Think Again | Richard Anniss

(upbeat music) - Really, really looking forward to the year ahead. It's gonna be a great year. It's gonna be a great year for us all if we will walk closely with God,(...) if we will walk with Him and stay close to Him and stay in fellowship with Him, then no matter what we face, no matter what we go through this year, no matter what challenges might lie ahead of us, some of which we probably have no idea right now some of the things that we will encounter this year. But if we will commit to walk closely with the Lord through this year, then we can be sure that He will never let us down and that He will be with us through it all. (...) I don't know how your new year is going so far. It's that time of year, isn't it? I heard, I went to a service last Sunday in another church in the city and the preacher there referred to new year because of course it was New Year's Eve last Sunday and he referred to new year as an arbitrary moment in the solar cycle when we choose to move from one year to the next.(...) And he kind of said this and he said, but happy new year anyway. (...) I don't know how you marked the new year. I don't know what was on your mind, but it is often a time, isn't it, when we think about new beginnings, when we think about new opportunities, when we think about maybe the things that we want to accomplish with our lives, maybe some resolutions that we've made. Don't know if anyone joined a gym at the start of January. (...) Don't hold back, guys. It's when the gyms make all their money for the whole year. We wanna keep those people in work, so join the gym, do your bets. (...) But it's that time, isn't it? And we think again about hopes and direction. We think about aspirations. We think about what we want to accomplish.(...) But it is, of course, the seventh of January.(...) And so for some of us, maybe already it feels like the wheels are coming off.(...) And maybe some of those resolutions that we were absolutely determined to keep might have just slipped slightly.(...) I started my diet yesterday.(...) I'm starting my diet again today. (audience laughing) You know, my sabbatical's been good to me. (...) While I was on sabbatical,(...) I went on, one of the things I did is I went on a pilgrimage, on a walk from a place called, we've got some photos of this. (...) First one, here I am. This is the start of a five-day walk that I did. It was a hundred kilometers walk. Sounds impressive, doesn't it? It's 62 miles, but I prefer it in kilometers. (...) And this is me at the start. This is Melrose Abbey in Scotland. As you can see, I'm looking a little bit kind of like weary.(...) By this point, I've got a feet full of blisters. (...) Every step is quite painful, but I kept going.(...) Day three, I think, oh no, I think the next photo is just to show you. (...) Oh yeah, day three, here we are. This is the border between Scotland and England. So I'm about to pass over into home territory,(...) into wonderful England. As you can see, the weather was not very good. That's me putting on my really brave face for Judith,(...) so that she won't worry about me, because it was quite bleak, and I would walk for a whole day, sometimes without seeing anybody.(...) I'd be walking up in these hills for miles and miles, just not seeing anybody. I did think to myself at one point, if I fall over and break my ankle, (...) I'm waiting until, we had an arrangement that I would check in each evening at a certain time, and if I didn't phone by that time, then Judith would know that I was somewhere between the start and end point of that day to send out the mountain rescue.(...) So this is me putting on a brave face, but I am in quite a lot of pain by this point. Day four, I think, might be next. (...) (audience laughs) (...) It really is a struggle by this point. (...) That's still me putting on a brave face. (...) That's St. Cuthbert's Cave behind me. So this walk was all about the life of this old saint who was really quite instrumental in bringing the gospel into this country many, many hundreds of years ago, and so I was kind of like doing this pilgrimage and using it as a time of retreat with God. Anyway, there's a cave behind me that St. Cuthbert's body was apparently kept in. I thought you'd be interested in that. (...) And then on we go. (...) This is the final day crossing over the causeway between now, I'm in England, I'm on the coast of Northumberland, and I'm crossing over to a place called Holy Island. If any of you have been there, it's a tidal island, so you can only walk at certain points, and then it gets covered with the sea again and becomes an island. So this is me walking, as people have done for hundreds of years. (...) Anyway, on this walk, that was just me showing you, my holiday snaps really.(...) But on this walk,(...) oh, that's the last photo, that's me at the end having completed my walk. But next photo. (...) So on this walk, along the way, there were these little marker posts, these little signposts that would show me the way. Quite impressive, really, for 100 kilometers, (...) someone had gone out and put these little signposts that would take me from one end of my walk to another. I have to say, they were better at it in Scotland than they were in England. In England, they became a bit few and far between, and I think we were expected to use our common sense. And at one point, this became quite tricky because the arrow was kind of like pointing in a vague direction, and there were two possible paths that I could have taken. And it was kind of like I had to guess which way to go. So I started walking, and something just didn't feel quite right. I don't know what it was, I was finding it really hard. I had my map, I had my compass,(...) my dad wouldn't let me go on this walk without taking a map and compass with me. So I was quite glad of that, and these little that he'd had for years and years, this little waterproof map case, and it was pouring down. And so I was grateful for my dad's wisdom in the end.