Christmas at the Cinema

Many thanks to Ritchie Gillon from Saint Luke's Church of Scotland, Paisley for 95% of this material.

Some years ago, a film about celebrating the birth of Jesus came out just before Christmas. It was called NATIVITY. It wasn’t the first time the story of Jesus has been told on the big screen, of course.

But Hollywood can tell us that story in another way. Listen carefully and you’ll see what I mean – and, while you’re listening, see how many of the following 60 films you have heard of …

At this time of year, we come to church to hear once more the age-old Christmas Story – otherwise known as God’s LOVE STORY.

A GUY NAMED JOE was engaged to Mary. Joseph really loved Mary and Mary really loved Joseph. “IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE”, Joseph was often heard to say.

But there’s SOMETHING ABOUT MARY I need to tell you about. She was expecting a very special child. 

You see, the angel Gabriel suddenly appeared to her ONE FINE DAY, nearly scaring THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS out of her, but he told her that she was to have a special child and name him Jesus, which means 'Saviour'.

“You must be BRAVE, Mary,” Gabriel said to her. Being the Saviour of the world is a MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, thought Mary. Her little boy’s task was not only SAVING PRIVATE RYAN but saving ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL; including THE LONG AND THE SHORT AND THE TALL – not to mention THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY.

When Mary told Joseph she was expecting a baby he was really shocked. ‘MAMMA MIA!’ he said. This was the last thing he WANTED to hear. But after the angel had spoken to him too in a dream, he felt much LES(S) MISERABLE(S). - Sorry! 

Ignoring all the local gossip, Joseph showed TRUE GRIT and he stuck by Mary because he loved her very much and because he loved her, he trusted her.

When Mary’s time to have the baby was near, she and Joseph had to make a JOURNEY TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH – otherwise known as Bethlehem – for that was where they had to go and register as part of a census.

When they got there, THE TOWN was very busy. Every HOLIDAY INN was chock full – there was not even room at HEARTBREAK HOTEL. All they found was an outside shelter where they kept the animals. “I would have preferred A ROOM WITH A VIEW,” said Mary. “Sorry," said Joseph, “but this is AS GOOD AS IT GETS.”

And so, after A HARD DAY’S NIGHT, there was a CRY IN THE DARK that heralded the birth of the new BABE – and they loved him very much and called him Jesus - THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING.

Meanwhile, out on the hills nearby, some shepherds were looking after their sheep. ALL was QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT. But suddenly, in the middle of THE DARK (K)NIGHT, they were roused from their slumbers by THE SOUND OF MUSIC. They looked UP and what did they see?

They saw the night SKYFALL... - sorry, that should be 'the night sky, full' –  of HEAVENLY CREATURES singing praises to God. No, it wasn’t CHARLIE’S ANGELS – it was heaven's angels. They were announcing the wonderful news that a special baby had been born that night in Bethlehem – a Saviour who is Christ the Lord.

“Let’s go and see” they said. And so with GREAT EXPECTATIONS, they ran off at great SPEED and found Mary and Joseph. When they saw the baby in the manger they were simply ENCHANTED. Everything was just as the angels had said.

Meanwhile, in a faraway land three wise men were looking up at the heavens and spotted something unusual. “A STAR IS BORN” said one. “This surely means a great new king is born” said the second. “We must go and worship him,” said THE THIRD MAN. Coming from the east, they travelled a long way, until their STAR TREK finally led them to evil King Herod in Jerusalem. 

Now, to be honest, Herod was a complete PSYCHO. There was no way he would give up THE POWER AND THE GLORY as king. 

As a man of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE who was full of SECRETS AND LIES, he told the wise men that he wanted to go and worship the new king too - but really, he wanted to kill him.

After the wise men had heard THE KING’S SPEECH, they set off again until THE STAR brought them to Bethlehem and to Mary, and Joseph, and the baby. Offering Jesus their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh they knelt down to worship him. And what a picture that was; THREE MEN AND A BABY.

That night they had a dream that Herod was plotting all manner of EVIL UNDER THE SUN so the wise men took THE LONG WAY HOME. And to avoid their CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER, Mary and Joseph made a GREAT ESCAPE to Egypt where they stayed BRINGING UP BABY until Herod died and it was safe to return. And so Jesus grew up to fulfil his amazing mission to save the whole world. He loved THE UNTOUCHABLES and forgave the UNFORGIVEN. 

But it was only following THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY and his amazing RESURRECTION that people realised he was the KING OF KINGS and Lord of HEAVEN AND EARTH.

