First of all... Jesus

This week much of the news has centred around the murder of the French Priest. Rightly so, people have been horrified about this, but it’s one of a frighteningly high number of horrible incidents that have happened in recent times. 

It seems that every time we turn on the news we need to be prepared to be shocked again at something that has happened. Many people seem filled with hatred, many now live in fear, but as Christians I think we have to continually preach and show hope and love… 

In the greatest injustice of all time it seemed that Jesus had been murdered, and he had, but in his resurrection God’s power was revealed as being stronger than anything the world and its forces can do… 

Today’s New Testament readings (Col.3:1-11 & Luke 12:13-21) both help to speak into the situation in the world today because both readings challenge us to see what is really important in our lives. 

Back in 1888, Alfred Nobel was quite surprised, as you would be, to read his own obituary in a French newspaper. Obviously, it was a mistake. One of his brothers had died, and a careless reporter had used a prewritten obituary of the wrong man. But as he read, Nobel was shocked and deeply disturbed to learn what the world really thought of him. 

He was seen simply as the dynamite king, the merchant of death, who had amassed a great fortune out of explosives. 

From the moment of reading that obituary, Alfred Nobel resolved to show the world the true purpose of his life. He revised his will so that his fortune would be dedicated to the recognition of great creative achievements, with the highest award going to those who had done the most for world peace. Today, of course we still associate him with the Nobel Peace Prize.

It was a turning point for him that would change the world for many people and as Christians, our transformed lives, lives transformed by a relationship with Jesus are to be offered to change the world for many people as well…. 

Paul wrote in his letter to the Colossians (3:1), ‘If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is….’ There’s some debate as to when exactly the letter to the Colossians was written but it may well have been written from a prison cell in Rome. Even in prison though Paul was convinced of the gospel message – he wrote to the Colossians to try and stamp out heresy which was damaging the church there. 

But he doesn’t do it primarily by talking about the heresy but by reminding the people of the nature of Jesus – and that he is all that we need to focus on to obtain fullness of life. Today, as they have through many generations, people often seek other things – to find the perfect job, to find happiness in wealth or possessions, some in unfortunate relationships, or even drink or drugs.

Alexander the Great had inherited one Empire and conquered another. He literally bought the East and the West, and he did it all by the age of 33, but he quickly became disillusioned with life though, realising that money and possessions couldn’t buy happiness. He asked that when he died his hands should be left completely open, so that people who came to view his body would realise that the man who seemed to own the whole world left it with nothing. 

What Paul is saying to the Colossians was that a relationship with Jesus is what we all really need, a relationship where we focus on the things of Jesus not on the things of the world… 

This very much followed the theme of the reading from the gospel today (Luke 12:13-21). There we hear of a man who was very rich, so rich that he had nowhere left to store his abundance of crops and so he pulled down his barns and built larger ones to store up his possessions for many years to come – he planned to relax, eat, drink and be merry. 

But it was too late – that very night the man died and all of the things that he had prepared for the future meant nothing. Like Alexander the Great, the man’s possessions and wealth would mean nothing. 

Some have interpreted this as a suggestion that we need to give away all that we have in order to serve God, and for some people that is the right way, but most importantly what the story is urging us all to do is to get our priorities right. 

Think again of those words of Paul to the Colossians, ‘If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is….’  

Following Christ means following the example of his life. It is to recognise that each of us is created to live in relationships – relationships with one another and with the wider world. It means to live in a way that recognises relationships are not drawn merely by family connections or even friends, but by recognising that we are all part of a family whether we live in Swansea or many thousands of miles away. 

Wherever people are hurting, our family is hurt. Where people are in need, we must seek to respond to that need. Where people are rejoicing, we rejoice with them. 

Many people work long hours for possessions which they don’t have time to enjoy. Many seek solace and comfort in drink or drugs. Many seek day after day to find some sort of peace in their lives, and completely miss the mark. 

And all of us will surely know times when we’re too busy to really spend any time focusing on Jesus, perhaps we’ll think of things which have got in the way; perhaps even as a church we’ll wonder how much time we spent maintaining our building without building our faith…

A family once put up a bird feeder with four feeding stations. It was really popular for a while with lots of birds coming to it and the food needed to be filled a couple of times a day. After a while though it seemed only 1 bird was using it, and the food only needed filling once a week. What had happened was that this bird had taken control of it, and attacked any other birds that went near.

The bird would sit and watch for hour after hour, but taking control of the feeding station had meant that instead of having a great possession, he had actually lost his freedom – tied to watching and protecting the station day after day, and missing the chance to do anything else. 

Sometimes we too can get bogged down in things that seem a really good idea, or things that seem really important at the time, but later we recognise we have wasted time and opportunity to simply enjoy creation – both the beauty and wonder of it, and also the chance of relationships within it. 

Following Jesus isn’t always going to be the easy option, but it will be the lasting option. Seeking to serve in the way he did won’t perhaps make us rich in material terms, but it will make us rich in his peace, in knowing that in doing his will we are serving him and sharing his message of love and offer of salvation. 

We will face trials in life. We may know pain and even depression perhaps but we can turn to God and ask him to get us through these things. We can turn to God and recognise that his love is all sufficient. In his care and his company, we have already conquered the problems and fears in our lives. 

Paul, writing from his prison cell, didn’t bother arguing about his faith and trying to win that argument. He simply pointed people to Jesus urging them to recognise that a new life with him really meant a new life – a life that would consist of recognising that in whatever we do, or whatever situation we find ourselves in, God is there with us, continuing to love us – and offering to guide and support us if we let him. 

For us life will not always be easy I’m sure. Simply looking at the news and some of the terrible things going on in the world remind us that whether the problems for us are near to home or far away, life can be tough… It may not always mean we’re going to walk around with a cheesy grin on our faces, but a relationship with Christ will mean we know a new way – a way that offers us peace – the true peace that recognises that God loves us, and that it is his will that we share that love with others. 

In sharing his love we will know his power and his peace, and we will know that what is most important in our lives is not what we have in terms of material things, but what we have in terms of relationships – with God and with one another. 

‘If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is…’ And so, with those words may we recommit ourselves to putting aside fear, putting aside the things that actually have nothing to do with the good news of Jesus, and focus on him, for by focusing on him we will know peace, we will feel the greatest love for us and we will be able to share those things and the hope that comes with them everywhere… AMEN