonging can be quite temporary. Our society today is somehow not experiencing long-term security. Our jobs, even our marriages, seem no longer to have the permanence that we recall from our childhood days. Footballers such as Stanley Matthews (Stoke City and Blackpool), Bobby Moore (West Ham) and Tom Finney (Preston) spent their whole playing lives linked to only one or two teams. Very rare to find such loyalty today when money is the driving force in sport. Here, in John’s Gospel, Jesus confirms the position of all his disciples. He not only offers total acceptance to his disciples, he assures them that this is for keeps. “I give them eternal life and they shall never perish; no-one can snatch them out of my hand.”

Jesus is reminding us that belonging to him is every bit as strong and permanent as the relationship between himself and his heavenly Father: “I and the Father are one.” Friendships can come and go, alliances between nations may be only for a season, marriages can be just as fragile – but we can never lose our parentage. We are born a child of our parents and that is one ‘belonging’ that lasts forever. Our birth certificates confirm who we are in this world. Thankfully our relationship with God needs no human registration. When we are born again, into his kingdom, our names are “written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Philippians 4:3). “Your names are written in heaven,” Jesus tells his followers (Luke 10:20).

If today is one of those days when you wish you had stayed in bed and you are experiencing some of the uncertainties of this life, hold on to this one sure fact – you are his.

Response

Heavenly Father, remind me constantly that I have been chosen, forgiven, redeemed, and it is forever.  Hallelujah! What a friend I have in Jesus.

Peter

Day 20 - Following the leader

Reading: John 10:1-21

If you happened to be at the crib service last year you will have noted that shepherding sheep is not easy! 

To have a better understanding of today’s passage, it’s worth noting that ancient eastern shepherding was very different to our concept today.  Then, a shepherd’s flock would often have been pastured within a mixed owned flock and so when the shepherd went to the gate and called his sheep they actually recognised their own shepherd’s voice and came out from the rest of the flock, to follow him.  Shepherds in those times did not have dogs to chivvy or harass, rather he would go ahead of his flock ensuring safe passage as his sheep followed closely, listening to his guiding voice to prevent them falling into ravines or getting snatched away by wild animals.  The sheep were generally kept for wool, not meat, so a long term relationship would have been fostered. It’s easier to then understand the comparison between Jesus our shepherd and us as his flock.  He calls us by name into relationship with him.  He offers to lead us in life, having gone before us – even through death.  He offers us sacrificial protection from those out to harm us, offering love and enjoyment in life – now and for eternity.  His relationship with us is a pointer to the Father’s relationship with him.

Response

We want to be people who can discern the shepherd’s voice within our noisy world. Being in step with his word, his Spirit and discerning with wise believers will help us hear that voice. Let’s pray this for today.

Victoria

Day 19 - Seeing the bigger picture

Reading: John 9:1-41

There is a lot of blindness in the passage today; some physical but mostly spiritual. Firstly, the disciples are blind, or at least mistaken, that the man’s disability is punishment for sin. Jesus puts them right: “Neither the man nor his parent sinned but this happened so that the works of God may be displayed in him.” Sometimes bad things just happen in a fallen world. Jesus also issues a stark warning that “night is coming, when no one can work”, reminding us that there is a time limit to God’s offer of grace and forgiveness.

Jesus then heals the man with one of his miracles or, as John often refers to them, his signs. A sign points to something else. In this case the miracle points to something greater, namely that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God.

Some of those who knew the man refuse to believe in the miracle. They look for other explanations – it’s not the same man, he just looks like him. This may seem strange; surely they’d know. But we too can be guilty of having entrenched views and ignoring any evidence or experience to the contrary. We too can confine our great God and his incomparable power, love and wisdom, to the everyday.

Then the Pharisees get involved. Supposedly learned men, they are the most entrenched, worrying about their position and authority rather than what these miraculous signs should be telling them. They are more concerned about a breach of their Sabbath rules (not God’s) than the wondrous curing of a blind man and what that should tell them. More worried about their rule book than helping someone in need. In the ensuing debate about Jesus, it is the formerly blind man who shows the wisdom, not the learned Pharisees. He sums it up perfectly: “If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” Put that in your rule book!

Response

Ask God to show you your blind spots and open your spiritual eyes.

Tom

Day 18 - The truth that sets you free

Reading: John 8:31-59

Meeting Jesus can sometimes be an uncomfortable experience. 

