Meditations from 2 Corinthians: Part 2

            “God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph.1:3)   In the first part we considered how one of those blessings was seen in God’s work of bringing us into a new relationship with Him through Jesus Christ.  Without God coming towards us, shining His light into our hearts, we would never have come to Him.

            As we think about God’s plan and purpose for our lives, we can see God’s blessings.  God had His plans for us even before we were conceived.   Jeremiah was told that he had been set apart for God’s work before he was conceived (Jer.1:5).  Paul saw God’s purpose for him having been in God’s mind from his birth (Gal.1:15).  God set these men apart for His service before they were even conceived; their call came at an appropriate moment at the right time in God’s plan.

1. Our call and gifting is of God

            God is sovereign, let us never forget that.  He not only is the Lord to whom we owe our allegiance, but also the general who directs the battle.  He sees how the battle is going, He knows where the needs are, and He equips with appropriate gifts for the particular tasks He gives to His servants.

            Paul knew that God had a task for Him to do and a time table for him to do it in.  He was privileged to be given the general plan of God’s work at his conversion, although he had to wait some ten years before he could really set out on the task God had given him.  So in chapter 1 verse 1, Paul could say that he was an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God.  This had been God’s plan for Paul right from his birth, but the time came when God was ready to use him.  So it is with us.  God has a plan and a purpose for each of us.  That call will be different for each one of us.  Each of us has received a gift for the work and purpose God has planned for us.  As we respond to the doors of opportunity God opens for us we begin to see the gift/s we have received and more fully can appreciate God purpose for our lives.

            In Paul’s case his gifting was for his life work, but God gave Titus a gift for a particular purpose (8:16). God gave him a heart and a concern for the Corinthians like Paul had, and so he was eager to go and visit them there.   

            The Macedonian Christians also experienced God’s grace, so that “in keeping with God’s will” (8:5) they were able to give themselves to the Lord first, and then to the ministry that Paul was involved in collecting for the saints in Jerusalem.  Because it is the grace of God that enables us to be involved in God’s work, whatever it may be, “God is able to make all grace abound to [us], so that in all things at all times, having all that we need, [we] will abound in every good work” (9:8).

2. Our sufficiency is of God (ch.3:5)

            The word in the NIV is  ‘competent’ or ‘competency’, that is, capable of doing what has been given us to do.  Do we believe that to be true for us as well?  He enables us to carry out the work he has given us to do.  But I like the word ‘sufficiency’ which is used in the ESV.  It gives the idea of not needing anything else.  We have all we need.  We are sufficiently provided for.  That provision for performing the will of God to which we have been called is sufficient, no more is needed.  What an encouragement.  What a blessing.  We don’t need to worry, but only trust in the provision that God has made available to us.

            The next verse tells us that God has made us competent, that is capable, to be ministers of the new covenant.  He has qualified us by making us able to carry the message of the new covenant to others.  We have a great message – the good news about Jesus and the resurrection, and with His sufficiency we are made competent servants, enabled by God through the Holy Spirit to fulfil God’s call on our life.

 3. Our service is of God (ch.4:7)

            As we noted in part one, this message of the new covenant has been entrusted to us who are weak, earthen vessels.  Although we have been made competent to carry it out and we have the sufficiency of an all-powerful God at work in and through us, this message has been given to us who are weak, often fail, and are very dependent upon God.  Why is that?  It is so that the work will be seen to have been God’s doing rather than us.  It is His work, and although we respond to that invitation of being included in His purposes through His calling and enabling He will get the glory.  If we can see this blessing of God that enables us to serve Him in this way, it will take the pressure off us to perform.

            Not only are we the vessels into which this message has been entrusted, but we have also been given the power and strength to carry out all that God has called us to.  Paul felt his weakness as chapter 12 highlights, but Paul can say, “yet by God’s power we will live with him to serve you” (13:3-4).  This is the promise that the power of God will be at work in us as He was in Paul because He lives in us as we serve together with Him.

To be concluded. 

