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Click here to read 1 Peter 4:12-19.

Children’s Address

Sermon & Prayer

This year has been exceptionally difficult for so many people in this country and all over the world. We were caught off-guard and so many of our plans and dreams for 2020 were derailed. This year will go down in history. But life, normal life, has its moments too. We get derailed, caught off-guard, unsettled. We don’t like to be unsettled. It’s not a pleasant feeling to be reminded of the uncertainties of life and how little control we have over things. 

Peter was writing to a church undergoing a difficult time. They were facing persecution from the society they lived in because of their faith and how that changed the way that they lived. Peter’s advice to them is to not be surprised that this is happening: 

Why shouldn’t they be surprised at their hardship? I’m not disagreeing with Peter, but I want us to reflect on why these people shouldn’t be surprised at their hardship. Because this can change how you view your struggles. And we’re all struggling with something, especially now. 

Notice what language Peter uses: “fiery ordeal”. Not “painful ordeal”, nor “upsetting ordeal”, even though enduring persecution must have been both painful and upsetting. Peter says “fiery”. Fire doesn’t just destroy; it’s also used to purify and to refine. Peter is referencing something that he mentioned at the beginning of this letter. 

Peter mentions the trials that these Christians are suffering and says: 

This is a “fiery ordeal” because it is a refining process. They are being transformed. Their faith is being refined in the fires of persecution. 

Christians should not be surprised that they are being refined. You cannot have a relationship with Jesus and not be transformed by him. If you view your Christian life as a refining, transforming, purifying process then you will not be surprised or disheartened by hardships. 

Transformation involves being stretched, being unsettled, being made uncomfortable. People who go to the gym are not surprised that they must work out. You wouldn’t be surprised to go to school and find that you must concentrate and study hard.  

You will be surprised and disheartened by fiery ordeals if you think that everything is already gold. If you think that nothing needs to be unsettled or refined, then you’ll just be upset. You will see it as nothing more than torment. But if we know that we need to be, and are being, transformed by God, refined by God, then we can have hope and even joy. 

This battle against COVID-19 has been hard on the church. We can’t currently meet for Sunday services, Bible studies, prayer meetings, youth fellowship, Sunday school, committee meetings, kirk session meetings and much of the normal socialising that is so important for fellowship and friendship. I’m glad that I can still communicate with you through our modern technology including these videos, or the CDs, or by post. But this isn’t church. This is a very poor substitute for meeting together and worshipping together. It’s easy to become disheartened, I know. 

Aside from our current situation, the church has other fiery ordeals that are just typical to the experience of being faithful followers of Christ in a world that does not know him. We have brothers and sisters around the world who are persecuted, beaten, jailed and killed for their faith. The opposition that believers face in Ireland is not so severe, but still it’s not insignificant. We can do our best to nurture the faith of young believers (either young in age or simply new to the faith) but when they encounter mockery or abuse for their beliefs that can really hurt. It’s not nice to face mockery and accusations from your neighbours or those who once were your friends. It’s heart-breaking.  

So, we shouldn’t be surprised when we suffer for our faith. What should be our response?  

We can rejoice when we suffer for our faith, because we know that we are not only suffering for Christ but suffering with Christ. We’re walking his way, and if our Lord encountered opposition and hardship in the world then so will we.  

In Acts, chapter 5, we can read of the time when Peter and the apostles were flogged by the High Council in Jerusalem for preaching the gospel. After they were released, they rejoiced: 

As Peter says in this passage: 

We have fellowship with Jesus in suffering for our faith, and just as we share in this suffering, we will share in his glory too. As Paul wrote to the Roman church: 

The path to true glory goes through suffering because we must be transformed if we want to see glory. And transformation, changing to something better, is an unsettling, uncomfortable and sometimes painful process. Jesus didn’t need to be transformed, but he endured suffering for our sake. As we walk this path, we walk it with Jesus and his Spirit will be with us in a special way. As Peter says in verse 14: 

When our faith takes us through suffering the Spirit of God rests on us. Now the Spirit dwells in all Christians, but those who suffer for their faith can experience the presence of God in a very powerful way as the Spirit blesses them with what they need to endure, to bear witness, and to be transformed. Those who cling tightly to God in these hard times find their faith strengthened. That is a blessing worth rejoicing over. 