This part of John begins with a group of people who had begun a journey of belief in Jesus.  Jesus points out that applying the brain (belief) needed to include a change in behaviour (obey). The inward change needed to have an impact on external actions, and this combination of belief and obedience would lead to truth and freedom.  Following Jesus involved transformation, inside and out. 

But this call to commitment took these new believers out of their comfort zone. They responded by retreating into pride in their heritage and became limited by their own preconceived ideas of what freedom might look like. Imprisoned by the past, they were unable to let go and move forward and when challenged, this blinkered view drove them away from God and brought them into direct conflict with Jesus.  Jesus’ response is to stand his ground, and he repeatedly offers them revelations of himself – he is sent from the Father, brings eternal life, he is honoured by God and finally at the end, they are left with no uncertainties that he is God, the ‘I am’.  Yet, they still could not move forward into freedom.

This passage took my thoughts in two directions. 

One more personal – are there times when I hold back God’s transformational work in my life because of pride, being locked into the past or failing to grasp the bigger, wider perspective that God offers me? 

The other, a reflection on the occasional response of friends, family – who might reject and actively resist the truth and the person of Jesus.  How I need to pray for them, that they might experience repeated revelations of Jesus, and the realisation that truth brings freedom.

Response

This passage may have created a desire in you to release more of God’s transforming power into your life, or you may long for this for a friend/family member.  Ask God to do this, or find a trusted friend to pray with you.

Louise

Day 17 - Where are we?

Reading: John 8:12-30

My three siblings and I were a ‘lively bunch’ for my parents and it was very rare that we were all quiet at the same time. Only sleep or fear would bring about silence. I remember arriving in Tenerife to discover my dad’s driving licence wasn’t valid, and my mum was left to drive for the first time in another country. Unfortunately it wasn’t a car but more like a minibus! We pulled out of the airport, minibus dead silent, and found ourselves on a motorway, not knowing where we had come from or where we were going.

Today we see people trying to understand who Jesus is. Jesus explains the he is the light of the world (verse 12) and, contrary to my family’s experience, that he knew where he came from and where he was going (verse 14). Jesus clarifies that he came from his Father (verse 16) from above (verse 23) and that he was going where his listeners could not go (verse 21). Jesus, sent by Father God, knew who he was, where he came from and what he was called to do and ‘many believed in him’ (verse 30).

As we discover who Jesus is, we can discover who we are, where we are from and where we are going. Jesus tells us that if we ‘do not believe we will die in our sins’ (verse 24) but as we place our trust in Jesus we come to discover that we are made by God, children of God and can start a life of eternity with God.

I am pleased to say we survived our minibus experience and now have a Sat Nav and my dad has updated his driving licence (and my siblings and I are no longer silent). The question is: do you know where you came from and where you are going?

Response

Lord God I celebrate that you made me. Thank you that because of my faith in Jesus I know where I am going. Today I lift to you those dear to me who don’t know you. Amen.

Andy

Day 16 - Caught in a trap?

Reading: John 8:1-11

Have you ever felt in a trap?  Perhaps you’ve been caught ‘with your hand in the till’.  I know that in this situation, my natural reaction is to talk defensively – and I can talk for England when I get going!

Here we see Jesus directing the crowd to do completely the opposite. In fact this is the only time that Jesus is recorded as writing.  Under so much pressure (verse 7 – ‘they kept on questioning him’) Jesus is silent and wrote in the ground with his finger.  But why did Jesus, who is fully man but also fully God, knowing the answer to this trap, bend down in silence and start writing on the ground? I am sure that it was not to gain time to think of his answer!

Was it for the woman, standing in fear of her life, in the temple courts, where all the people had gathered around him (verse 2)? Humiliated, feeling dirty, condemned and utterly ashamed of herself?

If Jesus had engaged in a quick response, cleverly arguing his point, maybe she would have not had time to consider her sin, its consequences and her need for forgiveness.

Finally, after all her accusers had departed, Jesus, the only one who had the right to condemn her, forgives her.  How ecstatic must she have felt and how much more would she have been likely to follow Jesus’ instruction to ‘leave your life of sin’ for that time of self-examination?

Is there a danger in our Christian lives, that we come to God in prayer – worshiping, thanking, asking... and oh, a little sorry? We don’t live under law and should not have a guilt-orientated faith but we need to understand the incredible power of the forgiveness that God has provided to his children.

Response

Sometimes we need to take time out and examine ourselves, as the woman was made to do, maybe to watch Jesus write in the sand and seriously consider the meaning and sacrifice that is behind our forgiveness.

