Hi, my name is Alan at it is my great pleasure to be sharing these podcasts with you this week. Today, we are still listening in to Jesus’ talking about the end times and Jesus will return to earth and make all things new. Yesterday we looked at how to keep our hearts from growing cold and the necessity of forgiveness. Today we consider how to ‘keep watch’ or how to guard our hearts.

REFLECTION:

Today’s reading is Matthew 24:36-51 but I am going to focus in on v42-43.

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.”

Jesus says Keep watch! Keep watch! Keep watch…

So we open our eyes… and we look… and we stare… we check over our shoulder… we check over our other shoulder… and we look and we stare…

Jesus? Jesus? What am I watching for??

Jesus goes on to tell a story of attitudes… portrayed by two servants: one, faithful and wise who does what the Master expects, they follow instructions even when they are not being watched and the other, a wicked servant who, while the master is away, forgets the instructions and does whatever they like, they indulge their desires rather than do what they know to be right.

I used to swim… more than is good for anyone. For between 3-4 hours a day: in the morning before school and then again when school had finished. Up and down in a concrete tank, length after length. Why? Because I was good at it and I wanted to get better.

There were occasions when our coach would set the programme but had to be elsewhere. We 30 or so swimmers would be left on our own with only a lifeguard for company.

Hour after hour, length after length… Coach isn’t here… let’s cut a few corners. Let’s do one less set of 100metres… let’s give ourselves a bit more rest… lets not do that long swim at the end… let’s finish early… The temptation was massive. Who would know?

But I wanted to be the best I could be… I wasn’t getting up at silly o’clock to mess around. I’m sure that there were times when I slacked off, but more often than not I would be there until the bitter end. Trusting that my coach knew best even when he wasn’t there to watch and encourage.

Jesus says keep watch, watch our hearts and our attitudes. Make sure that we are not cutting corners, trying to get away with less than our best when we think that no-one is around to see or encourage.

We know we are to forgive…

We know that we are not to judge…

We know that we are meant to help and serve others…

We know that we are to be generous…

We know that we are to be thankful…

The thief is looking to break in and steal our treasures… to steal our love, our peace, our patience, our kindness, gentleness and self-control…

The thief sneaks around in the dark… he’s not looking for a fight… but to steal what he can without being noticed.  Ultimately he wants to get us signed up to his team… selfish and greedy, judgmental, angry, bitter and entitled… he wants to set us off working for him, stealing others joy, causing others hurt, pain and fear…

Keep watch… Keep watch… over our lives, over our hearts and our attitudes… Keep watch.

When Jesus returns let him find us cultivating love and faith.

PRAYER:

Jesus thank you that you love us, that you died for us to take away our sin and shame and to make peace between us and those around us. Help us to cultivate an attitude of love and faithfulness, help us to keep watch over our hearts and spot the work of the thief. Let him find no areas of our lives weak and vulnerable to break in. and let us be sure that we are on your side spreading, love, joy, peace and thankfulness around. Amen.

READING: Matthew 24:36-51

Good morning… welcome to Monday… today’s reading is Matthew 24:1-35. It’s a long passage in which Jesus addresses the ‘signs of the end of the age.’ Or “what will happen before the end of the world and Jesus returns.” I do not have time to even begin to do this passage justice, just to say that the overriding message in a time of chaos is “trust God, stay faithful.” If you stay tuned to the end you can hear the reading in full.

REFLECTION:

In light of the message “trust God and stay faithful” let’s read v12-13 together.

Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

The truth is that we live in a world that is not the way God intended it to be. It is broken, it is dysfunctional, it is hard and often cruel.

Jesus says that even though he came, he lived, he died, rose again, went back to heaven and poured out the holy spirit on his people… it is not going to get better… in fact it is going to get worse! Wickedness will increase…

Well thanks Jesus! and thanks Alan for your podcast this morning! Very encouraging!!

But here’s where the rubber hits the road. In life there will be battles… but “the one who stands firm until the end will be saved.” This raises one question… how do I stand firm? Do I head out into the street after breakfast, place my hands on my hips, feet shoulder width apart, chest out, stomach in… and stay that way until dinner, standing firm?

