Luke 4:4

"And Jesus answered him, 'it is written, man does not live on bread alone'".

Jesus' answer to satan tempting Him with creating bread. Jesus responds with scripture (from Deuteronomy) that life is not all about the physical, but rather obedience to God's will (in this case, to stand firm and persevere). In John 4, the disciples try and get Jesus to eat, but He replied:

"I have food that you know nothing about...my food is to do the will of Him who sent me"

So again Jesus fasts seeing the physical as not everything that matters, and pressing into obeying God.
In Ephesians 6, it says put on the armour of God to stand against the enemy including the "sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God". Jesus had the Word (scripture) to rebuke the enemy's lies and the Holy Spirit to discern and resist Satan.

Are you feeling attacked by the forces of darkness? Tempted from the truth? Immerse yourself in scripture to gain truth, and invite the Holy Spirit to live in your heart. He is God, and will guard and empower you.

Luke 4:3

Luke 4:3

“The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread””

Attempt 2 at commenting on this verse:
Jesus has just been in the desert for 40 days, a long time. Imagine spending 4 days fasting (ouch right), well now pretend you’ve done that and you’re only 10% of the way. Jesus would be hungry! In John 2 Jesus turns water into wine and in John 6 he replicates 5 small loaves and 2 fishes enough to feed 5,000 men (plus women and children). The point is that Jesus was able to turn a rock into bread. He could even argue it to be biblical, after all Moses struck arock and out poured water for the Israelites when they were hungry and lost out in the desert, so why would Jesus turning a rock into bread be sin?

A recent talk I heard said that this was a temptation toward's Jesus' obedience. The Holy Spirit has just taken Jesus from his baptism to the desert, and he's still full of it. The Holy Spirit likewise is our guide (and thus I'm taking up guidance this lent), and Jesus knew the Spirit's voice. The Spirit had not said eat yet, so Jesus did not eat. Satan was pulling a fast one in saying 'ignore the nudges, and eat, you need the food'.

I want to suggest a few other ways this temptation looks, and ways that we are also tempted (as we are in disobedience). Firstly, it was a sneaky under-the-radar natural looking physical carnal temptation. In other words, a foodie. A few friends are giving up chocolate this lent - surely it's OK to just have this one? It feels so natural to eat, that Satan can twist the words and use our natural bodily urges to lead us away from God. It's at these moments that it is when we discipline our body, and press on following nudges instead of urges.

Secondly it was a temptation in identity. "If you are the Son of God"; 'well, if you really are who you say you are do this'. Satan was asking Jesus to do him a magic trick, and baiting Him into it with a lure on His identity. The question could quite as easily have been, 'are you sure you are God Jesus? Perhaps you were mistaken, maybe that voice from heaven wasn't God, maybe it isn't the Spirit leading you to be here. Let's do a test Jesus, why don't you turn that stone into bread - after all you're famished'. The key to overcoming this temptation, and not selling out to prove something was being sure of His identity. Back in John 6:31-2 the same temptation is out there against Jesus - 'show us a miracle Jesus, feed us again', but Jesus is secure in His authority and power to do miracles. His identity is not in His actions, but as the Son of God. Likewise, when we are tempted, remember who you are.

Finally it was a temptation of pride. Jesus could have done the miracle and felt all proud of Himself. Instead He did not, because He did not do miracles just to get a name for Himself amongst Satan and the fallen angles. Rather (and if we stick to John) all of the miracles have a distinct purpose. Jesus wasn't a miracle worker to show off, he was a miracle worker for the kingdom. Pride is the silent killer. We can feel like all is going well in our walk ('Yeah, I've kept my lent perfectly!') when all of a sudden our self-worth has become more important than God, and we end up boasting about what we have done instead of who we are.

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk 

Sabbath

This lent, I intend on posting a short paragraphs on one or two verses of scripture related to Lent each day. Yesterday this did not happen, instead I enjoyed the bees in the garden. Today I tried to post on Luke 4:3, but the post got deleted, and it was then that I remembered that I had intended on posting on Sabbath.

