home >Pastor’s Desk>2016>January 1st>The Genesis of John’s Plans

THE HEART OF GOD’S PLAN IN JOHN

The Capstone of the accounts of Jesus life, ministry, and redemptive work is John’s Gospel. It is quite possibly the most profound book in the Bible. It opens with the same three words that the entire Bible commences with, In the beginning. It’s opening chapter is a collage of the fulfillment of the most important Old Testament prophecies which are introduced in the opening three chapters of the Bible. The opening chapter of the Bible deals with light being distinguished from darkness and so does the Gospel of John. What is particularly striking about the Gospel of John is just how much planning God did in order to rescue us. As we end one year and begin another let us consider that we are created in the image of a God who delights in planning and encourages us to do the same.

Commit your work to the LORD,and your plans will be established.
Proverbs 16:3

The other month I had planned to have four weeks leave so that I could sit a Biblical Greek exam and complete my F.W. Boreham documentary series. As you know, on the first of my leave I collapsed and was bed-ridden for the first week then relatively immobile for the other three. Plans sometimes suffer delays. Delays do not mean that plans do not help us achieve intended outcomes. Yet, many people experience delays just after they have planned and then abandon their plans as if planning does not work! I still plan to master Biblical Greek and I still plan to complete the Boreham documentary project – despite the delays I have experienced.

Dr. FW. Boreham, 1921

F.W. Boreham tells the story of a young man who excitedly brought his sweetheart to a patch of ground and declared that one day they would own it! “Our kitchen will go here“, he said pointing, “and our lounge-room will go here.” Escorting her to another spot a little distance away from the layout of the house he then said, “And this will be where our fruit trees will go. And this will be where our sun-dial will go. And this is where I will be buried.”  And as Mr Boreham explained, that’s exactly what this couple did after they married and bought this land. The detailed plans for their house and yard were completed precisely even up to the point of where these owners were buried in their old age. Dr. Boreham himself revealed his grand plans to the students of Pastors’ College where he had been studying, “And it is my hope, that in the course of the ministry I shall hold three pastorates, and then be free to travel in many lands preaching the everlasting Gospel among all denominations.” This also was precisely what he did, even though his journey had more twists and turns than he could possibly have foreseen. Plans give direction.

Many of us will be starting the New Year in Genesis 1 and John 1. Both of these Biblical Books are connected by God’s great plan. In Genesis, God begins to announce it. In John, God enacts and begins to fulfil it. It is central to God’s plan that He will have a Church made up from people of every tribe, nation and language (Rev. 7:9). God’s plan involves Him working through you to bring people to know Him!

And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
John 10:16

When we read about the Jesus that John describes in his Gospel, we read about a Jesus who knew His Father had a plan. 

Jesus was confident that His Father would complete His plan. This was despite thousands of people walking away from Him in the closing stages of His ministry, His own disciples abandoning Him and one even betraying Him, and massive opposition toward Him from those in authority. Despite this, He served His Father with great zeal. Plans always always always stand a greater chance of fulfilment when zeal (passion) is maintained.

His disciples remembered that it was written:
Zeal for your house will consume me.
John 2:17

Do you have plans that will outlast you? 

Too many people give up their lives for small dreams, small visions, and small plans. Yet the God of the Universe who planned the placement of every molecule in the Universe calls and invites you to join His Grand Plan. You might have some natural plans – take a holiday, renovate you kitchen, buy a new car, which are commendable, but none of these will go on and outlive you for a hundred generations! Yet the Father’s plan of saving lost, broken, hurting, souls through your life and witness will outlive you for eternity! This is why I am so passionate about Christ’s Church! It’s why attending church is not optional for me – it is my participation in God’s Grand Plan!

¶ I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Romans 12:1

I have plans. I plan to do what I can to further God’s Grand Plan. As a church we have plans. We plan to do what we can to further God’s Grand Plan to rescue and redeem lost, broken and hurting people. We sense God’s plan for us to reach as many as we can as a church which is why we will need to extend our facilities, appoint new leaders, commence new programs, and take greater steps of faith for Him.

