Being Greek-Cypriot I still struggle with British winters: those low clouds that lower the spirits, the rain that chills the body and the wind that batters all the things. This winter, with ten named storms since September, has been particularly difficult.
Turbulence is, so to talk, within the air and people pummelling winds appear to echo much that is occurring within the church in Britain and elsewhere. I could write a protracted blog on the troubles I do know of: the defections, the divisions, the deviations, the discouragements, the derision – and that is just below one letter of the alphabet! These are such turbulent times that even the Church of England – that weighty old tortoise long assumed to be immobile in any gale – is wobbling unsteadily. Oh yes, I could write a really long and really dark blog.
But I’m not going to. Why not? Two reasons. First, the enemy of our souls likes to spread discouraging news, whether true or false. As getting cold and damp increases your probability of catching some virus of the body, so discouraged Christians – weakened in faith, love and hope – are vulnerable to each sickness of the soul. The second reason is just that, beyond the noisy buffeting and chilling winds of our day, there are a lot of encouragements. Let me give you 4.
First, that the faithful church finds itself struggling against the cruel winds of the world should surprise nobody. It is precisely what our Lord promised his people way back: ‘In this world you should have trouble’ (John 16:33 NIV). Older generations of Christians, a lot of whom grew up shuddering on the horrors detailed in Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, knew that Christians must be prepared for opposition.
An appropriately meteorological comment is in that old hymn of John Bunyan’s ‘To Be a Pilgrim’, with its lines, ‘One here will constant be, come wind, come weather . . .’ No, for the faithful follower of Jesus, storms are normal. Indeed, I can be more upset if our church didn’t face turbulence. I’m not trivialising matters by suggesting that, with a lot opposition, we should be doing something right.
Second, in a fallen world it’s inevitable that bad news gathers more publicity than good. One failing pastor gains more press coverage than a thousand who do their duty faithfully. And if our cultural climate plays up bad news, it downplays the great. Steadily and quietly, evangelical Christianity continues to make gains, sometimes explosively. Here within the UK alone, there at the moment are 1000’s of Iranians who over the previous couple of years have come to a committed faith in Christ. In France, the homeland of scepticism, it’s reliably reported that a latest evangelical church is being planted every ten days. I could go on.
Third, because the saying goes, it’s ‘an in poor health wind that blows no one any good’. In the Bible lands grain was often threshed on the tops of high ground where there have been the most effective winds to blow away the sunshine and useless chaff. Sadly, there are a lot of bodies and individuals that while claiming the name of Christ, are the truth is working to hinder the gospel. While we must pray for a change of hearts and minds here, we won’t help but think that if the ‘Lord of the harvest’ (Matthew 9:38) were to let the wind of our time blow to provide us a church richer in wheat and poorer in chaff, then it is likely to be a superb thing.
Fourth, we’d like the suitable perspective. Many of us have taken off from some rain-drenched and storm-lashed British airport and, inside minutes, found ourselves blinking within the serene sunlit world above the clouds. There’s an obvious spiritual parallel. Through prayer, through Bible reading, worship and fellowship in our church, we’d like to ascend through the murky turbulence of current events to the sunlit, everlasting lands of heaven. It’s vital to remind ourselves that God reigns above the clouds of this life and, at some point, will reign here.
So be encouraged. But I have to say greater than ‘cheer up!’ In the face of turbulent winds that may bend and break, we who trust in Christ must stand firm. We must keep the religion and to do this requires three things.
We must imagine the religion. We must not only simply assent to facts but, in a way that governs every area of our lives, we must continuously remind ourselves who God is.
We must live the religion. We must reject any frail Christianity that only creeps out for an hour on Sunday. No, we’d like a faith that shapes and guides all that we predict, say and do.
Finally, we must share the religion. If these are turbulent days for Christians, can I indicate that they’re much more so for non-Christians? There are dark storm clouds over the entire world and ‘wars and rumours of war’ are widespread. Today now we have a perhaps unprecedented time to share the excellent news of Christ with our troubled and fearful neighbours, family and friends.
In this winter weather, the world may reassure itself that spring is just across the corner. We who’re Christians have a much better hope: for us a wonderful eternity lies not far-off. In the meantime, allow us to look up beyond the clouds and imagine, live and share the religion.
