Yeah but...

Recently I've started writing a book (shocking really since I can't spell!). I've never really enjoyed reading and I've never really had a desire to write. However, back in February I took a U-turn and decided I was going to write a book! It will probably take me a while as I squeeze writing in and I'm not sure it will be any good. I just got frustrated waiting for someone else to write the book for me.

What I aim to do is to try and write something for young people (teens) that answers some of their questions about God. There are some excellent resources already available that answer questions about God - the problem is, not many of these books meet the reading needs of young people.

Most days in the classroom as I teach about Jesus/God students will often respond with something along the lines of, "Yeah but..." and so "Yeah but..." is the title of my book. The little blurb says this:

Have you ever wondered why Christians believe in all that God stuff? Have you wanted to say to Christians; “Yeah but…”? This book aims to provide answers to “Yeah but…” questions people have about God.

Each chapter starts with a claim Christians make. For example: Christians claim that God is real. Then there is the question, "Yeah but...  you can't see God so he isn't real!" I then have a box with the chapter in brief - which sums up in bullet point fashion how the chapter flows, giving the answers to the questions within the chapter without the detail. I'm trying to write in a conversational style - a bit like when teaching, you'll say something and a student will ask another question. I then end the chapter with a couple of bullet summery points, followed by a couple of questions to encourage the reader to keep thinking.

Its been a fun few months and a few chapters are written. Its been lovely that many of my students ask me how its going and keep reading the chapters for me. Hopefully one day it'll be finished!

I'm praying that God would help me to write in a clear, engaging and easy way for young people to understand, and that somehow it would be a really helpful tool in pointing young people to Jesus and life forever with him.

Examples of the chapter titles are:

Christians claim the Bible tells the truth
:

“Yeah but… the Bible is just a dusty old book of fairy tales!”



Christians claim that God exists
:
“Yeah but… You can’t see him, so he doesn’t exist!”
Christians claim God made the world
:
“Yeah but… God didn’t create the world, haven’t you heard of Evolution and the Big Bang? Anyway who made God?”

Christians claim that evil and suffering doesn’t mean God is evil:
“Yeah but... if God was good he wouldn’t let the bad stuff happen!”

Christians claim being good won’t get me to heaven:

“Yeah but… I’ve never killed anyone and I’ve not even had a detention!”

Christians claim Jesus rose from the dead:

“Yeah but… Where’s the proof? People don’t just come back to life!”

Christians claim God is loving but sends people to hell
:
“Yeah but… Hell will be a party with my friends won’t it? Heaven just sounds dull!”
Christians claim other religions don’t get you to heaven
:

“Yeah but… What about all the people who believe other stuff… like Muslims?”



Christians claim God is one; Father, Son and Holy Spirit
:
“Yeah but… Can’t you count? That's three gods not one! What is God anyway?”

Christians claim Christianity is extremely important:
“Yeah but… Bothered!”
Christians claim Jesus is their king/rescuer:

“Yeah but… Christians are just hypocrites!” 

If you'd like to read any of the chapters for me, do let me know and I'll email it across - your thoughts and feedback I'm sure will be really helpful - especially as it will then help it to be better for the young people!

Tim Keller: Kings Cross - BRILLIANT

This past week I have been reading Tim Keller's latest book, King's Cross. I have loved every moment reading it (I've even read some of the chapters over and over again). Keller takes us through 'The story of the world in the life of Jesus'. As you read it, you can't help but love Jesus more and desire to be changed more into his likeness. I have found it such a refreshing and encouraging read.

As you go through the book and so through Mark's Gospel, Keller helps us snap out of a familiarity of the Gospel and nudges you into seeing afresh how totally brilliant Jesus is. I love the way Keller puts everything so simply and yet doesn't just scratch the surface but reveals great insight into Jesus' identity and purpose.