Some people have never heard the real Christmas story. But it is, in fact, THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD! Why is that? Is it the adventure? Not really. Is it the suspense? No. Is it the drama? Not even the drama. 

It’s the best story ever told because it tells us about God’s amazing LOVE, ACTUALLY.

Merry Christmas!

All-Age talk given at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 25th December 2013

Last Things: The Lord's Return (2 Peter 3.1-13, Luke 12.35-40)

Well, here we are at the fourth instalment in our series on the last things: judgement, heaven, hell and now the Lord’s return.

It won’t be in that order by the way. The Lord will return first, then will come his just and fair judgement and then our eternal destination will be decided.

If you had to make 10 predictions about what the world will be like in 100 years’ time - 2113 - what do you think you would say? Will travelling to space then be as normal as travelling to Spain is now? Will all energy be renewable, like from the sun and wind and waves? Will we be all eating computer generated food? Will we all use one world currency? Will we have established a human colony on Mars?

In 1900, a humble civil engineer from Pennsylvania called John Elfreth Watkins wrote an article entitled What May Happen in the Next Hundred Years. Well, it turns out he was amazingly accurate.

He correctly predicted, for example, the kind of information technology we have today. He said “Photographs will be telegraphed from any distance. If there is a battle in China a hundred years hence, snapshots of its most striking events will be published in the newspapers an hour later and photographs will reproduce all of nature's colours."

He accurately predicted increasing human height. He said "Americans will be taller by from one to two inches" which has proved exactly right.

He correctly predicted x-ray, ultrasound and CAT scans. He said “Physicians will be able to see and diagnose internal organs of a moving, living body by rays of invisible light." Wow!

He did get some things wrong though. He said “There will be no C, X or Q in our everyday alphabet.” He predicted that all rush hour traffic in cities would be in underground tunnels or up in the air. And he said "mosquitoes, house-flies and cockroaches will have been exterminated."

Nevertheless Watkins is celebrated as a brilliant predictor.

But the Bible’s record for future predictions is not just impressive; it is flawless. You find for example, (and there are many, many others) you find predictions for;

• the fall of Jerusalem
• for the rise of Babylon and
• for the spread of the Persian Empire

There's a prophecy about the return of the Jews from exile to Jerusalem after 70 years (not 69, not 71). There's a prediction about the destruction of Herod’s magnificent temple and that it would be within the lifetime of Jesus’ disciples. And it all happened exactly as prophesied.

But there's more. You find predictions for the birth of a Messiah;

• who had to be a descendant of Abraham (not Lot)
• who had to be a descendant of Isaac (not Ishmael)
• who had to be from the tribe of Judah (not any of the other 11 tribes of Israel)
• who had to be a descendant of David (not of any of his seven brothers, nor from any other descendant of Judah at that time). 
• who had to be born in Bethlehem, not in any other town anywhere on earth,
• who had to die from having his hands and feet pierced (not by any other means) and
• who had to rise again.

Every Old Testament prediction about the rise and fall of nations came true in every last detail. Every Old Testament prediction about the Messiah came true in Jesus.

So when we come to the New Testament predictions for the future, we can be quite confident that they will be fulfilled as well.

There is only really one major prediction about the future (that is still future for us) in the New Testament, though it is repeated many times and it’s this: Jesus is coming back!

That’s what our reading from 2 Peter 3 is all about this morning.

People sometimes ask me about the Lord's return and what the Bible says will happen. So first of all, because there is so much confusion about the second coming of Jesus, I want to look at the broader context of all the New Testament teaching on this event.

There are basically three Greek words used in the New Testament that describe what the Lord's return will be like.

The first word is parousia. This word parousia is found twice in our reading from 2 Peter. Verse 4 “where is this ‘parousia’ he promised?” and v12 “as you look forward to the day of the Lord and speed its parousia.”

We translate it “coming” or “arrival” in English but it’s a quite specific word that was used for the physical arrival of a royal or official visitor. What happens when our Queen goes to visit a foreign country? Usually she steps off a plane at an airport outside the city and is greeted by officials before being driven with a motorcade to the city centre.

This is exactly what it will be like with Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4 says “the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.”

It means that Christians, dead and alive, will greet Jesus first - like foreign VIPs do when the Queen arrives - before he is revealed to the whole world. 

Which leads us to the second word. The second word is epifania (from which we get our word Epiphany). It means the manifestation or the appearance of someone.

We had this last year during the Diamond Jubilee when the Mall was chocked full of people, all looking at the Buckingham Palace balcony, waiting for Her Majesty to come out and wave. And as soon as the balcony window opened and she appeared, everyone cheered and jumped up and down waved flags.

