John 21 - Gone fishing

< John 20 | Index | No more chapters >

Chapter 21 of John takes us right back to the beginning of Yahshua's ministry and also looks forward to the future of the church after he returns to the Father.

At the beginning of the chapter Yahshua appears to seven of the disciples, the third time that he has been with them since the resurrection. And does he find them busy with the work he left them to do? No! Instead of fishing for men, they have returned to fishing for fish (compare Luke 5:1-11). The problem is that they don't know what to do or how to do it. And the Holy Spirit, the Counsellor that was promised, is not yet with them to guide them and encourage them.

At first they don't even recognise him, he's just a man on the beach. But then he does something that reminds them of an earlier occasion when he first called some of them to follow him, he repeats much the same process that's recorded in Luke. There are minor differences, this time he is not in the boat with them, and the net doesn't break. Do you notice how they're still not quite sure who he is? They want to ask him but don't dare. They know in their hearts but it just doesn't add up. They saw Lazarus come out of the grave but this is different, Yahshua rose without anyone to command him to come out. To perform a miracle is one thing, to be a miracle with nobody to command it was weird. They are still troubled and confused, emotions that are mixed with their earlier delight and rejoicing.

After sharing a meal with them Yahshua has a very interesting conversation with Peter. I can imagine him pointing to the pile of fish and saying, 'Do you love me more than these?'. And what does Peter say? 'Yes Lord, I like you - you know that.'

In English translations it looks as if Yahshua and Peter both use the same word - 'love'. But that's misleading. English doesn't have the same richness as the Koine Greek used here. Yahshua uses 'agape' which has shades of meaning around brotherly love, affection, good will, and benevolence. Peter uses 'phileo' which is less intense and means like, approve, welcome, or befriend. Agape is a deep love from the heart, phileo is lighter, more liking than loving.

To this response Yahshua says, 'Feed my little lambs'.

Then he asks Peter the same question, 'Do you love me?', Peter answers, 'You know I like you', and Yahshua says, 'Feed my sheep'.

But the third time Yahshua asks, 'Do you like me?' Peter is hurt because now he realises how half-hearted he has been. Ouch! Peter, headstrong Peter, needs to face reality. Perhaps he was ashamed to say a real, strong agape 'I love you' because denying the Lord is still so fresh in his mind. But the Messiah doesn't call us to be strong for him, he calls us to come to him in weakness so that he can be our strength.

And this is the part of the chapter that looks forward. Yahshua is looking forward to the long years, decades, and eventually centuries and millenia that lie ahead. Times when he will not be here walking and talking and cooking fish on the beach. Times when the church aided by the comfort and guidance of the Holy Spirit will need to learn and grow and thrive. He was looking forward even to today, and all through those centuries we have had the task of shepherding one another. When I am lost and struggling I may depend on you to lead me to good pasture. When you are lost and struggling I must do the same for you. This is the church, the living bride of the Lamb. How many times had he told them, 'Love one another as I have loved you'?

You and I were born for a time such as this. We're here to support and encourage one another, and we're to reflect Yahshua's love, treating the world the way he treated it. Reaching the poor and the hungry and the lost by showing them his living love working in us. Let's get to it!

< John 20 | Index | No more chapters >

Eaton Ford (day) - Kingdom loving

Today we discussed aspects of our lives and interests in connection with church life. Roger, for example, with his interest in model aircraft is in contact with a number of friends that he can share with and pray for. Paul is in touch with a variety of people, neighbours, ex-army mates and contacts through the Acorn group. We all agree that church is not just going to a place once a week but is about community in the place where we live.

Paul, Roger and I demonstrated Church of Two (CO2) for David. He could see the potential value right away and wanted to read more about it online.

David and Roger both have an interest in seeing living communities of faith growing in the Offords and we talked about this for a while. We also prayed together, partly for the hopes and needs that were expressed through CO2 and partly for the Offords. We know that Father has a plan for each of us and for our effectiveness in sharing Jesus' life with others. We can't do it ourselves - he must do it through us.

David referred to Bernard of Clairvaux's treatise 'On Loving God' in which he describes a 'ladder' of love. The steps are first 'loving self for self's sake', then 'loving God for self's sake', thirdly 'loving God for God's sake', and finally 'loving self for God's sake'. The Bishop of Huntingdon, David Thomson, wrote about this recently in his blog. The original passage from Bernard of Clairvaux's work is in Chapter XV.

