Created In The Image Of God

Soooo, I'm back from New Zealand; the birth place of many "Australian" movie stars and the alleged creators of the good old Australian Pavlova.

The trip was absolutely awesome, I'm pretty sure it's safe to say everyone had a great time and that we have all made friendships that will last forever!!

While I was in New Zealand I had the privilege of preaching at the Manukau Salvos. I spoke on the concept of being created in the image of God as is found in Genesis 1.

As I looked at this passage I saw 4 things that speak to being created in God's image.

First, I saw in this passage that we are each created. God actually took the time and deliberately made us. If God has created us this means that we are intimately known by God, check out Jeremiah 1:5. If God has taken the time to create us it means that we are no cosmic accident and that there must be some reason for our creation. This feeds into my second point

Second, I saw that we are created on purpose for a purpose. Have a look at the creation story in Genesis. Creation was deliberate and ordered, first cam night and day, then sky then land and sea, then the plants, the the sun and moon and stars, then came the sea creatures then animals and birds and finally, after all of this had been put in place came Humans. As I look at this I see that God was preparing creation for humanity, everything necessary for supporting life was put into place before God created us. As far as being created for a purpose, look at Genesis 1: . As I look at this passage I see that as humans we are tasked with taking care of the planet. But perhaps this is not the primary reason for creation. As I read the bible I am convinced that the true reason for our creation is to be in relationship with God. Read Joshua 24: 14 - 15, here we see God reaching out to the nation of Israel and calling them to choose life in relationship with Him. Our primary purpose in life should be to be in relationship with our creator.

Third, I see that we are created in the image of God. Each and every one of us have the potential to share the characteristics of God, characteristics such as justice, mercy, grace, forgiveness, and most importantly; LOVE!!! But, while we have the potential and capacity to share the characteristics of God, we also have the opportunity to reject these characteristics and choose other characteristics such as hate, greed, malice, and selfishness; characteristics that are in sharp contrast with those of God. These characteristics can also have a significant effect on how we see others. If we adopt the character of God, we will begin to see others as being created in His image also. Read Matthew 25: 34 - 40, you can see here that Jesus is calling us to see each and every person as being created in the image of God. As I read the gospels I see many circumstances where Jesus saw people created in the image of His Father and treated them accordingly; there was the Samaritan woman, the Woman caught in adultery, the blind man, the paralytic lowered through the roof, the lame man near the pool and many, many more. In each of these circumstances Jesus saw the image of God in these people and treated them accordingly. Perhaps there is much we can learn from this??

The fourth thing that I noticed was that it is only after humans were created that God says that creation is very good, perhaps it is not too big a stretch to say that we are each very good.

Because of these 4 factors; that we are Created, On Purpose, For a Purpose, In the Image Of God, and that God sees us as being Very Good, is it too much to believe that we are each infinitely valuable in the eyes of God?

Look at John 3:16, it clearly states how valuable we are to God. We are so valuable to God that He became human and then died on the cross in one of the most excruciating deaths imaginable. Look at Acts 2 and 1st Corinthians 6:19, we are so valuable that God has chose us to be His temple, the place where He chooses to live.

Remember, in the Old Testament, God commanded that the Hebrew people create a giant tent where Gods presence could dwell among the people in a tangible sense. Then after the establishment of the nation of Israel God commanded Solomon to build the Temple as a place for Him to live among the people. But as the bible reminds us, the people of Israel abandoned God and as a result God's presence left the Temple, although God was never far away from those who would seek Him (check out Jeremiah 29: 12 - 13). But then in Acts 2, God's Spirit descends and dwells in the hearts of the Disciples and others as the Disciples spread the gospel. Surely, if God has chosen us over some ornate building, then we all must be of more value to God than most of us comprehend.

So I encourage you to see those around you as beings created in the image of the Creator. See their value, see your value and live lives as beings of infinite value to God!!!

Connections

Thursday will mark the beginning of a very big weekend for The Salvation Army, not just in Melbourne, but right around the Australia Southern Territory!!

This year, in addition to the regular commissioning, ordination, appointment and sending out ceremonies, the Salvos are holding a big conference with lots of speakers covering a broard range of topics all related to The Salvation Army connecting with the communities around us.

This whole connections theme got me thinking...

Humans are social beings, admittedly some are more or less social than others, but we all depend on each other in some way or another.