Another reason I have loved reading this book is because Keller also addresses the skeptic.  When I think of Mark's Gospel, at the back of my mind I remember the last time I taught Mark's Gospel to a GCSE group. It was rather stressful! Bit by bit the students would try to rip Mark's Gospel apart. They mocked it, they would come up with conspiracies as to how each account cannot be true and they'd regularly tell me why I was stupid to believe in Jesus. One student got such rage at Mark's Gospel (Mark 5 - Jesus heals a demon possessed man and the evil spirits enter pigs...) she ripped her exercise book up, threw it at me and found her self removed from my class... only to then hit a senior member of staff and find herself permanently excluded! Maybe when you share the gospel with your friends you face hostility too.

Yet Keller kicks into touch many of the questions and uncertainties people have about Mark's Gospel and Jesus. I know as I've been reading his book side by side with Mark's Gospel, the stress of the hostility has been removed. As I've read it, I've found that my heart has been constantly ignited to love Jesus more and challenged us to be transformed more and more into his likeness. 

I haven't yet finished reading 'Kings Cross' but I would thoroughly recommend it. Keller definitely helps us to know and love the Lord Jesus more... brilliant!

Having said this... I cannot make any promises that the book will have the same effect on you! But... give it a go... 
 
http://www.10ofthose.com/products/6650/King039s-Cross/  Selling at £7.97 instead of £12.99!

Making the most of every opportunity

Over the past month a number of things have happened that have been reminding me of not only the fragility of life on earth but also of the need to be making the most of every opportunity to share with people in a gentle and loving way the good news about Jesus.

When I arrived at school this morning I received a message from a parent who asked to meet me urgently. As I met the parent, the news wasn't good.

One of my tutor group was involved in a serious accident on Sunday. He'd fallen off a quad bike at speed without a helmet. He was was air lifted Leeds General Infirmary and remained unconscious for over 4 hours. Today he's struggled to remain awake. However, there's no bleeding in the brain and has no fractures. When awake today his memory was poor and he was unable to stay awake for long, yet the good news is hopefully after 48 hours in hospital he'll be able to return home.

As I shared the news with my tutor group this morning, there was great sadness and shock. "Miss will he die?" "What will happen if he does die?" This isn't the first time I've had these sorts of conversations with my tutor group, as another boy in my tutor group has battled cancer and at times the Dr's thought he'd die. Thankfully the boy who fell off the quad bike was in a stable condition and I was able to reassure my tutor group, even though at that time there were many uncertainties.

Another student I teach was suddenly removed from the school around a month ago, after his brother stabbed a boy to death. Another student I teach left the school last week without warning, he's from a traveling family and his parents had decided it was time to move on. Saddened that these students had left, I asked myself the question: "Had I told these students the gospel? Had I made the most of every opportunity I had before they left?" Again with the boy in hospital today I asked myself the same types of questions. 

I've been reminded again of a passage that has been at the forefront of my mind over the past month. These are huge reminders to me of the need to be prayerful and to use the opportunities given to me (of which I have many each day) to be pointing my students, colleagues, friends and family to Jesus.

Colossians 4:2-6

 ² Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³ And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴⁵ Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.

From Doncaster to Dodeni

During the second week of Easter I returned to Romania with a team led by Michael Ots and Tim Dixon. It was an fantastic week and  an absolute pleasure to return to Romania and spend time with the children, young people and their families on their home turf. It felt like an enormous privilege to be part of the team and I have many fond memories (and some painful ones inflicted by Becky and Michael). Michael worked out that the week consisted of roughly: 13 services, 17 kids clubs, 5 youth meetings, 16 hrs of medical clinics, 10 hrs of football and a youth sleep over. All in all, a fairly packed week!