We were all encouraged in sharing these things together.

John 20 - Seeing is believing

< John 19 | Index | John 21 >

Now we come to the greatest event of all time. John 20 records the resurrection of Yahshua the Messiah, the one who gave his life for us and could not be defeated by death. This is so unexpected and astonishing that the people who first saw him struggled with the idea. Let's look at their reactions.

Mary Magdalene - Mary was the first on the scene very early, it was still dark. She knew something had happened for she could see that the stone had been moved. She didn't go in but ran to Peter and John. Mary assumed that someone had taken the body.

By the time Peter and John left, Mary was in tears. She looked inside and saw two angels who asked her why she was crying. Her concern was for the body. Then she turned around, looked away from the tomb, and saw Yahshua who asked her the same question. She didn't recognise him until he spoke her name. He sent her to tell the disciples.

John - He was the first to look inside. He saw the linen strips. He didn't go in at first, but after Peter had done so he followed. John saw and believed.

Peter - Peter acted in character, he dashed right inside. He saw the linen and the head cloth.

The disciples - In the evening Yahshua appeared in the locked room where they were meeting. They rejoiced! They later told Thomas (who wasn't there when Yahshua was in the room).

Thomas - Seeing is believing! Thomas was unable to accept the news until he could see Yahshua with his own eyes. He had to wait a week. When he saw, he believed.

What about us? What about you? Are you like any of the people mentioned here?

It's easy to jump to conclusions like Mary. Once we've entertained an idea it can be hard to get beyond it. Mary had no reason to think the body had been taken, nor that she was talking to the gardener. It was an assumption. Even while she was standing with the risen Lord her mind was working on ways of finding his body! What assumptions do we make about him?

John saw that the tomb was empty and believed. This is not like Thomas who saw Yahshua and believed. John believed because of what he did not see. This is faith! Do we believe what we have not seen?

Peter didn't hesitate, but he did investigate by looking thoroughly. We need to look thoroughly at the things we read and have been told about the Lord. We need to investigate them for ourselves. Do they hold up to examination? John doesn't tell us what Peter concluded, just that he was thorough in looking.

The disciples in the locked room rejoiced when they saw him! We can't help but rejoice when we realise that the One who died for us is alive. Our lives as believers are now in him! If he is alive so are we, for ever. Now that is good news!

Thomas - When he saw the Lord he believed. 'Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.' So, if you have believed, Yahshua himself says you are blessed. it doesn't come much clearer than that!

< John 19 | Index | John 21 >

Eaton Ford - seeing or experiencing?

Sean and I talked about our lives, the need for outreach, the value of CO2, and the potential usefulness of summarising what he's been showing us month by month.

Sean shared how he has been looking towards Jesus with an increasing desire to seek him and his kingdom, know his desire and leading, and find a way of doing it. He saw a picture in which the Spirit was moving and leaving a light trail of footprints. The footprints were not visible, they were spiritual footprints across the land. He said that he believes the Lord is trying to wake the United Kingdom up because it is sleeping and time is short.

We talked through a variety of topics and how they relate to the Lord and to church life. These included creation, evolution, fundamental particles, energy, and the sheer wonder of it all. How awesome is our Creator King! We also shared news about our families.

Jim arrived later after another meeting. We continued the conversation and considered the value of reading the Bible as well as some things concerning the work at Moggerhanger Park.

Jim shared a picture of a beautiful beach with only a couple of people on it, the sort of image you might see in a travel brochure. He said, 'But it's only a picture. Until you feel the sunshine on your skin and feel the sand between your toes you haven't really experienced it. Seeing it in a brochure or on the TV screen isn't the same - not even close! And it's the same with experiencing life in the Spirit.'

John 19 - See! Here's the man

< John 18 | Index | John 20 >

In John 19, Pilate's attempts to release Yahshua come to nothing. This chapter covers Pilate's final attempts to save his life, his eventual crucifixion, his death, and his burial in the rock-hewn tomb.

Pilate has Yahshua flogged and ridiculed, then shows him to the crowd again to demonstrate that he can find absolutely no reason to charge him with any offence requiring death. Perhaps he thought that this lesser punishment would satisfy them. But they shout and yell for crucifixion. Pilate retorts, 'Crucify him yourselves, I can't find any reason to do so.' But when they tell him that Yahsua had claimed to be the Son of the Almighty, Pilate is very afraid. The Lord actually helps him out at this point, he explains that Pilate's guilt is less than that of the Jewish leaders. And after that Pilate kept trying to release him but in the end was given little choice and handed him over to the execution squad.