Genesis 2:1

"By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work"

As you read this questions about evolution and creation may arise, but for the time being, lay them aside. I don’t mind if you think the world was created in seven days, or seven periods of time, or that these early chapters are just allegorical. Whatever they are, let’s see what we can learn from the text itself.

 In the chapter before, everything had been created and all work done. It was not just completed, but seen to be good, and judged good by the ultimately good (omnibenevolent) God, who would know what is and is not good. On the seventh day God rested and v3 says that it is henceforth made Holy. If we say that God is all mighty (omnipotent) then creation should not have been difficult (since even the hardest of things are easy when done by someone who is infinitely capable). It would therefore be worth asking “Why did God rest?” Was He tiered (in that case, is He limited?).

If you hold to the character of omnipotence, then you are forced to conclude that although God did rest, he did not need to so why do it? Quite simply, it is because he chose to, and it leaves us a wonderful example to also take Sabbath (a day off in 7). From Mid-November until January I only had one or two days off. I was working 6 days a week at Bible College, and doing Saturdays at Boswells. I worked like this to afford the year, and the fruits of this have been a real blessing that Boswells gave me all that work (I miss it). I also wore that schedule like a badge, boasting to myself on how much time off I don’t have or need? I now realise that these few months were unhealthy.

By having a day off a week (we have Saturdays at KTC, but any day will do) we are trusting God. In the same way that getting an early night’s sleep trusts there will be time in the day, taking Sabbath trusts that the world will not stop spinning just because you are not working. Taking time off is essential for our sleep patterns, to be able to relax, process the week, spend time with relations and friends we wouldn’t otherwise see, to enjoy ourselves (and it is not wicked to find enjoyment at all) and spend a day with people and with God without a busy agenda. Finally taking Sabbath does not make you weak. God is the most powerful person imaginable, yet He took a day off. I likewise believe that you are a powerful person if you do or do not have time off in the week. We are so busy in our culture, that it feels wrong to not be busy (and I can own that sentence, feeling often inadequate if I don’t have a list of things to do, then inwardly wishing I had nothing to do), but it is OK to have free time, and you can still have that with a busy life. Taking time off won’t be easy, but it will be good for you and make you more productive through the rest of the week.

Lent is 46 days, not 40, from Pancake Day to Easter Sunday. For some of you, you will keep your lent the entire time, for others you will relax it for that one day. Last night I went out with some friends who I had not seen in a long time, and it was lovely. I did not get to bed at 11pm like planned, but really enjoyed the day of rest, and feel all the better for spending some time with my friends.
God guide
xSx

(I'll rewrite Luke 4:3 tomorrow)

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk 

A bee inside a flower

Here's a photo of a bee in a flower I took whilst visiting my nan. I've decided not to post during Sabbath (Saturday) except alternative things like this

Its amazing that the bee is attracted to the smell of the flower, the sight of the flower and the delicious nectar within.

In turn, the flower puts its sticky pollen onto the many hairs of the bee, as it digs deep into the flower to get its nectar.

Now, when the bee moves on to a different flower (covered in pollen), it puts that pollen into that other flower. This pollenisation of angiosperm is a bit like sex for us, it allows the flowers to mix and so we get more different flowers.

If it wasnt for bees and flowers working together there would be no flowers, less medicines, no cotton, no beef, fruit... and Einstein predicted that mankind would be extinct within 4 years.

William Paley developed an argument for God, saying He exists, and we can see that in the complexity of nature. Nature must need a creator to guide it.

I likewise am amazed by the symbiotic relationship between flower and bee. The two depend on one another, and reflect this in their physiology and behavior. I cannot help but see God when i sit in Nanna's garden to see the miracle of pollenisation happening between two perfectly paired kingdoms (plant and animal, bee)
God guide
xSx

Mark 1:13

Mark 1:13
"and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him".