We’re told in Revelation 1.7 that “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him and all peoples on earth will mourn because of him.” That’s epipania.

And of course Watkins' true prediction that the whole world can now witness an event simultaneously means that every eye will see him.

And the third word used in the New Testament that describes the Lord’s return is apocalypsis which means to uncover, to draw aside a veil that was hiding something so it can now be seen. We see dignitaries taking the cover off a new statue or drawing a curtain to reveal a plaque. Well, this is what the word means.

There have only been two recorded unveilings on earth of Jesus’ stunning glory and radiance to date - and as far as we know, only four people have ever had a glimpse of it. I wonder if you can work out when those two occasions were and who was there…

The first was when Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James and John. It says it was like direct sunlight coming through his clothes and those who saw it had to hide their faces, such was the intensity of its brightness. Like when you’re driving towards the sun that’s low in the sky and you have to fold down the sun visor in order to be able to drive at all. 

The second time this happened was when Saul was converted on the road to Damascus. Again, the brightness of the light was so extreme, so dazzling, so stunning that Saul was temporarily blinded in both eyes.

When Jesus came at Bethlehem, the brilliance of his appearance was entirely concealed. But when he comes again, his true glory will be revealed and it will be utterly overwhelming.

I read a story recently about a large church in the USA who had hired a new pastor (I'm not sure it's a true story but it's a good one...). The Sunday before he was due to start his ministry at the church, they had a visitor in the morning service. That was nothing new in a large church but this visitor was not the sort of person they were used to greeting. Dressed in scruffy clothes, he was unwashed, unshaven, unkempt, he had a half-empty bottle of whiskey on him and he smelled a bit rough. 

He sat at the back - but nobody said hello. Hundreds of people were there - but nobody made him feel welcome. There were not many free seats available - but nobody sat near him. 

The next week, it was the service to officially welcome the new pastor, and the scruffy man turned up again. Again, no one welcomed him. He walked slowly to the front, he stepped up onto the stage, he slowly took off his disguise and introduced himself as their new pastor. Everyone gasped. That’s apocalypsis.

What a shock! But, oh, the shock will be greater when Jesus returns, not as a child and in cheap clothes as he did the first time, but arrayed in majesty so overpowering, the Bible says, we won’t be able to look without falling to the ground or hiding our faces!

What everyone wants to know of course is when he will return. That’s what they were asking in Peter’s time as well. It says in v3: “In the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this 'coming' he promised?’”

Have you ever asked yourself the same question? Well, Peter says four things in reply.

Firstly, he says in v5 that the scoffers deliberately forget that God has warned of a great cataclysm before and he did precisely what he said he would do then.

We now have conclusive geological and archaeological evidence of an extensive natural disaster in the Middle East; deep layers of flood sediment that date to ancient times. Furthermore, not just in the Bible, but in many other ancient writings, there are similar references to a widespread and overwhelming flood.

In other words, there is evidence if you want to study it but, Peter says, people deliberately ignore it. They did then. They still do.

Secondly, he says in v6-7 that God used elements that were already on the earth to fulfil prophecy before, and he will do so again – the next time though it will be fire, not water.

Only things that are lasting and eternal will endure; things like your love for the poor, your Christ-like character, your heart for God. All the things we attach ourselves to on this earth; our houses, our cars, our possessions, our treasures, our pursuits… all that will just vanish in a vapour.

Thirdly, in v8, Peter explains that God experiences time differently to the way we do. Let me ask you to think back to what you were doing about this time yesterday morning and about this time on Friday morning…  

…Well, that’s more or less what it’s like for God to think about the Battle of Hastings and the time of Christ. One day for us is like a thousand years to him.

And Peter explains in v9 that the reason why it’s taking so long for Jesus to return is not because God is dawdling, it’s because he’s patient. And he’s patient not because he’s indifferent - it's the opposite! It's because he’s passionate about more people coming to know Christ.

According to American author and political commentator George Weigel, about 80,000 people become Christians every day. He calculates that in the year 1900 there were under 9 million African Christians. In 2011, there were 475 million and their numbers are projected to reach 670 million by 2025.

That’s a good reason to delay the return of the Lord Jesus isn't it? If we just wait 12 years, nearly 200 million African brothers and sisters will have given their hearts to Christ.

But while that’s happening, Christians are also the most persecuted people on earth. 80% of religiously motivated violence is visited on Christians. That figure was quoted in the House of Commons last month in a debate on the persecution of Christians in the Middle East.

