Well, it appears summer has finally arrived. Today the sun was blazing, and the the temperature at midday reached a rather warm 32°C. What better way to spend it than playing snooker with David in a darkened hall. 🙂 The eventual score was 7-2 frames to me, which isn’t too bad considering we haven’t played in what seems like months!

We then trundled up to Hayes Town Chapel for their anniversary celebrations (217 years to be precise), where Andrew Davies spoke about the Moravians, which incidentally had influenced the Wesleys, who had preached in Hayes and by whom the chapel was founded.

After the service and the fine refreshments, a group of us wandered down to Marble Hill in Twickenham to relax and chat, whilst having some food on the grass and maybe play some games. A fine way to spend a hot summer’s evening.

I was handed a curious piece of paper last night as I turned up for youth club. Apparently it was found in the church letterbox by another youth leader. It was titled “The tru Commandments Given unto Christ Jesus”.

Glancing at these nine commandments (yes, nine), I wondered if it had been copied from somewhere, although I wondered what source would only list nine commandments. It was interesting that here the commandments were given to Jesus whereas in the Bible, Jesus, being the Son of God, gives out the commandments.

Looking at it, there was nothing wrong with the commandments listed, although it was notable in the commandments it didn’t list. They all addressed how one should behave towards oneself and to others, which is very noble, but none of them addressed our relationship with God. In the bible, when asked by a teacher of the Law, Jesus clearly puts God first in his list.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Mt 22:36-40

After all, as Jesus says, this summarises the Law, as given in the Ten Comandments in the Old Testament. The Ten Commandments, given by God to the Jews at Sinai, starts off with the first four commandments dealing with man’s relationship with God.

1. You shall have no other gods before me…
2. You shall not make for yourself an idol…
3. You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God…
4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy… Ex 20:3-8

After which, our relationship with others is dealt with.

Of course, I have no idea who put this piece of paper through the church letterbox. It is evident they have realised we should have moral direction, but they appear to have missed the main point of the commandments given in the bible. Yes, we should have a moral code, but not just in our relationship with ourself and others, but in our relationship with God.

At the end of it, the moral code of God will show us we are sinners, unable to keep his moral code, and in need of salvation for our sins. Only Jesus Christ can and does offer this salvation. If we construct our own moral code which we are able to keep, we deceive ourselves. It will not do us any favours on the day of judgement.

I was having an interesting conversation with a friend yesterday evening on our experiences of the theology of those around us. In particular, we had both come across those who believed in universal atonement – that everyone will go to heaven. Such people were found everywhere, there were regular churchgoers as well as those who had never set foot in a church, and then all those in between.

It was more disturbing to hear regular churchgoers espousing universal atonement, as it left you wondering if they paid any attention in church, especially if they attended a church which taught the bible. For the bible teaches nothing of universal atonement, but quite clearly says atonement is limited.

Yet, if you point this out, more likely than not you’re treated as if you were from the devil or something. If you mention that the bible says all sinners will go to hell, because God is holy and cannot stand the presence of sin, you’re looked at as if you’re heretical, as if it’s something you want to happen because you’re malicious or something.

Yet, limited atonement can be seen in even the oft quoted parts of the bible – this is not a strange minority teaching.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16

If anything, it appears to be more malicious to tell people “you’re OK and will go to heaven regardless” of whether they’ve had their sins dealt with by the Christ, as they’ll have rather a nasty shock when they stand before God at judgement.

It is because we love people that we tell them the truth, that atonement is limited to those who put their faith in Christ for the remission of their sin. To do anything else would seem to be nothing short of leading them personally to hell.

You scored as Reformed Evangelical. You are a Reformed Evangelical. You take the Bible very seriously because it is God’s Word. You most likely hold to TULIP and are sceptical about the possibilities of universal atonement or resistible grace. The most important thing the Church can do is make sure people hear how they can go to heaven when they die. Reformed Evangelical 96% Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 71% Neo orthodox 68% Fundamentalist 68% Emergent/Postmodern 39% Charismatic/Pentecostal 36% Classical Liberal 21% Roman Catholic 18% Modern Liberal 14% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com

That’s more like it…

The philosopher in Ecclesiastes continues to point out that a life without God is a meaningless life. Even though everything anyone has is provided by God, not everyone is happy.