Summer Memories from Japan by David Dexter

            The summers in Japan, even if a bit hot and humid, were some of the best months.  School finished in early June and the rainy season shortly followed, lasting about four to six weeks.  Occasionally an early typhoon passed by adding to the humidity as well.  Some of my memories of the summers are swimming in the sea or at the pool; enjoying kouri (flaked ice with flavouring poured of it); water melons, popping big dark blue grapes out of their skins into the mouth (although I would eat the skins afterwards as that is where the goodness is), and also the nashi (a quince/Japanese pear developed in Japan) was such a juicy treat.  There were camps and memories of somen down bamboo pipes, or in ice cubes.  Summer wouldn’t be summer without the many matsuri (festivals) with the roads lined with decorated roten (street stalls) selling to the passing crowds, and the amazing firework displays.

            Summer memories include the contrasting noises of the various insects chirping or singing away.  Of particular note were the koorogi (crickets) heard in the evenings and the kirikiri mushi (katydids) during the day time and often kept as pets in the homes.  Less commonly were the bush crickets which had a very distinctive song.  But the sound that is considered to be synonymous with summer in Japan is the racket made by the semi (cicadas).  They are very much a part of Japanese 

Teleogryllus emma Cricket Enmakoorogi           Tettigonia orientalis Katydid      Large Green Bush Cricket- Aomatsumushi                                       (Bush Cricket) yabukiri                Truljalia hibinonis

 Enmakorogi song also here [1]　　　Yabukiri Katydid song [2]　https://living-creature.com/pine-cricket-raising/#i-3  [3]　　　

culture, often heard singing in the back ground of Japanese TV series.  The noise can be quite deafening and annoying, but over time they become part of the tradition of summer that is accepted.  Summer hasn’t begun, according to folk culture, until the first semi is heard.  Summer wouldn’t be the same without them. 

Although there are some 30 different species of cicada in Japan, depending on where you live there are only about 6 or 7 species likely to be seen or heard.  Below are a recording of six species of the more common ones seen regularly.  Hearing these cicadas singing brings back many poignant memories of summer days in Japan. 

 
Tanna japonensis Higurashi       Graptopsaltria nigrofuscata Abura-zemi   Oncotympana maculaticollis Minmin-zemi

The six cicada songs can be heard here:  https://www.saiteigen.com/voice-of-cicada/ . [4]       

   

  Cryptotympana fascialis Kuma-zemi      Platypleura kaempferi Niinii Zemi       Meimuna opalifera Tsukutsukuboushi

              The ease with which we could see and enjoy the great variety of wildlife in Japan led to many happy days out in the hills and mountains that were all around.  This gave me my love for nature and the photographing of birds and insects in particular.     

            As I think about the variety and the different characteristics and behaviour of the insects and birds, I am amazed every time.  I am convinced that there is a Designer behind it all.  For me that Designer is the God of the Bible who I believe is the Creator of all that we see and enjoy here on our earth.  There are some interesting things said about God’s involvement in nature in the Bible.  In a prophecy of Isaiah’s, talking about the birds that will take up residence in the ruins, he says this:  “Seek and read from the book of the Lord: Not one of these shall be missing; none shall be without her mate.  For the mouth of the Lord has commanded, and his Spirit has gathered them” (Isaiah 34:16 ESV).  Here we see the involvement of the Lord in caring for the birds so that each has been brought together as birds with mates.  If God does that for the birds how much more will he have an interest in our lives as well?  Jesus himself says similar things when talking about two sparrows that are sold for a penny, yet  “…not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it” (Matthew 10:29 NLT).  He goes on to say, “Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:31).  Then in Matthew chapter 6 Jesus says to look at the birds who neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet it is God who feeds them.  He continues by talking about the lilies that only last for a short time, yet are better arrayed than Solomon, one of the greatest kings of Israel.  If this is what happens to the lilies that last only a short while and then thrown into the fire, will God not care for you?  So why do we worry and why are we anxious about daily needs?  Jesus promises us that if we “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).  That is His promise to care for our daily needs.  I can acknowledge that this is true from personal experience over the many years that we have trusted him for our needs.  Even more than this God has proved his care and concern for us by sending Jesus to give us the ultimate gift of His love, the forgiveness of our rebellion and rejection of God, and so bringing those who respond to His love into an intimate relationship with Him.  There is a joy and peace that God’s gives us when we know that we are rightly related to Him.

            As I look back over the many years that we spent in Japan enjoying God’s creation, I am also thankful for the experience of knowing His faithfulness in keeping His promises to care and provide for us.  As we face new challenges in our present circumstances of pandemic restrictions and political unrest and uncertainly, I have learnt to trust God with my life and so experience His peace and rest as my anxieties and worries about the future are given over to Him.   

