Jesus is the Word of God
A home grown Happy Friday for you today.
Some say my preaching fails to be "relevant". Some say I never engage with contemporary issues and movements. I hope this video finally puts the accusation to bed:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfVBIJgtGkw]
And yes, I stole the gag from Twitter.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Udxu2Hg5IQ]
Rich Owen and I have updated the words to a great old hymn by WC Smith: "Earth was waiting, spent and restless." Rich did one version to the tune of Cwm Rhonda. I've set it to the tune of "Infant Holy, Infant Lowly."
World awaiting, fallen, fainting,
Certain hope with mingled fear;
Hard the dying, long the sighing,
'Surely, Lord, the day is near;
Come Messiah, Earth's Desire,
Hope of nations, generations,
Speed the hour when you appear,
Speed the hour when you appear!'
Dead in Adam, Israel barren,
where the Lord shall claim His own.
God's elected, now rejected,
under curse and law they groan.
Sin abounding, hope confounding,
Wisdom darkened, hating, hardened,
In our pit He made His home,
In our pit He made His home.
Spirit sending, Christ descending,
To a virgin, meek came down.
To exchange a throne for manger,
Through the cross to claim His crown,
Sorrows sharing, burdens bearing,
Weakness shouldered, man enfolded,
Adam's flesh became His gown.
Adam's flesh became His gown.
Jacob's story, stooping glory,
To retrace the path we trod,
Heaven's Dearest, coming near us,
Bearing Man back home to God.
Loving Neighbour, Prince and Saviour,
Priest and Ransom, Brother, Champion,
Son of Man and Son of God,
Son of Man and Son of God.
I've slightly updated the lyrics from what is sung in these videos. See below...
Old School Fanny Crosby Tune DOWNLOAD
Learn as a round... DOWNLOAD
.
.
Forever together Three tethered as one,
The Father and Spirit embracing the Son.
Before and beyond and beneath and above,
Our God is a Family united in love.
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the peoples rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
Be filled by the Spirit with all Christ has done.
The world has a history written by two:
King Adam fell faithless, King Jesus renewed.
First Adam brought darkness and death and a curse,
But Jesus came second -- the fall to reverse.
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the peoples rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
Be filled by the Spirit with all Christ has done.
Once born into Adam but now we can be
United to Jesus, adopted, set free.
As one with the Son we are given new birth,
His Father, His Spirit and heaven on earth!
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the peoples rejoice!
O Come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
Be filled by the Spirit with all Christ has done.
My God Is So Small (Christmas vs A Theology of Glory)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYhxC1kJCBc]
.
Rising Sun (Luke 1:78-79)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FPBEyfQVts]
.
Good News of Great Joy (Luke 2:10)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WzxZZnea34]
.
How Long O Lord Till Christmas (Christmas in OT)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HliCxI0I9MU]
.
Fell Down A Hole (A Theology of Incarnation)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr5o0Mw5Llc]
.
From the Squalor (for guitar)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zMjYmSDdII]
.
It's finally here - 321, the Story of God, the World and You.
I've been mulling this over for a while. It seems to me our presentations of the gospel are generally quite anaemic and, at times, outright Unitarian (not to mention Pelagian).
Recently I outlined the dangers of gospelling without Trinity. Then I considered the problem of side-lining our bondage in Adam. Then I explored the necessity of proclaiming union with Christ.
It's easy to pick holes with other presentations. Here's my attempt to do something positive. This is trying to be doctrinally faithful, pedagogically memorable and simple without being simplistic.
I'll grant that it's considerably more involved than many presentations. But perhaps it's best to think of it as catechism for believers. I hope it will bring Christians back to these central doctrines and inform our gospelling of others.
The outline is essentially this:
3 God is three Persons united in love
2 The story of the world is the story of two men
1 You are one with Adam. Will you be one with Jesus?
Here's the video, animated by the excellent Jeremy Poyner
http://www.vimeo.com/48734715
In future, I will unpack how 3, 2 and 1 do not diminish but are vital foundations for the planks of more traditional tracts - i.e. Creation, Fall, Cross, Repentance.
But for now, please go to the new website - 321. Show the video on Facebook and Twitter. And stay tuned for more videos, articles, tracts and a very affordable book - all in the pipeline.
[youtube=http://youtu.be/M-jv8ruZxkI]
.
And here are some other rounds from the past:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WzxZZnea34]
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpBPEQlEf4Y]
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FPBEyfQVts]
.
A round based on Luke 1:78-79.
Best on full screen with headphones. And do join it. That's the point...
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FPBEyfQVts]
.
It's your parents' 40th wedding anniversary. Your father's holding a big dinner as a surprise for Mum. He wants the whole family there. Everyone. Including your wretched brother - a heroin addict who's been nothing but trouble. Your father has been through hell trying to keep him alive and out of prison. He's even had to pay off mobsters with extortionate sums to stop them killing him.
At every stage your brother has shamed the family. And at every stage your parents have pursued the boy and bailed him out. They've paid any price to bring him back.
You, on the other hand, have never been any trouble. You've kept out of your parents' way, put your head down and worked hard. You spent your teenage years hitting the books and keeping yourself to yourself. The first chance you got, you left home and made your way in the world. You didn't need any help and you never asked Dad for a penny.
Now your father wants the whole family to sit around the same table. And, wouldn't you know it, your brother is actually keen on the whole idea! It's unthinkable. You can't go. You won't go.
First you avoid your brother's calls. Then your father rings: "Please son I want you all there."
Unbelievable. You're being cast as the bad guy? You're the sticking point? How ridiculous! Can't everyone see, it's your brother.
But Dad continues to press you. "Son, I haven't seen you in so long, can we meet face to face?" No we cannot, you think. There was something deeply disturbing about your father's gaze. He seemed to search your face for something that just wasn't there. And you both knew it. You'd been avoiding that gaze for as long as you could remember.
"Well then," he asks "would you do it for your mother?" Oh, now he's playing that card is he? Fury grips you. This is precisely the problem. Some households have a little thing called family manners. With yours it's all family and no manners. It's all caring and no consequences. Well no longer.
If it's a choice between brotherhood and behaviour, you pick behaviour. And you hope they choke on their mercy meal.
.
Hell is not an equal opposite to heaven.
Hell is outer darkness, shut out from the Light.
Hell is the judgement flowing from God's mercy.
Hell is for good people.
Hell is getting what you want.
.
.
A sermon on the theme
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/39294854]
.
Recently we filmed some 1 minute videos for UCB. Here's one:
http://vimeo.com/45630333
Contrary to that screen-shot, at no point do I say "Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough."
I didn't massively plan what I was going to say, but these were the topics that came out when a camera was pointed at me:
The Lamb at the centre of the throne
They can all be found here.
.
Coincidentally, on that page I just found some other sermon videos of me...
Big Questions: Does God even exist?
Big Questions: Why does God allow suffering?
Big Questions: Aren't all religions basically the same?
Big Questions: Why doesn't God accept all people in the end?
A three-part round based on Psalm 18.
Two-parters are for binitarians.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpBPEQlEf4Y]
If you listen with headphones you'll be able to pick out the parts more distinctly.
Words:
My God is my Refuge and He is my Rock,
My Stronghold My Shield and My Saviour,
I call on His name and He fights all my foes,
He lifts me up out of all danger
You stoop down to make me great.
You brought me out to a spacious place.
You save your King from His enemies,
We sing to Him for His victories.
Chords: G C D
.
My YouTube channel with more songs
.