(...) So I'm going along with my map and my compass, trying to go, "Am I on the right path or am I not?" And something inside of me just was like,(...) "No, I just feel like I'm going the wrong way."(...) Now, I could have plowed on. I could have continued. I could have just said, "Well, it's kind of going vaguely in the same direction." I'm kind of heading to almost where I want to be. I could have just kept plowing on in the direction that I was taking. But something inside me just thought, "No, I need to stop, and I need to go back, and I need to get on the right path." And so I walked back, and this was adding time to me now. I'm in a lot of pain, and going downhill is really painful because I've got these huge blisters on the balls of my feet. So going downhill was the worst. So I've got to go back down the hill that I've just kind of traipsed up, down to the bottom, cross over through the bog, and over up the path on the other side. And as I'm going now up what turns out to be the right path, (...) suddenly a ravine starts to open up between me and where I would have been. So as I go further and further up, I suddenly start to feel really, really grateful. If I hadn't bothered to stop and go back, if I hadn't taken time, if I just kept plowing onwards, then I would have ended up further and further away from where I needed to be, with this massive ravine between me and where I was supposed to be. So I probably would have ended up in a different valley and in total the story of the Bible as a kind of journey, (...) a journey back to God's intention in the right direction. (...) Genesis chapter 1, verses 26 to 28, what will be very familiar verses for many of us. I changed my Bible, by the way. I used to be able to make do without my glasses on, but this is so tiny, this writing. (...) We'll see if I can read it. (...) Then God said, "Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them. And God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground." (...) God created us in his image. He made us to be like him and he said, "Now go and rule. Go and rule over this creation that I've made, this wonderful creation at every stage of which he'd said, this is good, his wonderful good creation." And yet he said, "There's more to do. I want you to fill this earth. I want you to bring my rule and reign. I want you to fill this earth and subdue it. I want you to rule over the animals, the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky. I want you to rule and bring my peace, my harmony, my justice, my goodness." Now I know this is more than what it says in those verses like right there, but when we read the Bible and we understand the heart and purpose of God, he wants us to fill the world with all that is good and awesome and amazing about him. Because this world is at its best. This world will be at its best when everything is in perfect relationship with the God who made it. When everything is restored into right relationship with him, then that is when our world works as it is intended to work. (...) He created us as his sons and daughters, his children, to be part of bringing this wonderful kingdom to the ends of the earth. But as so many of us are aware of the story, we rejected God's authority. We rejected his rule over our own lives and we refuse to be a part of his plan and purpose for the world. (...) Bible calls it sin.(...) And the Old Testament then starts to tell us the story how God has worked for human history to bring about the restoration of his purpose for us as his children.(...) How God has worked for all different events, selecting a people for himself, raising them up, intending them to be a testament and a blessing to the ends of the earth so that all people can one day be restored to him, come back to relationship with him, find their true meaning and purpose in him. (...) God's intention was that his kingdom, his rule, his love, his justice, his mercy, his peace, his righteousness, his provision, perfect relationship with him, his intention was the whole earth would be transformed by that kingdom. (...) And so as we go through the Old Testament history and we see God's purpose and yet nevertheless we see this people that God has called to himself struggling.(...) Struggling because even though they kind of know what God wants them to do, they're constantly struggling to actually be the people that God has called them to be.(...) And if we're honest, we know that struggle. (...) We know that struggle, don't we? That struggle to be who we know somewhere deep down God has called us and intended us to be. (...) But at the start of the New Testament,(...) John the Baptist bursts onto the scene and in Matthew chapter three and verses one to three,(...) Matthew chapter three and verses one to three, we read this. (...) There were trouble with the new Bible as nothing is where it's supposed to be. (...) One to three. "In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near. "This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, a voice of one calling in the wilderness. "Prepare the way for the Lord. "Make straight paths for him." John the Baptist is coming and he's getting everyone ready for Jesus who is about to burst onto the scene. We've had hundreds of years of Old Testament history. We've had 400 years between the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New Testament. This is an incredible climax of hundreds and thousands of years of human history.