 [1]https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Teleogryllus+emma+Cricket+Enmakoorogi+song&docid=608038159598485690&mid=821052A66FE0E6FC3E1F821052A66FE0E6FC3E1F&view=detail&FORM=VIRE

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMzSjrPQrCA

[3] https://living-creature.com/pine-cricket-raising/#i-3

[4] All the cicada songs are from this website:  https://www.saiteigen.com/voice-of-cicada/

Meditations from 2 Corinthians: Part 1 – God shines the light

            We have been blessed with “every spiritual blessing in Christ” (Eph 1:3). What does that mean?  Part of the problem is that we don’t know what the blessings are that God has blessed us with.  This verse suggests that they are many.  It may surprise us to see just how much God has done in our lives. Meditating on 2 Corinthians has highlighted this aspect of that blessing for me.

God’s work and blessing begins with Him opening our eyes to the truth of salvation in Jesus Christ.  I am sure that many times we have wondered why people are so blind to the truth of God’s love for us.  But we were there once ourselves before we believed.  2 Corinthians 4 tells us, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (v.4).  Our adversary, Satan, keeps people in the dark by blinding their eyes to the truth about God.  His purpose is to keep people from believing in the Lord Jesus.

However, God in His mercy towards us has shone a light into the darkness of our hearts so that we could see and understand the glory of God in Christ Jesus (v.6).  It is the illuminating of the Spirit of God that enables us to appreciate who Jesus is, and so to respond to the love of God that we see demonstrated in Christ on the cross for us.  This is not something that happens by persuasive arguments or clever stories, nor is it dependent upon us.  Paul was quite open about that in verse 2 where he says that he didn’t seek to distort or deceive, but rather “by setting forth the truth plainly” he presented the good news to the people there in Corinth.  But it was God who opened their minds and hearts to see the truth so that they could act upon it.  As Paul goes on to say in verse 7, this treasure of knowing God’s love is in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power will be seen to be from God and not of us.  Paul was just the instrument in God’s hand, just as we may be as well.  Anything that may transpire in the heart of another person is all God’s doing.  No place for any pride on our part.  We cannot save a person but God will use us as His instruments to communicate this saving message to others.  

In chapter 5 Paul describes the end result of what happens to the person in whom God’s light has illuminated his heart.  He becomes a new creation.  “[T]he old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God…” (5:17,18).   It is a gift.  It is a complete change.  It is a transformation, so much so that we now have new desires, a changed purpose in life and we are now facing in a new direction.  With God’s help and the Holy Spirit’s leading we can move forward together now with God.  This is not something that originated with us, but it is all of God.  “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” (5:21 NLT)   Paul calls this an “indescribable gift” (9:15), and it is certainly that. 

The more we appreciate all that God has done for us in giving us this new life, the more humbled we are that we are the recipients of this tremendous gift. Without God moving towards us, we would never have made a move towards God.  This is God’s grace towards us.  Paul therefore exhorts us not to receive this grace in vain (6:1).  “Now is the time of God's favour, now is the day of salvation” (6:2).  Now is the time to accept what God has done for us and not resist even if we find it difficult to understand.  If we are willing to acknowledge our lack of understanding, or hesitation in accepting all that God has done for us, even in that, God will patiently bring us to a position where we can trust Him fully.  If you would like to talk to someone more fully about these things, please get in touch with someone you can trust. 

One Star Fish at a time

One day, a man observed a boy throwing starfish back into the sea.  He asked him what he was doing.  He replied that he was throwing them back into the sea, because if they were to stay on the beach they would die.  The man replied, “But there are hundreds of starfish on the beach. What will your effort achieve?”  “It will make a difference for this one,” he replied as he threw another one back.

            The man observing what the boy was doing thought it was a waste of time.  What could he achieve?   The boy might not be able to return all of the starfish back into to the sea, but he was thinking about the value of each starfish that he was able to return to the sea.  No matter how little value his effort might appear to others, for the starfish that were returned to the sea there was value. 

            Many of us might be tempted to think like the man observing what was happening on the beach that day.  What is the point of what I do? What can I personally achieve?  This way of thinking is very natural. We often make judgements on how efficient and productive an activity is. But this fails to see the bigger picture of what God might have in mind for us, and to consider the things that He wants us to be doing. The Lord judges the value of any work on its source– is it what we want to do or is it what the Lord wants from us? The Lord is looking at the motives for our actions and not on how much is achieved.

