What Matters

Amazing Grace and the Bible

Grace is the undeserved and unmerited favour of God.  Grace is a guft to be received, not a reward to be earned.  Grace is not so much a New Testament concept, so much as it is the theme that bleeds through every page of the Bible.  

To reflect this truth, in a message I preached last year, I reflected on the grace-filled themes of each of the 44 books of the Old Testament.           

 

God’s Grace Rescues

In Genesis God’s rescues Jacob’s sons and their families from death through famine, even though they do not deserve to be saved, as their estranged brother Joseph becomes their unexpected savior.

God’s Grace Provides

In Exodus, God’s Grace Provides as God rains down from heaven manna to feed a whining, whining multitude of Israelites in the desert, even though they do not deserve it.

God’s Grace Forgives

In Leviticus, God’s grace forgives as God institutes the Day of Atonements provisions where the sins of the people are atoned, or paid for through the sacrifice made by the High Priest on one, high, holy day.

God’s Grace Speaks

In Numbers, God’s grace speaks as God tabernacles or lives amongst the people as they wander in the wilderness, speaking daily to them through Moses in the Tent of Meeting. (2:17) 

God’s Grace Initiates

In Deuteronomy God’s grace initiates as God who renews the covenant he has made with Israel. (30:10) 

God’s Grace is Unearned

In Joshua God’s grace is unearned, as God reminds the Israelites who now inhabit the Promised Land: 

I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.

(Joshua 24:13)

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible.

God’s Grace Perseveres

In Judges, God’s Grace is love that perseveres.  Time and again Israel turns their back on God and rebels; and time and again God forgives and restores.  God’s grace never, ever gives up! 

God’s Grace Redeems

In Ruth, God’s grace redeems as in the beautiful story of Ruth and Boaz we glimpse the love and grace of God that redeems, or buys back our freedom and safety.

God’s Grace Surprises

In 1 Samuel, God’s grace surprises.  David is the smallest and youngest of Jesse’s sons and yet it was David who God anointed as king.  David did not choose God; God chose David.

God’s Grace Cleanses

In 2 Samuel, God’s grace cleanses.  David fails spectacularly in committing adultery with Bathsheba and murdering her husband Uriah.  David lives with the consequences of his sin, but not with his guilt.  In his shame David cries out: 

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

(Psalm 51:10)

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Astonishes

In 1 Kings, God’s grace astonishes.  The prophet Elijah calls down fire from heaven to consume his sacrifice, and then rain from heaven to saturate a drought-stricken land for a people who did not deserve it. 

God’s Grace Purifies

In 2 Kings, God’s grace purifies as Elisha heals Naaman of the affliction and shame caused by leprosy. 

God’s Grace is Gift

In 1 Chronicles, God’s grace is a gift. Towards the very end of his life, King David calls the people to give to the building of the temple: 

But who am I, who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this?  Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.

(1 Chronicles 29:14) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Knows

In 2 Chronicles, God’s graces knows, in particular God’s grace knows and responds to our capacity to sin.  At the high point of the dedication of David and Solomon’ temple, when all the people have their heart turned to God, God says to them through Solomon: 

If my people, who are called my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their hand.

(2 Chronicles 7:14) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Restores

In Ezra and Nehemiah, God’s grace restores the broken walls of Jerusalem, the forgotten word of God and the temple. 

God’s Grace is Providential

In Esther, God’s grace is providential.  God’s grace is always perfect in timing. God’s grace makes a way where there is no other way as Esther is made queen for ‘such a time as this.’ 

God’s Grace is Powerful

In Job, God’s grace is powerful.  Even in the depth of suffering and pain, Job’s story reassures us that God’s grace is always present. 

God’s Grace Overflows

In Psalms, Grace overflows.  David reminds us that our cup always overflows with the love, mercy and grace of God. 

God’s Grace Teaches

In Proverbs, Grace teaches wisdom that matures us. 

God’s Grace is Life

In Ecclesiastes, God’s grace is life as Solomon soberly reminds us that life apart from the grace of God is meaningless. 

God’s Grace is Passionate

In Song of Songs, God’s grace loves – passionately loves.  In the heartfelt poetry of one lover to another we are reassured that God in his grace is the passionate lover of our souls. 

God’s Grace Renews

In Isaiah, God’s grace renews the faint of heart: 

God gives strength to the wary and increases the power of the weak.  Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not grow faint.

(Isaiah 40:29-31)

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Rebuilds

In Jeremiah, God’s grace rebuilds broken lives as God promises that Jerusalem’s shame will be reversed. 

