So many things feel uncertain. We don’t know what the future holds.
People have been holding out making big decisions until we know the outcome of last week’s election, or until we know how Brexit will play out.
But if you know where the future’s going, you can map your way through life with confidence.
I’d hate people to think that the things we talk about here on a Sunday are not relevant. That the Bible is not relevant. That Jesus is not relevant.
Of course, that’s far from true. Jesus is very relevant. So the Bible is very relevant. So what we talk about, week by week, is very relevant.
But sometimes things can seem a bit abstract.
This autumn, we’ve been working our way through the letter of 2 Peter. Written by Simon Peter, former fisherman, one of the first disciples, as he’s growing older and knows he will die soon.
Our subject this morning is the second coming of Jesus.
Today’s reading is on a slightly awkward topic.
We Brits don’t really like confrontation. So a Bible reading where Simon Peter exposes false teachers within the church is slightly uncomfortable to listen to.
Maybe you’re thinking: Can’t we just focus on the good there is to do here in Kemsing? This all feels so negative!
On the first evening I was in Israel, some of us took a stroll from our hotel down to the Western Wall. One group of about 4 left the hotel late, and followed what they assumed to be the tail of our group. It turned out it wasn’t. But they only realised once they’d gone deep inside the maze of streets that is the old city of Jerusalem. They were utterly lost. All they knew was that they were outside a sweet shop, of which there are an uncanny number in old Jerusalem.
How do you find the Old Testament half of the Bible?
I went to Israel on my sabbatical, and one member of the group was especially thankful for the trip. He’d not been a Christian long, and he’d only ever read the New Testament. He’d never read anything of the Old Testament. Visiting ancient sites connected with characters like Abraham, David and Joshua helped him to start to piece together the storyline of the Old Testament.
He’d never read it. And maybe you haven’t. For many Christians, the Old Testament is long, complicated and they don’t really know where to begin.
Have you ever lost something extremely precious to you, and known the heart wrenching anxiety, regret, emptiness at the thought that it’s gone?
In 1902, the author J M Barrie wrote a book called the Little White Bird. It was not a children’s book and in it, he introduced the world to the character of Peter Pan, who escaped from being human as a little baby, and lived a fun life with fairies, and never grew up. Peter Pan did grow up a bit. A play in 1904, another book in 1911, and we have the older boy that has captured the imagination of so many people. We now have endless films, musicals, and spin-off TV series, all starring the charming character of the boy who wouldn’t grow up.
The Antiques Roadshow has been running for 40 years. I’m not an avid follower, but you’re probably familiar with the format. They travel around different British towns with antiques experts, so members of the public can bring things to have valued.
There are inevitable disappointments. Something the owner thought was priceless turned out to be worthless. But then there’s the reverse, as someone’s jaw drops when something is worth vastly more than they’d dreamt.
Here’s a question: What will happen at the end of time?
Will this world come to an end with a nuclear holocaust? That was the fear of many in the 1980s. Or will global warming one day make this planet uninhabitable? That is the fear of the present decade? Or will we ride out both of those, only to succumb to a meteor strike like that purported to have wiped out the dinosaurs? Or will the human race suffer none of these fates worse than death, but continue to evolve, adapt and survive forever?