No, of course not! So how do I take my stand? Well, v.12 gives us a big hint: “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold…”

Jesus is talking about our hearts. Will we let the cold wind of this life slowly turn our hearts to stone or will we stand firm and refuse to let that happen? Will we daily trust God and stay faithful?

You see, God has given us instruction to keep our hearts warm and to stop them growing cold. It’s a simple instruction but it is hard to do and keep on doing… We are to FORGIVE.

When we get bumped, knocked, scolded and bruised, the one thing that stops us from growing cold is FORGIVENESS.

We must FORGIVE. There is no other option, there is no other action or remedy, we forgive.

BUT WHAT ABOUT…

Stop right there kiddo… all of our arguments… all of our objections are answered by Jesus asking one simple question, “do you trust me?” If the answer is ‘yes’ then we will do what he asks us to do having faith that he knows a little bit about what’s best for us.

Let me remind us of the story of Corrie Ten Boom. Her family had hidden Jews in the attic of their family home to save them from the Nazis in WW2. They were discovered and the family sent to a concentration and then a death camp. Miraculously she survived but her father and sister died. After the war she returned to Germany where she spoke powerfully of the need to forgive. And then, one day she came face to face with an extremely mean and brutal member of the SS. After she had spoken he came forward, stretched out his hand and asked for forgiveness… here is her account:

And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion–I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.

“Jesus, help me!” I prayed silently. “I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.”

And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“I forgive you, brother!” I cried. “With all my heart!”

Today I ask that God would search our hearts, to show us where our hearts have grown cold.

Hello, and welcome to the STC podcast. My name is Casey Strine, I’m a member of the STC staff, and I’m excited to be sharing a few of my reflections on the Gospel of Matthew with you this week.

This week we will be looking at chapters 22 and 23 of the Gospel according to Matthew. Today, we will look at Matthew 23, verses 23-39, and we’ll focus on verse 23.

REFLECTION:

You may recall from yesterday that this week we’ve be looking at one long conversation that Jesus has with various groups. In this passage, we come to the final section of that conversation, where Jesus makes his foundational point abundantly clear.

To say that Jesus is fed up in this passage is an understatement. He’s been quizzed in an attempt to make him make a mistake by people he thinks are doing a poor job of living by the standards they themselves teach. So, here, at the end, he says what he thinks as clearly as one can imagine.

In an intensely polite culture like the United Kingdom, you might even wince a bit reading that Jesus says to the religious leaders ‘on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness’ in verse 28. This is an angry man speaking his mind. Perhaps that is not how we think of Jesus—as an angry man—but he was certainly capable of it. Righteous indignation, we call it: the emotion of anger directed at something that is not right.

Jesus accuses these religious leaders of a failure of omission—that is, not that what they’ve done is wrong, but that they’ve failed to do other things that are equally important. Yes, they’ve given money to God, they’ve gone to the temple many times, but they’ve neglected to act justly, show mercy, and live in faithfulness to all that God has commanded.

What error of omission makes you angry? What do you know God has commanded that you see others failing to do? I’m sure you can think of something, perhaps rather quickly. I certainly can—but I’ll keep that to myself.

What if we turn our sights back on ourselves? What have you and I failed to do lately that we know God commands us to do? Have you been impatient with your friends and family? Have you been going through the motions of church without really giving your attention to God? What other sin of omission have we committed?

We, like these religious leaders, are guilty of such failures too. Maybe it isn’t all of us all of the time, but it is all of us some of the time. The good news of Christianity is that being guilty of sins of omission does not keep us from the love of God. If we are willing to be honest with ourselves, to admit our flaws, to confess our sins to God, and to ask for forgiveness, it is on offer. ‘There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus’ says St Paul. Rather, for those who confess their sins, God offers forgiveness, compassion, love, and mercy.

So, as this week draws to a close, let us take a hard look at what we’ve done. Where have we failed to do that which we know God asks us to do? Let us confess that to God and embrace the forgiveness that is available to us through Jesus’ sacrifice. In this way, we will grow closer to God and find ourselves refuelled to love and serve both God and others.