Open Doors and the Barnabas Fund - who have people on the ground - report that the Arab spring has resulted in an organised campaign to completely wipe out the Christian community in Libya, in Egypt and in Syria.

Then there are further waves of violence against Christians in Indonesia, Northern Nigeria, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, the Central African Republic and many other places.

Why do I say this? I'll tell you. In the 1970s and 1980s, when I became a Christian, the great hope of the church in this country was for renewal. "If only the church could be renewed, we need renewal, Lord bring renewal" was the preoccupation of believers here.

In the 1990s and into this 21st century, the great hope of the church in this country has been not so much renewal but revival. Looking back to great outpourings of the Holy Spirit under John Wesley, Jonathan Edwards and Evan Roberts the cry has been “Lord, do it again. Let there be a mighty awakening. Revive this land!”

Both those aspirations are good. But the cry of persecuted followers of Jesus both in New Testament times and today is not for the renewal of the church, nor for the revival of the nation - but for the return of the Lord. “How long? Come, Lord Jesus!” And he will. 

Fourthly, in v10, Peter says that when Jesus does return it will be sudden and unexpected. Jesus said the same thing in our Gospel reading; “You also must be ready because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

And Peter tells us, in v11 and 12, what we need to know about those who are expecting the Lord’s return, and who will be ready for it.

They will be looking forward to it and they will actually be hastening it by living holy and godly lives. There will be a clear contrast between the way they live and the way unbelievers live around them.

I could say a lot about living a godly and holy life but I’m not going to. I just want to simply end by saying that a Christian who is really ready for the Lord’s return is one who will lavish as much esteem and honour on a loveless down and out as they will on their lovely new pastor.

Are you ready?


Sermon preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 22nd December 2013

Why I am a Christian (26)

Not One Religion Attracts Me At All

In 2012 I jotted down all the reasons I could think of why I am a Christian. I found 26 so I decided to serialise them in a blog every fortnight for a year.

I covered themes from the realms of science, philosophy and theology before looking at five different facets of Jesus. Then I looked at the inspiration, invincibility and influence of the Bible. Finally, there were six posts about experiences, mostly personal to me. Taken together, those first 23 reasons make the case for why I am a Christian and they are based on (a) what I think and (b) what I have experienced.

These last three posts (24, 25 and 26) are about why I cannot accept the three major alternatives to being a Christian; agnosticism, atheism and alternative religions.

The Christmas that followed my conversion in the summer of 1979, my sister offered me a book called The Lion Handbook of The World’s Religions. Written inside the front cover was a short message saying “…because you can never be too sure if you’ve chosen the right one.” It was a nice gesture and I still have the book on my shelf.

It was thoughtful of her to offer me that gift and the fact I still have it is testament to how useful it has proved over the years. How many Christmas presents have you received in your life that you still have three and a half decades later?

But, that said, I think my sister’s little note betrays a fateful error in the way people often think of Christianity.

You see, I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in belonging to a religion. I never have done. It might seem weird to some as I have been a Christian for 35 years but I have never once considered myself “religious.” I have been a missionary and church leader since 1990 and yet I correct people when they say I like religion. I really don’t. I hate it. I am not at all a religious person.

Nothing about religion attracts me or interests me. And yet I pray regularly, read the Bible and believe its message is true. There is a vast chasm between belonging to a religion and belonging to Jesus Christ.

How can I put it succinctly?

Religion is about the ways people try to reach God. There are many ways.

Christianity is about the way God has reached people. It is unique.

Religion is about people trying hard to become acceptable to God.
Christianity is about how, through faith, Jesus Christ has already made us acceptable to God.

Religion is about performance and good works and trying harder.

Christianity is about giving up and admitting that Jesus’ good work is enough.

Religion says “Sit down God, I can do it.”

Christianity says “I surrender, Lord save me.”

Religion repeats dutiful rituals, pious observances and correct procedures.

In Christianity all this just gets in the way.

It might surprise people to know that God doesn’t like religion either. This is what he says in the Old Testament:

Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me…
I cannot bear your worthless assemblies (Isaiah 1.13).

Ah yes, even God really loathes ritualistic religion because it seems to blind people to the truth that is in Jesus Christ and makes no real difference to people’s battle to live a good life. It doesn’t help people weighed down by addiction. It doesn’t change hearts.

The New Testament rejection of religion is even starker.

Do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ… Why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules:  ‘Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!’?  These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings.  Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence (from Colossians 2.16-23).

Sadly, Christians often drift away from the straightforward simplicity of a relationship with God through Jesus Christ to spending a small fortune on worthless 'Jesus tat' and fussing about with otherworldly religiosity. Yuck.

