Chosen people

How special does it feel to be some one's friend? I think we can assume it is a good feeling. To be without friends is to be left all alone with little to do. Today's lectionary reading in John's Gospel is another of what are sometimes called farewell discourse. It was a point in his ministry where Jesus was preparing for the continuing of the mission by his disciples after he had gone. He was, we could say, getting them ready for service.

"No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is about. I have called you friends, because I have disclosed to you everything that I heard from my Father." So now the disciples become friends and as such are taken into Jesus' confidence to prepare them for service. No longer servants, they are now in the picture. From now on they take on greater responsibility as friends of Jesus.

Speaking to us in 2009 the passage is preparing us for intensive service in spreading the good news. Of course, in 2009 it is not the most popular talking point. Christianity is not losing but has lost its popularity. So we are being prepared to fight a battle where the odds are heavily against us. But battles have been tilted against eventual winners before. The prophets of old found their work was just as hard and just as unpopular. But in the Old Testament we are reminded through the story of David and Goliath that even when the odds are very uneven we can still achieve our aims.

It is not be be forgotten that we are not just friends of Jesus but chosen friends of him. Jesus chooses us by calling us to service. So now we consider the new status of chosen friends. That makes us vital to the cause. Of that there can be no doubt. Two weeks ago I considered the idea of the "Good Shepherd". There is a popular shepherd image where the man carries a tiny lamb home to be cared for individually by his fire. Often, this image is treated as an "adorable fluffy little creature" picture. Yet, when you examine it closely the tiny lamb is important to the shepherd because he eventually wants to sell it at market. After all, he has to live! But don't consider this view as cynical for there can be no doubt that we too are in that same position where God is concerned. In a very real way God has invested in us.

If God has not invested in us then how will he get his job of salvation done? We are his only hands and his only feet. So, once again we are elevated - this time to the status of being indispensable. But don't let it go to your head because there is a lot of hard work involved! As chosen people much is expected of us. We may even be required to lay down our lives in this sort of service. Martyrs are not confined to the past. As I write this there are Christians serving in some very dangerous places where their lives are on the line.

One organisation that works all over the world helping to bring people all that they need is Mission Aviation Fellowship. I am proud to be their area representative for North Wales. We have over 180 light aircraft active throughout the world. Every three minutes an MAF aircraft takes of or lands somewhere in the world. There are many support staff behind our pilots. Whole families find themselves living in unusual circumstances as this incredible airline ferries doctors, nurses, water engineers, farming advisers, pastors and evangelists to the "coal face".

Over the past five years we have lost three pilots in Papua New Guinea as the work has been pushed forward in the name of Jesus.

So it still remains true that sometimes lives are laid down in the service of God. This work continues day by day and we never say "no, we cannot go". We use the term "Flying for Life" as our strap line. It really does describe the work we do. Many, many people receive vital medical intervention that enhances their life. In one case a large group who wanted desperately to get treatment for eye cataracts faced two days of travel behind two tractors over dreadful terrain to go 40 miles to the place where operations were taking place. One man seeing his nurse, after the operation to restore his sight, expressed a desire to marry her! Such is the effect of modern medical care out in the field.

You can see from this that many Christians see themselves as vital parts of a great mission commissioned by God. They are people who have c been chosen, chosen to be friends of Jesus. They do what he would be doing if he were involved in his ministry in this age. They have answered his call and are proud to be numbered among his friends. In our own individual ways we have to emulate this mission activity by responding to the call of Jesus.

How special is it to be a friend of Jesus? Extra special!!!

"I am the true vine"

I love talking about vines because they produce wine! As a wine lover I know how much tender care is lavished on grape vines to achieve a good product. Vines are grown commercially on a grand scale all over the world. No longer are the best wines to be found only in France for growers in many other countries have learned how to grow grapes to make wine. In the UK we are fortunate in having access to just about every type of wine available. Our climate is a difficult one in which one can grow vines capable of producing a good wine.

However, this is not to say that there are no decent wines made from UK grapes. I know of two vineyards I have visited in the UK where you can find good wine. One is by the River Dart and the other is here in Anglesey 15 minutes from where I live. From each of these establishments I have purchased good wine, worthy of mention. In each case the owners have lavished great attention on their vines in order to achieve excellence.

I was talking yesterday to the owner of our local vineyard and I asked him about his vines and how far back they were pruned. The answer was that they were pruned back to the third bud. Jesus spoke about this when he referred to pruning in order to encourage new growth. Each year this process has to be completed correctly to ensure that the new growth is strong and plentiful. The wine being nurtured starts its life in the vine itself. We are called on to graft ourselves onto Jesus, the "true vine". Just like every garden in this world it is a matter of constantly working to see that the best standards are maintained.

This year I have found that extra bit of effort and stuck to the job of weeding my gardens, front and rear. Only today have I completed that task but it is important that I keep on top of the garden or it will defeat me eventually. Along with this I have built extra staging for my greenhouse to maximise the number of plants grown. I hope that eventually I will see the glory of all those plants coming to flower in the garden. The whole process has been undertaken with the harvest in mind. What a kick I get out of seeing tiny sprouts emerging in the seed trays. This reminds me that it is like working in God's vineyard. here too is joy and happiness to see the results of attentive work among the plants.