It seems that Pilate continued to have some sympathy towards this extraordinary man who did not deserve to die. He wrote 'King of the Jews' on the sign over the cross and refused to change it. He gave permission for the body to be taken down and buried in a rich man's tomb.

There is very little I need write about this chapter, I suggest reading it again because it speaks for itself. In fact, I'd encourage everyone to read chapters 18 and 19 again right through as they really do belong together.

I hope that by focussing on Pilate's part in the events I will have helped you see afresh how very determined the Jewish leaders were to do away with Yahshua. They were extraordinarily angry with him, they were in such a frothing rage that that were competely unable to see the truth. And it was staring them in the face! They crucified the only man who had ever performed the three Messianic Miracles - curing a Jewish leper, casting out a demon from a dumb man, and healing a man blind from birth. By their own requirements he had to be the Messiah!

The question remains, what are we going to do with this man, Yahshua (Jesus)? We can reject him like the Jewish leaders. We can love him like Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. We can follow him like John, Peter, Nicodemus, and Joseph of Arimathea. We can think that perhaps he is right, certainly that he is innocent, yet like Pilate find it far too costly to abandon our responsibilities in order to follow him.

We must all make a choice. The one thing we cannot do with Yahshua of Nazareth, the King of Israel, is ignore him. Everything he claimed about himself is true! He demonstrated it beyond any doubt for those with open eyes, ears, and minds - then, and today.

And in the next chapter of John we read how he demonstrated it one more time, by rising from the grave and proving that even death could not hold him.

< John 18 | Index | John 20 >

John 18 - Interrogation at night

< John 17 | Index | John 19 >

In John 18 we read of Yahshua's arrest in the olive grove, how he is taken first to Annas, then to Caiaphas, and finally to Pilate. During the night, waiting to find out what will happen to him, Peter denies three times that he knows him or was with him. Another follower is braver (verses 15-16), was this Nicodemus? We don't know but it seems quite likely. Pilate interviews the prisoner, quickly finds him innocent, and tries to get him released.

Pilate treats his unwanted prisoner much better than the Jewish authorities do. They don't seem to care whether he is innocent or guilty, they have already decided he must die because he claimed to be the Son of the Most High and also because he uttered the Holy Name, Yahweh, I AM. They are offended because they do not believe him. According to Jewish law, the High Priest would speak the Name once a year inside the Holy of Holies. If they had understood that Yahshua was indeed the Highest of High Priests, and the Son, and the Messiah, and the sacrificial Lamb, they would not have sentenced him to death. But as the Lamb, it was necessary that he die for the sins of the world.

They didn't understand who he was although they had all the evidence they needed, so according to them he was guilty of blasphemy and should be stoned to death. However the Roman authorities had banned the death penalty under Jewish Law, so only the Romans were permitted to kill a prisoner. That's why the Jews involved Pontius Pilate.

But Pilate proved to be a fair man. He told the Jews to try him under their own law which would have carried a lesser penalty than death because of the Roman prohibition. But they'd have none of it. So Pilate interrogated Yahshua. Pilate asks, 'What is truth?' As a Roman provincial governor, 'truth' was whatever he chose to make it. If Pilate said so, it was so! So he went back to the Jewish crowd, pronounced Yahshua not guilty, and offered to release him according to the Jewish Passover custom. But they preferred the rebel, Bar Abbas, and called for his release!

Let's look at the conversations with Pilate in more detail. First, he asks the Jews what charges they are bringing. Instead of giving a straight answer they say that if he was innocent they wouldn't have handed him over. That was no more than an evasive non-answer.

Next Pilate tells them to apply Jewish law but they complain they can't apply the death penalty.

Pilate then decided to have a conversation with the prisoner himself, 'Are you the King of the Jews?'

Yahshua asks him if this is his own idea or whether the Jews have suggested it. And Pilate replies, 'Am I a Jew?' which effectively means, 'Of course they told me. How would I know?' He wants to find out what this man has done to so upset his own people. Yahshua replies that his Kingdom is not of this world but from another place. To a Roman, 'this world' would mean the Graeco-Roman world. Was the man saying he was from India, or Parthia, or somewhere else outside the Empire?

