Be Still And Know

Proverbs 28:26 The book of Proverbs has a great deal to say about fools. Time and again the writer notes how stupid, ignorant and destructive they are. Many of his observations would be incredibly funny if they weren’t so serious and sad. In Proverbs 26 he wrote: “A proverb in the mouth of a fool is as useless as a paralysed leg and is like a thorny branch brandished by a drunk”. Another says: “An employer who hires a fool is like an archer who shoots at random” (Proverbs 26:7; 9-10). His powerful descriptions of foolishness are, of course, his springboard for commending the importance of wisdom. Everything in life depends on the acquisition of wisdom, which leads to security, loving relationships, success and happiness. And the writer is absolutely clear: the only one who can give that wisdom is God himself. He teaches us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). It is only by worshipping God and building a life based on him that we can acquire true wisdom, and because wisdom reli

Revelation 21:3-4 Here John gives us a wonderful vision of heaven. If our present world is characterised by the gap between God and humankind, heaven is the place where no such gap exists. God will live with his people, in an intimacy that we cannot fully experience here on earth. As a consequence, it will be a place where death, sorrow, crying and pain will be no more. All of those four words have to do with separation and, when we are in the presence of God, there will be no separation. What a joy and relief that will be! Christians have varied enormously in their thinking about heaven. Some have devoted so much time and energy to focusing on heaven that they have been distracted from their responsibilities here on earth. To use the famous expression, they have been so heavenly minded that they have been no earthly good! However, I have met far more Christians who are at the other end of the spectrum. They have been so earthly minded that they have barely thought about their eternal home. This must surely b

Revelation 5:11 Life is full of mysteries. The evil of our world is agonising, and the innocent suffer in ways that continually horrify and distress us. In this chapter, John shares his vision of a scroll which holds the answers to the mysteries of the world, but there’s a problem. There are seven seals on this scroll and nobody can be found to open it. John wept bitterly at this, but the 24 elders pointed out that somebody had been found who was worthy to break open the seal. He was the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne, none other than Jesus Christ himself. Jesus was both the victorious lion but also the lamb. He had only won his great victory because he had been willing to offer himself as a sacrificial offering. And so in response, millions of angels burst out in song praising him. Jesus was worthy to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and blessing! This takes us to the heart of this amazing book, which recognises the terrible evil of the world but d

Revelation 4:8 During the last few days we have been challenged by the risen Lord’s messages to the seven churches. They have been extremely down to earth and have spoken directly into the lives of those very different churches. We have been given a very clear insight into their strengths and weaknesses and the sharp challenges that they had to face. But now our attention is moved from earth to heaven, and the language is dramatic and amazing. In this chapter, we meet the risen Christ sitting on a throne, surrounded by 24 thrones on which sat 24 elders. We are then introduced to four living beings which had eyes both back and front. They had the appearance of a lion, an ox, a human face and an eagle, and they each had six wings. It’s all utterly amazing and quite unlike being on earth. But what matters is that they spent all day and night declaring: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty – the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come” (Revelation 4:8). Through the years, people ha

Revelation 3:20 Holman Hunt’s painting ‘Light of the World’ is probably the best known of all biblical pictures. Jesus stands outside a door which is overgrown and clearly hasn’t been opened for a long time. Hunt painted no handle on the door; Jesus has to wait for the person inside to open it. The risen Lord was standing outside the door of the church in Laodicea. Although the people were self-confident and believed that everything was fine, the truth was that Jesus hadn’t been admitted to the church. He had to ask to be let in. Could there be a greater tragedy than this? The whole point of a church is that it is the community where people can meet Jesus, the risen Lord. But this powerful letter tells us that it is actually possible for a church to exclude him. That sounds crazy but it can be done if we put something else at the centre. Churches can degenerate into being nothing more than a social club, or a social action organisation. While there’s nothing wrong with clubs or social action, a church is

Revelation 3:19 This letter to the church in Laodicea was a wake-up call. They were full of self confidence but the Lord tells them that they have absolutely no reason for such confidence. In a city that prided itself on its wealth, they are told how poor they are. In a region famed for its wool, they are told that they are naked, and there was no humiliation more terrible in the ancient world than that. In an area that was famous for its eye salve for sore eyes, they are told that they are blind. But the Lord hasn’t given up on them. Although he is appalled by their lukewarm attitude and shocked by their misplaced self-confidence, he is eager for them to change. His reason for correcting and disciplining them is because he loves them. Discipline is never enjoyable at the time, but when the words are full of love and wisdom it is a very foolish person who ignores them. I would be intrigued to know what words of discipline you remember from your parents and others who cared for you. My own parents were very lo

Revelation 3:14 Nothing is more important in this life than to know who can be trusted. Every single day it’s an issue for us. Clearly it is fundamentally important within our family and among our friends, but it is also important with our work colleagues, garage mechanics, plumbers, electricians and all the people who play a crucial part in our lives. It is supremely important when it comes to our faith. Who can we trust with our lives and our eternal future? This letter begins with a firm affirmation that the risen Lord Jesus Christ is totally reliable. He is “the Amen”, the God of truth, and he will never let us down. His witness is absolutely true, and he is the one who has ushered in the new creation. For all of these reasons, the Laodicean church needed to listen hard to the words of the risen Lord. And what they received certainly weren’t the words that they wanted to hear. Laodicea was a successful and wealthy city, and it seems that the church was full of affluent and self-confident people. They