Today we'll take a break from Luke to Look at what Mark says about the temptations of Jesus and His time in the wilderness. Mark's account is much shorter than Luke's. The entire 40 days and temptations are summed up in just two verses. There is no mention of how Jesus is tempted, or again what he did there, but it does add that "He was with the wild animals".

In 'Word Biblical Commentary' Guelich writes about "wild animals" that they are "in league with the forces of evil" and it adds to the fear of the wilderness. Indeed, there were dangerous wild animals out in the desert of the Jordan. Think of snakes, scorpions and even the odd bear or lion. Despite these dangers, Jesus is coexisting with those untamed animals. He is living out with them peaceably, and though there is danger, chooses the wilderness to be His place of solitude before he starts his ministry. My sister used to be unable to sleep (when she was younger) if there was a spider in the room, we had to search the beastie out and let him outside or else she would be too scared that it would get her in the night. Would we be able to find peace, and hear from God in a place that is not considered safe? Could we lay down our comfort and knowledge that all will be OK, and rest in the wild. 

The wild animals are beyond our control, they are untamed and will exist however we feel about them. The thought for today is to carry on in our lent. To continue doing whatever you do, though your surroundings are untamed. Are you taking up an exercise routine? How is that when many those people around you (those who you cannot control) do not inspire you to work out. Are you looking for solitude over lent, keep working at it though those around you are busy. We cannot control those around us, and taming them to our ideas will burn us out. But we can live peaceably with them, and perhaps as we find our place of rest in the wilderness, those animals might grow used to it.
God guide
xSx

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk 

Luke 4:2

so Jesus is in the desert "where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry".

To recap, Jesus has just been filled to the brink after his baptism, and then led into the wilderness. This next verse is describing what went on when he was there. Did Jesus take a relaxing holiday before he started his ministry? Did he goto a board meeting to plan whilst drinking delicious coffee? No, rather he's been led into the wilderness. 

During homelessless we decided to give up everything to sleep out and empathise with the homeless. It was timed (a mere 3 days) and disciplined, because out there resources were less. It was at this point that what's really important started to shine. It became real that we can live without a bed, without money, without knowing where food is coming from and even without a phone. There's a lesson I think we can all take from Jesus spending those forty days out there as you also might be joining in with lent. We can learn what is really important when we have given up the distractions. For me and Ger, it was our home and stuff for a very small amount of time; for Jesus it was everything he had (even food) for a huge amount of time (40 days).

My flatmate mentioned that Lk 4:2 is a massive understatement in saying "he was hungry". We are having to journal at KTC for lent, I'm writing just less than a page a day, and yet Jesus' forty long hungry days are summed up into one verse amongst the sea of his life. It's easy to just read over it, but (for those of you who've given up chocolate) imagine the next time you can eat an Easter egg? It's a long time, and yet it was an important time. Jesus saw the wilderness as a vital part of his ministry, it was only after he gave up everything except God (even food, that thing we talk so much about and bond over), that he was able to do God's work on earth. 

Lent gives us an opportunity to sort through our lives, and remember what is really important. The stuff that needs to stand, even if everything else falls.
God guide
xSx

40 is a big number

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk 

Luke 4:1

 "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness"

Jesus has become full of the Holy Spirit, he's just been baptised, and a booming great voice from heaven's shouted that He's God's son and God is pleased with him. If God Himself wasn't enough, the guy who's baptising him, a prophet, John the Baptist - somewhat of a hero in the Jordan, has been telling this huge crowd that Jesus is.

Jesus could have started that amazing ministry straight off, that ministry that's made Him the most famous person in history EVER. God's said he's amazing, the cool prophets of the time say he's amazing, he's born into the perfect Jewish family etc, but he chose to start his ministry in a very strange way.

