Phil 1:12-3 - Priorities & Purpose
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- Written by Chris Appleby
Priorities & Purpose audio
Suffering
I guess we all know that there are two types of people in the world: pessimists and optimists. One sees the glass as half empty and the other sees it as half full. Actually there’s a third type –engineers and economists realise that the glass is twice as large as it needs to be, but we’ll forget them. Some people look on the things that go wrong in their life and feel defeated by them, while others look for the good things that have happened alongside the disaster.
Paul is one of the latter. Lots of bad things have happened to him but he remains positive, optimistic about the future. But perhaps some of us may need some background. Paul has been preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ for several years now, all the way from Jerusalem to Corinth and back, several times, and he’s faced significant opposition all the way – including in Philippi. On his last missionary journey he returned to Jerusalem knowing that the Jews there were plotting to kill him. When he was arrested he knew he wouldn’t get a fair hearing and in fact would probably be killed by the Jews, so he appealed to Caesar. That meant being sent in chains to Rome. On the way he’s experienced various hardships, including a violent storm at sea, culminating in a shipwreck during which he was almost put to death by his guard. And now he’s under house arrest in Rome, guarded night and day by members of the palace guard, awaiting trial and possible execution. But his circumstances haven’t worn him down.
Luke 15:11-32 - The Waiting Father
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- Written by Chris Appleby
The Waiting Father audio
Today we’re thinking about fathers: we all have them; and they’re all different. For some, their father is someone to look up to, to be proud of. Some will feel greatly loved by their father. Others though, may not have known their father or may not have had much to do with him. Others again may be afraid of their father; or angry at him; for some of us our father is no longer alive and we miss him. Some of us may be fathers and, again, that may be a matter of great joy and pride or one of disappointment or even sadness – or a mix of both.
Whatever our situation, having a father, being a father, even knowing a father, means that we come to a service like this on Father’s day with a mix of thoughts and emotions.
But what I want to talk about today is a story about a son and a father: you may well have heard it before under the title, the Prodigal Son, but I’m calling it the Waiting Father.
The story is set in a rural area in the Middle East, where a man and his two sons are working a farming property.
One day the younger son comes to his father and says: “Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.” T
Rom 1:1-7 - Good News
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- Written by Chris Appleby
Good News audio (6MB)
Rom 1:1-7
Today we start a new series following the letter of Paul to the Romans, written, we think, during that 3 months he was waiting in Corinth for the weather to improve.
So let’s start with the opening few verses.
He begins with the standard opening formula of most Greek letters of the time. But unlike those this introduction isn’t independent of the main points of the letter. In fact as we’ll see in a moment the introduction is a bit like the overture to an opera or the opening movement of a symphony – introducing the main themes of what’s to come.
Remember that he’s writing here to a church that’s never met him, to people who don’t know him. So he provides an extended introduction where he describes himself and his message in a good amount of detail.
In fact it’s important to think about the terms he uses as he begins his letter. Let’s look at them.
Rom 1:7-16 - Thanks and Prayers
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- Written by Chris Appleby
Thanks and Prayers audio (6MB)
Rom 1:7-16
One of the great things about Paul is the way he lets us in on his prayer life. This would have been a great encouragement to his readers but it also provides an excellent example for us. I mentioned last week what a great example Paul is for us and it’s true again here this week.
So what I’d like us to do as we look at this short passage is to think about how our behaviour could be changed to imitate that of Paul. First we hear how he prays and then he tells us why he wants to come to meet them in Rome.
We saw last week how he begins by wishing them God’s grace and peace, but then he goes on to say:
I Thank God for you
Now he hasn’t met these people. He wasn’t involved in their conversion. But he thanks God through Jesus Christ for each one of them. The fact that they’ve responded to the gospel is the source of much rejoicing for him – as it is for the angels in heaven you may remember. And his joy is even greater:
Acts 21:17-25 When church and non-churched meet
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- Written by Chris Appleby
When Church and Non-Churched Meet audio (6MB)
Acts 21:17-25
Well, we’ve skipped over the rest of Paul’s journey from Troas to Caesarea Philippi and now, finally we come with Paul to Jerusalem. He’s been planning this visit for a long time and finally he gets there, despite the warnings of those on the way who are worried about what the Jews might do to him. [By the way have you noticed the parallels between Luke’s account of Paul’s journey to Jerusalem and his subsequent trials and Luke’s account of Jesus’ final journey to Jerusalem and his subsequent trials? You might like to think about that in your small groups, particularly looking at the various trials both Jesus and Paul went through.]
I wonder have you thought about how Paul expected things to go here. Everywhere he’s been through Asia and Greece he’s experienced opposition from the Jews and now here he is in their home town. He must expect opposition here even more than elsewhere; but what about from within the church itself?
Well we read in v17 that they were welcomed warmly upon their arrival. But as you read on you realise that all isn’t as smooth below the surface as it is on top.
Hence Paul’s visit the very next day to James and the elders of the Church in Jerusalem. James is James the brother of Jesus, not James the Apostle and by now he’s clearly the leader of the Church in Jerusalem. Peter and John have left, Peter to Jerusalem and John ultimately to Ephesus. And as we read on we discover there’s a bit of tension in the air.