So far, Pilate might have been anxious only about the political issues and the danger of crowd trouble. But as we'll see in chapter 19, this is about to change.

His attitude up to this point seems entirely reasonable. The man is not guilty and should be released, so Pilate does his level best to do just that. However, the Jewish leadership and the crowds are combining to make this difficult to accomplish, and in the end the death of one man must have seemed less important to Pilate than the many deaths that would result from a riot in Jerusalem. Furthermore, King Herod and Caesar himself would regard civil unrest at a major religious festival as failure and he would not be prepared to push things so far as to provoke that. From Pilate's perspective preventing unrest was essential, saving this man's life was not.

But Pilate was not the only man in Jerusalem wanting to avoid trouble. By the time Yahshua and Pilate were in conversation Peter was feeling a very wretched failure. He had denied even knowing the Master. Peter was afraid of losing his own life and spoke out of that fear. Sometimes we speak out of fear too, it can freeze us into inaction or denial on the one hand, or send us into full-blown and headlong flight on the other.

What is the antidote to fear? Love. Perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). Later, the risen Lord would ask Peter, 'Do you love me?', as we shall see in chapter 21.

< John 17 | Index | John 19 >

John 17 - Glory given and received

< John 16 | Index | John 18 >

In John 17 the time for teaching has finished, it is time for prayer. We have all been in situations where this is true. We can talk and talk but in the end if we want things to move forward we need to pray - for ourselves and for others. And this is precisely what Yahshua does; first for himself, then for others.

More particularly we need to pray when the situation is tough or desperate. Communication with others has to give way to communication with the Father who guides our paths and intervenes on our behalf. He is the One who hears and gives us what we ask (if we ask in Yahshua's name and in accordance with his will).

Notice that the Lord prays far less for himself than he does for his followers. Is there a lesson there for us too? We are likely to face tough times, but rarely as tough as those our Teacher and Master faced. Yet still his focus is on others. Even in praying for himself his focus is on the Father, the glory is for the Father. The Son asks for glory so that he can glorify the Father.

And there's a little reference to authority in verse 2, did you notice? The Son has been given authority over all people - all people. That includes Judas Iscariot, Caiaphas, and Pontius Pilate. Yahshua is the King of Kings, he has kingly authority even over Caesar. With a single word he could have escaped death! But true authority doesn't merely command men and women. Instead it commands respect in those who recognise it. What sort of authority do you and I have? Do we issue orders or do we earn respect? What a difference!

Next he prays for his followers, his apprentices. Some of them heard these words or they could not have been recorded. What did they make of them at the time? He confidently speaks of their faith and understanding even though just a short time before they were demonstrating considerable doubt and confusion. That is real trust! The Father told him it was so, it appeared as if it might not be so, and he prays with confidence knowing that the prayer has been answered. He asks for their protection and for their sanctification.

And then he tells us, a hundred generations later and every generation in between, that his prayer is also for us! Yahshua's prayer is that we would be one, and not just with one another but also with him and with the Father. Now surely this is utterly awesome! And not only that. The Father gave glory to the Son and now the Son has given that same glory to us! (verse 22). If that doesn't take your breath away, nothing will. We are to contain both the love that the Father has for the Son and we are to contain the Son himself.

Christ in us, the hope of glory!

< John 16 | Index | John 18 >

Colworth (CU) - Dysciples

Today, David brought some thoughts on 'Dysciples', he read from Krish Kandiah's book of the same name. David's chosen extract was about feeling dissatisfied and posed the question, 'Do we lose passion as we age?'

There is no way to tweak the truth, Jesus knows what he's getting but he chooses us anyway. He chose the twelve because he wanted to transform them (Matthew 4:12-22). We're impatient, we want everything now. But Jesus is patient. We feel dissatisfied because of our slow progress.

Jesus is our king and we need to obey him. If we're dissatisfied we need a change of perspective and behaviour (Ezekiel 14:6)

David reminded us that we need to be more on fire, more active. He told us that sometimes he feels guilty about this. I asked if we should be growing in the fruits of the Spirit, because it's really about character, not just what we do.

I had a vision of a map which I shared. I saw a map of a route, it was partly covered by a sheet of paper and I realised that more would be revealed as we needed it on our journey through life. Father has a good and safe plan for us and we need to follow it as he reveals it. David explained that we are like clay pots with treasure inside. We might not look like much, but the true value is in what is hidden!