Religion says “you have got to bathe in this particular river.” It says “you mustn’t eat this or that food or drink any alcohol.” It says “you’ve got to fast for a month.” It says “you males have to be circumcised.” It says “you mustn’t cut your hair.” It says “you must cut your hair.” It says “you’ve got to face east to pray.” It says “wear a turban,” “wear a skull cap”, “wear a full-length robe that covers everything but your eyes.”

But Jesus came and said “Love God and love your neighbour as yourself.” That’s it. I don’t want to be disrespectful, but I just think that’s better.

But is there nothing about other religions at all that might be useful in any way? Can people not be good Sikhs, Hindus, Jews, Buddhists and Muslims? Can nothing good come from religion at all?

Of course, like everyone else, I know people who are devout believers from other religious communities. They appear to live upright lives, bring up their children well, be at peace and give something back to society.

I am not so naive – or narrow-minded – to imagine that all non-Christian religions and sects have nothing good about them at all. Heavens above! No, of course I agree with Sikhs that sin is real and serious. I agree with Hindus that marriage is between one man and one woman. I agree with Jews that God created the heavens and the earth. I agree with Buddhists that indulging in pleasure is not the route to true fulfilment. I agree with Muslims that God will one day judge the living and the dead.

There is truth in all religions – otherwise I don’t think anyone would be stupid enough to follow them. So I honour all that is good in religion. I make it my aim to get along with everyone and see the good in them.

I just don’t think all the religious practices and rituals and observances and duties and icons and trinkets and rules make God more accessible. I think Jesus makes God more accessible.

I haven’t got space here to go through each religion and explain why I have rejected each one. I could write about how Hinduism has not only failed to challenge the caste system but is in fact responsible for it. I could write about why I think Islam is not good news for women. And so on and so on.

But the bottom line is that I know that it will look highly selective and I admit that Christianity has its failings too. (In my view though, Christianity only goes wrong when its members go against the teachings of its founder).

What I want to do instead is end this whole series of posts by looking at Jesus again. Many other religions think well of Jesus. But none, not one, worships him as God incarnate or proclaims him Lord of lords.

That’s the problem. I just don’t want to be an adherent of any movement that declines to give Jesus honour in proportion to his greatness.

In the James Stewart film “It's a Wonderful Life” the main character gets to see what his town would have been like if he had never been born. What I know is that our world would be much worse if Jesus had never been born.

This thought might come as something of a surprise to many because it seems that whenever the merits or otherwise of Christianity are debated on the radio or TV, someone says that religion just leads to more hatred and war. I'm amazed at how few people challenge this.

If the First and Second World Wars had been started by the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury I'd understand it. The fact is that the world was torn apart many times by wars before Jesus was born. Most wars since he was born had nothing whatever to do with him. The one blot on the landscape, the Crusades 800 years ago, were executed in direct defiance of Jesus’ own teaching to “love your enemies."

If Jesus had never been born, this would not be 2013 AD because AD means the year of our Lord.

Places we know as El Salvador, St. Albans, St. Petersburg, Sao Paolo, San Francisco, Christchurch, Corpus Christi, Santa Cruz, Asunción and Bishop Auckland would all have a different name.

Everybody you know called Christine, Christian, or Christopher would have been named something else.

Many idioms would never have entered our every day speech; Good Samaritan, prodigal son, wolf in sheep’s clothing, love your neighbour, go the second mile, do unto others as you would have them do to you, turn the other cheek and salt of the earth; all of which were coined by Jesus. 

We would never have heard of Santa Claus. The fat, bearded bloke in a red velvet suit from the North Pole is based on a real person; a generous Christian bishop from Turkey who gave impoverished girls’ dowries so that they would not have to become prostitutes.

We would never have heard “Amazing Grace”, Handel’s “Halleluiah Chorus” or “Hark the Herald Angels Sing.”

We might have never heard of Martin Luther King or Mother Teresa. Blacks in America might still be second class citizens and the poor of Calcutta would still have no one to love them.

Organizations such as the Samaritans, Christian Aid, the Red Cross and the Salvation Army would never have been founded. Life for the suicidal, the sick, the hungry and the world’s poor would be much, much worse.

The first free hospital, 1,700 years before the NHS and 1,770 years before “Obamacare”, would never have been built – and nor would tens of thousands after it.

The slave trade might still be here, since it was opposed almost single-handedly on Christian principles by a Christian politician - William Wilberforce.

Thousands of schools around the world would never have opened their doors, including all church schools in Britain today, most of them with long waiting lists and for good reason.