We are all looking for ways to feel connected to others, some are positive ways, while others ways of seeking connection seem to do more damage or harm than they do good.

In the same way, I wonder whether some of our searching for connections with others is really a means of searching for a connection with God?

In Genesis 1: 18 we see that God acknowledges that it is not good for Adam to be alone, so He creates Eve to be Adam's companion. This is the first community, the first connection.

Later in Genesis chapter three we see the first in a long series of disconnections when Adam and Eve eat the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

We see Adam and Eve and consequently all of humanity become disconnected from God from each other and from the earth they live on.

From this point on humanity has been seeking to reconnect. We have been seeking to reconnect of a spiritual level, we have been seeking to reconnect on a relational level and we have been seeking to reconnect on an environmental level.

Now admittedly not all people are seeking reconnection on all of these levels at the same time, but, if we are honest, we are all seeking connection in one way or another.

The good news is that God has made reconnection possible!!!

God became human, in the form of Jesus. God walked the earth as a human, grew up, went through all of the things that regular humans of His day went through, taught us the best way to live in connection with others, and then died inone of the most torturous barabic ways imaginable so that we might be able to connect with God in a personal way, without the need to present him animal sacrifices or go through a third party to speak and hear Him.

In what ways in your life are you seeking connection?

How connected are you?

How connected are you ready to be with God?

Something to think about.

I also just want to take the time to say good luck to the cadets and lieutennants who are being commissioned this weekend and let you know that you are being prayed for.

God Bless You All

Vulnerable

I was thinking about this on the way home from Torquay's 1st birthday bash last night:

I dont like feeling vulnerable, it makes me feel weak, which I kinda know is silly, but i guess it is a learned behaviour (they call it a life commandment in counselling terms). The funny thing is though, that i respect vulnerability in others and see it as a good thing, not weakness.

For those of you who may not know, I was not always the size and shape that i am today. For a long time, while I was in school, I was a short, scrawny kid who wore glasses, was a Christian, and didn't just follow the crowd.

As a result of this I got picked on quite a lot while in school. As a method of protection and defence I learnt not to show anything that resembled weakness and vulnerability, because it only seemed to provide more ammunition to the bullies.

Skip forward some 9 years or so to now, and I am much bigger and stronger (both mentally and physically) and far, far more confident in who I am. But, sometimes I still struggle with allowing others to see me vulnerable, I guess that I like to be seen as strong and in control, after being seen as weak in the past.

But last night as I drove home from Torquay, an Hour and a halfs drive with nothing else to really do, I was spending some time chatting with God about some stuff and God kind of challenged me about this.

The book that I am reading at the moment about Youth Leadership talks about letting others see that you are vulnerable too.

As i thought about this, I realised that the way I act and show my emotions also has an influence on what people see and think a Christian should be. I realised that if I show no vulnerability, I am in effect saying that Christians are not allowed to be vulnerable, or sad, or worried, or things like that.

As I processed this God reminded me of Jesus and His life, a life that while at most times showed a man of strength and courage and grace beyond anything ever seen, Jesus was at times vulnerable also. I think of the the example of where Jesus found out that Lazarus was dead and as the shortest verse in the bible records; "Jesus wept." And I think of Garden of Gethsamane, where Jesus cried and begged God to let Him out of what had to be done, and then, understanding the necessity of what was to come, displayed even more vulnerablility in allowing God to be incontrol. And finally, I see Jesus in the most vulnerable position I can think of when He is nailed to the cross for our sins.

As I rediscovered last night, vulnerability is vital to the Christians walk of faith. If our heart does not break when we see people in trouble or despair, then how Christ-like are we really? I'm not saying that we should all be some sort of super-emotional person who walks around crying all the time, just that we shouldn't be cold and disconnected from what is happening around us either.

When was the last time you had your heart broken?

CROSSING OVER (without Johnathon Edwards)

I'm currently preparing a sermon based on Joshua 1: 1-9, about moving forward, and how God told the Hebrew people how to move forward in to the Promised Land.

While preparing for this sermon I remembered the times Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee from Israel over to the gentile lands.

Every time Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee, the disciples were faced with a challenge on the sea and had to overcome it before reaching the gentile side. but the thing is that when Jesus and the disciples got passed the challenge, and reached the gentile side of the Sea of Galilee, something amazing or miraculous happened.