Mark 14 tells the story of Mary anointing the head of the Lord Jesus. Mary was criticised for her actions. To most of the disciples it seemed like a dreadful waste. But notice how the Lord responds to their criticism: “Leave her alone… She has done a beautiful thing to me… She did what she could” (14:6, 8).  Jesus praised her for what she did. Her fragrant ointment was a precious possession, and she was willing to sacrifice it for Jesus. Her love is expressed in the sacrifice and Jesus can see that in her actions.

            If we truly love the Lord, then we will not be concerned about whether the work He gives us is large or small, for it is our heart that the Lord is looking at. But the fact of the matter is that we are often more concerned about what others will think or see. We are seeking the praise of men rather than the Lord. We may feel that what we do doesn’t really seem to accomplish much, so we feel that it is a waste of time.

However, as we think about the boy throwing one starfish at a time, his small effort was vital to those that were returned to the sea.  So too, we should not judge what we do by the standards of what is visible to others.  What God is looking for is not what looks good, but a faithful attitude that does what God gives us to do so that He is glorified.  That is when we will be valuable servants of the Lord.

            Special events may have their place in introducing people to the Lord, but more often than not, it is friendship,  being available for someone, helping them in their times of difficulty that will have the bigger impact for them in seeing what the love of God looks like in daily life.  This will be more meaningful and attractive to a person who has been shown friendship.

            We don’t know how our small effort is influencing others.  It may just be a smile to someone in the street, or stopping to give someone a few moments of our time.  Perhaps not very significant in the great scheme of things, but it might bless that one person more than we can imagine.  There are so many people to be reached in the world with the good news that Jesus loves us, how can my little effort make any difference.  But we need to remember that we are not here to reach millions, but to reach one person at a time.  Be encouraged and let God use you to be a blessing to someone today, and don’t worry about what others might think.        

A Meditation on Psalm 46 – We will trust in You.

            All of us in some way or other have found this lockdown period difficult.   It has been particularly hard for those who have lost loved ones and have not been able to be with them in their last moments and give them a proper send-off afterwards, or to have time to grieve with family, relatives and friends, to comfort, hug, and cry together.  For those who have had their treatments cancelled or postponed, or find that they cannot see someone for a medical issue, it can be an anxious time not knowing how it is all going to work out.  Then there are those who have been on furlough finding that now that the furlough period is coming to an end so are their jobs, or that their place of work is going out of business. There is a degree of stress from home schooling, working at home with the family around, or from feelings of isolation from a long period of not being able to meet people, entertain, visit folk in their homes, go to church normally, sing, or just be free to shop without having to queue or wear a mask when we feel like it; in short, of doing the normal things that we used to do in life.  It can feel quite lonely, particularly if no one ever phones or asks how you are doing. 

This time has made me think again of Psalm 46. Verses 2 and 3 say, “Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.”  These tumultuous times that we are going through can seem a bit like that for us today.  We may not be experiencing the physical events of earthquakes, volcanoes, floods, or tsunamis, like we did in Japan, but we are experiencing them in other ways.  The economy is taking a bashing, there is racial unrest, political uncertainty as major powers face off against each other, and there is no agreement on the Brexit negotiations, on top of the confusion that has been created by the regular changing of pandemic regulations.  It can feel like verse 6.  “Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;…”  Where and when is it all going to end?   

The psalmist has the answer in verse 10.  “Be still and know that I am God.”   I was listening to a song on YouTube recently sung by Geraldine Latty called “Yesterday Today and Forever.”[1]  Each verse finishes with the phrase, “we will trust in You, trust in You.”  The way Geraldine sang the last verse was to repeat this phrase over and over again.  It did seem a bit repetitive and boring initially, but the more I thought about it, how true it is!  We will trust in You, and we will continue to trust in You. Even in the hard times, we will trust in You, no matter what we will trust in You, and keep on trusting in You.