Oxford, Cambridge, Paris Sorbonne, Princeton, Harvard and Yale Universities would not have been founded.

We wouldn’t have much priceless classical art including Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling.

We would have no films such as It’s a Wonderful Life, Ben Hur, Chariots of Fire, the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, and scores of others.

We would have no Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, no Dickens’s Christmas Carol, and no Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables.

The United Kingdom would never have had a national anthem which addresses God and asks him to save; it would probably be a pagan nation worshipping the sun and the moon as fertility symbols.

The flags of Denmark, England, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and Scotland would not have a cross on them.

We would never swear on the Bible in court or say that anything is “gospel truth.”

The net flow of immigration in the world today would not be from non-Christian countries to Christianised ones – because they would be no more desirable places to live.

The Auca Indians of Ecuador would still be spearing white men to death instead of baptizing their children. The Arawakan natives of the Caribbean would still be cannibals. Descendants of the Maya in Mexico would still sacrifice their children instead of teaching them to praise their Creator.

If Jesus had never been born, hundreds of Old Testament prophecies would have remained unfulfilled. Death would not have been conquered. God would be a liar.

There would be no mediator between God and man, for the only one able to bring God and man together, Jesus, would have been as fictitious as the tooth fairy, fat men getting down chimneys or flying reindeer. We would still have no hope of eternal life.

What a difference Jesus makes! No other religious figure comes close to impacting the world for good like he has. No other religion recognises him as the Saviour of the world. That’s why none of them appeal to me - and it’s the 26^th reason I am a Christian.

Why I am a Christian Index

1. The Origins of the Universe Hint at the Work of a Creator

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/why-i-am-christian-1.html

2. The Fine Tuning of the Universe Suggests High Level Engineering, not Complete Randomness

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/why-i-am-christian-2.html

3. The Dimensions, Properties, Proportions and Situation of the Earth Appear Wisely Chosen

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/why-i-am-christian-3.html

4. The Unlikely Story of the Appearance of Life on Earth Points to an Author

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/why-i-am-christian-4.html

5. The Yearning for Meaning in the Human Heart Points to God

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/why-i-am-christian-5.html

6. The Innate Sense of Right and Wrong in Human Beings Points to a Moral Universe Governed by a Good God

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/why-i-am-christian-6.html

7. Sin Offers the Best Explanation There Is of What’s Wrong with the World

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/why-i-am-christian-7.html

8. Providence Means That Even Life’s Tragedies Are Redeemable

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/why-i-am-christian-8.html

9. Hell, If Real, Is an Irrevocable Eternity of Anguished Regret – Big Gamble

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/why-i-am-christian-9.html

10. Jesus’ Birth, Life, Death and Resurrection Were Accurately Predicted Years Before the Events

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/why-i-am-christian-10.html

11. Jesus’ Persona Is Absolutely Compelling

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/why-i-am-christian-11.html

12. Jesus’ Teaching is Unique and Unmatched

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/why-i-am-christian-12.html

13. Jesus’ Death Solves the Problem of Sin and Changes History Forever

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/why-i-am-christian-13.html

14. Evidence for Christ’s Resurrection is So Good

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/why-i-am-christian-14.html

15. The Bible’s Message Is Incredibly Consistent with a Striking Running Theme

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/why-i-am-christian-15.html

16. The Bible Has Withstood and Overcome Centuries of Unparalleled Attack

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/why-i-am-christian-16.html

17. The Message of the Bible Touches and Changes Lives

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/why-i-am-christian-17.html

18. Watching Christians Die Confident and Unafraid Is Inspirational

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/why-i-am-christian-18.html

19. Revivals Around the World Attest to the Continuing Power of the Gospel

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/why-i-am-christian-19.html

20. Christian Fellowship Offers a Depth of Relationship I Have Not Enjoyed Elsewhere

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/why-i-am-christian-20.html

21. Foretastes of Heaven in Worship Are Unlike Any Other Earthly Experience

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/why-i-am-christian-21.html

22. Deliverance Ministry Convinces Me That Evil Is Real and That Christ Is Stronger

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/why-i-am-christian-22.html

23. Near Death Experiences Suggest that Death Is Not the End

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/why-i-am-christian-23.html

24. Agnostics Sound Fair-Minded but I Can't Be One

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/why-i-am-christian-24.html

25. Atheism Offers Nothing, Transforms No One and Leads Nowhere

http://lambertplanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/why-i-am-christian-25.html

Last Things: Hell (Luke 16.19-31)

Introduction

A man was driving to work and heading into a crossroad junction, when a lorry coming at a 45 degree angle drove through a red light, and hit his car side-on. Passers-by rushed to the scene, pulled him from the wreck and gave him first aid. He had passed out. As they gave him attention, he came round and then immediately began to shake violently.

