Meta tags:

Headings (most frequently used words):

to, walking, glory, deacons, and, dragons, archives, site, map, freedom, serve, in, wide, place, waiting, endless, power, no, darkness, thinking, of, making, room, among, us, it, is, not, good, for, the, man, be, alone, genesis, 18, dust, called, posts, navigation,

Text of the page (most frequently used words):
the (212), and (96), that (67), for (44), god (41), this (39), not (39), are (38), his (31), with (28), but (28), our (26), will (25), you (24), 2023 (23), can (20), what (19), like (17), andrew (16), when (16), there (16), #waiting (15), they (14), august (14), jesus (14), november (14), make (13), out (13), october (13), freedom (13), have (12), july (12), hope (12), glory (12), all (12), think (12), from (12), about (12), who (12), heart (12), june (12), 2009 (12), 2012 (12), comment (11), would (11), how (11), through (11), them (11), life (11), may (11), has (11), which (11), people (11), see (11), room (11), 2008 (11), 2010 (11), 2011 (11), 2013 (11), now (10), some (10), dust (10), being (10), pastoral (10), notes (10), simply (10), riches (10), january (10), april (10), time (9), shall (9), things (9), also (9), among (9), ways (9), him (9), was (9), love (9), something (9), december (9), september (9), february (9), march (9), free (8), good (8), one (8), lord (8), into (8), because (8), way (8), christ (8), others (8), paul (8), sometimes (8), their (8), 2014 (8), week (7), says (7), book (7), human (7), these (7), your (7), hearts (7), darkness (7), deacons (6), dragons (6), words (6), don (6), such (6), psalm (6), help (6), just (6), churches (6), then (6), come (6), church (6), were (6), place (6), 2024 (6), constraints (6), 2007 (6), 2018 (6), 2021 (6), wordpress (5), com (5), those (5), remember (5), own (5), live (5), let (5), here (5), less (5), genesis (5), man (5), spirit (5), christian (5), many (5), speaks (5), promise (5), walking (5), garden (5), been (5), know (5), feel (5), john (5), full (5), need (5), light (5), deeply (5), power (5), wait (5), serve (5), posts (4), take (4), called (4), often (4), both (4), same (4), last (4), saw (4), upon (4), makes (4), sense (4), only (4), does (4), before (4), right (4), thing (4), rev (4), used (4), comes (4), walk (4), israel (4), new (4), apostle (4), energy (4), face (4), world (4), glorious (4), promises (4), could (4), every (4), wide (4), use (4), get (3), site (3), name (3), too (3), grace (3), learn (3), look (3), home (3), remembers (3), formed (3), writes (3), psalmist (3), done (3), made (3), image (3), fill (3), thinking (3), woman (3), must (3), passage (3), focus (3), share (3), college (3), news (3), yourself (3), two (3), striking (3), walked (3), years (3), hand (3), relationship (3), idea (3), someone (3), perhaps (3), find (3), making (3), rooms (3), infinite (3), another (3), means (3), better (3), midst (3), perfect (3), end (3), present (3), moment (3), little (3), become (3), holiday (3), really (3), great (3), had (3), rest (3), message (3), close (3), why (3), prays (3), inner (3), advent (3), tedious (3), wonderful (3), seen (3), coming (3), delicious (3), kind (3), coffee (3), service (3), 2017 (3), website (2), required (2), content (2), log (2), sign (2), subscribed (2), subscribe (2), already (2), other (2), blog (2), older (2), peace (2), dwell (2), desire (2), lay (2), claim (2), eternity (2), takes (2), varden (2), remembering (2), bit (2), knows (2), 103 (2), hold (2), chapter (2), beings (2), respect (2), reminded (2), again (2), hear (2), gen (2), keep (2), her (2), she (2), cannot (2), femaleness (2), maleness (2), whether (2), article (2), shead (2), gift (2), set (2), marriage (2), thought (2), recent (2), old (2), moore (2), raised (2), noticed (2), adam (2), alone (2), said (2), appreciate (2), reality (2), land (2), thousand (2), walks (2), presence (2), under (2), blessing (2), revelation (2), incredible (2), give (2), tree (2), beginning (2), seven (2), stars (2), lampstands (2), although (2), hard (2), verses (2), represent (2), tabernacle (2), flesh (2), intimacy (2), story (2), though (2), picked (2), follow (2), tells (2), israelites (2), heard (2), day (2), next (2), else (2), surface (2), capacity (2), opportunity (2), myself (2), suspect (2), concern (2), over (2), continual (2), hospitality (2), hotel (2), certain (2), grows (2), knowledge (2), elsewhere (2), father (2), teaching (2), abundant (2), matter (2), attention (2), worry (2), needed (2), corinthians (2), christians (2), want (2), money (2), wants (2), putting (2), say (2), final (2), much (2), fact (2), foreheads (2), real (2), problems (2), turn (2), above (2), box (2), teach (2), sentence (2), praise (2), truth (2), inescapable (2), sorts (2), dark (2), endless (2), verse (2), phrase (2), itself (2), space (2), pray (2), strengthen (2), fulfilled (2), messiah (2), excited (2), came (2), hopes (2), after (2), prophets (2), patiently (2), excitement (2), well (2), word (2), internal (2), more (2), constantly (2), experience (2), external (2), able (2), combination (2), 119 (2), precepts (2), beautiful (2), form (2), interests (2), order (2), powerpoint (2), chapel (2), paid (2), galatians (2), humbly (2), indulge (2), having (2), resources (2), theme (2), best (2), bits (2), 2020 (2), archives (2), search (2), menu (2), started, design, email, write, loading, comments, collapse, bar, manage, subscriptions, view, reader, report, privacy, account, join, 125, subscribers, create, navigation, sure, resonate, act, daring, admission, poverty, resolve, within, accept, die, nostalgia, taught, even, resonant, music, towards, magnanimity, terms, intensity, shattering, loneliness, biblical, understanding, existence, needs, nicely, theologian, erik, sunday, continued, working, humankind, bestows, immense, dignity, worthy, special, ought, profound, responsibility, yet, creatures, ground, breathed, nostrils, breath, fine, helpful, piece, goodness, given, creation, redeemed, strong, leader, protector, masculine, expressions, gentle, fruit, nurturing, emotionally, expressive, giving, expression, conforms, popular, notions, masculinity, emphasises, creational, behaviours, brief, significance, understandings, sex, head, testament, https, sydneyanglicans, net, cant, 53428, condition, problem, resolved, teaches, value, humanity, created, male, female, broader, than, galilee, judea, ago, worship, together, judgment, calls, repent, stray, victorious, eat, paradise, letters, various, described, holds, golden, imagery, dramatic, understand, explained, preceding, angels, richer, renewal, dwelt, fellow, glimpse, restored, perfected, reference, mysterious, fall, hint, eve, lost, ease, surprising, interesting, law, describe, blessings, gracious, covenant, decrees, lev, once, deut, sam, wife, sound, cool, asking, threat, grow, easy, alternative, stay, size, shrink, zealously, guard, boundaries, vacated, dilapidated, meant, involve, expanding, stretching, actually, finite, number, maximum, known, advance, puts, philippians, unexpectedly, finding, expand, occupants, reflects, house, person, starting, expansion, care, left, overbooked, standing, lobby, pay, insightful, communication, movement, implores, closed, shut, ongoing, difficult, corinth, vulnerability, insight, vulnerable, expresses, doesn, support, himself, cor, contemplate, enables, occupy, suspicion, difference, talk, eyes, off, instead, facing, escape, fantasy, gotten, convinced, line, isn, action, works, engage, its, challenges, position, solve, during, read, eric, mascall, sat, shelf, since, throw, aways, library, turned, structured, around, saint, augustine, behold, thinks, each, aspects, sight, joy, utterly, shone, overcome, proof, complete, without, faintest, shadow, overall, weeks, reminders, feels, intrudes, vision, homes, imaginations, oppressed, begin, morning, prayer, tuesday, mornings, dwelling, horrors, evils, far, away, halloween, community, draw, nasty, declare, wealth, fraught, issue, tired, enough, steam, tank, worries, forget, reserve, beyond, ask, imagine, later, behind, dynamism, son, holy, magnitude, flow, helps, ours, sitting, enormous, piles, treasure, smaug, dragon, hobbit, inexhaustible, beauty, preciousness, triune, twice, few, begins, ephesus, boundless, rich, ephesians, dreary, reminds, past, kingdom, doubting, impatience, got, almost, thrilled, electric, anticipation, flash, lightning, thunderclap, soon, disciplined, saved, goes, patience, romans, bible, season, recall, put, fixed, point, future, unknown, knew, trouble, agony, creeping, despair, nothing, happen, empty, thrill, simeon, anna, waited, luke, confidence, cases, thrilling, shot, electricity, expectation, glad, fantastic, ride, lighten, gloom, queue, concert, sporting, match, tiresome, hours, travel, cheerfulness, christmas, least, whole, particularly, welcome, dentist, appointment, necessary, bus, start, wonder, ever, anyone, spends, small, children, acutely, anguish, felt, five, minutes, ages, long, most, beckons, closer, talking, hebrew, translated, literally, opens, commandments, lead, widened, v29, bodies, minds, spirits, painful, trust, themselves, drink, alcohol, moderation, wish, control, temper, frustrated, react, situations, ourselves, constrained, personalities, passions, call, limited, kinds, example, slam, dunk, basketball, height, leg, muscles, different, freed, released, prison, mobile, choices, prior, dramatically, meetings, booked, messages, answer, jobs, finish, might, choose, still, limits, gone, beach, won, skiing, ideas, first, glance, jarring, seeking, instructions, commands, produce, unexpected, invites, reflect, sought, stephen, foster, change, perception, oxford, christiantiktok, recently, video, horror, asked, watch, picture, fit, natural, strengths, should, openings, serving, doing, found, misunderstanding, part, team, four, frequently, rostered, prepare, job, prepared, frank, did, enjoy, genuinely, valuable, helped, hardly, question, addressing, any, awful, impossibly, distorted, receive, liberation, worst, desires, insult, sacrifice, rejoice, finally, aside, brings, especially, obvious, context, characterised, strictness, regulation, lots, particular, gospel, wonderfully, liberating, met, requirement, ticked, penalty, achieved, perfection, offered, burden, standard, always, crushed, gal, rather, map, 2022, select, month, leaves, healing, nations, gumtrees, primary, skip,