Judgement is coming. Evil will be dealt with and done away with. But when we think of evil, we must not think of it as something out there. Evil is in me too and it must be cut away by God. Because I belong to him, God is dedicated to cutting that evil away and transforming me. Sometimes it is a painful process. Sometimes God uses unlikely events or experiences to achieve this end, but I trust in him. As painful as it can be to go against the flow in this world and undergo the transformation that God is working in me, it is ultimately a far more painful and terrible thing to simply go the way of this world. That’s what Peter means in verses 17 and 18: 

God may discipline me out of love, to correct my ways and transform me so I become more like Jesus. I know that God isn’t just punishing me when I suffer, because my punishment was taken by Jesus on the cross. I have faith in Jesus and his sacrifice in my place and so I am saved. My debt is paid. My sins are forgiven. I hope the same is true of you because this is a debt you could never afford to pay yourself. Thank God you don’t have to if you put your trust in Jesus. 

Cling tightly to God when you suffer, knowing that he is faithful and is working in you to bless you and transform you into what you were always meant to be. 

Don’t be surprised that things are difficult. Commit to God and continue to do what he has called you to do. An athlete doesn’t get discouraged when their muscles ache after training. They know they’re putting in the work, they know that their body is changing and growing, that they are being transformed. Christians who suffer for their faith should have the same response, knowing that they’re being refined and transformed by God who loves them.  

Commit yourself to your faithful Creator and continue to do good during these difficult times, and always. 

Prayer 

Faithful Lord, help us to trust you in our fiery ordeals. Fill us with the faith and knowledge that you are good and are working all things for the good of us who love you. We pray again for healing and restoration. Heal the sick, comfort the mourning, protect our communities we pray. Help our health service to handle the enormous pressure they are under now. Help those out of work or barely scraping by because of the economic devastation this virus has brought. Help your church to grow in faith and in love for you and each other and to be a powerful and bright witness in a dark world. 

We pray for those who are lonely. Help us to remember to reach out to each other, by phone or letter, or other technology, and share friendship. 

We pray for the peace, protection, and justice for the people of Nigeria during the ongoing “End SARS” protests. 

We pray for our brothers and sisters around the world who are persecuted for their faith. May they be encouraged and strengthened by your presence with them and may they be a powerful witness for the gospel in their countries. 

We pray these things in Jesus’ name, 

Amen. 

Songs

Click here to read 1 Peter 4:7-11.

Children’s Address

Sermon

“The end of all things is near” sounds like something out of a disaster movie. It sounds like something said to scare people. But to a Christian this isn’t doom and gloom. TV and Hollywood just don’t seem to get this. “The end” in films is a disaster, it’s destruction. But in the Bible, “the end” is glory. For Christians “the end of all things” does not mean destruction or doom, it means fulfilment. When we talk about the end of something, we could mean the closing or finishing of something, but that word can also mean the point or purpose of something. Like when we talk about “the ends justify the means” or we say “to what end” someone is doing something. It’s even in the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism:

What that question means by the word “end” is “purpose”. What is the chief purpose of human beings? What is the main point of people? Humanity’s chief purpose is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. So, “end” is not a bad, scary word.

The culmination of all things, the purpose of all things is at hand. All that needs to be done for God’s great plan of salvation has been done. Jesus has come, he has performed his rescue, dying for his people on the cross. Jesus has been resurrected. Jesus has ascended to heaven to reign. The Holy Spirit has been poured out on his people. Everything has been put in place. Christ can return in glory at any moment to make all things new and to put away evil, death, mourning and tears forever. Our role is not to just wait around for that, but to be alert, to pray and to be useful to our King.

Yes, there will be judgement, but in Christ, God has already declared us righteous because Jesus suffered in our place. So, for us, thanks to Jesus, the end is glory and joy. Since the end is near, let’s stay the course, let’s remain faithful. The finish line is near, so let’s keep going.

Above all, Peter says, we must love each other deeply.

The work that the church is called to do in this world we must do together in the power of the Holy Spirit. That’s how God wants us to live: cooperating with one another, each using the gifts that God has given us by his Spirit, each of us a member of the body of Christ in this world. A holy community.

Just because this is a holy community doesn’t mean that we’re a perfect community. Like any community we are a community of sinners. Because we are still sinners there will be falling out, there will be hurt, there will be acts of selfishness. Although this is expected, we don’t have to accept it and surrender to it. We must fight against this with love. If we love one another, we will be less inclined to act in selfish ways that hurt each other. If we love one another, we will be able to forgive one another and reconcile when we fall out, and then we can get back to being that holy community that God calls us to. This is as true in the church as it is in the home. We simply must love each other, there’s no way we can be the church without love.

It’s not easy to forgive. True forgiveness is costly. Forgiveness means deciding not to make someone pay. It doesn’t mean pretending that everything’s okay. It doesn’t mean excusing sins. It doesn’t mean putting up with abusive relationships that endanger you. It means that you have decided that you are not going to make them pay.

