Stuff Michael Meeks is doing
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This is my (in)activity log. You might like to visit
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- Up early; breakfast, off to NCC - chopped the
'love is patient' section in-flight to avoid excessive
length; went ok. I for one am troubled by my horribly
inadequate ability to love others.
- Back for lunch, slept much of the afternoon.
- Gordon sermon And if not
Daniel 3:13-30.
- Remarkable proliferation of listing in the text;
a hallmark of it's authenticity, many such surviving texts
contain long lists, something the Babylonians were fond of.
- Chuck Colson recounts a remarkable anecdote: 1940s, 350k
soldiers of Europe sent to Belgium, the expeditionary force pushed
back by a brilliant pincer movement; to Dunkirk, the Germans suddenly
halted; They sent a 3 word message - and if not
- hard to know what is more suprising - the unimaginable
valour & courage; or that most of Britain immediately understood
the obscure allusion to this text. Just as Shadrack, Mishak and Abednego
were willing to sacrifice their lives, rather than bow the knee to the
ravages of a deified state, they were willing to give their lives rather
than surrender to Hitler.
- If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the
God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us
from your hand, O king. And if not, we want you to know, O king,
that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you
have set up.
- The British army's valour - standing up to the tyranny
of Hitler's army. And if not - galvanised the nation, to perform
what subsequent historians called the miracle of Dunkirk.
- 400 years of spiritual and moral decline in Israel
after David; God, already had promised to exile them and punishment
for this - cf. Deut 28.
- The furnace mentioned 10 times in the chapter - the
big stick to catch the few non-conformists. Pagan religion often
becomes more and more coercive as it becomes less and less convincing.
Persecution of Christians ever more severe in Rome, until the 4th
century: killing people in their thousands because they refused
to offer sacrifices to the Emperor who increasingly claimed to be
lord and God.
- At the end Nebuchadnezzar does not convert: he says
Praise be to the God of S., M. & A. - this other God,
not his, hasn't surrendered his will [ cf. lapse in the next chapter ].
He fails to do the one thing idolators must do to come to God: destroy
the idol. Huge amount of gold in the Idol (probably purified by the same
furnaces).
- Moses,
destroyed the golden calves, and burned them in the fire; ground
to a powder as fine as dust; then threw the dust into a stream that flowed
down the mountain. A clean break from idolatory. Ephesus - similarly
burning
their scrolls.
- This is perhaps why it is a precious but unusual thing to find
people in the later decades of life coming to God - too
much gold added to their idol, too much to tear down.
- But you say - Nebuchadnezzar couldn't know that history - but
in his dream - the rock not cut by human hand breaks
the idol, making it like chaff on a threshing floor ... wind swept
them away....
- If your idolatory is shopping - time for some plastic surgery:
cut up the credit card. If it's drink - get rid of the wine-of-the-month
club subscriptiion, don't keep it just-in-case. If it's the TV that's
contolling your life, take it to the dump; just unplugging isn't enough.
- What about Christianity - isn't it coercive ?
- Religious conviction often been seen as an excuse to cram it
down others' throat; but should be
shared with gentleness and respect. In history, many have
done irreperable harm to the good name of Christ by getting this wrong;
in ways repugnant to the savior whose kingdom is not of this world.
- The fear of the Lord - the beginning of wisdom, it's true -
when God appears to a man/woman - you can tell who he is: the one
saying do not be afraid. Scripture uses fear in two opposite
senses: dread (to be afraid of), or to hold in awe / reverence:
- Moses when God appeared in a pillar of fire: Do not be
afraid, God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be
with you to keep you from sinning. same Hebrew word; two
opposite senses.
- Wordly fear: God might to something to upset us; Godly
fear: we might do something to upset God. The motive of Godly fear
- is (strangely) love; the more we love God, the more afraid we
might do something to offend the savior who paid for us.