Text of the page (random words):
waiting is something wonderful and when we have every confidence that it will come in such cases the wait itself can become something thrilling shot through with a kind of electricity of expectation that makes us glad and excited a fantastic ride can lighten the gloom of a wait in a queue the promise of a wonderful concert or sporting match can fill tiresome hours of travel before it with cheerfulness the promise of christmas for some at least can fill the whole of december with excitement the bible is full of waiting and in the season of advent this waiting comes into focus we recall how the promises of god to the people of israel through the prophets put a fixed point into the future so that it now lay before god s people not simply as an unknown land but as a place they knew something of something that could give them hope in the midst of much trouble a messiah was coming we see both the agony and excitement of this waiting the creeping despair that nothing would happen after all that these promises were empty as well as the thrill of people like simeon and anna who have waited patiently and now see their hopes fulfilled luke 2 25 38 this disciplined focus on waiting in advent can be a great help to us because if we want to be christians we have to learn to wait in hope we were saved writes the apostle paul and then goes on now hope that is seen is not hope for who hopes for what is seen but if we hope for what we do not see we wait for it with patience romans 8 24 25 the christian life like the life of israel after the prophets is a life of hope of waiting patiently for the coming of god s promises advent can teach us why this waiting need not be dreary it reminds us how the promises in the past were fulfilled the messiah came and with him the beginning of the kingdom of god our waiting does not need to be the tedious doubting impatience of those who don t really know whether they got the time right it can be the excited waiting of those who know that something wonderful is almost upon them it can be thrilled with the electric anticipation of those who have seen the flash of lightning and now wait for the thunderclap which must must come soon comment december 1 2023 andrew pastoral notes endless power i pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his spirit in your inner being ephesians 3 16 twice in the space of a few verses as the apostle paul begins to pray for the church at ephesus he speaks of god as rich in verse 8 he speaks of the boundless riches of christ and now here he prays that god will strengthen the church out of his glorious riches or perhaps better out of the riches of his glory that last phrase helps us remember that god s riches are not simply like ours god is not a great lord sitting on enormous piles of treasure like smaug the dragon in the hobbit his riches are in fact his own life itself the riches of his glory the riches that are his glory god s glorious riches are the inexhaustible beauty and preciousness of his own triune life this is why what paul prays will come out of god s glorious riches is not just money but power power through his spirit in your inner being paul prays that the abundant magnitude of god s life will flow into the church through the spirit of god in the inner being there is in god an infinite wealth of energy that is a striking idea i think in our world in which energy is a deeply fraught issue and in which we often feel tired and worry that there s not enough steam in the tank there are no such worries in god let us not forget the endless reserve of power beyond what we can ask or imagine as paul says just a moment later verse 20 that is behind and for the church in the infinite perfect dynamism of the father s love of the son in the holy spirit comment november 24 2023 november 21 2023 andrew pastoral notes no darkness this is the message we have heard from him and declare to you god is light in him there is no darkness at all 1 john 1 5 these are the words that we often begin morning prayer with on tuesday mornings i ve been dwelling on them this week it s a dark time the world is full of horrors and new evils both far away and close to home and this week we had halloween which for many in our community is simply an opportunity to draw close to things that are deeply dark and nasty but overall the last weeks have been full of reminders that this world is full of darkness sometimes it feels inescapable it intrudes in all sorts of ways into our vision our homes our imaginations some of us i think feel oppressed by it but this is the message says john god is light in him there is no darkness at all this says john is the truth that has become utterly inescapable in jesus christ for jesus christ is the light of