God provides some with money, some with food, some with work, whilst others do not have such things in abundance. There is nothing wrong with these things in themselves, as they are provided by God. Yet, those financial wealth are not necessarily happy and will pursue more wealth in pursuit of happiness, those with plenty of food might not be happy and may overindulge in food thinking they will be happy and those who overwork themselves to gain happiness but are not happy. For our happiness cannot be provided by these things alone, and it is our folly if we pursue happiness through them.

Our ultimate happiness can only be supplied by God, by knowing him. We can only know God through his Son, for we are sinners and need our sins dealt with by Jesus Christ. For this is eternal life, that we know God and his Son Jesus Christ. Once we have this happiness, our attitude will be that of gratitude for all that he gives us and satisfaction in these things, seeking to glorify him in everything we do, and thereby having joy. To know that God provides all good things for our enjoyment, but not to be our idols. For God alone should occupy the highest place in our lives, with all other things coming after him.

Without God, one can be unhappy with all the money, all the food, all the work the world can offer. With God, one can be happy with all the money, all the food, all the work the world can offer.

Without God, one can be unhappy without all the money, without all the food, without all the work the world can offer. With God, one can be happy without all the money, without all the food, without all the work the world can offer.

Ultimately, a life which glorifies God and finds enjoyment in him is a meaningful life.

A rather lazy day today. I had intended to play snooker with David in the morning, but for some reason the snooker hall now has a policy of opening at noon. I guess they figure people would rather spend their summer mornings enjoying the sunshine, rather than sat inside a dark smokey hall. I figure I’d beg to disagree, but maybe they’re right…especially as I then proceeded to spend the afternoon in and around Hyde Park with Nigel and a few others. Although I think the sun spotted it, and disappeared for a while. A good day though, with plenty of time just to chat and relax and take lots of photos. I think this photography lark might be becoming a favourite hobby.

You scored as Cultural Creative. Cultural Creatives are probably the newest group to enter this realm. You are a modern thinker who tends to shy away from organized religion but still feels as if there is something greater than ourselves. You are very spiritual, even if you are not religious. Life has a meaning outside of the rational. Cultural Creative 63% Fundamentalist 38% Romanticist 38% Postmodernist 25% Idealist 13% Modernist 13% Existentialist 6% Materialist 0% What is Your World View? (updated) created with QuizFarm.com

Not entirely sure what these results mean.. 🙂

Well, finally got to see Revenge of the Sith this afternoon. One by one everyone around me was seeing it while I was busy, I was beginning to think I’d end up going to the cinema on my own to see it! Fortunately, David hadn’t seen it yet, so we went to the Vue cinema in Staines with the hope that George would adequately fill in the gaps between the prequels and the original series. To be honest, my expectations weren’t high after the first two prequels, although everyone who had seen the third one said it was good, even the ones who didn’t have that much interest in it.

As the closing frames of the deathstar loomed, I felt everything had fallen into place. Whilst Star Wars was an epic series of films, the story was not quite Shakespeare, so in its context, Episode III was a good film. To its credit, even though you knew what was eventually going to happen, sometimes what happened didn’t happen quite as expected. It successfully bridged the gap in the films, with plenty of special effects and the odd bit of philosophy and political comment thrown in for good measure. An entertaining film, which successfully immerses you in its universe for a couple of hours.

‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one,
for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory for ever.
Amen.’
Jesus Christ (Mt 6:9-13)

Q: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him?
A: The word of God, which is contained in the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.

