The PCF Blog

Notes on Sermon Preached at PCF on 5 February 2012

“Whatever’s happened to you”? (Daniel 4)

When we meet up with an old friend who has changed since our last meeting – maybe they have lost weight, or adopted a new dress style – we may well ask them “whatever’s happened to you?” Hopefully that is what we were asked shortly after we became a Christian. People who meet us again shortly after we become a new creature in Christ should be asking, or at least thinking, ”Whatever’s happened to you?”
The main human character in today’s passage is Nebuchadnezzar, the King of the Babylonian empire. The King was the Hitler or Stalin of his day. True, he could be magnanimous towards his conquered foes, but only because it was good politics. He was ruthless, egocentric and cruel. Yet here we have him saying:
“How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.”
And
“Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just.”
Extraordinary! What on earth has happened?
The fact is that Nebuchadnezzar has had dealings with God. This should cause us great encouragement. There is no one, absolutely no one, who is beyond that reach of God. God can reach those who we think are unreachable. You may well say that the King doesn’t deserve to be saved. That is quite true – but neither do any of us!

Three Strikes and you’re out!

In baseball terminology the term “three strikes and you’re out” means that you get three chances to get it right. This is certainly true of the King here. In Daniel 2, he had the supernatural revelation of his dream by a young Daniel. Although the King responds by honouring Dnaiel and promoting him, and he acknowledges the existence of the God of Daniel, he does not bow the knee to him he remain proud and defiant. Strike One!
In Daniel three the amazing story of the three young men who defied the Kings command and were rather be thrown into the furnace rather than worship any God other than the God of Yahweh, touches Nebuchadnezzar – but not to the extent that he is prepared to worship him. Strike Two!
It is extraordinary the extent to which God is prepared to go to get his man. You might expect that having heard twice from God in the most remarkable and unmistakeable way, Nebuchadnezzar had had all the chances he was going to get. But God’s patience, it would seem, is far beyond that which any of us would expect. Nebuchadnezzar is about to get a third chance.

Last Chance Saloon

We read that Nubuchadnezzar was “contented and prosperous”. We can often imagine that those who are rejecting God must be miserable and unhappy. In fact the opposite may be true. Often the one who is standing defiantly against God is, as the King here, “contented and prosperous”. The enemy leaves them alone – they are no threat to him. But God is about to get to work. The dream the king has is terrifying and the king can have no rest until it is explained to him. In the middle of contentment, God speaks.
And we see the combination of the supernatural voice of God with the voice of his spokesman. Daniel, with compassion and courage, yet again is willing to put himself at great risk for the king to hear the word of God. It is worth pausing to consider this: Daniel had seen his nation destroyed by this man, yet he was ready to challenge the king to repent. So the king has yet another chance to repent and get his life in order. Will he take it?
Nebuchadnezzar has no less than one year to respond to the word of the Lord. It is reminiscent of the two years that David had to respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit after his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah. Yet at the end of the year he remains unchanged, as he surveys the hanging gardens of Babylon and says: “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”
And God, effectively, says: “Strike three!”

God’s Merciful Judgement

God’s action in Nebuchadnezzar’s life follows immediately upon the heels of the King’s arrogant claims The contents of his dream are carried out to the letter. One can not accuse God of not warning him!
1. Motivated by Compassion
We must remember that all God’s dealings are motivated by compassion. God wishes to save this man and has given him oppornuity and opportunity to respond. When he has not done God moves from speaking to doing.
2. Decisive
God’s action is severe, painful and humiliating. There is no limit to what God is prepared to do in order to have his way in our lives,
3. Measured
Notice how from the very beginning God knows that timescale that will be required for the king to respond to his discipline. God has measured every burden.
4. Redemptive.
The action that God takes is not designed to punish the king – but to redeem him.
5. A Happy ending
…and God intends to bring the situation to an ending that will result in the king’s blessing and salvation. Historians believe that the king lived only a year or so after this event. What an end to his reign there must have been.

Application

So what are we to learn from this story?
1. As Christians?
We can be encouraged that God is able to work in the lives of all those who we may regard as impossible. That includes our loved ones who are showing no sign at all of surrendering to God. When God works in the loves of those we love – don’t get in the way!
And we can also be challenged to be like Daniel – to be prepare to be used by God to speak to those who God is working in – including saying things that they don’t wish to hear

2. As Backsliders?
There really is no excuse for backsliding. It is a kind of insanity to know about God but to refuse to bow the knee to him. God will continue speaking, until the day it is imposisble for you to hear him. Then he will take whatever action is necessary to get you to serve him. Much better to respond to his voice than his discipline.

