Good afternoon everyone and welcome to another thought for the week, my name is Reverend Joe Cooper and I’m one of the Curates here at Christ Church.On Sunday the Church will celebrate Pentecost, that moment when the Apostles, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus were baptized by the Holy Spirit in a truly remarkable scene described in Acts 2. Jesus had promised that He wouldn’t leave His disciples alone to face what was coming in the years ahead. He had promised them the Holy Spirit, a helper who would stay with them forever. And the power of the Holy Spirit changed the lives of the disciples forever. If you’ve never read the book of Acts in its entirety, I recommend you do so in preparation for Pentecost.When we become a disciple of Jesus, we too receive the power of the Holy Spirit. We receive the gifts of the Spirit described in Isaiah 11:2: wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and fear of the Lord and the spiritual gifts (also known as charisms) described in 1 Corinthians, Chapter 12. Verses 4 to 7 ask us to remember: ‘there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good’.The gifts (the charisms of the Spirit): Wisdom, knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, the working of miracles, prophecy, the ability to distinguish between spirits, speaking in tongues, being an interpreter of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as He wills. It is useless and actually quite damaging, to stare at our fellow Christian and compare ourselves to them. For we will have both been gifted differently.So instead of me fixating on how God seems to be moving in their life, I should consider how God is moving in my life. We are very good at saying ‘I’m not like …’ ‘I can’t do …’. When what we should be saying is ‘the Holy Spirit has gifted me with …’ ‘therefore I will continue to be good and to grow and to develop at…’. Our giftings have been given to us to complement each other and for the growth of the Kingdom, not for us to compete with one another, which will ultimately prohibit growth. We can’t do everything alone!As Christ’s disciples, it is essential that we listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, our helper who guides and convicts, who nudges us along. To do this, we must recall the presence of the Holy Spirit with us in the here and now. He is not some distant theological concept, but the Spirit and power of God Himself who dwells within us. We must attempt to pause frequently throughout the week, preferably at least once a day, to listen to Him expectantly, what is He saying to me? What is He asking me to do? Where might he be asking me to go? Are you really sure that’s what you want me to say/do/visit? And then we submit to His will just like the early Apostles did time after time in the book of Acts. And if we do that and make a habit of doing it as often as we can; well, be prepared for the Holy Spirit to move through us and flow out into the world in many remarkable ways.May you have a blessed Pentecost this Sunday!
Hello everyone and welcome to another thought for the week.In a recent piece of helpful feedback we’ve been asked to introduce ourselves as we begin our videos as we may well be talking to folks who’ve no idea who we are!So, my name is Reverend Joe Cooper and I’m a Curate here at Christ Church, Stannington. If you’re not a regular member of the church family, you are most welcome and please do consider joining us in the flesh, once public worship has resumed.Today is Ascension Day when the Church remembers and celebrates the moment when our Lord Jesus Christ ascended and returned to heaven to rule with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit.We might be tempted to ask on this day, why did Jesus have to return to heaven? Jesus had conquered death and sin through His death on the cross and His resurrection; surely this was the moment to usher in the new kingdom, the new heaven and the new earth of which Revelation 21 speaks of. The place when God Himself would dwell with humanity in a restored and renewed earth. And the disciples gathered around Jesus, ask him in Acts 1, “is this it, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” “No, it is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority” Jesus replies. Not yet. So Jesus returns to heaven and the disciples are left stood there looking into heaven.But why? Well here are a few thoughts. In John’s Gospel, chapter 14, verses 1-6 we are told that Jesus will return to heaven so that He can (amongst other things) prepare a place for us. This passage is often used at funeral services. There are many rooms in the Father’s house and there is a room just for you if you want it. But you have to want it, and take it, and claim it for your own. No on else can do it for you. No amount of being a nice, good, decent person in this life will earn you a place here. All of these are of course admirable qualities, but they are not the way to heaven according to Jesus Himself.In this passage Thomas asks that question many of us have asked or may still even be wondering “so how do we get there, what do we do to get a room in the Father’s house? How can we know the way?” “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” Jesus replies, “no one comes to the Father except through me.” But what does this mean? Well in very simple terms you believe that Jesus died for you on the cross, you accept His sacrifice, you claim it for your own and then you live for Jesus to the very end of your mortal days. If you’ve never done that before, why not do it today. All you need to do to start this process is to say a very