PRAYER:

God of mercy, we acknowledge that we are all sinners. We turn from the wrong that we have thought and said and done, and are mindful of all that we have failed to do. For the sake of Jesus, who died for us, forgive us for all that is past, and help us to live each day in the light of Christ our Lord. Amen.

READING: Matthew 23:23-39

‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices – mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practised the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides!

Hello, and welcome to the STC podcast. My name is Casey Strine, I’m a member of the STC staff, and I’m excited to be sharing a few of my reflections on the Gospel of Matthew with you this week.

This week we will be looking at chapters 22 and 23 of the Gospel according to Matthew. Today, we will look at Matthew 23, verses 1-22, and we’ll focus on verses 11-12.

REFLECTION:

You may recall from yesterday that this week we’ll be looking at one long conversation that Jesus has with various groups. In this passage, Jesus turns and addresses the crowd that has been listening to his debate with the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Jesus is ready to say something that is on his mind.

Jesus tells the crowds that these religious leaders were at fault for not practicing what they preached. To convince the audience, Jesus describes all sorts of religious practices that were common in the day, that these men took to the extreme to appear more pious, more holy than they really were. Jesus explains that the religious leaders dress in a way that sets them apart and attempts to make them look more devout than others. Jesus says they are far more concerned with appearances than their actual devotion to God; he explains that they like public displays of respect more than they like to speak about how their roles place upon them a responsibility to care for the people.

Just shortly before this passage, Jesus has said that ‘the Son of Man’—the way Jesus referred to himself—‘did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’ Unlike these religious leaders that wanted public affirmation for their religious practices, Jesus was very happy to carry on doing what he knew God wanted without any recognition. Humility, no matter what happened, was Jesus’ way.

Here, Jesus says it slightly differently: ‘The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.’

I had a friend in University from a big family that lived in a small town in Georgia. He was one of 8 children. It was hard to be heard in a house of 10 people. His father worked in construction—they were a working class family, and all the kids were expected to start helping as soon as they were old enough. His family had a saying: ‘Are you a doer or a talker?’ You didn’t stand out in that crowd of 10 because you looked good or sounded smooth. No, you stood out when you worked hard and did your part for the family without wanting recognition. With 10 mouths to feed and 10 lives to organize, there wasn’t time for anyone to stand around and wait for recognition.

So it is with Jesus. There is good news to share and a kingdom to build. There are poor and sick and disadvantaged to care for. This is important work, and there is so much of it that one doesn’t have the time to stand around and wait for someone to tell you ‘good work.’ That, instead, is God’s job. And, for the God that created everything, sees everything, and can speak the words ‘well done good and faithful servant’ to us from the heavens, that is no problem either.

It is said that Mother Teresa remarked ‘Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.’ Jesus calls us to exactly that. What small things will you do with great love today?

PRAYER:

Loving God, you gave up all the treasures of heaven to live with us as a humble carpenter from a small town in an insignificant place. You never expected public praise for it. Teach us the same servant spirit of humility. Amen.

READING: Matthew 23:1-22

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: ‘The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practise what they preach. They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders...

Hello, and welcome to the STC podcast. My name is Casey Strine, I’m a member of the STC staff, and I’m excited to be sharing a few of my reflections on the Gospel of Matthew with you this week.

This week we will be looking at chapters 22 and 23 of the Gospel according to Matthew. Today, we will look at Matthew 22, verses 34-46 and we’ll focus on verses 36-39.

REFLECTION:

You may recall from yesterday that this week we’ll be looking at one long conversation that Jesus has with various groups. In this passage, the two groups that we’ve met already team up to ask Jesus one more difficult question. This is a final, united attempt to trip Jesus up and to force him to take sides so that he can be painted as a partisan person. The point of the question is to make Jesus take a theological position that can be criticised for being faulty and inadequate. Jesus is far, far to clever for that.

The Pharisees and the Sadducees ask Jesus which is the greatest commandment. It’s like asking a parent of three kids which is their favourite. Everyone knows that is a question that can’t be answered. Still, the Pharisees and the Sadducees think there is a chance they can get Jesus to say something wrong by asking him to choose.