After arriving back in Doncaster at around 5am on Monday, having been awake roughly 27hours, returning to the classroom on Tuesday I was rather dazed (I even found my self pausing for a translator... looking around and realising that I was in England!). However, I'm slowly returning to normality, here are a few things I've been thinking about:

1. Just get on with it: Whilst in Romania and on a 'mission' trip - its 'easy' to just mix in and get involved with meeting people, sharing your testimony, doing a kids talk and generally trying to make the most of every opportunity. You just do, whatever needs to be done. But a challenge I felt whilst in Romania and on return to Doncaster is: Why are we not so passionately driven like this at 'home'? Often I'm inclined to decide I'm not good enough to help (when I should be trusting God), I use nerves as an excuse, or I'm aware of time demands and work pressures (preparing students for exams etc) Yet this is rather ridiculous really in the grand scheme of things! I've become aware that, instead of making the most of every opportunity (of which amazingly I have thousands every day) I can be quick to make an excuses, be complacent or even be disheartened (and so step back) at every opportunity. And so, although I am aware its a busy term ahead including marking for the exam board, I've started to think and pray about ways of making the most of every opportunity (if I don't plan it probably won't happen) and I'm excited about the months ahead.

Yet in this excitement, I have to admit that teaching this week was really tough. As I stood in front of my students they moaned and groaned at me, they were not at all interested in anything to do with God or the Bible. Reality is, that although I have amazing opportunities day in and day out - its not easy and can be very discouraging. Yet this past week in Romania has encouraged me to keep going and to aim to make the most of every opportunity.


c.f: Colossians 4:4-6^: Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.


2. Distracted by appearances: After an hour or so in Dodeni, you smell, you're covered in dust and dirt and you long for a shower, you just feel grim! You want to fix all the problems; you want to supply everyone with soap, clean water, toilets, clothes, food. You want to adopt all the children and take them home and attempt to love and care for them. You want to remove the alcohol, take away the violence, you want to create a safe environment and you want to educate, provide jobs (and in some ways its not that dissimilar to Doncaster - though Doncaster's needs seem minor compared to Dodeni). When on home visits and when speaking to many of the poorest we came into contact with, all they could see was their 'urgent' physical needs.

Its so important to be working in the community with these important issues, yet only our loving heavenly father can truly satisfy. It is so brilliant that in Christ, no matter what our circumstances are, God is with us, he loves us and cares for us. Its so encouraging in the face of these terrible situations to remember the great and certain future hope we have of being with God forever in a perfect place. Not to mention how amazing it is to know God now. It was refreshing to see how the good news of Jesus, impacts this society. 

I began thinking about this after one particular visit and thought about areas in my life where I can easily become distracted from the gospel, distracted from fixing my eyes on Jesus and distracted from what really matters most. Areas in which 'needs' can distract from what really matters. I thought about things that aren't necessarily bad things, but easily become bigger in my mind than they need to - areas in which we can convince and lie to ourselves, 'if... then I'll be satisfied', rather than delighting in and treasuring Christ.

Colossians 3:1-3 - Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 

Philippians 4:7-9: And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Many of the Romanian Christians are such an example to us. They sing with passion, they are eager to learn and by changed by the gospel. We have a great deal to learn, isn't it brilliant that we have church family all over the world! 

A few highlights:
- Amazing to see the young people so excited during the youth meetings and to hear of the changed in Dodeni. 
- Although the kids meetings in Dodeni were rather unsettled compared to the others, I loved them! Dodeni itself was a highlight for me, when not in the kids club I was playing football with some of the youth - again this was great.
- One of the young people from Dodeni I have written most months since the summer thanked me for the letters and it was so encouraging to see her genuinely impacted by what was written. I was especially encouraged to see her changed from the summer and keen to grow. It was lovely that Ioanna has translated these for me and been able to pass the letters on. I was thinking that maybe it wasn't worthwhile writing as the young person had never responded to me - however, Ioanna was telling me otherwise.

"Miss, is it true that when I die i'll become a star in the sky?"