- Psalm 130: If you, O LORD , kept a record of sins,
O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness;
therefore you are feared. - impossible if fear means dread;
instead, means to hold in awe.
- The threat of Hell - an escalation of the Nebuchadnezzar
method ? the threat of hell is directed in scripture most not against
the wicked, but the complacent & self-righteous. Our savior
insists on the reality of ultimate judgement; that we are infinitely
valuable, and although this life is not fair, the next life is.
- Hell is no deterent to people with no faith; if you don't
believe in God, you don't belive in his justice; in this life God
lets us get away with murder - Rom 2
God's kindness is to lead you to repentance (not his threats of
eternal Hell).
- Gordon, wanted to meet with a man who had walked out on his
wife & children for another woman; a man of seemingly great insight.
After appealing to him, he replied: what would be the point of my
taking your time - I havn't forgotten those marriage sermons, I just
decided to ignore them. I've always said that the trouble with
Christianity is, that it's not scary enough. If I were sure that leaving
my wife would put me in eternal fire, I wouldn't do it, but I don't
believe that, and none of the christians that have admonished me,
believe it either. - after all don't we all believe in mercy,
forgiveness, grace.
- The difference between Daemons and the redeemed, they know
God's commandments forward and backwards, the difference is - they don't
care - but have forgotten what makes sin, sin - an afront against the
holiness of God, and the terrible price of it's forgiveness. No claim
that the redeemed never mess up - a lot of times we do; but we never
give up repenting, returning to Christ, hating their sin.
- We do not need to defend ourselves against you in this
manner - no excuse, no justification, Peter & the apostles
We must obey God, rather than men. They do express however
a model faith; faith, not presumption. If we are thrown into the
blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he
will rescue us from your hand, O king; and if not ....
Answering Nebuchadnezzar's taunt Then what God can save you?
- God never promises immunity from trial, hardship, or furnaces,
The same prayer of Job though he slay me, yet will I hope in him.
The same prayer of Jesus in Gesthemany Father, everything is possible
for you, take this cup from me, yet not as I will, but what you will.
Let God, be God, but not any other.
- God's promise is not to save us from the fire, but to save us
in it - yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death, your rod and your staff comfort me - it is often in the
deepest darkness that God is most near.
- The furnace that refined the gold idol, is refining their faith.
God's aim is not a trouble free life, but a more Christ-like one; he'll
be in the furnace with us.
- The idols that tempt us are not so crude; the idolatory of
success - will do anything to persue it. Some's idol is popularity, or
getting that boyfriend/girlfriend, those who allow power or material
prosperity to run their lives. The love of money is the root
of all evil. Health can become an idol, all happiness depends on
getting well - life is useless without getting rid of this chronic
problem or disability.
- Rev. Christo Kulichev pastor of the congregational church in
Sofia Bulgaria, 1985 - preached
the gospel and would not co-operate with the communist authorities, 8 months
in prison, 3 years in exile. I prefer to be in prison with Jesus, than
to be free without him. Even if I were with with my family, and back in my
pulpit there would be no satisfaction if I was outside God's will. The
prison becomes a palace, when I am there with Christ.
- Do you prefer to be in the furnace with the Angel of God, than be in
fields of green pasture without him ?
My content in this blog and associated images / data under
images/ and data/ directories are (usually)
created by me and (unless obviously labelled otherwise) are licensed under
the public domain, and/or if that doesn't float your boat a CC0
license. I encourage linking back (of course) to help people decide for
themselves, in context, in the battle for ideas, and I love fixes /
improvements / corrections by private mail.
In case it's not painfully obvious: the reflections reflected here are my
own; mine, all mine ! and don't reflect the views of Collabora, SUSE,
Novell, The Document Foundation, Spaghetti Hurlers (International),
or anyone else.
It's also important to realise that I'm not in on the Swedish Conspiracy.
Occasionally people ask for formal photos for conferences
or fun.
Michael Meeks (michael.meeks@collabora.com)