Based on Jesus’ answer, it seems the point of the question was to make Jesus choose whether it was more important to love God—doing things that demonstrate that—or to love your fellow human beings—doing things that demonstrate that. If Jesus says it is more important to love God—the pious response—then maybe he doesn’t see the importance of loving other people. If Jesus says it is more important to love people—the humane response—then maybe he doesn’t see the true importance of loving God. What to say?

Jesus denies the premises that there is any difference between the two choices. Indeed, for Jesus, loving God and loving people are two sides of the same coin that one cannot separate.

It is important to know that Jesus is not saying anything new here, but quoting two very, very well known parts of Jewish scripture. The command to love God comes from the book of Deuteronomy, ch. 6. The command to love your neighbour comes from the book of Leviticus, ch. 19. Neither of these books is very familiar to us, but both were well known among the people Jesus was speaking to. Jesus’ answer denies that they are in any sort of opposition. You can’t have one without the other.

Since human beings are the image of God, mistreating them indicates that you don’t really love God. Equally, Christians believe that we can’t really offer the selfless acts that constitute love for other people until we’ve experienced the sacrificial, selfless love of God for us.

If this all begins to sound like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg, you’re not far off. The point Jesus is making in all his answers is that the Pharisees and the Sadducees are asking the wrong questions. We are finite human beings; it shouldn’t surprise us that we don’t understand everything about an infinite, all wise God and all the intricacies of how that God designed the world. What is clear, however, are three things: God loves us more than we can know, and has sacrificed massively to show that love to us; we are called to show our gratitude to God by loving other people in a similar, selfless way; and, when we do, we will learn more about this God who loves us.

PRAYER:

Lord of all, we thank you that you have loved us from our mothers’ wombs. Help us to see your love for us in our lives today. And, motivate us, in this way, to love the people we meet today in the same, selfless way. Amen.

READING: Matthew 22:34-46

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: ‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’

Jesus replied: ‘“Love the Lord your God with all your heart...

Hello, and welcome to the STC podcast. My name is Casey Strine, I’m a member of the STC staff, and I’m excited to be sharing a few of my reflections on the Gospel of Matthew with you this week.

This week we will be looking at chapters 22 and 23 of the Gospel according to Matthew. Today, we will look at Matthew 22, verses 23-33.

REFLECTION:

You may recall from yesterday that this week we’ll be looking at one long conversation that Jesus has with various groups. In this passage, a second group appears: the Sadducees. Like the Pharisees, who we saw yesterday, the Sadducees were a group of Jewish religious scholars who were very unsure about Jesus and his teaching. So, they decided to ask him a question they thought would cause him to trip up.

Today, instead of thinking about faith and politics, we’re looking at what things will be like after death. You see, the Sadducees didn’t believe what Jesus did: that there is life after death. So, they thought that they could confuse Jesus by devising a scenario in which life after death would cause someone to break God’s rules about marriage. The Sadducees focused on the smallest, tiniest details of theology because they wanted to prove they were right. It seems they might have been more interested in being correct than learning about God.

Jesus can answer their question—he is divine, so of course he knows all sorts of things about eternal life that mere humans do not. Indeed, Jesus shows them that if they read their own scriptures more carefully they could have worked this out themselves. Still, Jesus is not really interested in winning an argument over theological details; what he wants to do is help the Sadducees and the crowd listening to their conversation realise that God wants to be actively involved in their lives right now, not just in some distant time after they die.

The Sadducees remind me of an engaged couple that gets so worried about their wedding being perfect, that when the day comes they can’t even enjoy it. Spending hours and weeks working out every detail of menus, flowers, music, dresses, and photos, they forget to prepare to celebrate their relationship. They miss that the point of their wedding is to begin their life together, being there to help one another on a daily basis. Rather, they become so focused on flowers, cakes, music, and seating arrangements, they forget to enjoy the day with all their friends and family.

How might we have become so focused on the minutiae of something that we’ve forgotten to look for what God is doing in our lives? When was the last time we were so worried about the details of what was coming in the future that we forgot to ask what God was saying to us right now?