Revelation 3:8 These words were written to the church in the prosperous city of Philadelphia. Most of the seven churches were criticised for some aspect of their life, but not this one. They were probably small in number, but they had persevered in the face of opposition and had been faithful. The Lord encouraged them by saying he had opened a door for them, and because he had opened it, no one would be able to close it. What an encouragement this must have been for them. It was clearly tough going for the Christians in Philadelphia. The danger at such times is that we turn in on ourselves. We just try to survive. But I believe that God wants us always to keep our minds and hearts open to new possibilities and opportunities. I wonder what the door was that he opened for this church. We are not told, but God is always in the business of opening new doors for his people. I love the way in which the apostle Paul constantly looked for new opportunities and prayed for more. In his letter to the Colossians he s

Revelation 3:1-2 I love the fact that these seven letters to the churches are all completely different. Each church its own history, strengths and weaknesses, and the risen Lord addressed his words specifically to each situation. The church at Sardis seemed to mirror the city in which it was founded. Built on a very steep hill, it was assumed that Sardis would be impossible for an enemy army to successfully attack. However, on two occasions attacking forces managed to scale the precipice and conquer the city. They succeeded because the over-confident residents hadn’t felt it necessary to post any guards. Their laziness was their downfall, and now the church was being accused of exactly the same failing. The church in Sardis had a great reputation. They were seen as a successful church, but the Lord knew the truth - they were almost completely dead. He encouraged them to get back to basics. They needed to repent of their lifelessness and return to the teaching upon which the church had been established. The

Revelation 2:18-19 This is the beginning of the letter to the church in Thyatira. It was the smallest and least significant of the seven towns which the risen Lord addressed, and yet they received the longest letter! Thyatira was a busy commercial centre and was particularly famous for the dyeing of wool. You may remember that Lydia, who Paul met in Philippi and who was the first European convert to Christianity, was a trader in purple cloth and came from Thyatira. There was much to praise in this church. Not only were they loving, faithful, servant hearted and patiently persistent in their faith, but they were also constantly improving. What more could you want?! But sadly, they had a problem. They had allowed somebody to infiltrate the church who had encouraged sexual immorality and the eating of food offered to idols. It is highly likely that this happened through the trade guilds, of which there were many in Thyatira. Indeed, there were more trade guilds in this town than anywhere else in the region.

Revelation 2:14 These letters to the churches in Revelation are wonderfully straightforward and personal. The risen Lord didn’t beat around the bush! He identified that the Christians in Pergamum had much to commend them. They had been loyal to the Lord in the face of great opposition, but they weren’t perfect. They were living in a society that was full of idolatrous practices and they weren’t standing up against them in the way that they should have been. I wonder what the risen Lord makes of your church. What would he be commending it? What might his complaints be? Let me make it easier for you by reminding you that your church, good as it may well be, isn’t perfect. It has room for growth and every church needs to be willing to hear the truth so that it can come up with a plan for its development. Over the years, I have been involved in a number of consultation processes to help churches step back and hear how they could move forward. In my experience this definitely needs to be done with the help of peop

Revelation 2:12-13 The city of Pergamum, whose church received this letter, was famous for its commitment to emperor worship. It had three temples that were exclusively devoted to the Roman emperor. Although it didn’t have the long history and grandeur of Ephesus, Pergamum was the Roman capital of this region and it was here that the proconsul, who had the power of life and death, lived. This was a supremely difficult place for Christians to live and worship, and so the commendation from the risen Lord is all the more powerful. Even though Satan appeared to be in charge, the church there had remained loyal to the Lord. JRR Tolkien, the writer of The Lord of the Rings, wrote: “Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens.” It is easy to be loyal and faithful when times are good and the going is easy, but the real test is what you do when night comes. The Lord looks for followers to be loyal whatever the circumstances, whatever the weather and however great the opposition. The Christians of Perg

Revelation 2:10 It’s hard for most of us to imagine what it would be like to live with the continual likelihood of persecution, simply because of our Christian faith. The harshest treatment that we are likely to receive is to be laughed at because of our faith. But just imagine what it would be like to live with the fear that, at any time, there might be a knock at the door from the secret police. For those of us who have never had such an experience we need to first of all be aware that there are millions of Christians, in many parts of the world, who live today with exactly that threat. And throughout the past 2,000 years there has been a constant tide of persecution. To the church of Smyrna, the Lord told them not to be afraid because there would be an amazing reward for their suffering. They would receive the crown of life. This isn’t the crown of a king, but the trophy awarded to someone who was victor in athletics. This was particularly apt in Smyrna, which was famous for its games. Smyrna has a ver