With year 7 we do a 'bible overview'. Over the last couple of lessons we've been looking at the amazing promises God made to Abraham. Today we looked at the event, where God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. As the students were completing an activity, a student raised her hand. So, I went over to see her, expecting her to tell me she'd finished or that she wanted to go to the toilet. I certainly wasn't expecting the question that came; "Miss, is it true that when I die I'll become a star in the sky?" She looked very serious. I knew this was a question to handle with care, this morning in assembly the students were told that a local primary teacher had died over Christmas. I replied, "That's a very good question, what made you think of that?" She looked at me as if it was an obvious question and said something along the lines of, "Well, I was just thinking about Isaac and where he'd go if he God hadn't stopped Abraham from killing him, my Mum says when you die you become a star in the sky!" Although she didn't say that she was thinking about life and death because someone she'd known had died, I knew I had to be careful. I didn't want her to think I thought her Mum was talking rubbish and I wanted her to see that what I said was from the Bible, not something that I'd made up on the spot to keep her quiet.

My rushed reply went something like this:

• When I want to know whether something is true or not I look in the Bible. Do you remember that when we look at what the Bible is, we discovered that Christians believe that the bible is God words written down for us? Do you remember that we said that God never lies? So I go to the Bible because I know I will always find truth in the Bible. And as creator of the world, God is an excellent source to find out about what happens when we die!
• Can you remember the punishments that God gave to Adam and Eve because they didn't do what God said? One of them was that they were no longer living in Gods land, under his rule and life would no longer be perfect. And do you remember the promises that God gave to Abraham? God promised that one day Abraham would have a really big family, that God would give him a brilliant land and that he would be blessed because God would be the ruler? Well, I'll give you a sneak preview into what we're going to learn soon. 
• We had a very quick look at what Hebrews 11 said about Abraham and his faith. We then looked at Hebrews 11:16: ^'Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.' I tried to point out that the promise that God made for Abraham is completely fulfilled in heaven, a new creation, a land where things will only be good all the time. We also looked at Hebrews 11:39-40: 'These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.'
• God says that people who have faith in him and his son Jesus (because Jesus took the punishment for sin on the cross), will go to this perfect place. And this place is even better than being a star in the sky, its a real place and will be amazing. So we looked at Revelation 21:1-5, 'Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.  I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”' She agreed that life in 'heaven' would be brilliant and that this promise, originally given to Abraham was ace... not just because Abraham was a really old man!
• She then asked me if people became stars when they got there. So we looked at this passage again and saw that God says people will be there.  
• She then asked me whether she would be there. I told her that if she wanted to be certain of being a person in this perfect place in a perfect relationship with God, we'd better see who God says would be there. So we turned to John 3:36. 

She concluded that she'd rather go to 'heaven' as a person than face God's forever punishment. However, she said she'd have to think about it as it sounded too good to be true! She was very serious and very sweet. It was such a joy to have this conversation with her, certainly better than being asked if she could go to the toilet! Its also encouraging that she's thinking about what happens when 'you' die, and wanting to know what's true and what's not true. I'm praying that God would use our conversation and that one day soon she'd be trusting in Jesus.

Teaching can be hard work, but its such a joy to meet students like this one, and having the privilege of talking about the gospel.

"Miss, I'd believe if God did a miracle"

The topic of miracles often pops up in school.  For example, when discussing with students why they don't believe in God it's quite common for them to saying something along the lines of: "I'd believe if God did a miracle!" Though interestingly, they don't know exactly what they want God to do and often say they might need a second miracle just in case it was a coincidence!

So, what is a miracle? Why are there miracles in the Bible? Should we expect miracles today? How do we know if something really is a miracle? Are miracles proof of the existence of God?