John 16 - I have overcome the world

< John 15 | Index | John 17 >

In John 16 Yahshua explains further to his puzzled and anxious disciples, and he does so very plainly so that by the end of the chapter they are beginning to understand something of what he is saying. It must have been hard for him and for them.

Hard for him because he was living in a human body with a human mind, and just as he longed to avoid the death that lay ahead of him (much as you or I would have done) perhaps he also had some lingering anxiety that even at this late stage the disciples just weren't getting their heads around what was happening and might not be able to continue after he was gone.

In the first case he prayed that, if possible, the cup might be taken away, that another way than a cruel death might be found. 'Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done, Father.' (Luke 22:42) In the second case he would have been in the same place we are sometimes - knowing what Father has told us will happen but not seeing it beginning yet and knowing that time is running out. Have you ever felt like that? I know I have. We need faith in those situations and so, I imagine, did the earthbound Son of the Most High.

Hard for them because he was telling them what logically could not be. Surely he doesn't mean... death? That's obviously wrong, what would we do if he was no longer here with us? Of course, they couldn't imagine having the Cousellor Spirit within them, they had no real idea what that meant. They didn't know whether to prevent him doing what he plannned, or whether to just give up and go home (It's all finished guys, the dream's over. For a while it seemed that he really was the Messiah but it was just wishful thinking on our part.) Later they tried both courses of action as we shall see in chapters 18 and 21.

The real difference between Yahshua and the disciples (or between Yahshua and us) is that his trust in his Father doesn't reach breaking point, whereas ours does. He knew the heart of the Father, he knew it was impossible that mere circumstances would get in the way of ultimate victory. And that, perhaps, is why his feeling of abandonment on the cross was so deep, so severe, 'Eloi, Eloi, why have you forsaken me?'. At that point he really was defeated, alone, lost, without hope. But his Father was not defeated and we all know what happened three days later!

Here in John 16 it's clear that Yahshua understood very clearly that he was going to die but that he would be returning for a little while (verse 16) before finally leaving again to be with the Father. And events proved him right. So it's hard for us to understand the abandonment, the forsakeness. Perhaps he was expecting even this but once the link with the Father was severed it was more than he could bear. Perhaps this loss of oneness with the Father was the true price of sin, paid in full on our behalf.

Did you notice the shallow basis for the disciples' faith in verse 30? They believed that he came from the Almighty because they wanted to ask a question and he knew what it was before it was asked! Like them, our faith wavers and is unsure, but then rises high again because of some minor circumstance. Our faith sometimes depends on 'evidence'. What we (and they) forget is that true faith is the evidence of things unseen. The true basis for faith is trust, not evidence!

In this chapter Yahshua shares the events of the coming weeks so that when these things happen, the disciples will remember that he told them. What they don't understand now, they will understand soon. 'I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.' (verse 33)

< John 15 | Index | John 17 >

John 15 - The true Vine

< John 14 | Index | John 16 >

The first words in John 15 are these - 'I am the true Vine, and my Father is the Gardener'. Who is the true Vine? Yahshua (Jesus). Jesus is the Life, Father is the one who tends and trains and nurtures that Life.

This chapter is just part of a long discourse that begins in John 13 while he washed their feet and carries on until the end of John 17. It begins as conversation, becomes a time of teaching, and ends in prayer. Yahshua said these things to the disciples but they also apply to us (see John 17:20).

Let's look at chapter 15 in more detail. There are statements here about the Son, the Father, the Spirit, the disciples, and the world. I have extracted them and rearranged them so you can read them as groups. If you follow Yahshua you are a disciple, this should make you very glad!

The Son - He learns from the Father - He did miracles - He will send the Counsellor - He is the true vine (so anything else that looks like a vine is false) - He is the cause of our fruitfulness - He chose and appointed us to bear lasting fruit - The branches must remain in him - He remains in us - He is essential - He speaks to us - He commands us - He will give us what we ask - He loves us - He calls us friends, not servants - He lays down his life for his friends - He came and spoke to the world - The world hated him - He was persecuted and disobeyed

The Father - He loves the Son - He is the source of the Spirit - He will give us whatever we ask in Yahshua's name - He is the gardener - He cuts unfruitful branches - He prunes fruitful branches to make them even more fruitful - His glory is that we bear much fruit