3. As Unbelievers?
CS Lewis described God as “the hound of heaven”. When God is on your case, you won’t get away.

Wherever we are , God will, speak to us to move us forward. Let’s respond to that voice. If we do not, God loves us far too much to allow us to get away with rebellion indefinitely. As Nebuchadnezzar concludes: “And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.”
Let’s humble ourselves, before He humbles us.
This is the last we hear of the mighty tyrant from Babylon. We may assume that the rest of his reign was marked with submission to God. In the next chapter, we discover that, sadly, this example was not continued by his son.

But that’s another story

John MacDiarmid
February 2012

Poole “Christians Against Poverty” (CAP) Centre is now open for business and in the News.

Free Debt Couselling, using CAP’s unique and unsurpassed methods for helping people with debt, is one phone call away. Potential clients living in Poole can call 0800 328 0006 for help with their debt problems.

Matthew MacDiarmid and Louise Anderson were married at Salisbury Baptist Church on Saturday 9 July 2011.

There are a selection of photos on our Facebook page. Follow the link below:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.229201863780428.64861.108816379152311

A number of hardy souls braved the early rain and had a Bank Holiday walk and picnic in the Purbecks. As  the weather cleared up the  conditions become good and an enjoyable walk was finished off with a cream tea in Corfe Castle. Thanks to Duncan for arranging everything.

Thank you to Beth Rose who took a number of photographs during our  Sunday morning celebration.

Please follow the link to our Facebook page

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Poole-Christian-Fellowship/108816379152311

It was a great joy to dedicate to the Lord Stanley and and Nkolika’s twins, Luke and Lucille (anglicised names!). The family was well represented and the housegroup came to the front of the meeting to commit the twins  to the Lord, to give thanks for these two young lives and to ask God’s wisdom and blessing for their parents.

On 12th December, Poole Christian Fellowship enjoyed a church lunch together, followed by three baptisms.

It was a great day – with many more to follow.

Notes on :”The Big Issue: Male and female?” Tuesday 16 November 2010In the beginning God created man…and he created us male and female. All sorts of questions emerge from that single statement:

Why did God create two sexes?

What about equality of the sexes?

What about the battle of the sexes?

What about marriage and singleness?

How are we different?

Do we have different roles, in society, in the family, in the church?

We will try to consider all these questions – and more during this session.

There are three key concepts that we need to consider:

1.       Equality

2.        Diversity

3.       Order

1. Equality

The Bible makes it very clear that men and woman are created by God, and are of equal standing and value before Him

Created Equal

Genesis 1 says

²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,^[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

 ²⁷ So God created mankind in his own image,
   in the image of God he created them;
   male and female he created them.

 ²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

In the Image of God – this means that when we look at a human being, no matter how sinful, we are looking at something that is more like God than any other created being.

To Represent God – together male and female we represent the image of God on the earth

To Rule and Reign – and we were created equally to reign and to be his authority on the earth.

Therefore we totally reject any concept of superiority or inferiority. God created men and woman equally.

As far as equal rights are concerned though – rights are not something that God majors on. Our only rights are the right to be God’s slaves and bow to his will. So “rights” are not something that have their place in Christian conversation.. And when it comes to equal opportunities – yes – “All have sinned and need God’s grace”. However, if equal rights and equal opportunities mean the right of men to be women and for women to be men – that’s not something that God has created us for.

2. Diversity

When we come to the Genesis 2  account of creation,  the Holy Spirit gives us more detail about the process of creation

 ⁷ Then the LORD God formed a man^[c] from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. …

But for Adam^[f] no suitable helper was found. ²¹ So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs^[g] and then closed up the place with flesh. ²² Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib^[h] he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

 ²³ The man said,

   “This is now bone of my bones
   and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
   for she was taken out of man.”

Created Differently – we see that Adam was created from the dust of the earth, and Eve was created from Adam’s side. This starts to give us an idea of different types of role before God.

Created Different – it is obvious to the most casual observer that males and female are different. Generalisations are never infallible, but physically we are different, psychologically we are different. We have different strengths and we represent the image of God in different , and complementary ways. We are dependent on each other and we need each other.

Created to do different jobs – it is not surprising if God has create us different and differently, that we are likely to excel in different roles. There are roles that men are more likely to succeed in than women – and vice versa. I would not be a good Mother and my wife would not be a good Father!

Created for marriage

It is obvious from the creation account that the first man and first women were created to enjoy each others’ company and to be companions to one another, with Eve being described as a helper suitable for Adam.

…but subject to the effects of the Fall….

If we move onto Genesis chapter three we have the terrible story of the fall of man, and its outworking. Sin, death and suffering all had their origin in the fall. That means that singleness due to divorce, and to bereavement all have their origins in sin.