If someone owes me money and I forgive them I have decided not to make them pay. But it costs me. Now I end up short however much they owed me. If someone crashes my car and can’t afford to repair it and I forgive them, then I’m the one who must pay. If someone hurts me and I forgive them then that too is a painful and costly process, but it’s the way of Christ.

In the cross of Christ, we see God forgiving us and just how much it cost to do that. The cross is the best picture we have of God’s love for us. God forgave us, but the debt still needed to be paid. On the cross we see God paying that debt himself, we see God’s painful costly forgiveness.

If we are recipients of such a costly forgiveness, then we don’t get to begrudge anyone forgiveness. We don’t get to say that although God has forgiven such a great debt for me, I’m going to make sure you pay for all the little ways you’ve offended me. That’s not an option for those who have received such grace. If we want to call ourselves Christians, then refusal to forgive is not an option.

That means we don’t hold grudges. We don’t grumble, but we show hospitality to one another.

We have received the grace of God and so we are stewards of that grace. In other words, we must pass it along. Those who have received grace must be gracious. Being hospitable is more than just having guests in your home, which is good really because we can’t have guests in our homes right now. Being hospitable means being kind to strangers, loving those who are not like us.

We are to serve one another with the gifts that God has given us. Whether it’s speaking or serving, we do so in God’s strength and as agents of God so that God will be praised. This is the calling of the church: to do God’s work in God’s strength for God’s glory, If we are going to do that then it needs to be done together. And if we are to be together, then we will need to be forgiving. We are going to need to love one another. There’s no other way.

Prayer

Our loving Heavenly Father, we thank you for saving us and making us a people. We pray that you would help us to be that people: a people of grace, a people of mercy. Help us to be a gracious community, gracious to one another so that we can show Christ’s grace to the world.

We pray for those who lost jobs or are struggling with their business or finances during this time of increased restrictions. We pray that when this virus passes our economy would bounce back, but not just with more money for the rich. We pray that employment would be restored. We pray for a fair and equitable society for all.

We pray for protection from the virus, especially for those who are most vulnerable. We pray for healing for those who are sick. We pray for your comfort and strength for those who are grieving the loss of loved ones.

Help us to weather this storm we pray. Help those working on the front lines to keep society going. Help those who fight against this virus, caring for and treating people. Help those working to produce medicine and vaccines.

We pray that we would see the end of this soon and be able to enjoy community and fellowship again.

In Jesus’ name we pray,

Amen.

Songs

Children’s Address

Sermon and Prayer

Today, as the churches all over the country are once again unable to meet in person, we in the Bailieborough group celebrate our second harvest Sunday. Welcome! Thank you for joining me, wherever you are.

Harvest, I think, is very naturally linked with hope. Harvest is what we hope for. Harvest is a celebration of receiving those things that we hoped for. And so I wanted to preach about hope today, because hope is needed.

So, I’ve chosen one of the great “hope passages” of the Bible: Romans, chapter 5, verses 1 to 11. Here Paul writes to the church in Rome about hope. Hope amid struggles. Hope that can’t be shaken. Hope that is the fruit of the justification that we have in Christ.

Harvest time is a time when people see the results of their labour – the fruit. They enjoy something at harvest because of work that was done months beforehand. They sowed, and now they reap. What Paul shows us here is some of the fruit that we get to enjoy, because of justification that we have in Christ through faith.

The fruits of our justification are peace, grace, and hope. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have access to grace through Jesus. And we have hope. Hope in the glory of God. That’s the reality for a Christian.

Because of what Jesus has done, we are justified, declared righteous before God. Those words can sound a bit technical or legal and so maybe it’s hard to see the beauty of them. They conjure up images of a courtroom perhaps. Not the warmest of settings. But reflect on this blessing or fruit of justification: you have peace with God. God hasn’t just let us off the hook, he’s made peace between us and Himself. You are on good terms with the Creator of all things. God is your friend.

Sometimes we might think that we must make things up to God. We think we must punish ourselves or keep our distance because of something we’ve done. No! Jesus has made the way and done all the work needed for us to have peace with God. What you must do is believe. Believe that good news.

We don’t stand in condemnation; we stand in grace. That’s what Paul says in verse 2: “we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand”. That’s the second fruit we see here. That’s your standing, your position before God. Our position is one of blessing, and not an occasional blessing either. We’re not visiting grace every so often. We’re not passing through grace. We are standing in grace. We’re set there. This isn’t a temporary blessing.