God’s Grace is Merciful

In Lamentations, God’s grace is full of mercy, as amidst cries of brokenness and despair, Jeremiah was able to pray: 

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his mercies never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

(Lamentations 3:22-23) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible.

God’s Grace Refreshes

In Ezekiel God’s grace is a refreshing river that flows from the very throne room of God; a river we cannot cross, and which brings life wherever it flows. 

God’s Grace Protects

In Daniel, God’s grace protects Daniel and his friends from roaring lions and a red-hot furnace. 

God’s Grace Suffers

In Hosea, God’s grace suffers as Israel prostitutes herself to foreign gods. 

God’s Grace is Indiscriminate

In Joel, God’s grace is indiscriminate as God promises to pour out his Spirit on all flesh; young and old, men and women. 

God’s Grace Convicts

In Amos, God’s grace convicts Israel of her sin and unrepentant heart. 

God’s grace Delivers

In Obadiah, God’s grace delivers people exiled by their sin back home.

God’s Grace Seeks

In Jonah, God’s grace seeks out the lost Ninevites and the hard-hearted Jonah. 

God’s Grace Shocks

In Micah, God’s grace shocks as the prophet speaks of a day coming soon when lowly Bethlehem will be exalted:

But you, Bethlehem…though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel.

(Micah 5:2) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace is Patient

In Nahum, God’s grace is patient; slow to anger and great in power. 

God’s Grace Enlivens

In Habakkuk, God’s Grace Enlivens: 

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the stalls, yet will I rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my saviour.

(Habakkuk 3:17-18) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Saves

In Zephaniah, God’s grace has the power to save: 

The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save.

(Zephaniah: 3:17) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace is Ever-Present

In Haggai, God’s grace is a promise of presence: 

‘I am with you’, declares the Lord.

(Haggai 1:13) 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Calls

In Zechariah, God’s grace calls the wayward to repentance: 

'Return to me’, declares the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will return to you.’

(Zechariah 1:3)

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible. 

God’s Grace Refines

In Malachi, God’s grace is a refining fire and a purifying force. 

Grace bleeds through every page of the bible.  Finally, the bible tells us that Jesus is 'full of grace and truth'; grace finds its fulfillment - and full embodiement in the incarnation and all that follows.

How to Sing Without a Voice

I can't sing. Well, I can, but not always in tune, as anyone who has stood next to me in church will testify.  But while I may not be a great, or even a tuneful singer, I love to belt out my favourite songs with gusto. I drive my family nuts with my poor renditions of 80's rock - with Midnight Oil my speciality. Most of all, I revel in singing 'worship music'; ranging from Chris Tomlin to Charles Wesley - contemporary to classic.  I sing in the shower, the car, at the meal table, and as I walk. I sing in church, and out. I love to 'make a joyful noise to The Lord.' (Psalm 98:4 KJV)  But then last week I found myself in the awful situation of not only being unable to sing tunefully, but not able to sing at all - and not just anywhere, but in the company of twenty thousand fellow worshippers at Hillsong conference in Sydney.  

Hillsong is a four day conference that is framed and bracketed with times of extended worship.  The daily conference program features at least ninety minutes of corporate singing, spread over a program that runs from 9.30 in the morning to 9.00 at night.  It is exuberant, joy-filled and most of all, God honouring and directed. I love it. But this year was different; this year I arrived at conference with a 'man-cold' - that dreaded and debilitating disease. My symptoms included a nose that ran like a tap, sore throat, a hacking cough and a very scratchy voice that was incapable of singing, let alone making a joyful noise.  And so I discovered the considerable frustration of wanting to sing, being surrounded by thousands of people who were singing, and not being able to join them.  I hated it.

On the second night of conference, high in the arena with other Newlife friends, I watched on as others filled their lungs with joy and the room with noise. I wasn't idle - I made sure I was feeling sorry for myself.  I was holding my very own pity party, where I was the honoured and only guest. But then Kylie noticed my lack of engagement, and knowing that I had a 'man-cold' (one of the symptoms of such is that you make sure EVERYONE knows you have it), offered me some advice that shifted something in me.   

She said something like , 'Why don't you just mouth the words?' 

Huh.

'Well, why not?' I thought.

And so for the next couple of songs, and then a number of times thorough the rest of the week, that's what I did.  When others were singing, I opened my mouth as if to sing, forming the words with my mouth and lips, but with no sound coming from me.  It was weird at first.  Actually, it was weird every time I did it - but a good sort of 'weird', the sort of 'weird' where you think you might have stumbled on to something.  And then I did stumble on to something, of rather something stumbled on to me - a revelation of sorts.