God often puts things into our hearts that He wants us to draw out with a plan!

As you’re reading through John’s Gospel this January, note the subtle references to God’s plan. Observe how God planned to use a certain number of miracles. Listen as Christ delivers a certain number of messages according to God’s plan. Notice how Christ seemingly “wastes” His valuable time with certain individuals (John 3, 4 and so on). Consider that His involvement with His disciples was actually the unfolding of a plan and how this plan involves us today. There are hints within this Gospel about how we can make plans that attract the favour of God. We’ll see that plans are made and enacted prayerfully. They may experience delays. They may require detours. They nearly always incorporate what is, to us, unforeseen circumstances. And every plan must have a goal and the steps required to achieve that goal. After you’ve read the Gospel of John be sure to reflect how the Apostle himself used a plan to tell us his account and that he notes his Gospel leaves more out than it put in. And while there are some of us who have made trifling plans that keep us from God’s best for us, perhaps there are some of us who need to particularly note this last point as one of the biggest mistakes most people make with their plans is they lack focus and try to do too much. The best plans are simple. I finish with the Apostle Paul’s which involves us as well…

To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things, so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 3:8-10

 

Your Pastor,

Andrew

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HE WAS A KIND AND CHARITABLE MAN

home > Pastor's Desk > 2024 > March 22ndr > He was a kind and charitable man.WHO WAS KENNETH TYNAN? You’ve probably never heard of Kenneth Tynan. I hadn’t. I was introduced to him while conducting some research for my current PhD program on C.S. Lewis. In...

FROM LITTLE THINGS

The first time I heard the song “From Little Things, Big Things Grow” was in early 2008. I was trying to get my head around superannuation funds. I never knew of its writers – Paul Kelly and Carmody. Neither did I know it was originally a protest song. In my opinion, the original lyrics and melody bears no semblance to what we may consider protest today. Many will agree with me that it is now synonymous with Industry Super Funds. But its principles remain true in nearly every aspect of life.

ADVICE WORTH MORE THAN GOLD OR A MOUNTAIN OF CASH ABOUT HOW TO USE REJECTION TO BECOME AN EVEN BETTER, WISER, STRONGER YOU!

For several reasons I am qualified to help people deal with acute and chronic pain. Some acute and chronic pain can be resolved medically. Some pains can go a long way to being resolved with the help of a psychologist. Some pains can be resolved with a hug from mum. But there is a pain that a doctor cannot cure, a psychologist cannot counsel, a mother’s hug cannot alleviate. It is a pain that goes deep – beyond the defences of our integumentary system, our neurological system (including our para-sympathetic nervous system), our muscular system, our skeletal system, our lymphatic system, our renal system, gastro-intestinal system, our respiratory system, our cardio-vascular system, our hormonal system, and our half-share of a reproductive system. It is a pain that wounds: our memory, our sense of self, our estimation of our worth, our confidence, and our ability to connect meaningfully with others (our ability to love and be loved). It is the pain of rejection. It not only effects who we are (our identity) but it also leaches symptomatically into each of these ten-and-a-half biological systems which every human being possesses. I am going to offer all those who have experienced the pain of rejection how they can be healed from its wound, and actually become stronger, wiser, more confident, as a result.

THE MYTHICAL PATHWAY TO HAPPINESS

I’ve accidentally found myself enrolled in a Ph.D. program. I kind of blame Associate Professor Stuart Piggin for this. A few years ago I was having some serious discussions with him about doing a Ph.D. in Historical Theology at Macquarie University focusing on the contribution of Dr. F.W. Boreham. But I found myself unable at that time to proceed. In my discussions with him about my health prognosis and what I wanted to be able to do in the remaining time that I have left, he suggested focusing instead on Philosophical-Theology and enquiring with Monash University. I took his sage advice and did as he said. This week, I formally commenced with Monash as a part-time extension (distance) student. The result is that after my first zoom meeting with my supervisor I am now having to delve into an arena that requires me to be able to convince a critical secular audience that my proposal about the Bible’s truth claims are reasonable. Oddly, in order to do this, I have to explain in some depth what C.S. Lewis meant by the word, myth. And to do this I have to draw even deeper on the writings of a now dead French philosopher who is regarded as the greatest exponent of what a myth is! Therefore, I am going to tell you something quite shocking. It might be advisable for you to go and get a strong cup of tea, then return to this screen, and read on while sipping your tea, to absorb some of what I am going to tell you. 