As followers of Jesus we can live fully for today because we know that our future lies secure in Jesus’ control. Let us be people who are aware of the future, but live in the present, knowing that God wants to be with us every day. God is God of the living—willing and able to get involved in all of the good in our lives, and willing to walk with us through all that is challenging. Right now. Today.

PRAYER:

Jesus, help us to focus on You today. Grant us the ability to trust you with all the details of our future and to listen for Your voice in our lives today. We believe You want to speak with us. We want to hear from you. Amen.

READING: Matthew 22:23-33

That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him. Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. Finally, the woman died. Now then, at the resurrection,

Hello, and welcome to a new week of the STC podcast. My name is Casey Strine, I’m a member of the STC staff, and I’m excited to be sharing a few of my reflections on the Gospel of Matthew with you this week.

This week we will be looking at chapters 22 and 23 of the Gospel according to Matthew. This passage is one long conversation between Jesus and a crowd of people who have come to hear him speak.

REFLECTION:

Today, we will look at Matthew 23, verses 15-22. The first group we meet in this passage is the Pharisees. The Pharisees were a group of Jewish religious scholars who were very unsure about Jesus and his teaching. So, they decided to ask him a question they thought would cause him to trip up.

The Pharisees’ question is about the relationship between faith and politics. This has always been, and will always be, a question for the Christian community—really, all people of faith who live in a society where they are not the only people and don’t make all the rules. The question was particularly important to the Jewish community in Jerusalem who Jesus is teaching at this point in Matthew’s story. Living under the rule of the Roman Empire, they faced daily dilemmas about how to be faithful followers of God and follow the rules of their society.

The Pharisees ask a simple question: should a follower of God pay tax to the Roman government or not? It seems the Pharisees assume the answer must either be no – in which case you’re a law breaker – or yes, in which case you’re not being faithful to God. Jesus sees the whole thing differently. Asking to see a coin, which has Caesar’s face one it, he famously says that one should give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s. In other words, the human government might make the money and rightfully ask for a portion back in tax, but God is the creator of all and demands our ultimate allegiance.

If this sounds like a debate we might have in the 21st century, perhaps that should be no surprise. The tension between following God and being a good citizen have always existed—perhaps no more so than when Jesus himself lived. Jesus and his earliest followers changed the world despite having almost no political or institutional power.

Actually, the most important point Jesus is making might be that even when Christians do have some authority, we are not really in control. God is in control; whatever authority and influence we have comes from God, and we are to use it for God’s kingdom. In about 200 AD, one Christian put it this way:

‘They don’t inhabit separate cities of their own, or speak a strange dialect, or follow some outlandish way of life… And yet there is something extraordinary about their lives. They live in their own countries as though they were only passing through. They play their full role as citizens, but labour under all the disabilities of foreigners. Any country can be their homeland, but for them their homeland, wherever it may be, is a foreign country.’

Today, we should ask ourselves this question. Are we using whatever power and authority we have in this world to serve God and to help other people? If not, perhaps we’re asking ourselves the wrong question too.

PRAYER:

Jesus, today we want to be people who use the things you have given us to help other people. Grant us the wisdom to know how we can do so. Be present when we do help, Lord, so that people will see your love in our actions. Amen.

READING: Matthew 22:15-22

Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the poll-tax to Caesar or not?’

But Jesus,

Welcome to Friday’s Podcast.

Our reading today is Matthew 21: 33-46 but today I will focus on verse 42:

“The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it’s marvellous in our eyes.”

Before we jump into the podcast – I’d like to thank you for listening! Next week Casey Strine, a member of our team, will continue our journey through Matthew’s gospel.

REFLECTION:

I recently built a log shed out of old pallets.

Not just any log shed but I’ve added a green roof – inspired by a trip to Norway!

My research told me the log shed would need extra strength to hold the roof – a green roof is a little heavier because it contains soil and grass.

I thought a lot about the structure and whether the roof would bear the weight.

I was feeling rather pleased with myself until I noticed that the log shed developed a lean… it was just steadily listing backwards. I checked every day and sure enough it seemed to me that the log shed was, like the leaning tower of Pisa, at a very slow gradual rate – it was sinking into the ground.

