This week, as I've driven to the TSCF Office, I've been listening to some lectures given by my friend, Dan Strange. The lectures were given a the 2007 Fulwood Conference on 'The Church in Culture' and have been fascinating listening. They have provided a Biblical perspective on culture & the Christian's engagement with it.
One of the phrases that Dan uses in his first lecture is "The gods we worship, we become like..."
It was a phrase that the instant I heard it hit me. I rewound the recording and listened to check I'd heard it right, and then started to think it through.
Dan uses Psalm 115 to support this comment. v1-8 particularly are clear in this regard:
1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.
2 Why do the nations say, "Where is their God?"
3 Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him.
4 But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see;
6 they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell;
7 they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.
2 Why do the nations say, "Where is their God?"
3 Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him.
4 But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see;
6 they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell;
7 they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.
As I thought about the phrase, it helped me in my thinking of how we reach those amongst us in NZ today. The people we are seeking to reach have become like the gods they worship - it's is not insignificant that NZ are so good at sport; it's almost a god here. It's not a surprise that Kiwis love the outdoors so much, it's almost worshipped. The gods that people strive to reach are 'the 3 Bs' - BMW (or car), boat & bach (a bach is a holiday home here in NZ). I pondered more and more of what the people we are trying to reach are like and realised the spiritual apathy and the emphasis on that higher value of 'tolerance' are just reflections of the gods worshipped here in NZ.
I've thought about the Kiwi & the British church and realised the gods we worship in them (our cultural impositions, emphases and ways of doing things) make us more like them, than worshipping the One True God. The phrase has helped me understand heresy more and made me realise more and more that the most important Doctrine for the Christian is the Doctrine of God - as this shapes absolutely everything for us.
But also, it was a phrase that encouraged me for the future - I am reminded of the wonderful phrase found in 1 John 3:2
"But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."
It was the vain promise of the serpent in Gen 3:5 who said to Eve that when she ate of the fruit, she would be like God. That promise was proven not to be true.
However, it is the strong hope and certainty of the believer that one day, He will appear and we will be like Him - for we will see Him as He is and worship Him. You become like what you worship.
So, what am I worshipping? Whatever I have become like.
What are the people that I am trying to reach like? Probably like what they are worshipping. Do pray that as I try to think about outreach here in NZ and how it affects our efforts on the ground within TSCF that we would be able to turn people from worshipping false gods and worship the God of the Bible, the ONLY God worthy of all our worship.
In Lincoln, it was good to be there on Clubs & Society's day and to speak at their first meeting of the year. Lincoln is one of the friendliest campuses I've ever been on and it was super to see students joining the Christian Fellowship and joining in with the CF's vision. I'd love to see them proclaiming Christ more and more on their campus. Do pray for Tim, Sarah & Nathan, our Staff & Mintern down there. It was also good to see the re-establishing of an International Christian Fellowship - there are so many opportunities amongst internationals.
Auckland University has 5 different TSCF affiliated groups - the Overseas Christian Fellowship, the (long-established) Evangelical Union, Engineering Christian Fellowship, the Korean Youth Christian Fellowship and Loveshack (for Law students!). As well as numerous other Christian groups on campus, it's quite a difficult environment in which we operate. Jeff & Jane Pelz have been heading up the work on the campus and had put in a great amount of work. I was asked to speak at their first joint meeting of the year and it was great to have almost 160 attend. There are unique challenges at Auckland Uni and particularly as we bring together numerous cultures, but it appeared that God was bringing people to be part of these groups.
They've been a great few O weeks - as David Tua, a Kiwi boxer once said it's "O for awesome". They have been awesome weeks (not a word I often use, Americans please take note!), but we long that God would do awesome things now on our campuses. Do pray that God would send out workers into His harvest field here in NZ and reap a great harvest.