god that has shone in the darkness and has not been overcome he is the proof that this the final reality of god and so of all things is light and not darkness perfect complete light without the faintest shadow what a good message we have to hear and to share in the midst of all the darkness let yourself be reminded of it rest in it and share it with joy comment november 3 2023 november 2 2023 andrew pastoral notes thinking of glory they will see his face and his name will be on their foreheads rev 22 4 during my recent holiday i read a really great old book grace and glory by eric mascall it had sat on my shelf for some years since i picked it out of a box of throw aways at the library of the college in which i used to teach it turned out to be a book about christian hope structured around a sentence from saint augustine we shall rest and we shall see we shall see and we shall love we shall love and we shall praise behold what shall be in the end and shall not end the book thinks through each of these aspects of christian hope in turn rest sight love and praise people sometimes say that talk of such things is not good because it takes our eyes off the present instead of facing the world s real problems we escape them and turn to a fantasy as i ve gotten older i ve become less and less convinced by this line this simply isn t the way that action works to engage in the present and face its challenges we need energy and when we face problems we are not in a position to solve or when what we can do is but little above all we need hope to contemplate the promise of final perfect peace in the knowledge of god does not in the end take us out of the present moment it enables us to occupy it in a new way and with new energy my suspicion is not that we think too much of glory but too little what difference would it make to you to take a moment or two to remember and dwell upon the fact that one day through jesus we will see his face and his name will be on our foreheads andrew comment october 13 2023 october 12 2023 andrew pastoral notes making room make room for us in your hearts 2 cor 7 2 these words of the apostle paul come out in the midst of an ongoing difficult relationship with the christians at corinth i think they are striking both for their vulnerability and their insight on the one hand they make the apostle vulnerable he expresses a desire to be let into the corinthians heart he doesn t just want their support their money their respect he wants them he wants to matter to them he is putting himself out there as we say on the other hand they are insightful words because they see that what is needed is not just something on the surface like better communication but a movement in the corinthians hearts make room for us in your hearts he implores don t be closed to us don t shut us out make room making room for another person in the heart is sometimes hard because it means someone else starting to matter to you it means an expansion of our care and concern and sometimes it can feel like there is no room left in our hearts sometimes it can feel like our hearts are full like a hotel that s overbooked and has people standing in the lobby there are so many things to pay attention to so many people to worry about but i think the heart is not actually like a hotel i think the heart is not simply finite with a certain number of rooms a maximum capacity that can be known in advance i think the heart grows as our love grows in knowledge as paul puts it elsewhere philippians 1 9 the heart can make room for others unexpectedly finding ways to expand and take in new occupants and in this way the human heart reflects the hospitality of god which is infinite in my father s house are many rooms said jesus john 14 2 teaching us to remember that god has already made abundant room in his heart for us i suspect the alternative to making room in the heart is not for our hearts to stay the same size but for them to shrink if we zealously guard the boundaries of our concern perhaps we will over time find some rooms vacated others dilapidated i suspect the christian life is meant to involve a continual expanding of the heart as we make room for others a continual stretching out in hospitality so next time we feel someone else asking you to make room for them perhaps not with words but there under the surface let s see it not as a threat to our capacity but as an opportunity for our hearts to grow i don t find that an easy thought myself but i think it is a good one for me to think andrew comment august 25 2023 august 24 2023 andrew pastoral notes walking among us then the man and his wife heard the sound of the lord god as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day gen 3 8 this reference in genesis 3 to god walking in the garden is mysterious although it comes in the story of the fall it is a hint of the relationship adam and eve have now lost a time when the lord would walk in the garden with them when they would be with him and know him with ease and intimacy it is not surprising then though it is