Revelation 2:8-9 These words introduce the second of the letters to the churches, sent to the church in Smyrna. There was no surprise that the first letter went to Ephesus because it was definitely seen as the most influential of the cities. However, Smyrna was a close rival. It was a fine and busy commercial centre having its own well protected port. It had been founded long ago as a Greek colony but in about 600 BC it had been largely destroyed by an invading army. Hundreds of years later it was reconstructed. What was produced was a fine city, planned with broad straight avenues and pavements. It had truly come back to life, and so it was more than appropriate that they received a message from the Lord who had passed from death to life. The Lord’s message was that he totally understood where they were coming from. He knew just how much they had suffered and how grindingly poor they were. The word that is used for ‘suffering’ is one that describes someone who is crushed under a heavy weight. And the word th

Revelation 2:7 All seven of the letters to the churches end with these words. They make it clear that the letters have been written not merely to these specific churches but to anyone who has the ability to listen. They are the words of the Spirit and are words of life for anyone who will hear them. Tuning our ears into the voice of the Spirit is vital for all of us. The Holy Spirit is the source of life and wisdom and without him we will never be able to discern God’s will. But the problem is that his voice is only one of the innumerable voices with which we are continually bombarded. Listening to the Spirit is an activity which will only happen when we deliberately give him our attention. It won’t just happen. It has been wisely and painfully said that most people don’t listen with the intention of understanding, but of replying. We are all looking for the opportunity to share what matters to us and often have no real interest in what the other person has to say. True listening is when we give our full

Revelation 2:4 Many of us will be more familiar with an earlier translation of these words which ran: “you have lost your first love”. The truth is that the Christians in Ephesus had done so well. They had been strong in the face of opposition but, in the process, they had lost their love for the Lord and one another. And without love, everything is lost. We don’t know what caused them to lose their first love, but we all know how easily it happens. The normal cause is simply distraction. Life gets busy and even the most important things can be crowded out by the business of everyday life. In Ephesus, the Christians had to work really hard to survive amid all the opposition. They had been infiltrated by false teachers, but they had tested them and found them out. The Lord commends them for standing up so strongly for their faith and particularly for the way in which they had resisted a group called the Nicolaitans. All of that was excellent but, in the process, they had lost sight of the love which they h

Revelation 2:2 These words come from the first of the seven letters to the churches, and they were addressed to the church in Ephesus. Pergamum was the capital city of the province of Asia, but Ephesus was in every way the greatest city. It had the largest port in the area and many major roads converged on it. It was particularly famous for its religious significance. The city was home to the temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It was a vast structure, measuring 130 by 60 metres and with 120 columns. Ephesus was also a notorious centre for pagan superstition. In short, it wasn’t the easiest place to establish a church and the Christians were commended for their hard work and endurance. They could so easily have buckled in the face of the challenges, but they hadn’t. The word from the risen Lord to the Ephesian church was that he knew exactly what they had been through. He knew how tough it had been and commended them for the way in which they had endured. Much of the Christian li

Revelation 1:12-14 In order to understand these amazing verses, we need to appreciate that the Church at the time was very small and facing the brutal and powerful opposition of the Roman Empire. This must have been incredibly scary. It looked as if the Church would be crushed, and so it was vital for them to understand exactly who Jesus was, and the reasons why they could be confident in him. This whole book communicated the message that Jesus has won the final victory and so, even though there might be tough times ahead, they could be confident in him. The picture of Jesus that John gives us here sounds very strange to our modern ears. But what he was doing was bringing together lots of language from the Old Testament which showed that Jesus, the Son of Man, was nothing less than God himself. He wore a long robe like a priest, although no priest was important enough to wear a gold sash. And he had hair that was as white as wool, which reminds us of the picture of the Ancient of Days, God himself, as describ

Revelation 1:10-11 For many years after Jesus’ earthly ministry, his followers continued to meet on Saturday, and those from a Jewish background maintained their attendance at the temple or local synagogue. However, by the beginning of the 2nd Century, the special day for Christians had become Sunday, the first day of the week, the day of resurrection. John’s reference here to the Lord’s Day is the only time this expression is used in the Bible and almost certainly refers to his practice of worshipping on a Sunday. The first manual of Christian worship and instruction was called The Didache and it observed: “On the Lord’s Day we meet and break bread.” Ignatius of Antioch described Christians as “no longer living for the Sabbath, but for the Lord’s Day.” The practice of meeting on Sunday began in Asia Minor (which is roughly equivalent to modern-day Turkey) and that’s where John was living. As John worshipped, God spoke to him and directed him very specifically to write to the seven churches nearby. Of cou

Revelation 1:9 Unfortunately, we cannot be sure who this John was. Some people have thought of him as being the disciple who wrote the fourth Gospel, but that is highly unlikely. The style of the writing in Revelation is very different from that of the Gospel. However, what we do know is that he was clearly a significant Christian leader and, as a result of his ministry, was forced into exile in Patmos, a Greek island that lies off the coast of Turkey. It is probable that he was sentenced to work in the quarries on the island. John revealed himself both as a brother to his readers and also one who was a partner in their suffering. He was not writing this book from an ivory tower, but was standing among them, recognising that they were part of the same family and going through similar trials. In short, he understood their situation. He was encouraging them to stand firm and endure, knowing full well how demanding and costly that was. It’s always an incredible blessing when we meet people who understand us