Later, when he was calm, they asked him if he had any recollection of the accident and why he had had such a strong reaction afterwards. He said “Yes. I remember the impact, then nothing. I woke up and saw in front me of a huge flashing ‘Shell’ sign. And somebody must have been standing in front of the letter ‘s’!”

We can maybe see the amusing side of a little story like that, but if only hell were a laughing matter. We looked at the last judgement two weeks ago, then last week we looked at heaven. Today, it’s hell. 

The Avoided Subject

I can’t recall ever preaching a whole sermon before on the subject of hell before today. Nor have I yet heard one from someone else in my five and a half years here.

I say that for the benefit of those of you who are new here – or it might be that it’s your very first Sunday. You may have come here this morning hoping for something nice and Christmassy and instead you get hell fire and brimstone.

Let me say that this is not something we are “always banging on about” at All Saints’. The gospel is good news, not bad news.

But we can’t deny that there is a serious, unambiguous and repeated warning in Scripture about hell. So it’s strange that you hardly ever hear sermons about it. Why is that?

Is it just that no one wants to be unpopular? I don’t know, but I do know that the Apostle Paul said “If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

Is it just that preachers fear being labelled “fundamentalist”? I don’t know but I do know that I’d rather hear people say “John Lambert takes the Bible too literally”, than hear God say, “I called you to faithfully preach my all word. Why didn’t you?”  

Some people say we should steer away these more discouraging parts of the Bible and just talk about God’s mercy and grace. We shouldn’t put people off, they say, with all this talk of judgement and damnation. We should look to Jesus instead and emphasise his love, his kindness and his compassion. 

And mostly that’s what we do do of course.

What Jesus Said

But the problem is that, in the Bible, nobody spoke more about hell than Jesus did. That’s a fact.

He described it as a fearsome place of outer darkness where the noise of weeping and teeth gnashing are heard (Matthew 25.30). That says to me that hell is about deep anguish and bitter regret.

He described it as a place where worms never die and fire is never extinguished (Mark 9.48). That says to me that hell is about endless decay and destruction.

He described it as a place prepared for the devil and his angels. (Matthew 25:41). That says to me that hell is a place of great evil and spiritual heaviness.

And he said this: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more… Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell.” (Luke 12.4-5).

So according to Jesus, the prospect of ending up there is literally a fate worse than death.

And in this morning’s parable, Jesus talked about a man in hell, begging for relief: “Cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire” (Luke 16:24). As far as I am aware, this is the only passage in the Bible that describes the feelings of unconverted people after their death. And it says to me that hell is a place of thirst, of pain and of desperation.

Not one word in the Bible about hell would ever make you want to go there.

All that is from the lips of Jesus and we must take what he says seriously - or we can hardly call him Lord in any meaningful way.

How People End Up There

Many people today are making no preparation whatsoever for their retirement. Maybe it’s to do with the banking crisis, maybe it’s to do with the recession. It might not be their fault. It might be that there just isn’t any money at the end of the month. But millions of people in our country have no life insurance, no savings, and have never put a penny into a pension scheme.

But far more serious than that, there are many more who make no provision at all for their future beyond the grave.

One of the characters in our Gospel reading was one such person. What did he do - or perhaps not do - to end up where he did?

The passage tells us three things. It says first of all that he indulged himself. He dressed in fancy designer clothes and lived in opulent extravagance. He was a man of great means and enjoyed a Monte Carlo lifestyle.

Secondly, at the same time, he was completely indifferent to the suffering of others, not even giving scraps of waste to the beggar at his gate and doing nothing to bind up his evident bad health. There was a man at his front gate with open sores and an empty stomach and he looked the other way.

Thirdly, he seems to have lived independently from God. It seems fair to surmise that his five brothers were in the same boat because when he realises that there’s no way back, that a chasm has been permanently fixed, he begs that the poor man can be sent to warn them.

But this is what he told: “They have Moses and the prophets, but they never listen to them.” In other words, “Look, your family have a Bible. If they want to know what they need to do, they can start by opening it.” But I’m afraid that neither his brothers nor he had any interest whatsoever in spiritual things.

Three things, then, can set me on the road to hell and appropriately, they each begin with “I”: indulgence towards myself, indifference towards others and independence from God.

Herod - Hell on Earth

As we approach Christmas time, we remember the coming of our Saviour Jesus Christ. In our nativities, we remember the shepherds and their simple faith. We remember the magi and their spiritual curiosity. We remember Mary and Joseph and their obedience. We remember the angels and their glorious celebration.