Guy

Day 15 - “He is the Christ”

Reading: John 7:14-53

Here we have the account of the Lord Jesus starting to teach the people as he moves into the temple courts during the Feast of Tabernacles.  There are various groups of people listening to Jesus and it is interesting to see the different attitudes and responses they have towards him.  At first the Jews were amazed at his teaching but then their mood changes and later both the chief priests and the
Pharisees are conspiring together to arrest him.  As you read these verses look at the different responses people have, and also how ignorance, prejudice and pride prevented many from believing in Jesus. Is there anything today preventing you from believing in Jesus or from growing in your faith? If so how can you overcome it?

On the last day of the Feast we are told in verses 37-38 that Jesus stood and spoke in a loud voice as he delivered his message.  No doubt he had been watching the crowds in the heat of day, hustling and jostling one another as they came to worship.  Many would be tired and thirsty after a busy week celebrating the Feast and making their sacrificial offerings.  Jesus sees their physical needs but also the spiritual thirst in their lives and so invites anyone who is spiritually thirsty to come to him and drink. The verses are similar to those in John 4, but here we have the promise of the Holy Spirit who would come as prophesied in Joel 2:28-29, or the Day of Pentecost, to indwell all those who believed in Jesus.  The Holy Spirit is God, the Third Person within the Godhead who comes with power to strengthen and purify us. He is the mediator of new birth and forgiveness in our lives and helps us to be witnesses for Jesus. His presence in us is linked to streams of living water continually flowing through us.

Response

Today let us acknowledge that Jesus is the Christ and pray for the Holy Spirit to pour his living water into our lives to refresh and renew us for the day ahead.

Susan

Day 14 - Misunderstood

Reading: John 7:1-13

“To be great you have to be willing to be mocked, hated and misunderstood.” Banksy

This passage speaks to me about Jesus being misunderstood, both by his brothers and by the crowds gathering for the Festival of Tabernacles.

It has become increasingly unsafe for Jesus to be in the South (around Jerusalem) so he continues his work, for now, in the North (around Galilee). Jesus does this, not because he is afraid of the danger, of course, but because he knows the right timing has not yet come.

Jesus’ brothers, on the other hand, which we can assume means his natural younger brothers, misunderstand him. They misunderstand Jesus’ actions, his miracles, his methods, his motivation and his timing. As a result ‘even his own brothers did not believe in him.’

The Festival of Tabernacles was a huge event, perhaps even the most popular of the festivals. It was linked to celebrating the harvest and to remembering God providing for his people in the wilderness. Jesus’ brothers wanted him to show up and show off (verse 3).

In the end, Jesus does go. Perhaps he has waited for a prompt from his heavenly Father rather than his earthly brothers, but when he goes he does not show up in the way the brothers directed him. He arrives in secret.

The questions I ask myself today reading this passage are these:

How easy is it for me to misunderstand God’s divine plan when it doesn’t seem to fit my expectations or requests?

How often are my actions or lack of actions for Jesus misunderstood and when that happens do I take strength from the fact that Jesus was misunderstood first?

Response

Lord, when I am misunderstood, help me to find strength from Jesus’ experience. When I misunderstand your actions or your apparent lack of action or silence help me to trust.

Ken

Day 13 - Grateful or grumbling?

Reading: John 6:41-71

Our family have a ‘thankful’ jar which sits on our kitchen table at home. At the weekends we think together about the things that we’re thankful to God for and write or draw them on some paper and pop them in the jar.  At the end of the year we open the jar and read through all the things we’ve been grateful for over the past year. It’s fun, faith building and encouraging.  It’s a great reminder that even when difficult things happen we still have so many things we can choose to thank God for.

In our reading today we see different reactions to Jesus’ teaching.  The Jews grumbled (verse 41) and argued (verse 52) because they couldn’t accept what Jesus said. They were looking for the kind of Messiah who would give them what they wanted. They couldn’t accept that he was who he said he was.

Jesus’ own followers grumbled too (verse 61) and many of them deserted him because the teaching was hard (verse 66). The teaching was hard not so much in understanding it intellectually but that it asked for their whole heart and soul.

There was a lot of grumbling going on!

But what Jesus was teaching should have made them thankful.  He offers himself as the bread of life, the only one who can give eternal life. The One who satisfies and the One who is the only true God. He is worth giving our whole heart and soul to.

If you’re like me then it’s much easier to grumble than to be grateful. It’s all too easy to grumble about what is hard and to forget about what Jesus has given us.

In the face of hardship gratitude is a choice we make. What Jesus teaches about himself in this passage today can remind us of just how much we have to be grateful for.