This is what the psalmist means in verse 10.  He is saying that God can be trusted, leave it with Him, He has it all in control.  Be still; wait for God’s timing in things.  He says in the first verse, “… he is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”  Therefore He is the place to which we can run and hide as we wait for Him.  Another reason is repeated in verse 7 and 11.  He tells us that not only is God our refuge, the place to which we can run for safety, but he is also with us as the “Lord Almighty.”  This title carries the idea of an all-powerful supreme Ruler of the universe.  It was the Lord Almighty who brought the hosts of Israel out of Egypt and carried them through the wilderness.  The fact that it is this one who is named as being with us in all the upheavals and turmoil of life should give us sufficient reassurance that, as we face the uncertainties of life, we can have confidence to trust in Him for all things.  This all-powerful Creator of the universe, the supreme King of everything, will not allow anything to separate us from His presence with us. 

We can therefore take comfort from this short psalm when life around us seems out of control and beyond our understanding.    

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kQjEiY30yI&list=RDEMtnLOAZbkyh32vi_DrgdKVw&index=2

Part 2 – Why Read the Bible?

            Reading the Bible can be enjoyable as well as a challenge.  There are difficult parts, as well as passages that don’t seem to have much relevance to us in our modern world, .e.g., the lists of families and tribes. However, God has given us a message in the Bible, and we should at least make the effort to read it. 

            A number of us have begun to read through the Bible in a year.  However, you may not have the time, or be free at this time to join us, but you can still read through the whole Bible by yourself.  You don’t need a plan or a schedule; just work at it at your own pace.  If you read three chapters every day and five on Sunday, you should be able to complete the whole Bible in a year.  You can begin with the New Testament first if that is more convenient.

            There are blessings too from reading the Bible.  Two stand out from my experience of reading.  The first time I read through the Bible as part of my preparations for missions work, I managed to read it in a little over three months. A month or so after finishing, a person in my church said to me that she thought I had changed!  I can’t remember the details now, but I was reminded of Ephesians 5:26: “cleansing her by the washing with water through the word.”  The word of God has a cleansing effect if we read it and allow it to influence us. 

Another experience was when I was doing a locum physiotherapy job at a rehab centre in Cardiff prior to going out to Japan.  I was having another Bible read through as part of my preparation for going out for our missions work.  I was reading the Bible in the morning, and again in my lunch break in the staff room, and again at night.  A few years later we received a letter from the superintendent physiotherapist to say that she had become a Christian, and one of the key influences had been seeing me read my Bible in the lunch break.  We never know what God may use in a person’s life to bless them. 

            But why else should we read the Bible?  First and foremost, because God has given it to us, and it is one key way that God communicates with us. God is relational and He wants to enjoy our companionship.  For that friendship to continue and grow there needs to be conversation.  God communicates with us through His word, and we communicate with Him in prayer.  However, it can be quite one sided at times.  Think about a good friend of yours.  When you meet you talk and share together.  Analyse it for a moment – how much of that time are you speaking, and how much of the time are you listening?   A good relationship will probably be 50/50.  But in our relationship with God, how much of the time are we doing the talking?  How much of it are we listening? 

            God uses His word to speak to us as the Holy Spirit takes what we read and applies it to our hearts.  Perhaps you are wondering how that works.  An example might help.  My wife and I were prompted to pray about our future in Japan and whether the time had come for us to return to the UK or not.  We had prayed quite a bit about it, seeking God’s leading in the matter.  Then one Sunday morning, when our Japanese brother was speaking from Mark 5, God used a verse in that chapter to touch our hearts.  After the service and when we were together later, I mentioned that Mark 5:19 seemed rather significant in regard to our thoughts about returning to the UK.  Esther then shared that she had felt the same thing from the same verse.  The verse says, ‘Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.’  “Go home to your family” seemed to hit both of us very forcefully.  This was confirmed in other ways as time moved on, but we believe that God had spoken to us through that verse, giving us a greater sense of direction in our thinking about our future. 

There have been many other times when God has used His word to speak into our situations.  And when we have had a word from the Lord this has enabled us to persevere in spite of difficulties, because we have the assurance and confidence that we are where God wants us to be, and we are doing what we believe God wants us to do.  Often God speaks to us by prompting a thought in our minds about something, but more often than not, we will receive confirmation from God’s word that the prompting was from Him. 

If we are not reading the Bible, God cannot use this means to speak to us.  It’s like any relationship, if it is one sided we do not benefit from the relationship as much as if it were two way.  Let’s open our hearts to God’s word and let Him speak to us through it.