It was in these times of challenge that the disciples learnt something about Jesus or faith that took them to the next level.

This got me to thinking...

A dangerous thing i know, but...

Isn't this the same in our lives?

So often we are faced with challenges as we try to move from on thing to something new, and i wonder how many times we give up, and go back, not persevering, and miss out on not only learning something new about ourselves, or about God or about our faith in Him, but miss out on something totally amazing at the other side of the challenge?


In Mark Chapter 4 and 5 we see Jesus and the disciples crossing over the Sea of Galilee, to the Gerasenes region.

While crossing over we see Jesus taking a nap in the back of the boat while the disciples panicking in the boat as waves crashed over it and threaten to swamp it. Understandably distressed the disciple wake Jesus up (possibly to see if he can swim??) and ask Him whether he cares that they are about to die. Jesus rebukes the wind and waves and asks the disciples why they were afraid, and asks them what level of faith they really have. The disciples are amazed at what Jesus has done. Then when they reach the Gerasenes Jesus casts out a whole heap of demons from a bloke who had been wandering around a cemetery for years, completely under the control of these demons.

Then in Mark chapter 6, we see the disciples set out on the Sea of Galilee alone, leaving Jesus to pray by himself on the mountain. As night began to settle around them we find the disciples being battered by the wind and the waves in their boat on the Sea of Galilee. The bible tells us that in the early hours of the morning Jesus walked across the water to the disciples in their boat. Peter got out of the boat at the call of Jesus and began to walk toward Him. It was only when Peter began to look around him (taking his focus off Jesus) and focus on the wind and waves that he began to sink. This is where Jesus reaches out to save Peter. Then, once back on the boat, the wind and waves calm down and Jesus and the disciples head for Genesaret where many sick people are healed.

So what can we learn from these disciples?

First: don't get into a boat without Jesus, and make sure He is awake. Or alternatively change can be difficult if Jesus isn't on board.

Second: keep focused on Jesus, otherwise sinking is a very real possibility.

Third: if you do think that your sinking, call out to Jesus for help; he wont let you drown.

Fourth: make the effort to get through the hard times to discover the good stuff at the other end.

In both of these stories we see the disciples trying to go it alone, and failing miserably, we see the disciples calling out for Jesus to help, we see Jesus intervene, we see things get better and then we see miraculous events on the other side of the sea of Galilee.

What are you going through at the moment?

Are you trying to do it by yourself?

Is Jesus on board, or is this not where you are meant to be going?

Have you called out to Jesus and asked Him to help you?

Are you ready for the miracles on the other side?

Deep Wells

I cleaned up my office on Monday!!!

Now this might not seem like much, but my office was a complete mess!! It took the best part of the mornings work to clean up more than 5 weeks worth of clutter, a clutter that seemed to grow through my infrequent visits to the office interspersed with periods of more than a week away from aforementioned office.

Upon cleaning my office i discovered that i had no less than half a dozen books sitting on my desk that needed my attention. Some of these books should have been read sooner, some will wait longer before needing any serious attention, but none the less there were 6 books on my desk that needed to be at least glanced at.

So yesterday afternoon i picked up on book, and decided to start reading it.

The author used this story to illustrate a point:

A tourist takes a holiday to a working Sheep Station in out-back Australia, while in this holiday he follows the farmer around on his rounds one day as he checks the sheep. As they drive around the station the tourist notices that there are no fences in sight. Perplexed by this realisation the tourist eventually asks the farmer "Where are your fences, aren't you worried that the sheep will wander away and get lost?" The farmer, a laid back sort of bloke, points towards the windmill over the way and says "I find that if you dig a decent well that produces good water, the sheep don't wander too far."

As i read this story i was reminded of a story in the bible. The Message version puts it like this:

A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, "Would you give me a drink of water?" (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.)

The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, "How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?" (Jews in those days wouldn't be caught dead talking to Samaritans.)

Jesus answered, "If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water."

The woman said, "Sir, you don't even have a bucket to draw with, and this well is deep. So how are you going to get this 'living water'? Are you a better man than our ancestor Jacob, who dug this well and drank from it, he and his sons and livestock, and passed it down to us?"

Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life."

The woman said, "Sir, give me this water so I won't ever get thirsty, won't ever have to come back to this well again!"

As i read these stories i began to think about the well of living water in my life and the wells that i am helping God to plant as i travel around the division.