To see a seed coming through as a plant is to be reminded of the Resurrection of Jesus. It is all about "new life." The seed appears to be something dry and without life but, given the correct treatment by the gardener, it responds by coming to life as a lovely plant. Some of the seeds I have planted are microscopic and yet they bring forth such abundant flowers as they reach their zenith.

The work we do in the vineyard is crucial to the success of God's work in today's world. In a sense there are two separate ways of thinking about what we do. Firstly, we are called to graft ourselves on to Jesus, the true vine. This is absolutely essential. It is in this passage that Jesus refers to us as his friends. No longer are we the slaves of God as were the Old Testament prophets and leaders. Now we have become elevated to the status of being friends of Jesus. The late Professor William Barclay, in his Daily Study Bible, speaks about the Roman emperors who also had people referred to as friends. They even had access to Caesar's bedroom at the beginning of a day. They were closer to Caesar than any of his generals and other politicians. In like manner we are closer to Jesus than anyone else. we are so close we are grafted on to him.

There is also the reference to our work in the vineyard. It is vital that we carefully examine the nature and purpose of that work. By doing so we shall discover the way forward is all about TLC - Tender Loving Care. Thus we are not only friends of Jesus but friends of each other. We become trustworthy comrades in arms as we work together to get the message of Jesus across to the world in which we live and work. Loving one another is an important part of going forward in the name of Jesus. we are vital to the cause and we need to see that Jesus has no hands but ours and no feet but ours. Trusting in him and his judgement, we shall achieve great things. This will not be for us but for God, our creator and friend.

It's great to be a Christian because we are involved with the greatest figure in all history. We really are members of the A team! But what we now need most is courage. It is courage that will lead to our picking up our tools to work for Jesus. We need to make that start and make progress as we meet people from all manner of places in our daily life. It's hard work but it's rewarding work to be God's gardener!

"I am the Good Shepherd"

Today's lectionary readings draw together two of the most famous images in the Bible. From the Old Testament there is the 23rd Psalm which speaks in pastoral imagery of God leading the traveller through the countryside and even through the "valley of the shadow of death". The Gospel reading is from John's gospel and is the passage where Jesus speaks of himself as the "Good Shepherd". This is one of the "I am" statements by Jesus, all of which are found in John's gospel. Linking the two passages we can see how God is the good shepherd of the Psalm and Jesus assumes the role in John's gospel.

It is, perhaps, difficult in an industrial age to really find oneself in these stories. They speak clearly of the pastoral scene. Yet we would do well to try to see these two similar images in the sort of life we lead today. It is quite easy for me, living in a rural area where the agricultural scene is of mainly sheep farming. But, having lived in the vast conurbation of Greater Manchester, I can see the value of taking time to quietly assess life through the pastoral scene. It is precisely because we are trapped in today's increasingly stressful living that we need, perhaps at the end of a day, to take stock of our life and consider the role of the shepherd.

At the end of his working day, the shepherd of biblical days would lie down across the entrance to the sheepfold. In this way he would be protecting the sheep in the fold by ensuring that any dangerous animal would have to deal with him before attacking the sheep. As he lay there he would stare up at the night sky and see thousands of tiny sources of light across the heavens. He must have wondered what they really were as well as considering their beauty. Lying there he would go back over his day and see a job well done and be content.

But if the shepherd were simply a hired man with no affiliation to this particular flock it would be a different matter. The sheep did not matter as much to him because they belonged to another. There is a difference in commitment expressed in the words of Jesus. He was drawing a comparison between the leaders of Judaism and the Son of God. Jesus was the one who was totally committed to his followers, committed to the point of giving up his life for them. This is a man we can trust.

If you were to compare trustworthy people the one who is prepared to die for you has to be at the very top of the list. No one can be more trustworthy and no one can be more worthy of praise. As Christians we need to see ourselves as in partnership with the Good Shepherd. In his company we can really go places and achieve amazing goals for his sake. Using the imagery of the shepherd working in the pastoral scene, we need also to see that in today's frenetic life we should stop trying to do everything ourselves. Once we do this we come to a place where God can enter and support what we do. Take a step back and allow God to play a part in your life. You will get few prizes for burning yourself out and failing to help others.

Some years ago a former Archbishop of Canterbury was on a visit to the United States. In a press conference a reporter asked him, "Say, your Grace, are you packing them in back there in England?" "One at a time, my man, one at a time" was the Archbishop's reply. We really do need to find time in our busy lives to just pause and let the fresh air in. It is just like opening a window in a stuffy room, and it makes a big difference.

You never see a shepherd dashing to lead his sheep to pasture. I have seen shepherds in Greece where they tend their flocks in the biblical manner. Steadily they stride out to the pastures and the sheep, trustingly, follow them. The next thing one sees is a shepherd leaning on his staff and quietly watching his sheep. Should they wander towards danger a shrill whistle accompanies an accurately thrown stone to get them to move out of the danger zone. From this you can see how David, when a shepherd, was deadly accurate with the sling that killed Goliath. It is commonly thought that his sling was only to fight off dangerous killers but he would also know how to direct the sheep away from danger.

To be a leader using the pastoral image of a shepherd is to be a person of great inspiration. Jesus was nothing if he did not inspire others. It was his mission and he pulled it off. It also teaches us that when we see our heart's desire within our Christian mission it will not be achieved instantly. The mission is a slow deliberate affair. We shall reach those who need Jesus slowly and steadily. That calm approach is, in itself, amazingly inspirational.