And singleness generally? Whilst it is not possible to be dogmatic, the impression one has from Scripture is that without the fall there would be no single adults. Man was made for the companionship of marriage, and one of the consequences of living in a fallen world is that there are some who experience singleness throughout their lives. What can we say to single people who embrace singleness , although they would not have chosen it for their lives? We have to say that God will reward, in this life and especially in eternity.

What are the other consequences of the fall? Genesis 3 shows that the battle of the sexes has its origin in the fall.

 “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
   with painful labour you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
   and he will rule over you.”

What God is saying here is that a consequence of sin, is that the loving relationship between husband and wife would be horribly distorted. Instead of the loving covering that husbands would provide for their wives, sin would distort it by turning it into tyrannical bullying. And instead of the joyful submission to a loving husband, wives would try to manipulate and control their husbands. What a horrible distortion of God’s plan for the human race!

3.     Order

Our third concept in our consideration of this subject is “order”,

Order in the  Godhead

To understand this properly we have to understand  that there is order in the Godhead. Father Son and Holy Spirit are total equals. But they carry out different roles and they do so with a sense of order. Jesus submitted himself to the Father, without ever ceasing to be God. The Holy Spirit submits himself to the Father and Son in order to bring them glory. But He is still equally God. This is what makes the concept of order to critical. When we dispute God’s order in human relationships we are in fact arguing about the nature of God himself.

Order in the Family

So the order in the godhead is reflected in family relationship. Scripture clearly teaches what is described as “male headship” – where headship refers to loving care, responsibility and  sacrificial love.

And submission means not behaving like a doormat, but joyful intelligent submission to the person who God has placed in authority,

Order in the church

And in the church, the Scriptures  also teach male headship, in the sense that authoritative governmental leadership in the church is always male

Some objections:

The challenges of culture

Much of what we have said here runs totally in the face of culture. How are we to respond to the charge that our Christianity is counter-cultural? There are of course some elements of culture that are morally neutral. The language we use, the clothes we wear, the songs that we sing are largely to do with our culture and have no moral significance in themselves.

But God’s plan for human relationships is not dependent on culture. God’s plan for marriage  is right in all culture. Male headship is biblical truth for all time. The Victorian culture ran opposed to Biblical Christianity  – the man was a dictator. For 21^st century people Christianity  is again opposed to culture – the egalitarian movement says that  it is wrong for biblical leadership and submission to be in place. But we stick to biblical Christianity because it is based on truth. And where we have to challenge our culture – we do so!

“Galatians 3 v.28 abolishes role distinctions”

A look at  this verse gives us an insight into the thinking of the egalitarian movement. When you start with a conclusion, based on prejudice, you will look desperately for scriptures to support your pre-judged conclusion. Use of this verse to support “no headship”  is an example of that. In fact this verse means that in terms of their access to God, to his promises, his protection and his Spirit. It says nothing about the relative roles of male and female. It is an outrageous misuse of Scripture to claim that it does.

“Mutual submission in Ephesians 5 v.21 nullifies male headship”

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

The Scripture that says “submit to one another”  -taken in isolation – could, if there was nothing else in the Bible about it, easily lead one to the belief that submission is mutual. However, even a brief look at the surrounding verses show us that  male headship exists because of a theological reason, not a cultural one The wife will cease to be responsible to submit to her husband, when the church no longer had a responsibility to  submit to Christ!

“Head  =  source”

A final objection is in the meaning of the word translated “head” in Ephesians 5. It is said that the word “ can equally mean source, and not head. In fact this is quite right, the word can mean both head and source. So which does it mean here?

Wayne Grudem writes:

“In 1985 I looked up 2,336 examples of the word  “Kephale” in ancient Greek literature”, using texts from Homer in the eighth century up to some church fathers in the fourth century AD. I found…that it was never applied to a person without governing authority…the fact remains that no one has yet produced one text on ancient Greek literature where a person is called “kephale” and that person is not in authority…. The alleged meaning “Source without authority£ now 17 years after the publication of my 1985 study,.. has not been supported with any citation of any text in ancient Greek literature…”

One other, but related point. What are we to make of Paul’s instruction that “ I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man?” (I Timothy) Clearly it was Paul’s view that a woman could prophesy, pray aloud and share God’s word. What is he prohibiting? The answer seems to be that where public ministry of the word implies or includes authority in that church or ministry situation, then it is inappropriate. That leave whole areas of ministry open to women in the church and we need to seek fresh ways of harnessing all the  gifts that are available within the body of Christ.

So we finish with a summary of our three points:

Equality – God created Man and woman equal in status and importance before Him

Diversity – God made men and women differently and different in physical ,  and spiritual makeup and to carry out different roles.

Order  In the church and in the home, God has made man for  loving sacrificial leadership and the woman for intelligent  joyful submission.

John MacDiarmid

November 2010