Jesus goes off into the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit and heads out into the wilderness - the desert. As we're starting off lent, giving up some thing, or maybe taking up something, we too can feel like we're entering a wilderness. And that wilderness can be entered if we're full of God, or feeling a little naff. For Jesus it was a time to think, to study scripture, to pray, to be with God alone. In our society we can get so busy, it's nice to take Jesus' example, and just spend a bit of time out to appreciate the important things this Lent. Join, and let us journey together through the wilderness, the wilderness that forms us.
God guide
xSx

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk 

Testimony

I gave my testimony last on the 19th May to our alpha group, and just found it on my phone.

"Like many others I was fortunate enough to grow up in a Christian household. In this family, my father spoke passionately about his faith, and encouraged me to go to the churches in our village. I used to go to Sunday school at these churches, and fondly remember the youth event they put on during the summer called J-team. We would sing, cook, paint and cover Bible stories with other young children my age. Before dinner and every night at bed time, my family would say some quick prayers together; and I had a lot of spiritual support from other relatives. From my family, I would consider myself familiar with Christianity and biblical teachings. I guess I would have said I was Christian if anyone asked what my religion was, and I believed the Bible to be right; but I just hadn’t committed to this faith. It was dry, just something I did on Sundays and hardly relational with that higher power. It stayed like that for quite a while, and that’s how I assumed it should be – that was until 1999.

At this time I was in a bad place. Someone close to me was very suicidal, and I was doing badly in school. Life was adequate, but it just didn’t feel full:

I sat in a dark corner, hiding from the light; I could not come out then, despite all I might.

It was in that dark corner that I was met by the real Jesus. I went to the Oxford Bible Church. The drive up there was great because it was with this really enthusiastic guy who was just full of God. He was so full, that it was overflowing. I wanted what he had, and couldn’t stop asking him questions about Christianity. It was strange, the more I asked him the better it felt. I felt a clarity I hadn’t had before, a comfort from how tense I had been. When we got there the congregation wasn’t singing hymns like I was used to, but modern songs with modern instruments. People were speaking OUT LOUD in strange languages and raising their hands. I didn’t know what was going on, but there was a vibe about that place – a welcoming presence in their worship. It was here that I first experienced the Holy Spirit. In those moments basking in God’s presence, there was nowhere else I wanted to be, I just wanted to sit there singing forever – and that’s when I knew I wanted to be a born again Christian.

My Godmother at this point felt God was telling her to pay for me to go on a week-long Christian camp called ‘Soul Survivor’. I found out this week that she felt God speaking to her when I raised my hands, like the others in worship, and I did that because I felt like God wanted me to put them up for him. Here at Soul Survivor I learned more about my faith, experienced plenty more of the Holy Spirit and bought my first Bible. I returned to this camp ever year through secondary school and became enthusiastic about getting involved with my Church. On Sundays I was enjoying the local church community, and on Tuesday evenings I joined a group of Christians – it was with these people that I did my first alpha course, like you are doing now.

Christianity had become more than just ‘religion’, it was my identity.

So who real needs a corner, when you’ve got the holy ghost; And the God of our salvation, who draws us forever close.

I’d be lying if I said at this point that making a commitment to Jesus made my life perfect. Life isn’t a constant high but I have Jesus throughout it. Indeed that close-person was still suicidal. The difference is that I was now praying for them (and now twelve years on they are freed from it, they haven’t attempted to end their lives in over five years, and are much happier in themselves), and I no longer felt rejected by their self-destructive behaviour. I found my grades going up in school, and myself much happier. This is the same now. I often have worries, or may be feeling terrible, but in these circumstances I know that there is someone who is listening to my every plea. I know that God understands my sufferings as he sent his own son to suffer more than I ever could. Instead of going through things alone, I go through them with a God who understands me totally, and loves me through it. My faith has given me a purpose in life. I remember writing how important it was to me on my university application to Oxford Brookes back in 2006. I remember how important it was for me to feel in touch when I came to Oxford. To find a church where I could feel at home and involved. It gave me groups to get involved with, and people to know.

