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Have you noticed how many TV programmes there are around the theme of
escape? I hardly watch TV myself so I have had to ask other people what
the programmes are called… A place in the Sun… Location…
Relocation…
I’m sure there are others. Of course it fills air time, but it does
say something else. When life gets tough, when we are fed up with what
we see around us, the temptation to get out can be pretty strong.
We DO live in troubled times. The climate IS changing and we need to change
our lifestyles to secure the planet’s future. The war on terror continues
and the Middle East still very uncertain. This week a report told us that
the no. of people getting married is at an all-time low. Children don’t
have the security they need. And American-style gun crime is creeping
into Britain. It’s no wonder people want to relocate. Many ARE emigrating,
or wanting to emigrate. And who can blame them? The temptation is to lose
heart, to lose faith, to give up and (if possible) to get out.
What difference does it make being a Christian when faced with the world
as it is? Does it make any difference?
Before we answer that, let’s just consider other forms of escape
people turn to. Not everyone can afford to take a place in the sun, or
buy a house on the coast or in the Welsh hills. How do people cope with
their fears and anxieties? Some turn to dreaming and buy lottery tickets,
hoping that will bring an escape. Many go shopping in what is called ‘retail
therapy’, a phrase I find difficult. Many bury themselves in a relationship,
however casual, and move from 1 to another, with none of them having any
real depth.
Some turn to exploring spirituality. Surely that’s OK? Not if it’s
another form of self-indulgence to make us feel good. Even spirituality
can be a form of escapism, if the aim is simply self-fulfilment.
And that brings us to the central point of what I want to say this evening.
It is about engagement, not escapism. The God who made us calls us to
engage with the world he has made, not because it is perfect, but because
it isn’t! And he demonstrates in person what that means. The words
of the anthem the choir sang for us, by Elgar, are based on Isaiah 61,
words chosen by Jesus as his ‘mission statement’. They show
his intention to engage with the most needy of the world: ‘The Spirit
of the Lord is upon me, for he has sent me to bring good news to the poor,
to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free…’
Jesus came into a needy world, born defenceless and in poverty, in order
to confront evil, not run from it. Having made his statement of intent
Jesus went about fulfilling it, through his words, his actions, his healings.
And we know what we shall be remembering at the end of this Lent season,
how he took on the powers of evil and disarmed them on the Cross.
So here is a bit of a clue for those who come after him, for those baptised
as followers of His. And here I want to make a confession. For a long
time, my conversion, real though it was, was more about me being ‘saved’
than it was about the Lordship of Christ. i.e. like many Christians, I
had my escape route out of this world set up and guaranteed. It’s
taken longer for God to get it through to me that putting myself under
the Lordship of His Son means engaging with the world as He did, not quietly
enjoying the knowledge that I had a place in the sun, well in heaven,
which is better!
I asked earlier: what difference does being a Christian make to facing
a tough world. Well here it is… It means having put ourselves under
the Lordship of the One who made the world and who has promised to renew
it and redeem it. There will be a new earth and a new heaven where those
who have accepted the invitation to work in partnership with the Creator
will come into their own. Meanwhile, this world has been corrupted because
most of His Creatures have chosen to be lord of themselves without any
reference to Him; this gives evil fairly free reign. I say, fairly, because
when confronted by those who ARE doing good, evil has to give way. You
and I have that power, if, that is, we have chosen to confess the Lordship
of Christ in our lives (and only you can answer whether you have done
that or not).
This year we are celebrating victory over the evil of the slave-trade.
Many campaigned, but one man in particular fought for over 24 years to
see slavery abolished. Wilberforce was a man under the Lordship of Christ
and went against the prevailing tide in order to get slavery outlawed.
With others, he engaged with the injustice, not ran away from it. And
today many are doing the same. I am regularly inspired by the passion
and commitment of young people to fight injustice. Yesterday I was in
London, at part of a weekend conference for students and young people
who want to change the world. Meeting as part of the SPEAK network, they
have already helped to bring about a change in the law, to make companies
more accountable in their social and environmental effects.
Can I challenge you this Lent to take some time to consider two questions?
1) Have I been tempted to escape the evil around me?
2) Where am I being called to engage
with the world as it is, to do what I can to make it better?
I do believe that God shows us if
we want Him to. And if we don’t, perhaps we need to ask if we put
ourselves under His Lordship or under our own. Jonah learned the hard
way. He was a prophet, who had offered himself to God for service, but
had not expected to be sent to Nineveh, a big nasty evil city who were
not interested in God’s message – or so He thought. So Jonah
escaped rather than engage with evil. But God brought him back and Jonah
was astonished to discover that the people of Nineveh DID want to hear
from God.
OK, we may not see ourselves as prophets, or as social reformers. But
in seeking to answer that question: ‘Where am I being called to engage
with the world as it is, to do what I can to make it better?’ let
me ask another question:
Is there something you feel strongly about, something which means improving
the lives of others that bothers you? If so, chances are, that is where
your calling is.
And if you still can’t think of anything, let me again commend Fairtrade
fortnight to you, which starts tomorrow. Even if you support this already
can I suggest that you look even closer at why buying Fairtrade products
is an effective way of changing lives. There are some inspiring stories
on the website. That is something within the grasp of us all.
May God show us this Lent a little more of what it means to engage and
not escape, what it means to be partners with Him in changing the world
just a little maybe, but possibly more than we had realised is possible.
May He lead us and guide us. Amen
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