If i invest in my life, plant a deep well of living water in my life, full of 'God water' then as i follow in Jesus' footsteps i will not wander too far from His path. In the same way, if i can clearly communicate the gospel to others, to share with them what God is doing in my life and what He is capable of doing in their lives, then a deep well with good water will be sunk into their lives and will sustain them as they try to follow in Jesus footsteps.

And if this well is good and deep then when we lose sight of God and wander away, we will not wander too far for the well and will return once again to drink of the life giving waters.

The other thing that occurred to me is that where there is water there is abundant life. When the well is producing a good supply of good water, life is abundant. Think of an oasis in the desert, there are trees and plants, there are animals, and people come by the oasis to refresh their supplies of water and to relax. Life happens at an oasis.

If our well is deep and producing plenty of living water in our own lives, then this will be visible to others and they will want to get some of this water too. Initially we can share some of this living water with them, but the real blessing would be to help people dig their own well, where they can have their own supply of living water.


Here are a few questions for you to ponder:

How deep is your well today?

What is the quality of water that is being produced from it?

Have you drank from the well recently?

Are you being generous with the water that springs from the well of living water, or are you restricting or rationing your living water?

The Full Gospel Of Jesus Christ

Almost every week (those that i'm actually around for) i write a segment for the Divisional Newsletter that goes out to all of the Salvation Army officers and to some other people in the division and around the territory. In this article i talk about what is going on in Youth and Childrens Ministry and also cover any relevant Candidates info that i feel needs to be passed on.

This week i revealed the name of this years Youth Event; Offensive Christianity (see my previous blog). To be honest, part of the reason i liked this name was because it was a little controversial, the plan was to get people talking. But in my little speil in the newsletter i refferred to offensive Christianity as, and i quote myself here for contextual reasons:

"...not the sort of offensive you think of when you see those obnoxious street preachers in Melbourne."

Now i have had conversations, discussions and slightly heated debates with various friends and acquiantances in the past over this issue, but i still think my position is justified.

First of all, let me say how much i admire the courage of these people who are willing to go out there and speak the gospel, irrespective of what others think. My issue is not that thye are presenting the gospel, in the street or otherwise, but my issue is in the way that it is done.

The Salvation Army has a long history of presenting the gosple to the lost, least and last in public places, and i think that that is great!! I personally would love to hold an event in the public space where i could share the FULL gospel to those gathered around. The key here is the 'FULL' word.

Jesus taught that we should speak the truth. Jesus said the He is the Truth, the Way and the Life. Jesus also taught that we should act with grace and compassion. In fact, i believe that most of Jesus' harshest criticism was reserved for the Pharrisees, Sadducees and Scribes, those that already considdered themselves 'saved'. As i recall, Jesus spoke forgiveness and compassion to the outcast of society. When the Jewish leaders dragged a woman caught in adultery before Jesus asking Him to pronounce judgement over her, Jesus' response was "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." And when they all left because they were not able to condemn her, Jesus, the only one to have never sinned, didn't pick up a stone, but told her the He didn't condemn her but encouraged her to "Go and sin no more."

Maybe in this post-modern, post-Christian world people aren't aware that they have sinned, perhaps people dont care about sin, but i still believe that each person is aware, at least on some level, that they have made decisions that they wish they hadn't. We don't need to be convinced of our unworthiness in most situations, most of us are all to keenly aware of that, we just don't want anyone else to find it out.

My argument continues that instead of preaching the wrath of God and condemning people as i have seen at least once on the street in melbourne on a Friday night for example: the one million dollar note with the $1,000,000 question; where will you go when you die? with the tag line, and i almost quote verbatim; "Basically you're a lying, cheating, theiving, murderous adulterer at heart." Let us preach the love of God, that Jesus died for us irrespective of whether we love him, that God loves us irrespective of what we have don or what we will do, that eternal life isn't just about going to heaven when we die, but about seeing God's Kingdom here on earth now as we live and breathe. Let's try preaching acceptance, not exclusion; love, not hatred; let's return good for bad. instead of being one of those 'fundamental' Christians that hate homosexuals, abortionists, etc, lets be one of those fundamentally Christ-like people who love the sinner, hate the sin and do what we can for these people.

By all means, go into the world and preach the gospel, just make sure it is the full gospel!!!