A biblical view of God, leads to a biblical understanding of miracles: In modern society we use the term 'miracle' for something that is highly unlikely, or, something we cannot explain. Students are encouraged by the exam board to learn the definition of a miracle as, 'something that defies the laws of nature'. However, the more I have thought about this definition, the more I have seen the importance of students knowing the biblical role of God in creating and sustaining the universe. The above definition can lead to a deistic view of God. Many people in society, without knowing it, are deists. They believe in a creator God, a distant God, a God who stands back and watches his work in progress. This view originated in the early C18th along with the discovery of machines. God became viewed a bit like the maker of a machine, or designer of a clock. A God who brings the world into existence, an unchangeable world with natural laws and order. But he isn't hands on whilst the machine is in motion. This leads to a couple of dangers. The more science explains how the machine works, and how the machine might have been created... the more people believe they can get rid of the need of God. Secondly, God is viewed as being distant and impersonal, a God who is not at work in the universe. In this view, a miracle is when God suddenly makes the unchangeable change.  God is only known when something different happens, when God is perceived to stretch out his hand and intervene. This further leads to what scholars call the 'God of the gaps'.  'God of the gaps' suggests that a miracle is something that we don't understand and cannot explain, and so God did it. However, the more science explains the world, the more knowledgeable we become... the fewer the gaps, the fewer miracles are perceived to happen and the smaller God becomes. Or, take the works of Derren Brown or Benny Hinn, they are able to do some of the things Jesus did... if they have discovered how Jesus did what he did... people start to get a smaller few of Jesus. And so, in Deism, God is only as big as our knowledge.

The Bible tells us that God is totally in control of the universe (theism), he didn't just create it, but he sustains it, he holds it together, he is constantly at work within the world (Hebrews 1:3, Matthew 10:29). In His graciousness to us, God uses laws of nature. Without laws of nature and some predictability we'd live in a chaotic world with very little stability. Because God is in control of the laws of nature, he can change them and use them as he pleases. A miracle doesn't have to be a suspension of the laws of nature, they may just be a God using the laws of nature differently. Take the crossing of the red sea in Exodus. God parted the red sea, not by removing a law of nature, but by using strong east wind (Exodus 14:21). No where in the Bible alongside God performing a miracle do we read, "And so God defied the natural laws..." God doesn't defy the laws of nature. He isn't ruled by laws of nature, a miracle isn't when God suddenly refuses to obey the laws of nature and stretches out his arm in rebellion. A miracle may be, God using the laws of nature differently. 

God doesn't need to perform miracles to prove his existence. Through creation and life alone, God tells us there is enough evidence for us to know that he exists. Only, we suppress that truth. God has made his existence crystal clear to us, yet we so often ignore the truth that is staring us in the face. Romans 1: 18-20:  'The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse'. And so if we want to know whether God exists or not, we just need to look at creation, the intricacy, the beauty, the design, the way things fit together. Further our ultimate proof of the reality of God is in the person of Jesus. Hebrews 1:1-3 - 'In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.' If we want to know whether God exists or not (apart from creation), the Bible is full of evidence for us. 

The Bible refers to what we call miracles as 'signs' and 'wonders'. This is because, miracles always have a purpose, they point us to something greater. We shouldn't focus all our attention in awe of the miracle, but to what the miracle is pointing to. Just like you wouldn't think about how amazing Doncaster is from a road sign, you need to follow the road sign to discover how wonderful Doncaster is. The writer of John's gospel tells us that he records the signs so that we may believe that Jesus is the Christ (John 20:31). When reading miracles in the Bible its important we note the passages explanation of that miracle, you see, the miracles always signify something important. For example, in Mark 6, Jesus has fed the thousands from a small amount. People were astonished and didn't look for what this pointed to. And so when Jesus walks on water, his disciples think he is a ghost. He calms the storm, they are astonished... because they hadn't understood what the feeding symbolised. They hadn't seen the link between what Jesus did and Moses, they hadn't realised Jesus was the new Moses. If they had, they wouldn't have been stunned by him walking on water. Or take the healing of the paralysed man. They key in this passage is that Jesus states he can forgive sins. The people knew that only God could forgive sin. But Jesus' words alone weren't enough for the people, so as proof of who he is, that he had forgiven the sins of the man, he healed him. Jesus wanted people to see that forgiveness of sin is more important than being healed of illnesses.  