The Holy Spirit - He goes out from the Father - He is the Counsellor - He is the Spirit of Truth - He testifies about the Son

The disciples (including us) - We are the branches - We must remain in Christ - We cannot be fruitful by ourselves - We will bear much fruit if we remain in him - We can do nothing without him - If we are separated from him we will wither away and be worthless - We are clean because of the word he has spoken to us - We can ask whatever we wish - His joy is in us - We are to remain in his love - We must love one another as Christ has loved us - We are his friends (if we obey) - We are no longer servants - We know his business - We were chosen and appointed - We must testify about him - We glorify the Father by producing fruit

The world - It loves those who belong to it - They don't know the Father - They hate the Father and the Son - They hate us but hated the Lord first - They will not obey our teaching - They will persecute us - They have seen the miracles - Because of Christ's teaching, they have no excuse for their sin

The take home message is that we are here to glorify the Father and we can only do that by bearing much fruit. What is the fruit? Yahshua said that we will know a person by the fruit they produce (Matthew 7:16). The fruit of the Spirit is listed in Galatians 5:22-23 - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control. Have you ever thought that when you are patient you are glorifying the Father? Or when you are gentle? Or kind?

We don't need to do mighty works to glorify the Father. He is well able to do those himself! Instead, he is glorified when we grow to be more like his Son and bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit in abundance.

< John 14 | Index | John 16 >

ANNOUNCEMENT - Moggerhanger Meeting - 7th February 2010

Printable version (Scribd)

Don't miss the
Moggerhanger Meeting!

Sunday 7th February, 2010. Open to everyone with an interest in organic expressions of church.

(This is the second notice and contains new additional information.)

• What? - People are gathering from Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, and Northamptonshire for a snowdrop walk, a shared meal, to hear some visiting speakers, and for an afternoon of meeting together with Jesus.
  
  
• Where? - Moggerhanger Park near Bedford (full directions) MK44 3RW.
  
  
• When? - Sunday 7th February 2010 at 13:30.
  
  
• Cost? - No charge, but there will be an opportunity to donate to Moggerhanger Park.
  

Numbers - If you are planning to come and have not yet told us the numbers in your party, please make sure you get those details to us as soon as possible (at the latest by the end of Friday 5th February). This is necessary so we can provide the right amount of food.

Dietary needs - If people in your group are vegetarian, have food allergies or intolerances, or have other special requirements do let us know that too. Thanks.

Children's room - We plan to have space and some activities for children and may be able to help supervise, but if you are bringing children please be prepared to help if necessary by spending some time in the children's room yourself. You are welcome to keep children with you in the main meeting if you prefer. Older teenagers can help with the younger ones or join the main meeting.

Music - We have not made arrangements for music, but if you're a musician we encourage you to bring and use an instrument.

Programme - We expect this to be a flexible framework, it's important to be responsive to the Lord as we meet and we'll make changes if necessary as we go along.

1. Arrive at Moggerhanger Park by 13:30, the gates will be open before that. Once inside the grounds turn first left towards the house and park at the front. If you're early feel free to explore the grounds.
   
   
2. The snowdrop walk will begin from the front of the house at 13:30 (weather permitting). It's an easy stroll on reasonably firm woodland paths. You might need boots if it's been raining (wellingtons, walking boots, or a spare pair of old shoes that won't be spoiled by a little mud).
   
   
3. We'll aim to eat at 14:00. Make your way through the front door of the house.
   
   
4. From 14:45 - After lunch we plan to have three short presentations - no more than 15 minutes each. If you have an unfinished drink, bring it to the meeting room with you.
1. Peter Farmer - Church Networks and Church Planting
2. Chris Jefferies - Church of Two (CO2)
3. Pete Stamford - X-treme Youth Camps
4. Q and A session
   
   
5. From 15:45 - A time for open prayer, praise, and body ministry
   
   
6. 17:30 - Cup of tea or coffee and a slice of cake
   
   
7. Optional - There is no official end to the meeting. If anyone would like to stay on for more discussion, prayer etc after the tea/coffee that will certainly be possible. Some may need to get away quickly (if you have young children or a long journey, for example).
   
   For anyone interested in the house, the park, and the work that goes on there, it may be possible to organise an impromptu house tour. Please ask. The Moggerhanger Park website contains a lot of valuable information.