Do you find grumbling easier than gratitude? Talk to God about that. What is there in this passage that can prompt you to praise?

Response

Use verse 68 as a prayer of praise that only Jesus has the words of eternal life and to commit again to following him, heart and soul.

Ellen

Day 12 - Stop digging

Reading: John 6:25-40

The law of holes refers to a proverb which states that, “if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.” The meaning behind it is that if you find yourself in an untenable position, you should stop and change, rather than carry on making it worse.

Thankfully this crowd failed to observe this proverb, so we benefit from Jesus’ correction of their mistakes.

Mistake No 1: Materialism. Jesus corrected their notion that a full stomach is all they needed. As if to clear that up, they show us…

Mistake No 2: Self Sufficiency. They asked him, what must WE DO…”  Jesus explained that the only ‘work’ we must do is to believe in him. It’s evident that they still misunderstand, because their next question shows…

Mistake No 3: Believing in the wrong thing. The crowd, looking for a sign, were trying to compare Jesus to Moses.

So Jesus uses shock tactics to get them thinking. The manna (the food God provided for the Israelites each day wandering through the wilderness) was bread from heaven, but it wasn’t. Certainly, it had food value, but it wouldn’t sustain spiritual life.  That relied on the TRUE bread from Heaven, Jesus himself.  He is the only true source of spiritual nourishment.

Notice in verses 32-39 the number of times ‘from heaven’ appears.  Then count the number of times you can see a reference to the Father/he (who sent me)/he (has given me).

Jesus makes the point that our only source of spiritual life is himself, sent as a gift from heaven by the Father.  The crowds, like the Samaritan woman who misunderstood the water of life (John 4:15), were trapped into thinking about the material, the tangible, things that they could see and touch.  Jesus reminds us that while food (and water) are essentials, there is a spiritual dimension that is vital, and ‘seeing’ that through the eyes of faith has eternal rewards (verses 39-40).

Response

If I buy this, I’ll be content. I’ve done this… (a list of achievements) or I refuse to ask for help. Are you believing in yourself rather than walking daily with Jesus? Look to the Son. He’s enough.

Ian

Day 11 - The same power today

Reading: John 6:1-24

What’s your experience of seeing miracles here in 21st century Chichester? The same miraculous power which Jesus bought to bear in the gospels is the very same that is present with us today and which we teach our children about in Sunday school.

Today’s scripture captures that well known story of how Jesus fed a crowd of more than 5000 with 5 loaves and two fishes and also walked on water and calmed a storm. We see how, despite experiencing 3 earlier miracles, some of his disciples still needed to learn to have faith and recognise the potential of God’s sovereign power through Jesus.

But what of the crowd? We know that the Jews of the time were under some pretty serious oppression from the Romans and that they were awaiting a new prophet as foretold by Moses in Old Testament scriptures.  Their expectation was very likely to be a Moses-like prophet, a man who would bring strong military leadership.  This is why we read that Jesus withdrew soon after, knowing that the crowd intended to make him king by force. 

There is a danger that, with the familiarity of this miracle and the passing of time, we read of Jesus’ sovereign power in these examples as merely stories and we lose the awesomeness of the miraculous wonder which was displayed in front of a crowd of over 5000. We must recognise the power at work in these miracles as coming from the very same God that we call our heavenly Father today, the very same God that allows miracles to occur in our lives today, whether we choose to identify and recognise that it’s his power at work or not.  Soon after today’s passage Jesus draws the miracle of the feeding of the 5000 to a brilliant conclusion by teaching that, “I am the bread of life.  Whoever comes to me will not go hungry.”

Response

Dear heavenly Father, thank you for your Word which helps us to understand the amazing detail of your power through Jesus.  Please would you help me through your Spirit to expect and recognise your sovereign power in my life today.

James

Day 10 - Altaring the ego

Reading: John 5:31-47

Have you ever thought to yourself, “If only I lived when Jesus was walking this earth. I wouldn’t have any doubts at all if I could see his miracles and hear his teaching!”

The reality, however, is that many who saw and heard him in the first century did not believe him. For that reason  Jesus appealed to the practice laid down by Moses (Deuteronomy 19:15) of calling forwards “two or three witnesses” to support his claims about himself, as a person’s testimony about himself was not admissible in a court of law (John 5:31). In Jewish law courts a lot of significance was placed on the reliability of the witnesses. If they were trustworthy and dependable, then their witness carried a lot of weight.