The demand for miracles is not new! The Gospels are full of people requesting miracles from Jesus. Yet, Jesus wasn't best impressed by all these demands. Not because he couldn't perform them, but because Jesus didn't come to be just a miracle maker. In Matthew 16:1-4, the Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus wanting Jesus to show them a sign from heaven. Jesus' response is revealing: “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. Jesus, came to bring people back into relationship with God and so, in Mark 1:35-39, Jesus knew that people were searching him out, he knew they wanted was to see miracles. "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”  Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” Further, we know miracles were not on tap in the early church too (If they were the 'thorn' in Paul's flesh would surely have been removed!).

Miracles don't guarantee faith: I'm just about to start the topic of Miracles with my AS group. We'll be looking at miracles until Easter. Interestingly, before Christmas I asked the group whether they thought they'd seen any miracles. Each one of them believed they had. However, the miracles hadn't necessarily led them to believe in God. And this is what happens in the Bible, when people saw what Jesus did, they didn't always understand who he was and treat him as God, often they would demand to see more miracles. Jesus knew that miracles did not guarantee faith. Last year, when teaching Mark's Gospel to my year 10s miracles certainly did not produce faith, if anything it made them more skeptical! "Surely you don't believe he did that!" "As if he walked on water, it was probably just a very small and shallow pond!" In Luke 16, Jesus tells the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man does not enter heaven and once he discovers he is in torment forever, he asks for his family to see someone risen from the dead so that they could see a miracle, and thus believe in Jesus. However, the response the rich man is given is; 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.' And so, if we want to believe in Jesus, if we want to be certain of whether God exists, God tells us we need to read the Bible. You see, if we don't trust what the Bible says, we are very unlikely to trust a miracle is proof from God. At the end of John 2, we see that many people have come to believe in Jesus due to the miraculous signs. However, Jesus does not trust them. Following this in John 3, Nicodemus comes to God and states he thinks Jesus is from God due to the miraculous signs. Jesus' response is to tell him, he needs to be born again, he needs to trust in Jesus and not Jesus' signs.

Miracles and the early church: In 2 Corinthians 12, miracles, signs and wonders were performed by Paul to authenticate his ministry as an Apostle, it was a stamp of authenticity of the gospel and of his ministry.  In Hebrews 2:3-4, reveals that miracles testified to salvation, according to God's will. Miracles happened, when God wanted them to. This passage also indicates that the 70 sent out were able to perform miracles.

Miracles can be performed by others. Both in the Old and the New Testament we are warned that miracles are not proof of the existence or work of God. In Deuteronomy 13:1-5 Moses warns us about false miracles, signs and wonders. Jesus warns us that false prophets and unbelievers can perform miracles (Matthew 7:21-23, Mark 13:22). And so we must be careful when we experience people performing miracles, we must watch out, there is the danger they can draw us away from God.

Miracles happen today. God is constantly working in ways which may surprise us. One of the greatest miracles was the resurrection, today amazing miracles happen in the lives of people as they come to trust in Jesus as their Lord. 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 explains that miracles can be a gift of the Holy Spirit. Gifts of the Holy Spirit in this context were to serve the church and for the common good. Further, because miracles are a gift from the Holy Spirit, we need to recognise, it is not a natural ability and we must thank God.

Authentic faith is not based upon miracles and Jesus warns us not to base our faith in miracles alone. If we want to be certain of God's existence we need read the Bible and trust in the creator and sustaining God. Hebrews 11:1-2 reminds us that biblical faith is in God and his promises, not in one off miracles. 'Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.' Of course miracles can strengthen faith, they can encourage and have a huge role in our lives. But the Bible does not give the impression that faith is generated from miracles.