But we remember less the shadowy, brooding, evil king Herod; his jealously, his paranoia. He made life hell on earth for everyone.

Herod the Great, as he was known, had ten wives. It’s said that he only ever really loved one of them, Mariamne, but he grew more and more suspicious that she was plotting to prise his throne from him. He was obsessed with power and he exterminated anyone whom he deemed a threat to his crown. He had Mariamne murdered.

For the same reason, he also executed, without trial, his mother in law, he drowned two brothers-in-law, and had two of his own sons killed.

Just before his own death not long afterwards, he ordered the arrest of a group of dissenters. He had the ringleaders burned alive. The rest were beheaded. When Herod died, they read his will and it instructed the slaying of dozens of leading people in Israelite society, just to make sure that there would be weeping in the nation.

This is what we know about Herod from secular history books. So when he heard about a new king of the Jews the Bible tells us that, true to form, he had every child under two years old in Bethlehem put to death.

When we think of hell, and who deserves to go there, we think if anyone does, it’s ruthless, murderous people like Herod.

But one of the greatest revelations I have ever had in my Christian journey (and it wasn’t until I had been a Christian about ten years) is this: hell is no more than I deserve.

Because the holiness of God is infinitely great, the gravity of my sin is infinitely weighty, so the consequences for me are, quite rightly, infinitely serious.

My sin was responsible for the horrific death of an innocent man.

Grace and Mercy

Hell is no more than I deserve - but mercy and grace are what I have actually received.

You have received mercy. Mercy means that God, in his extraordinary kindness, chooses to not give me what I fully deserve. That is just plain marvellous. But it’s even better than that.

Mercy means I don’t get what I do deserve. But grace means that God has abundantly poured into my life a never-ending stream of the blessings I don’t deserve.

We will never be able to appreciate the wondrousness of mercy and the amazingness of grace until we measure how much God has saved us from and how much he has lavished on us in Christ.

That’s the Gospel! It’s not “God’s my mate.” He’s not your mate. Where’s that in the Bible? We wouldn’t even call the Queen “my mate”! Jesus is my Lord and my Saviour who has gone through hell for me.

I mentioned back in May that, at the HTB Christian leadership conference at the Albert Hall, they were oversubscribed so they wrote to the Queen and requested her permission to use the Royal Box. Her Majesty graciously replied saying she was happy for it to be used for the conference’s most distinguished guests.

So they put a group of ex-offenders in there. One of them was a former violent criminal called Eddie who had been converted to Christ the year before. He said this: “I used to sleep on the vents outside the Royal Albert Hall. Today I took my place on the Queen’s seat inside it!”

What a transformation! Only God can do that – and he does it every day, transferring people from destination hell to destination heaven.

That’s why salvation is called “salvation.” Becoming a Christian is not a lifestyle choice like deciding on a career or choosing a house. Becoming a Christian is more like a tense and messy rescue operation.

And the reason why not everyone who deserves to end up in hell will actually go there is Jesus.

Jesus came at Christmas time to go to the cross.

The cross, like hell, was place of scorching heat. Jesus was exposed to the fierce intensity of the midday sun.

The cross, like hell, was place of pain. Jesus went through excruciating agony from his beatings, his crown of thorns, his being nailed, his slow suffocation.

The cross, like hell, was place of loneliness. Jesus was betrayed, denied, handed over and deserted. He cried out to his Father “Why have you abandoned me?”

The cross, like hell, was place of darkness. As he carried your sin and mine, the Gospels tell us that a thick darkness came over the land.

The cross, like hell, was place of thirst. Jesus, dehydrated and desperate, cried out that he was thirsty.

Heat, pain, loneliness, darkness and thirst. Jesus was going through hell so that you and I don’t have to.

  

Ending

As I close, the truth is this; every one of us has the opportunity in this life to determine whether the next life will be better (with God) or worse (separated from him). It will be entirely down to us.

The Newcastle-based church leader David Holloway recently wrote this, “Hell is self-chosen… No one can complain about the Bible's teaching on hell. It is to stop you going there. It is a warning. It is like those warnings on the cliff top. It is like those danger signs at electric pylons.”

So I want to encourage you to not take lightly what God has told us about hell. Herod’s bit part in the Christmas story is a reminder that evil is real and will one day be punished.

But don't take lightly what God has told us about heaven either. He has opened up a way for you to go there. That way is Jesus Christ. Put your faith and trust in Him today.

Sermon preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 15th December 2013