interesting that this idea is picked up in israel s law to describe the blessings that would come to israel through god s gracious covenant if you follow my decrees the lord tells the israelites i will walk among you and be your god and you will be my people lev 26 12 in the tabernacle god walked among the israelites once again deut 23 14 2 sam 7 6 7 but the tabernacle was only a promise of a richer renewal of this relationship we see in the garden in jesus christ god dwelt and walked among us in the flesh the presence of god in the life of a fellow human being through jesus christ the intimacy of god with us that we glimpse in the garden has been restored and perfected i noticed this week the way this image is also used of jesus in the book of revelation at the beginning of the book in the letters to the various churches jesus is described as him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands rev 2 1 although the imagery is dramatic it is not hard to understand as it is explained in the preceding verses 1 19 20 the lampstands represent the churches and the stars represent the angels of the churches this is an image then of jesus walking among the churches what a striking thing that the lord jesus who walked among people in the land of galilee and judea two thousand years ago also walks among the churches now our life and worship together is done in his presence under his judgment and also his blessing like he does in the book of revelation he calls his churches to repent when they stray but he also speaks incredible words of promise to the one who is victorious i will give the right to eat from the tree of life which is in the paradise of god rev 2 7 andrew comment august 11 2023 august 9 2023 andrew pastoral notes it is not good for the man to be alone genesis 2 18 last week among the many things we saw raised about the human condition by genesis chapter two we noticed the way in which the problem of adam s being alone is raised and resolved in genesis i said and i think this is right that this passage teaches us to value and appreciate the reality of humanity as created male and female in ways that are broader than just thinking about marriage this week we will focus in on the significance of this passage for marriage and christian understandings of sex but before we get there i thought i would share this recent article by andrew shead who is the head of old testament at moore college https sydneyanglicans net news you cant be yourself by yourself 53428 i like this article because of the way dr shead emphasises that maleness and femaleness are a creational gift and not a set of behaviours that we must learn here s a brief passage when a woman is strong or a leader or a protector that does not make her masculine because she is a woman she cannot help but do all those things as a woman as expressions of her femaleness in the same way when a man is gentle it s a fruit of the spirit nurturing or emotionally expressive he is giving expression to his maleness whether or not it conforms to popular notions of masculinity there may be things in here you don t like that s fine but i hope it s a helpful piece to keep us thinking about the goodness of what god has given us in creation and redeemed in the lord jesus andrew comment august 4 2023 august 2 2023 andrew pastoral notes dust called to glory he knows how we are formed he remembers that we are dust psalm 103 14 last sunday as we continued working through genesis chapter one we saw that humankind is made in the image of god that is a claim that bestows immense dignity upon human beings makes them worthy of special respect and ought to fill us with a profound sense of responsibility yet human beings are also as we saw also only creatures this week we will be reminded of this again when we hear how the lord god formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life gen 2 7 a biblical understanding of human existence needs to hold both of these things at the same time it s nicely done by the theologian erik varden when he writes that a human being is dust called to glory i think we re often good at remembering the glory bit and less good at remembering the dust bit but god remembers he knows how we are formed writes the psalmist he remembers that we are dust psalm 103 14 what would it look like to remember that we are dust here is what varden says in his book the shattering of loneliness to own that i am dust is an act of daring by that admission i make peace with my poverty i resolve to dwell within it i accept that for all my desire to live i shall die that i am dust with a nostalgia for glory i am taught to let glory by grace lay claim to my being even now to make it resonant with music of eternity i learn to look towards eternity as home it takes magnanimity to live on such terms with such intensity i m not sure if those words will resonate with you it s ok if they don t but i hope you will take some time this week to remember that you too are but dust called to glory comment july 27 2023 andrew posts navigation older p...