As I mouthed the words to a song my voice could not sing, God spoke to me.  Not with a booming voice (I'm still waiting for that one) but in the stillness of my heart, a heart that at least for a moment was inclined towards him. What I heard God say was something like this:

'Stuart, now you know you can worship me with your limitations, not in spite of them.'

Now, that might not sound earth shattering to you, but for me in that moment it was a crystal clear 'word of the Lord'.

I love to worship God with my strengths - with the gifts of leadership and teaching he has given me.  But as I mouthed the words to songs I could not sing, God reminded me that I  can worship him just as much with my weaknesses as I can with my strengths.  It is in my weakness that worship is as much a choice as it is a natural outflow from a life that knows it is blessed.  It's  in worshiping in my weakness I am reminded where my true strength lays. It's in worshipping in weakness I discover that God's grace truly is sufficient, and that  his power is perfected in me (2 Corinthians 12:8).  It's in weakness I'm reminded that worship begins and ends with what God has done and is doing in me, not what I 'do' for God. It's in worshipping in weakness I experience the God who is present in and through all circumstances.  

This man-cold has hung on in various forms for almost a month now. My voice is slowly returning. But now I know that I can sing and make a joyful 'noise' to the Lord - that I can worship - even when my voice is nothing but a scratchy rasp. 

Why I Love Hillsong!

Now that I have your attention let me be clear about what I am talking about.  For the second year in a row Sue and I attended Hillsong Conference in Sydney (Hillsong Conference 2011).  We had a ball.  

Last year we came to Hillsong 2010 with our cynicism at the ready and our heresy radar finely attuned.  We were ready to smirk at the shallow Pentecostalism and crass prosperity doctrine we just knew we were going to encounter.  We came away both blessed and humbled.  (There was only one ‘offering’ talk that got our backs up – and that was by a speaker not associated with Hillsong church)  So we trekked to Sydney again, but ready this time to be blessed, encouraged, challenged and inspired.  We were not disappointed. 

Just a cursory Google search tells you that Hillsong church has many and varied critics, both inside and outside the church.  Some of the criticism, especially from within the church, is almost hysterical.  Hillsong’s size, growth and commercial ‘success’ has earned it the moniker Hill$ong from some.  Now, not everything Hillsong says or does is my cup of tea, so to speak.  I’m not going to spend any time in this post pointing out some of the concerns I might have about Hillsong’s doctrine or practice.  Suffice to say that, on my very limited experience of the Hillsong culture, these concerns are far outweighed by the gifts which Hillsong offers the wider church, and which I celebrate.

So, based on my experience of Hillsong 2011, here are nine reasons why I love Hillsong! 

Hillsong unashamedly pursues excellence – in service, creativity, worship, preaching, multimedia etc.  Bill Hybels says that excellence honours God and inspires people.  When far too often in church ‘close enough is good enough’, Hillsong raises the bar. 

Hillsong preaches Jesus, and especially the Cross. After seeing/hearing a stunning version of the classic, ‘Nothing but the Blood’ I leaned across to a friend, who like me has a conservative evangelical background, and observed that I felt right at home.  Irony of ironies, if anything it was the third person of the Trinity (Holy Spirit) who did not get much ‘air time’ in the teaching/worship at conference. 

Hillsong champions the local church.  Both last year and this year, Hillsong have gone out of their way to champion the local church through story and testimony – urban and rural, large and small. 

Hillsong models humility.  I was not ready for the self-depreciating humour and the very real, often touching, efforts to defer any attention away from Hillsong and to God.

 Hillsong inspires with its music.   I love modern, contemporary worship.  And no-one does it better than Hillsong.  I have travelled a little overseas and in nearly every worship service I have attended (USA, Thailand, Cambodia, Solomon Islands) I have sung at least one song written out of Hillsong.

 Hillsong embraces evangelism as the church’s heartbeat.  The overarching message of both conferences has been the privilege and responsibility we have to share the Good News with others.

 Hillsong is multicultural.  One morning I walked high up into the back rows of the Entertainment Centre past hundreds of people listening to a conference speaker through headphones as the sermon was translated ‘live’.  Wow, that is some ‘hearing loop’!

 Hillsong has social justice front and centre.  This perhaps was the biggest surprise.  At both conferences (especially last year) causes like slavery, environment, homelessness etc. were tackled and tackled well.

 Hillsong provides an opportunity.  Hillsong provides an opportunity for people from all around the world, from dozens and dozens of cultural, ethnic and denominational background to come together to worship.  I was one of the 15,000 or so who did this year.  Like most others, I am deeply thankful.