I was so focused on making it strong enough to hold the weight of the roof I hadn’t really thought too much about the foundations.

To fix it I used our car jack to lift it and place some very chunky bricks – not just any bricks – bricks from an old electric storage heater – to take the weight and stop the slow and gradual sinking.

I used those bricks to shore up the foundations which were inadequate.

Foundations are important, in your house and – I’ve discovered – a heavy log shed. Good foundations are vital for a healthy marriage and a healthy family.

Today I want us to think about foundations. In today’s passage Jesus is referring to himself as the ‘stone’ – sometimes known as the cornerstone. It really means foundation stone.

There are a number of references throughout the Bible to the ‘cornerstone’. Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22 which describes a situation where some builders are looking for a suitable stone – known as the cornerstone – some say that it’s either for the base of the building or to be fashioned to be the key stone at the top of the arch – but the point is that it’s the stone holds it together – it’s the most important stone. It’s the one that takes or holds the weight.

Jesus is saying “I am the cornerstone.” He’s the one that holds it together – the one at the centre of it all.

In fact the whole parable is a very, very strong challenge to those who have rejected Jesus – they are like those builders that rejected the cornerstone. Jesus doesn’t mince his words – they will face a judgement – two images: falling onto the stone or the stone falling on them. Crikey!

What can we take from this message?

My question today for my life is: How are my foundations? Honestly?

My log shed looked great when I’d completed it. It was fine when I’d made the green roof – the soil, the woodchip etc…

But when I filled it with logs – the weight bore down on it – then it became clear that foundations were insufficient.

The pressure of life stress tests the quality of our foundations.

Same with our spiritual lives.

Spiritual disciplines are vital. If we crack them in peace time – we’ll have them in war time. And if we crack them in war time – keep them in peace time.

I learned a few years ago – when the pressures of life come along – then I know I need to fix myself to the cornerstone.

What does that look like?

From my own personal experience: if I get up early each day and spend time with God. Read the Bible – read a Christian book. Worship either by strumming my guitar or singing – I’m ready for the day. I know if I ‘hear from God’ – my day starts from faith – I’m focusing on Jesus – holding onto the cornerstone.

If I don’t – I can find I’m losing my connection with the Lord.

Welcome to Thursday’s Podcast. Our reading today is Matthew 21: 18-32 but today I’m going to read v19:

Seeing a fig-tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, ‘May you never bear fruit again!’ Immediately the tree withered.

REFLECTION:

‘You’ll never grow figs in Sheffield’ someone once said to me a year ago.

Turns out you can!

Someone I know had a fig tree in a pot in their garden patio. It hadn’t grown any fruit in years.

“It’s dead,” they said. “We’re going to throw it out,” they said. “Can I have it?” I said.

So we got it, I planted in the garden and put loads of compost round it. Read about fig trees on the internet. Learned a few facts from YouTube.

Do you know what?

After years and years of no fruit, this summer it grew figs (I think the hot summer definitely helped).

The people who had given me the fig tree weren’t too impressed.

Here’s the thing: Figs trees have one purpose – to grow figs. Even in Sheffield.

With the right conditions: compost, water, sun and soil – fruit is inevitable.

In today’s passage Jesus interacts with a fig tree.

It’s the cool of the morning sun and a hungry Jesus looks for food. Fresh figs are tasty and a great source of not only food but hydration.

It’s worth saying that fig trees and also grape vines are well known fruiting plants that feature often through metaphor a lot in the Bible. They often refer to a deeper meaning – fruit refers to the side effect of God’s activity in our lives – it’s how we measure, if we can, God in us. This was illustrated to me many years ago when I did a General Studies Project on something called the ‘Toronto Blessing’ when God was moving powerfully back in the early 90s. As part of my research I remember something a wise man told me: if someone is claiming something from God ‘you must look for the fruit…’

So a hungry Jesus finds a fig tree with no fruit. He curses it. It’s a goner.

This seems really random. What a pointless thing to do!

But this short account needs to be understood in conjunction with Jesus’ time in the Temple – particularly the famous turning over of the tables which we read yesterday.