Looking forward to seeing you all on the day,

Grace, peace and joy,

Chris Jefferies

chris@scilla.org.uk

124 St Neots Road

Eaton Ford

St Neots

Cambs

PE19 7AL

John 14 - The Holy Spirit

< John 13 | Index | John 15 >

It seems that the events of John 14, like those of John 13, tool place in the upper room. Yahshua is speaking spiritual truth, but the disciples are still hearing with earthly ears. As far as they are concerned he is talking in riddles.

He assures them that he, himself, is the way to the Father's house. And he reiterates that if they really knew him, they would know the Father too. He tells them that the Father is living in him. (verse 10) And he says that they can ask anything in his name and he will do it.

They have seen his love for them and for the crowds, they have seen the miracles (including the Messianic miracles) so they should already understand and know what he is telling them - but they lack something. He knows what they lack - or rather who they lack. It's the Holy Spirit.

So in verses 15-21 Yahshua explains this to them. It is one of the most important bits of information they will need after he has gone back to the Father. He has been with them for a few years, but this 'other counsellor' who will be given will be with them for all generations to come. Notice that the world can't accept this counsellor because it doesn't see him and it doesn't know him. Isn't this true in your own experience? Those you know who are not believers don't accept that there is a person called the Holy Spirit. But, says the Lord, 'You know him for he lives with you and will be in you'. How awesome is that!

This is not just a matter of a sort of influencing force as some suggest (the Jehovah's Witnesses, for example). This is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of Truth, actually making his home within his people. He is not a spirit of fear but the Spirit of a sound mind. 'Christ in you, the hope of glory' is this same Holy Spirit! He is in you.

Think about this a little, let it sink in deeply. Yahshua is in the Father and the Father is in him. He is also in you and you are in him. The Spirit of Christ, sent by the Father is in you and has, in fact, made his home in you. Yahshua has gone to the Father to prepare a place for you in his Father's house of many rooms. The Father and the Son and the Spirit and the believers are all one! All living in one house, in other words all one family. No wonder the disciples found it hard to understand what Yahshua was saying to them, it is such an astonishing truth that it sounds as if it must be false! At this time he was still with them and therefore the Spirit had not yet been sent. But nevertheless it's true - read verse 23 if you have any doubts.

What a truth! What a Lord! What a great salvation!

< John 13 | Index | John 15 >

Eaton Ford (day) - conversation and prayer

Only brief notes were made for this meeting. Roger, Paul, and I discussed some of the events and issues in our lives and in those of our friends. We worked through CO2 and then prayed for one another and for friends.

John 13 - Washing their feet

< John 12 | Index | John 14 >

There is so much in John 13. Again it's a significant chapter because Yahshua knows he is about to suffer a dreadful death and will now be with the disciples for only a very short time. So everything he says and does is focused on reiterating the most important things so they'll be fresh in their minds after he has gone.

And although there's much here about his betrayal and death, there is also a great deal about loving one another. It's a bit like a mother or father leaving home for a risky hospital procedure and knowing they may never see the children again. What is the last thing you would say in that position? Very likely it would be along the lines of, 'Be good children, always do what Dad (or Mum) tells you and look after one another. I want you all to take special care of your brothers and sisters.'

This is one of the things he has always taught his followers. 'Care for others more than you care for yourself, and especially - love one another'. Knowing they still barely get it, he demonstrates it for them, acting like a household servant and washing their feet.

Verse 1 tells us that 'having loved them, he now showed them the full extent of his love'. What does this mean? It refers to what he is about to do, making himself their servant, the King of the universe making himself nothing so that they could experience his love. And of course, in cleaning their feet so they were ritually pure for the Passover meal he was also showing how he would very soon cleanse them of sin so they would be pure for life in heaven. The foot washing was Love at work, cleaning the loved. The Messiah's death would be the same Love at work, cleaning the loved. And who is Love? Why, the Mighty One himself! If you have seen the Son you have seen the Father - and you have seen Love himself.

But the take home message is 'What I have done for you, you must do for one another'. (verses 12-17)

Will we be like Yahshua, pouring ourselves out for the sake of our friends and family? Will we love one another? There are some groups of believers who hold a foot washing ritual. But it's not about the act of washing feet! It's about a heart that will want to wash feet literally or metaphorically whenever there's a need. It's about becoming a bit lower in order to raise up a brother or sister.

< John 12 | Index | John 14 >