Now the third fruit: Hope. We have peace with God. We stand in grace. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God (v. 3). Even if you don’t feel it right now, you have a sure hope of future glory, a solid guarantee that does not depend on subjective feelings, but on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Christian hope isn’t like an everyday hope. You hope that the weather will be nice enough for a walk later, but you’re not certain. You hope that you’ll get to your destination on time, but traffic might be bad, so you’re not certain. That’s everyday hope. There’s nothing wrong with it, but it’s different from the hope Paul is describing here. Paul says that this hope we have is hope in the glory of God. God’s glory will be displayed. We can catch glimpses of it in God’s creation. Our clearest sign of the glory to come is in Jesus, his life, death, and resurrection. The amazing thing about this glory is that God involves us in it. God is glorified in us as he works in and through us and when his glory is fully revealed we will share in that glory. As Paul wrote to the Colossians:

“When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:4, NIV (Anglicised, 2011))

Our hope has a certainty that everyday hope lacks. This hope doesn’t depend on the changeable weather or on the traffic on the road, not on the economy or ups and downs of our fight against COVID. Our hope is in God Himself being glorified and us sharing in that glory. We’re always progressing towards that glory, even as we endure suffering.

Suffering too has its fruit:

“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (Romans 5:3–4, NIV (Anglicised, 2011))

Paul speaks to the suffering Christians, telling them that in light of our future hope in the glory of God it is possible to rejoice even in the midst of suffering, because ultimately that suffering goes to produce greater hope and the hope that the Christian has does not put us to shame (v. 5) – it’s not a silly hope, a vain wishing that things will all turn out right in the end.

Paul shows the security of this hope in two ways. In the second half of verse 5 Paul gives the first reason for our hope: the experience of the love of God in our hearts through the Holy Spirit. Do you know what he’s talking about there? Have you ever caught a glimpse of the sheer massiveness of God’s love? God works in our hearts, to soften them and open them up to the reality of His love through the work of His Holy Spirit. That’s a subjective proof, based on an internal experience – something within us changes when we trust in Jesus. If you don’t know what that feels like, then ask God to show you.

Maybe you do remember a time when you felt that, but things are really bad at the moment, and it seems so distant now that it’s hard to recall and you wonder did it ever really happen. Paul doesn’t just leave us with subjectivity. Feelings come and go but truth does not depend on our feelings. Paul follows this subjective personal experience with the objective fact of the cross in verses 6 to 10.

While we were still God’s enemies, while we had done nothing to deserve it, Christ died for us to reconcile us to God. That is how much God loves us – though we had no righteousness to boast of, God sent His perfect Son to redeem us by His death and make us righteous through faith in Him.

I’m not a farmer. My dad’s not a farmer, he’s a retired mechanic. So, I don’t have a lot of experience with harvesting. But I know that harvest and hope are linked. To sow something and care for it and wait for harvest is an act of hope. You hope you’ve done a good job. You hope that the pests and the frost will won’t get at it. You hope that the weather will mean a good harvest.

The justification that is available through faith in Jesus Christ leads to a harvest of peace, grace, and hope. What utterly secures this harvest of hope is the fact that it’s not relying on me. It’s not about me being a good farmer or gardener, it’s not about my work. This is God’s harvest.

Christ died for the ungodly – us – while we were still sinners (vv. 6-8). That’s the work and it’s already been done. That work that leads to the fruit of peace with God, standing in grace before Him and rejoicing in the hope of His glory, it’s been done. You don’t have to strive to do this. You don’t have to make yourself good enough. You don’t have to toil and sweat for this harvest. The work has been done by God already.

How can we have this peace and grace and hope? Faith. Believe in Jesus. Believe that when Paul writes about Jesus dying for the ungodly, he’s writing about you. I am a sinner saved by Jesus Christ. He paid the price for all my sins on the cross. Because of Jesus I have peace with God. I stand in grace. I boast in the hope of the glory of God. I hope you know that hope too. It’s a hope that rests not on the changeable things of this world, but on God Himself.

Songs to Sing

We are going through some tough times now as a church. We can’t celebrate as we would like to. It’s hard to keep spirits up and to keep that sense of community when, for the sake of one another, we must remain at a distance from one another. This is one of those times when we long for the way things used to be. The way things should be.

There’s nothing wrong with remembering the past. In fact, I want to encourage you to do that today. But we can’t leave it at nostalgia. Just feeling a sense of longing won’t do. It won’t help. What we need to do is look back and be thankful. Remember and give thanks.

That’s what’s going on in the first three verses of Psalm 126:

This is a psalm of lament. It’s written for a community going through a tough time. It shows us what to do with these feelings that we have, this sense of longing for the way things were. Don’t just remember. Remember and give thanks.