Theologian Tom Wright says that while Jesus is challenging the commercialisation of the Temple – the focal point of worship in Israel – he’s really pointing the finger that those who are gaining funds and support for their desire to reform Israel – taking destiny into their own hands: plotting, planning and scheming to deliver change in Israel – through murky politics that would suit a House of Cards episode or some twisted Brexit plot.

Jesus challenges their striving. Striving is when we operate without God. We try and force. We strain. We plot. We must make this happen by ourselves.

Striving is easy. I know I do it.

It’s human nature. It stems from the belief that we are really masters of our own destiny. We fix our lives. Can we really intervene anyway?

Where does this come from?

We find this at the very beginning of the Bible – known biblically as the ‘fall’ where humans turn away from God and choose to trust ourselves rather than God – we become the masters of our own lives instead of trusting God which is life of faith.

When we strive we walk in our own efforts. Approach situations from the point of pragmatism: what is within my power to fix this?

When we walk in a faith mindset – we start with our identity – yes, I’m a sinner (keeping it Biblical) but I’m not left there – I’m a co-heir with Christ.

When facing an impossible situation – we call out to God, our father, the King and walk in faith – the unseen realm. In that realm we can do all kinds of things – unimaginable – that’s fruit.

How do we get that?

We abide.

We lean in.

We put wedges in our day – however small – to remin...

Welcome to Wednesday’s Podcast.

Our reading today is Matthew 21: 1-17 but today we’ll focus on verses 8 -9

A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,

‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’

‘Hosanna in the highest heaven!’

REFLECTION:

Today I’d love us to think about breakthrough.  Google defines a breakthrough as: a sudden, dramatic, and important discovery or development.  The term is borrowed from the military – in warfare breakthrough means ‘an offensive military assault that penetrates and carries beyond a defensive line.’  Or it can be defined as moving through or beyond an obstacle.

Let me ask you this question: where do you need a breakthrough?  Relational? Family? Work?

There are moments in life where he hit a situation – an insurmountable challenge where we need a breakthrough.

On Monday, our third child Phoebe was three weeks old. The story of our family – or specifically having children – is the story of breakthrough.

For each of our three children we’ve needed medical help to conceive.

I still remember that feeling in the pit of my stomach as we sat with a doctor who would share some test results where we would learn that for us to have our own children would be very difficult.  It turned out that we were to become one of the 3.5 million people in the UK who experience infertility. They reckon it affects 1 in 7 couples.  It has been at times excruciatingly hard.

Let’s turn to today’s passages – I’d love us to think about the crowds and about their desire for a breakthrough.  These verses are usually read a week before Easter on Palm Sunday.

Matthew paints a scene: Jesus on the colt (baby donkey) and there are the crowds waving branches – the shouts and praises of hosanna – all these moments are all foretold – packed with prophetic meaning. The whole of Biblical history has pointed to this moment: Jesus slowly making his way into Jerusalem as king.

So, back to the crowds for a moment.

They are desperate for a breakthrough. They want things to change and can’t change them by themselves.

I’ve been there. I’ve experienced that feeling of helplessness. Of not being in control.

God’s people were in the grip of the Roman Empire. All the promises of God seemingly lay in tatters.

They longed for the Messiah to come and put it all right, hence why Jerusalem was pulsating with hope. The atmosphere electric and with the deeply held belief that victory is not far away… the Messiah was coming.

Back to the crowds for the third time.

So, here’s my question – why do some of those people shout ‘hosanna’ one day and then a few days later ‘crucify him…’

Why?

The breakthrough did come – just not in the way they expected.

Jesus goes on to show us that the path of victory was via the cross of surrender.

This is what I’ve learned. It’s very tempting to let disappointment set into our hearts when things don’t work out as we expect. When God doesn’t do what we want him to in our timing.

It’s in those moments that we learn that he really is God and he does what he does. We don’t always understand it or like it. But we are called to trust Him – because he will work it out in his way and his timing in the end.

Isaiah 55:8 says this:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.

If you’re waiting for a breakthrough – I’d love to leave us with this verse from a song. Google the song; it’s called ‘Sovereign Over Us’ – I have found it so helpful.

Reflect on this verse:

Your plans are still to prosper

You have not forgotten us