Jesus asserts that a number of witnesses testify on his behalf: John the Baptist (5:33), the works that Jesus was doing (5:36) and God the Father himself (5:37). These three, he was saying, are all reliable witnesses, and therefore accepting Jesus’ claims should be a simple matter.

But it wasn’t, was it? Many of those who heard him and saw his miracles did not believe. How could that be?

Jesus explains the reason: “How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?” (5:44)

Pride, it seems, is the great barrier to belief. Pride twists how we view things, contorting the truth to make it fit with what we want to believe: that we are gods, worthy of praise and admiration. And if we believe we are gods, then there is no room for faith in Christ as God, is there? As the Scottish preacher James Denny once put it, “No man can bear witness to Christ and to himself at the same time. No man can give the impression that he is clever and that Christ is mighty to save.”

Response

Lord, my pride gets in the way of trusting you and of believing what you might do, even today. You are God, I am not. Help me to live in the reality of that today.

Roger 

Day 9 - Missing the point (2)

Reading: John 5:1-30

There are things in life I find rather pointless: why are buildings peppered with signs saying, “It is against the law to smoke on these premises” when there are no equivalent signs for stealing or killing (both equally against the law)? And ‘reality’ TV – a misnomer if ever there was one – what’s the point? Thankfully there are things in life with real purpose and benefit – like me I’m sure you’d rate football as one of those…

In our passage today Jesus heals a disabled man and the religious leaders present completely miss the point. A man condemned to a wretched existence suddenly has a whole new life to live but the religious leaders don’t care about that, they have a different agenda.

When Jesus heals this man he tells him to pick up his mat and walk, knowing full well the religious police will spot him doing this on a Sabbath. The healed man obeys and sure enough the religious leaders notice him so he tells them, “The man who made me well said to me ‘pick up your mat and walk.’” And they ask him who told him to pick up his mat and walk…

No, no, no – man-made laws about the Sabbath are not the issue. Somebody who had endured disability for decades has been healed. Completely. Totally. It’s time for a party, not for persecution. Yet they go after Jesus because he healed a man on the Sabbath. So Jesus makes quite a lengthy case for the defence, saying the Son of God was among them, seeking to please his Father by doing God’s work in ways people could experience for themselves – if they chose to.

I wonder if there are times when we too miss the point in our church culture. What do we expect when we come to church? The same seat, the same people, the same songs? Or do we expect to encounter the living God, knowing he loves us and conscious of what it cost Jesus to bring us life and the freedom to enter God’s presence?

Response

“The Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)

Chris 

Day 8 - Believing is not about seeing

Reading: John 4:43-54

At the opening of this passage Jesus compares his reception in Samaria with the reception he receives from his own people. The Samaritans welcomed him for who he was whilst the Jews were more impressed by his deeds in Jerusalem (see John 2:23). Jesus refers to this contrast when he comments in verse 48 on their lack of real faith.  Perhaps the government official was also only relying on Jesus as a result of reports from Jerusalem. However, when Jesus speaks directly to him his faith (trust) is instant and is later confirmed when he meets his servants and they report the healing of his son.

Our faith should be based on who Jesus is rather than what we expect him to do for us. Many of us will never directly experience a miracle but that should not affect the trust we place in him.  Whenever we travel in someone else’s car we place our trust in their driving skills.  Thankfully, most journeys are uneventful and routine but, in the event of any emergency, we must continue to trust the driver. He is in control from start to finish. So it is with our faith in Jesus. Once we have started out with him we need only remind ourselves of who he is rather than allowing our immediate circumstances to rule our hearts. It is said that, if six different people view an accident, you will have six different accounts of what happened. Our faith should not depend on what we see but on the person who inspires our trust. In John 14:6 Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

Response

Dear Father, refresh my faith. You are my Lord and I trust you for whatever lies ahead. Be my shelter and my guide in the days to come.

Peter

Day 7 - You reap what you sow

Reading: John 4:27-42

About 25 years ago I met a lady in the street. She was drunk and vulnerable. I played no significant role in her life other than to spend a few hours with her and try to explain something of who Jesus was.  I never saw her again and have no idea what happened to her, but I prayed that day that in her confusion and despair God would nurture a seed…

Today’s passage gives the conclusion to Jesus extraordinary meeting with the Samaritan woman, and some clear teaching for the disciples on what it means to have a “harvest mindset”.

Jesus’ personal insight, and a clear explanation of who he was, led this woman to hastily return to her town to witness about him.  In the explanation by this marginalised woman, her community saw enough to listen and “Come see a man…” who they later acknowledged as “saviour of the world”.