Women/Men: "Miss, the church is sexist isn't it!"

Last lesson of the day and year 10 enter the room excited to find out that we're discussing the changing roles of men and women in society. Before we'd even got going, one of the livelier characters pipes up with, "Miss, the church is sexist isn't it!" To the outsider, a Christian belief about men and women may appear to be sexist and chauvinistic. But, is this really the case? 

Feminism is often referred to as egalitarianism. In very simple terms it proposes that men are bad, they do bad things and are to be challenged. Whereas, women are seen as good, doing good things. Moreover feminism wants 'girl power!' One of the main thrusts of the feminist movement is to empower women. It is viewed as sexist for women to not have the same rights and responsibilities as men.

On the other hand, chauvinism is hierarchical. Its the play ground opinion, "boys are better than girls, girls are stupid!" It's viewed to be chauvinistic to have the opinion that women should stay at home, cook, clean and look after children. This stance originated from the philosopher Aristotle who believed that women are morally and mentally weaker than men and generally less able.

Are Christians sexist? Are they chauvinistic? 

Genesis 1:26-27: 

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 

Because man and woman are made in the image of God, Christians believe that all people are equal. But as discussed in my previous blog,  although man and woman are created as equal, they are different and have different roles. Within these different roles, Christians believe that man and women compliment one another. Man is to be the leader and he is the one who is held accountable (Romans 5:12-21), whereas woman is the helper for man. 

Helper?! Is this sexist? 

Women don't like being referred to as 'helpers'. so it is not surprising that we see in Genesis 3 and 4 that as a result of the fall women will want to take charge and want to rule over men... but this is not how God created us. To help understand the term helper, it is useful to remember think about the trinity. 

God the Father

God the Son

God the Holy Spirit

All members of the Trinity are viewed as equal, but have different roles. Another name in the bible for the Holy Spirit is the 'Paraclete', which translates into 'helper'. Now if the Holy Spirit is viewed as a 'helper', should women be offended by being 'helpers?'. I doubt the Holy Spirit thinks so!

1 Corinthians 11:2-3 also help us to understand the role and relationship between man and women, leader and helper. "I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God."

The term 'head' in Greek refers to authority. The head of Jesus is God. In His life on earth, as an equal with God, Jesus fully submitted (even to the point of death) to God as his father. Jesus didn't have an issue with submission. 

The head of man is Christ. Man is to submit to Jesus and be godly in his headship. So if women submit to godly men, they are submitting to someone modeling Jesus. Surely that cannot be bad! The men are to have authority like Jesus when they lead; in a loving, serving, caring and nurturing way. They are to 'lay down their lives' for their wives. Male headship is not giving men permission to treat women as slaves but to love and care for them, to lead them and guide them. The man is under the authority of God, not of his selfish desires.

The head of women is the man. How did Jesus submit to God? He fully respect God's authority and was obedient. In submitting to the man, women are respecting God's authority.
In the rest of this passage, Paul is encouraging men to be men, and women to be women. To be who you have been created to be.

When married, the couple are viewed as 'one' (Genesis 1:24). The two are not only to be joined as one in sex, but also to work as one unit. This is also the pattern of the trinity, Jesus said, "I and the father are one". Each member of the Trinity compliments the other, working together in unison. This is how men and women are to relate.

Identity, value and worth are not found in what we do, but who we are. Women do not need to be those who take the lead in order to feel valued within the church. We need to remember that God views us equally but has different roles for us, this is where our identity is to be based, not in what we can or cannot do. 

If this pattern is followed, then I don't see how the church is sexist, nor chauvinistic. The Bible is not saying that one sex is better than the other, it is not saying that one sex is weaker than the other, God doesn't want one sex to be oppressed by the other. Men and Women are equal, but have different roles. For the woman is it a privilege to be led by a godly man. In our different roles, our goal, as Christians men and women is the same... to be like Jesus.