Follow Me AS I FOLLOW JESUS

We all walk a path in life that is set before us. We start with very little experience and knowledge about the purpose of our life and the world beyond us. All of humanity experiences joy, wisdom, strength, weakness, suffering and hardship, especially those who are “contending for the faith”. Knowing Jesus is a very special part of this life journey.

A CERTAIN GOD

We can be reasonably certain about many things. In fact, without this certainty about life, none of us could function. We can be certain that tonight the sun will ‘set’. Tomorrow the sun will ‘rise’. After the February 28th it will be February 29th. This year there will be international unrest and much political instability in many parts of the world. In the coming months global warming will be identified by politicians as the source of floods and wildfires. Several high profile international celebrities will die this year. Archaeologists will make a discovery that will require some aspects of history to be rewritten. And you will certainly have one of the most memorable moments in your life in the coming days. You see, there are clearly some things we can be quite certain about. However, there are some aspects about our future that we cannot be certain about, yet in those moments we can be certain about what we should do.

LOW COST LIVING

Turn on any TV or radio news lately and there’s bound to be a story about the current “cost of living crisis”. We all feel it. Initially most people accepted the widespread price-rises were caused by 2020-21 pandemic lockdowns. But whatever the reasons for the rapid price hikes over the past two years, every time we go to the supermarket we feel it again. While governments are striving to curb the impact of this cost of living crisis, there remains a way to enjoy low cost living. The key to this is recognising that the most valuable things in life are literally priceless. The path to enjoying low-cost living is to be found in Christ, and what He taught — and it begins with treasure.

How To Know Jesus Better

It’s a scary thought to realise that the Jesus we have been told about and worship may not really be known to us at all. We can ‘know’ about someone or something, but not really know them. In Christian circles it’s often referred to as head knowledge not heart knowledge.

Knowing Christ Better

As a church, this year’s theme is coming closer to Christ by getting to know Him better. I feel that I am “the least qualified person” to tell anyone how this is done — but someone else has already claimed this distinction – the apostle Paul. After decades of hearing directly from Christ, seeing extraordinary miracles, being taken to heaven temporarily, planting churches across the Roman Empire, he could still say I would give anything to really know Christ – even if it meant suffering like He did! (Phil. 3:7-10). Therefore, I could say: If you do this or that, you will then know Christ better – but in my view, it’s not as easy as that! How we develop our relationship with Christ is shaped by several factors including our personality, our life experiences, our physical health and fitness, and our relationships with others (especially our parents and particularly our father). In fact, I believe that there is a relationship between how we have learned to build relationships with others (and notably how we have learned to relate to those who are closest to us) and how we then proceed to have a relationship with God. Even though I have expressed my lack of qualifications in telling anyone how to have a closer relationship with Christ, I still can, like one hungry beggar to another hungry beggar, offer you a few of the morsels of food that I’ve been able to find.

SOME PEOPLE HAVE AMAZING BUTS

I know of several people with amazing buts. There’s Jo’, Mo’, Sam, Esther, Jerry, and others. Each of these people were gifted by God with an amazing but that changed there life and the course of human history. Sometimes these gifts came with a …then, or …God, or …the LORD. When it comes to the size of things, a but is a relatively small thing (in Greek it can be just two letters: de) but it can have huge implications and enormously great blessings for multitudes. I hope to show you how this was the case with each of the people I have chosen as samples, and then show you how God is your God of buts.