Selah2020: Pause and Reflect

[This is one in a series of mid-week Reflections prepared for Horley Baptist Church during January 2021]

In an album released in 1960 the British duo Flanders and Swann included a song extolling the virtues of an aqueous suspension of silt from the Shalimar river. Some of us may recall it in its original form whilst those of a younger generation may recognise it from the numerous cartoon interpretations for children. Here is the chorus:

Mud, mud, glorious mud,
Nothing quite like it for cooling the blood.
So follow me, follow, down to the hollow
And there let us wallow in glorious mud .

Mud is not just a heatshield for hippos or a fascination for toddlers exploring a career in soil mechanics. During the Exodus, God used mud to hinder the Egyptian forces as they chased the Israelites. Later, the gospel-writer John recalls that Jesus used mud to heal a blind man.

Recently, I was reminded of an incident which occurred during one of the early visits to Romania. A group of about 20 or so of us had attended a church service and we were invited to the house of one of the church elders for lunch. As is the normal practice in rural areas we left our shoes outside the door – a disordered pile of muddy footwear. After lunch we came out to find the shoes all cleaned and placed neatly in pairs. It was a very humbling experience.

I related this story to a visitor on Christmas Eve and he said that it reminded him of how Jesus had washed the disciples’ feet. The account of that event can be found in John chapter 13. It concludes with the advice that Jesus gave to his disciples:

“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” [John 13 v14-15 NIVUK]

In some churches there is a tradition of washing feet prior to the communion service. That may be too literal an interpretation for us but the same principle applies. Does our preoccupation with our own needs prevent us from tending to the needs of others? Conversely, does our pride prevent us from accepting help when it is offered?
There’s a blessing there – don’t miss it [v 17]

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[This is one in a series of mid-week Reflections published by Horley Baptist Church during December 2020]

In 1893 Arthur Conan Doyle published his story “The Final Problem” in which he killed off his hero, Sherlock Holmes. The famous detective’s adventures had been reported on a regular basis in ‘The Strand Magazine’ and when the death was announced the magazine lost 20,000 subscribers. It is rumoured that many people in London wore black armbands as a sign of mourning. Such was the reaction that the author had to resurrect his creation to satisfy public demand.

Sherlock Holmes was only a product of Conan Doyle’s imagination. What if a real person were to be resurrected? Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead after he had been in his tomb four days. We have no record of what Lazarus might have said about his experience but we do know how the religious authorities reacted:

So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him. [John ch12 v10-11 nivuk]

Surely the authorities would not have reacted in this way if Lazarus had nothing to say about his experience and simply sat quietly in the corner; rather, they considered his witness to be a threat to them.

For both Holmes and Lazarus the reports of their deaths were somewhat premature. Holmes also reappears in many stories written by other authors who have picked up Conan Doyle’s mantle. Lazarus is remembered by those who read John’s account, and in Cyprus where, it is said, he became a church leader after fleeing the Jewish authorities. In due course, they both did die again, their lives came to an end.

And so we reach the end of this series of reflections. Sixty-five compilations of diverse thoughts intended to provide a small dose of spiritual encouragement on a dull weekday. Will my readers cry for more? Will I do a ‘Conan Doyle’ and return to the keyboard? Who knows? Let Paul have the last word for this year:

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. [Ephesians ch3 v20-21 nkjv]

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[This is one in a series of mid-week Reflections published by Horley Baptist Church during December 2020]

The story is told of a charismatic leader who led his people out of oppression, putting a significant body of water between them and those who wanted to control them. Things were difficult to begin with, there were shortages of essential items and many people began to long for a return to their previous circumstances, but the leader persevered, tolerating their complaints, resolving their squabbles, reforming their laws. There were new problems to tackle, new alliances to form. It took most of a generation but in due course the people settled down, building a new society and prospering.

I do not know whether Boris Johnson has ever studied the Old Testament books of Exodus and Joshua, or if he had intended to follow a parallel script. How many times has he cried “Let my people go” and refused to take “No!” as an answer? Has he ever responded with “A plague upon your house”?

Shakespeare wrote that “All the world’s a stage …”. If that is so, there appears to be one element missing from the present scenario. Where is the fiery, cloudy pillar? Moses relied on God to ensure his success but where is God now? Has He abandoned world affairs? Perhaps He is taking a sabbatical on Saturn or enjoying a snack on Mars.
Have the principal characters in this drama dismissed God, discarding Him as irrelevant? Have they no role for Him? Do they not realise that He is actually the puppet-master who has everything under His control?

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.
[Psalm 33 v10-11]

We, the small-bit players are not just extras; we do not know the details of the plot but we have the ear of the playwright. Let’s call upon God to resume His rightful roles as producer, director and leading man.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance. The Lord looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. From the place of His dwelling He looks on all the inhabitants of the earth; He fashions their hearts individually; He understands all their works.
[v12-15 nkjv]

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[This is one in a series of mid-week Reflections published by Horley Baptist Church during December 2020]

Has it ever occurred to you that, if it were not for Christmas, turkeys might well have been hunted to extinction? Although they can be on the menu at any time of year, it is the need to provide for the following year’s Christmas (and Thanksgiving) celebrations that ensures the survival of the species. Ironically, it is because some turkeys die that turkeys as a species thrive.

I live on a small-holding where, each year, we raise a new generation of turkeys, along with chickens and guinea fowl. They grow up together until it is time to return to their respective flocks. As adult birds, turkeys are not very attractive to look at and their gobbling sound is discordant; they are not as productive as the hens but least they are not as stupid as the guinea fowl. Nevertheless, their destiny is the same – a pot of boiling water on top of a stove.

The concept of one dying so that others can live is not new. There are many reports of how, in time of war, patriots have been willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good, and even in less turbulent times people have taken great risks in order to save others. It occurs in the natural world too, where a herd of zebra or wildebeest will relax once one of their number has been caught by the lions.

As Christians, we recognise the greatest example of such a sacrifice. Paul wrote to our predecessors in Rome:

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [Romans 5:6-8, nivuk]

It is because of Christ’s death that those who put their trust in Him can live, not only with confidence whilst we wait here but with reassurance about the life to come. So as you tuck into your Christmas turkey remember that one Man died so that you do not have to end up somewhere too hot for comfort.
More Brussels, anyone?

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