I’m not just talking about church either. Look back on your life. Just take a while today, tomorrow, this week. Just sit and remember. Remember what God has done for you. Remember the trials you’ve overcome. The times you didn’t think you could make it. The times when things seemed impossible. The times when God saw you through. Look back. Remember. Give thanks.

People long for a great religious experience, a vision, they want to see God move. Well here’s your vision. It’s this wonderful gift from God: the ability to remember and reflect. See how God has already moved in your life and give thanks.

Let yesterday’s trials be today’s testimony. Those opening verses talk about a time when God restored the fortunes of Zion (Jerusalem). A time when things were bad before and then God rescued the people. They rejoiced and sang, and the nations could see that God had done this great thing for them.

Look at verse 3: “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” That’s remembering the past, and not just leaving it at longing or nostalgia, but being thankful right now in the present. “We are filled with joy,” is what it says. Joy felt now, even amid hardship, because of what God has already done in the past. We can look back and see what God has done and what God is able to do.

What this Psalm also reminds us is the truth that, with God, we are never truly far from joy. Even at the worst of times we are between victories. We live between glory and glory. We may endure hardship, but we’re never defeated.

This psalm is a prayer of faith and hope in God, it looks back at times of joy and knows that there is more joy to come. There will be restoration. We can say this with confidence because it’s not about us. The victory is God’s victory and it’s already been won.

Christians get a clearer glimpse of how this works out than God’s people had back when this psalm was composed. We can look back and see the cross and the resurrection of Jesus and we know that this is a sign of what is to come.

Saint Paul wrote:

Jesus is alive. His resurrection is like the firstfruits of a harvest, pointing us to the glory that awaits those who have put their faith in him and his sacrifice to atone for our sins.

We will have highs and lows in this world, but we know how this ends. For us it ends in glory. It ends in joy.

What God has done in the past shows us God’s power and his faithfulness to his people. The cross and the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the greatest example of that. But you can just look at your own life too. Look at what God has done for you in the past. Can’t he do it again? Hasn’t he shown himself faithful?

Encouraged by the past and putting their hope in God the psalmist writes a prayer for the future in verses 4-6:

I have a video on my phone of Timothy taking his first steps. I don’t really show it to people, and if I do show it, I keep the sound muted. The reason being that if you were to listen to the sound of that video all you’d really hear as Timothy took his first steps towards me would be me laughing my head off like a madman. I am looking forward to teaching another child to walk and laughing like a madman again. When babies learn to walk, they must be motivated to walk to something. They can’t just let go of what was supporting them. They let go and move forward knowing that they will be caught. They must have that period where nobody is holding their hands and there’s nothing to lean on. They must have that challenge to grow. Or they could just sit on the floor and put off learning to walk.

We can’t just stay in the past. Neither can we just sit and wallow now. We must take those little baby steps of faith and move forward. The psalmist talks about “those who sow with tears” (v. 5) and “Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow” (v.6).

The weeping, the tears, or the nostalgia and regret, these are natural normal reactions to difficult circumstances. The sowing of seeds is an act of faith. It’s a refusal to give up. We must keep sowing seeds. Those who do so, “will reap with songs of joy”.

Paul wrote to the Galatians:

Keep doing good. Keep making those acts of faith. Keep looking forward to the day of harvest. Today’s trials will be tomorrows testimony. God is able. God is faithful.

Look back, remember, and reflect on all that God has done for you. Give thanks. And as you look at the present difficulties lift your voice to God. Pray and ask him to restore us once again. Keep taking those steps of faith. Keep sowing those seeds. Do good. Take care of one another. Be kind.

The restrictions we must put up with now are there to protect each other. They are there out of love. So, let’s be careful for each other’s sake.

We will return with songs of joy!

Pray

Father we thank you for your faithfulness to your people. We thank you for all the ways you have rescued us and sustained us in the past. We thank you most of all for that great rescue that we have in Jesus Christ our Saviour.  Help us to remember and be thankful. Help us to put our trust in you to face our current difficulties with hope and grace.

As cases of COVID-19 in Ireland continue to rise please protect us. We pray for healing for those who are sick, we especially remember those in our own community in the Bailieborough Group. We pray for your protection for those working on the front lines. We pray for the development of effective treatments and vaccines. We pray for the death of this virus.

We pray for a spirit of cooperation and kindness to prevail, even as we cannot socialise like we used to.

We pray that this time of year might remind us and all people that you are faithful, that you provide and are ready to bless those who seek you.

We pray in Jesus’ name,

Amen.

Sing