(Question II from the Westminster Shorter Catechism)

Another activity to resume after my holidays was violin lessons. I was wondering how much I’d have remembered after a few weeks without a lesson! My teacher got me to play a few scales, which seemed to go OK – well, she reckoned so anyway. She then told to play some of the exercises I’d been set. Surprisingly, I hadn’t forgotten anything, and she reckoned I was playing a lot more musically. I guess I’m used to hearing myself play the piano and compare my violin playing with that, but in terms of someone learning to play the violin, I guess I’m not so bad. 🙂

After a month’s hiatus, I was back on the football pitch yesterday evening. All things considered, it could’ve been worse. For a start, it took a while for my foot-eye coordination to sort itself out, athough that probably wasn’t helped much by the fact I hadn’t worn contact lenses for a month either! On top of that, I’d forgotten that football, being a non-contact sport, is anything but. Ah well, managed to keep running for the whole hour, as well as have a couple of shots at goal. Team lost by a whisker or two though. Woke up this morning with the odd ache and pain, although I’m not sure if that’s due to overexertion or from the odd rather physical challenge.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is central to the Christian, which is why it is mentioned in almost all of the books of the New Testament, and why the apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth:

If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 1 Co 15:13-14

From the Gospel of Matthew…

They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people. Mt 27:53

…through to the Revelation of John…

I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades. Rev 1:18

…there is testimony to the resurrection.

Yet, in many cases, many did not realise at first what was going on. When Jesus first appeared to Mary, she thought he was the gardener. On the road to Emmaus, a couple of disciples talked with the risen Christ, without realising who he was at first. The disciples had problems believing Jesus was sitting with them eating broiled fish, even though they could talk with him and touch him. In each case, people eventually realised what had happened and testified to his resurrection.

Today, the resurrection is as important as ever, but many people dispute it, even prominent churchmen and theologians, despite the clear teaching of the bible. If we do not hold the bible as the word of God, and so give it the authority appropriate to God’s word, we are in danger or losing touch with the Gospel. For the Gospel is not just about what Jesus did on the cross, but also what he did in his resurrection.

This evening’s birthday celebration was a little different from usual! After spending the day at Black Park, we descended at Sharon and David’s place for a murder mystery dinner. Dave had purchased a murder mystery game pack titled, “Murder a la carte: The brie, the bullet and the Black Cat”. On the invites circulated a while ago, the scene was set, and suggestions for suitable attire were made. The game is set in Casablanca in the early 1940’s (sound familiar?) with a motley group of individuals, and a murder. Everyone is a suspect, and the game was afoot this evening. I had been cast as Kurt Ramson III, a philandering, shady American, biding his time in Casablanca sheltering from the war. I even managed a rather dodgy sounding American accent.

The game started with some more scene setting, as well as information about various characters slowly appearing, either directly, or through discussion. By the end of the round of discussion, most of us were none the wiser as to who might have committed the murder, but the seeds of suspicion were being sown. After the first round of discussion, dinner was served, with the first course of soup. Once the first course was dispensed with, more clues were trickelled out, again some of it in the form of hard evidence, and some of it in the form of pointed questions to various characters. Again, after a little discussion, the second course was served. This pattern continued until all four courses were served, and rather sordid revelations about the various characters had surfaced. It then came to deliberations, and decisions.

After a lot of finger pointing and accusations, we made our decisions concerning the identity of the murderer and the truth was revealed. Yet, even if we had misjudged and got the wrong verdict, this seemed unimportant, the actual proces of the game was fun. It was interesting analysing the situation after each round, watching how various characters interacted, as well as learning about the intricacies of the relationships of each of the characters. The game was well structured and well-written, not that this was the greatest crime story ever, but that it was entertaining to experience.

A fun evening was had by all, as we each played out our characters and had a good laugh. Above all, the birthday boy and girl seemed to enjoy themselves.

Went round Sarah’s to watch Renaissance Man on DVD this evening. The film is a story of Bill Rago, a well-educated advertising executive, who loses his job and through the employment office ends up teaching a bunch of Army cadets. Little does he realise he might learn something as well as the cadets. The film itself is a little cheesy in places, but the overall story hangs together. Bill slowly realises he should listen to what he is rather reluctantly teaching – to be true to himself. That, instead of doing something out of pragmatism, it might be more worthwhile doing something you are naturally talented at and so will enjoy as well as be good at. Through doing so finds he actually wants to teach, and is a much better teacher than advertiser. Worth watching.