simple prayer with sincerity. Something along the lines of: ‘Lord Jesus Christ I thank you that you died on the cross for me, I claim your sacrifice for myself, show me how to live a better life, help me to become more like you’. And if you’ve just prayed that simple prayer for the first time, you have just become a Christian, congratulations and welcome to the family. And do get in touch with us so we can help to support you in your new journey of faith.In the Great Commission at the end of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus told His disciples, His followers to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all that I have commanded you”. The disciples had followed Jesus for the past three years, completing their NVQ in practical discipleship. And they’d done alright. It had been a bit of a rocky start, Peter had a wobble when Jesus was arrested, but most of them had got through it. Judas of course being the exception who did not make it through to graduation. Betraying the teacher and helping to have them murdered was not on the course syllabus!The time had come for the disciples to leave the master and go out into the world to do a bit of practical discipling for themselves. They wouldn’t be left alone, for before too long they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. And then, equipped with the power of the Holy Spirit they would go out into the world and as we know, would help to change it forever.So, Ascension Day is not a day to be downcast, it is a day of great celebration. We celebrate the fact that Christ conquered sin and death and was able to return to heaven to rule with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit as a king. We remind ourselves that Jesus has gone ahead of us to prepare a place just for us in the Father’s house. We recommit to following Jesus or we use this moment as an opportunity to accept Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life for the first time in our lives. And we promise to play our part in helping to make new disciples wherever we find ourselves at this time and to do this for as long as we are physically able.For as the great hymn reminds us:We have a gospel to proclaimGood news for all in all the earth;The gospel of a Saviour’s name:We sing His glory, tell His worth.And on the day when we remember Jesus’ Ascension:Now we rejoice to name Him King:Jesus is Lord of all the earth.This gospel message we proclaim:We sing His glory, tell His worth.
Hello everyone, its good to be with you again for another ‘Thought for the Week’. As the weather has improved and Tim has asked me to consider growth this week, I thought I’d come outside into the churchyard to record this thought. The grass has certainly grown during Lockdown! The trees are once again covered with vibrant green leaves, insects buzz through the air. Natural growth continues seemingly unaffected by our temporary withdrawal from the world. And as we’ve seen in many places, our withdrawal has actually helped to improve local environments and given the wildlife a chance to have a bit of a breather! I particularly enjoyed the badger at the railway station taking advantage of the empty trains as he was off to see his mates! Our second and third Church Values are linked to growth. ‘Knowing our calling to become more like Jesus’ and ‘Knowing his calling to build His Church’. Personal and corporate growth. We are individual members of a larger body, the Church. In previous weeks we’ve considered how we might be growing as individual disciples of Jesus during these challenging times; but this week we are going to think about how we are building His Church and growing together as an interconnected body and family of Christian disciples.You might want to reflect on the question, ‘how are we growing as a Church at this time?’ I know that this is something Tim is quite keen to explore together as we peer into an uncertain future. We don’t know for example when public worship will resume; but we need to keep growing and building His Church here in Stannington nonetheless. If you have any practical suggestions about how we can grow together as a family, please do let us know in the comments below or get in touch with Tim. Your feedback as ever, is always appreciated. As an example, many of you know I’m moving to St Mary’s, Handsworth for my final year of curacy from the first of July. In preparation for this I’ve been added to the church WhatsApp group. All members of the congregation who are able to, have been added to this group and they chat to each other throughout the day. But there are also requests for prayer and practical support too. Very similar to our network groups but at a congregational level. Would something similar here be helpful? Do let us know? It is very easy in these times to feel so incredibly disconnected from our church family. I know I’m not alone in missing public worship on Sundays and throughout the week. But it is important that we endeavour to remain connected with one another and to grow as a family. How has the Church been growing in these times in your opinion? Do you have a story or testimony to share? Please do, I know from speaking to some of you, that you appreciate the shared comments. Perhaps more so than the original content! That’s fine! The purpose of these weekly reflections is to stimulate conversation. Keep doing it! As ever, if you are struggling and need support, or just someone to talk to, do let us know. You are not alone in this.For now, I conclude with those lovely words from the book of Romans 12:5:So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.See you next week!