Since university I have been in an uncertain place with my career, staying and working in town; but I know God has a plan for my life. Luke 12 tells me that I don’t have to worry because I have worth in God’s eyes, and if he feeds and cares for the wild birds, then he can feed and care for me. I have been tested a lot this year, I feel God is calling me to go to our Bible college in this building. I cannot afford it, but I trust God for his provision. Because God has a plan for my life, I can be certain in faith that he will support me. I can know that I am not just another person, but a member of God’s family who he wants to see developed and used. Yeah, God’s been good to me; and I really hope you guys get to know him, and experience all of the good things he has for you as well.
God guide"

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk 

Lent Plan

1) Give up late nights (11pm bedtime)

Most of the things we give up free some time to spend with God. When you fast for example, food is sacrificed to spend time in prayer, but this discipline does not give any more time in the day – rather it gives less. Time’s important to me (being British) and I find myself becoming increasingly busy, so why decide on such a 

thing to give up if it’s not even giving me more time with God?

i.                    It means I have less time in the evening. This means that I cannot procrastinate like I am so prone to do. Instead of deciding to watch a film every now and again, or have a quick break to look at an entertaining video, I have to focus. Giving up late nights will probably mean giving up video games, youtube, too much time of facebook and even hours spent on the computer. Instead I will need to be disciplined in how time is used in the day.

ii.                  It means I am not awake during the most tempting hours of the evening. After 11pm everything gets that much more tempting (especially when we have laptops). Temptation leads to later nights, procrastination and shame. Shame opens up a whole negative feedback cycle which ruins confidence and our spiritual journey.

iii.                It means more sleep. I need 8h, instead I’m getting 6-8h meaning up to 2h deficit a day, that’s up to 14h a week – imagine not sleeping for 1.75 days a week and that’s what missing 2 out of 8 hours does to us. Not sleeping means no protein synthesis so the body cannot function or repair itself. It means no time to dream and think things over. It means the body is still craving sleep in the day. The result is an unhealthy, physically drained, inattentive caffeine-craving life. A life that is susceptible to negative emotions like bitterness, jealousy, apathy and anger rather than love. This emotion affects relationships and my spiritual walk. We are holistic beings, remove sleep and you endanger the body, mind, spirit and relationships.

iv.                It will make waking up easier in the morning, starting the day well, and giving more time to spend with God before lectures.

2) Guidance: Despite signing every text with God guide. Despite having this as my blog's title. Despite teaching on this very topic in Acts. Despite all of the stories you mat have read here, this is still something I need to work on. It's God who guides, and when he does things work out. I want to flow with the river and not fight against it. Guidance as a discipline is less concrete than other disciplines. Whilst something like solitude would be easy to measure (time spent alone with God), guidance is not. I am quite a methodological person, getting much from plans, and so I have a few ideas of how to work on this discipline, but it will be varied. Instead of doing the same thing each day, I will vary ways to hear from God and act upon that. I would be a hypocrite to take up the discipline of guidance, and then entirely box it into a schedule, so plans may change. I might also find myself hearing from God and acting by doing things I wouldn't normally do, and I make no apology for this, but will also need to work on discernment to be clear about what God is saying and when/ how to respond (perhaps involving a trusted person). The aim is to make myself available to God’s guidance in many different fields of life. It will involve times of silence to hear from God, lectio divina to encounter God in scripture, treasure hunting to hear God in evangelism, learning from others who are seeking to hear from God and I hope to explore how I can actively seek to hear from God in other areas of life. Every day I will also read a chapter of: 

“Duewel, W.L. (2001). Let God Guide You Daily”

which are short (2-7p, 45 chapters), practical and scriptural.


This first week I intend on seeking God in the silence - to have unstructured times of listening to God with no agenda.

Update:

Since starting this blog I became a Counsellor. You can read more on blog on subjects like Therapy at:

 www.simonslistening.co.uk