Meanwhile back at the well… the disciples are still concentrating on their food-finding mission (verse 8).  But Jesus turns the situation to teach them of his true mission, and their own commissioning.  As the Samaritan townspeople are listening to the woman, Jesus is telling the disciples that the harvest is now. The disciples weren’t even present as Jesus sowed his message of hope to the Samaritan woman, but they were about to be involved in a big reaping. 

As followers we are to be involved in both sowing and reaping. Sometimes the sowing is lifelong and we don’t see any evidence of reaping, and sometimes we reap without any understanding of the sowing that has gone before, but we are called and commissioned to both. 

Response

Thank you Father, that you graciously allow us to partner in your work, and equip us in it.  Give us perseverance in sowing and urgency in reaping.

Victoria

Day 6 - Would you like a drink?

Reading: John 4:1-26

How are you at striking up conversations with people? How comfortable are you sharing matters of faith? There’s no doubt it comes easier to some than others, but we are all called to give it our best shot (Matthew 28:18-20) Here, Jesus makes evangelism personal, relevant and natural.

Jesus asks a Samaritan woman for a drink and chooses to ignore the prejudices of the day – that women shouldn’t be spoken to in public; that Samaritans were unclean and to be treated with suspicion (remember how the expert in the law couldn’t bring himself to even say the “S” word in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37)).

Jesus doesn’t judge the woman. He sees one of his Father’s children who needs help. She is a sinner, as we all are, who has had 5 husbands and who currently lives with a man who is not her husband. She also needs to know more of Jesus, as we all do, and the living water that he offers. This living water is the Holy Spirit and eternal life, the Holy Spirit that when accepted and embraced enables us to “worship in spirit and truth”. Without him we will worship in the wrong places (on the mountain or in Jerusalem) and in the wrong ways (in church on Sundays rather than with our whole lives). As Jesus says, “God is spirit, and the worshippers must worship in spirit and truth.” They are the kind of worshippers we must strive to be and we need the Holy Spirit’s help to do that.

Response

Ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit today, embrace him and, in his power, reach out to someone with a kindness.

Tom

Food for Thought & More ...

There is no reading today - unless you are catching up that is! But in case you are at risk of missing the regular e-mail, here are some things to look forward to.

This Sunday we have the first of our Sunday messages. Ian will be speaking on Sunday morning from John 1:43-51, where Jesus finds Philip, Philip finds Nathanael, and then Jesus finds Nathanael. And then on Sunday night Roger will be speaking from John 1:14 about the One full of truth.

Also on Sunday morning Andy and Victoria will be introducing 'Food for Thought' - a three course menu for having a family conversation about an account from John - in this instance from the John 1:43-51 passage.

If you have not joined in with the readings yet, there's still time! You can download the book for free from Smashwords (134 downloads to date!).

There have been some great thoughts here on the Blog and also on Twitter, and it's been good to hear about conversations and sharing in small groups to. Keep them coming!

Day 5 - More of you, less of me

Reading: John 3:22-36

Have you ever had the experience of investing huge amounts of effort into a role or project, only to find that someone else has come along and ‘taken all the glory’, is better, more successful or popular than you? 

Feeling a lack of appreciation, to be outshone by another’s abilities or inadequate to complete a task are common human experiences and John the Baptist had reason to feel all these things and more.  He had devoted his life to deliver a message of repentance, he had put aside a settled, comfortable existence, to live out his calling, and people had responded to his message.  But now, they were turning away from him to another voice. All that effort, passion and sacrifice and no-one to listen.

Yet John’s response is extraordinary. Instead of jumping to the defensive, or attempting to extinguish the competition, or giving in to discouragement, he submits in humility and generosity of spirit.  He is content to slip off into the sidelines, to allow Jesus to take centre stage. John knows that all he has achieved has been due to God, not his own abilities. He has a healthy sense of his self before God, a deep understanding of the person of Jesus and the unfailing resource of the Holy Spirit. This realisation releases John into joy, allows him to take pleasure in his God-given role and enables him to powerfully prophesy. God uses John strategically to prepare the way for Jesus. John is the warm-up act and someone who is ready and willing to play his part.

For me, this is a reminder that all that I have at work, home and church is given from God. I have no excuse to hang back through feelings of inadequacy or lack of recognition. I serve in order to give Jesus centre stage.  The same is true for each of us, as we serve and play our part in God’s amazing plan.

Response

Father, in all that I think, feel and do this week, may there be more of you and less of me. Amen.

Louise