(...) John the Baptist says, "Jesus is coming. "The Messiah is coming. "Repent because the kingdom of heaven or in other words, the kingdom of God has come near." (...) And so in Mark chapter one and verses 14 and 15, we read this. "After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee proclaiming the good news of God. "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God has come near. "Repent and believe the good news." (...) Repent. (...) Literally think again. (...) Think again.(...) Change the way you think. This is good news. This is good news. It is actually the fulfillment of hundreds and thousands of years of waiting, of anticipation, of God's plan and purpose slowly being revealed to mankind.(...) And suddenly Jesus bursts onto the scene and he says, "Now you're going to have to think entirely differently." (...) Mankind is going to have to change the way it thinks. It cannot go in the direction it was going anymore. (...) But this applies not just to that big, wonderful moment, perhaps the moment you had when Judith invited us this morning to give our lives to Jesus for the very first time. (...) But this applies not only to that moment, but to every moment of our lives since. (...) Jesus has come and everything has changed and it is time to think again. (...) It is time to change the way we think. Repent because God's kingdom is at hand.(...) It has come close to you. It is near. It is available and you can now enter into it because of Jesus. (...) Think again.(...) Think differently. Stop thinking the way you used to think. (...) Think in entirely new ways about your life. (...) We're only a week into 2024. (...) But let's just make sure we're on the right path. That the path that we've started pursuing, although it may have felt like the right direction, isn't going to take us off in some entirely different direction. (...) Three points I want to make to you this morning. Firstly,(...) we were, as we have seen, made for kingdom life. (...) And any other understanding of our identity is a lesser understanding and a lie. (...) You were made for God's kingdom. You were made whether you believe it or not, I believe. (...) You were made to be a child of God. (...) You were made in his image to be like him and you were made to bring his rule and reign to the end of the earth. I believe the call of God over your life, your purpose and your destiny is to be a part of bringing God's good, love-filled, just, righteous, merciful rule and reign, his goodness and his grace, his mercy and his compassion to fill the earth with him and his kingdom. I believe that's what you're all about. I believe that's what you were made for and what you are called to. It is the purpose of your life. (...) In John 10, 9 and 10, Jesus said that the enemy, he comes to steal, kill and destroy, but he has come that we might have life and life to the full. (...) This is the life of his kingdom, life to the full. This is the life that he intended us for. Now the world convinces us of all kinds of other ways that we might try to pursue life,(...) that we might try to pursue satisfaction. (...) But true life is righteousness and justice and peace and love. (...) It is life in community with God and with his people. It is joy. It is holiness. (...) It is obedience. (...) Kingdom life is eternal life. When the Bible talks about eternal life, it's not just talking about length of days. It's talk created to be agents and curators of this kingdom in our world. This is when we rejected God's purpose for our lives. (...) Romans 12,(...) verses 1 and 2, we read this. (...) Just as Paul has been telling God's people all about the wonderful way that Jesus has opened up a way for us to be restored to his plan and purpose, he says, "Therefore I urge you brothers and sisters in view of God's mercy to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. This is your true and proper worship. Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind and then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is, his good, pleasing and perfect will." (...) Don't be conformed to the pattern of this world. Don't believe the lies of this world. As one translation puts that verse, "Do not allow this world to squeeze you into its mold." (...) We live in a world today where the media that we are exposed to is constantly... I'm not doom and gloom. I'm not saying burn or blow up your television set. I am saying please be aware of this.(...) A great deal of what is on your television set is lying to you a lot of the time, telling you what is normal, telling you what makes us happy in life, telling you what your true meaning and purpose and identity is and it's all lies. (...) It's not telling you the truth.(...) It's not telling you the truth about what will ultimately make you happy, what will ultimately give you joy and peace and fulfillment. It's selling you a lie, encouraging you to pursue your own personal happiness as long as it doesn't hurt anyone else then just do whatever feels good to you. It's selling you a lie of materialism that the more you acquire, the more that you have, the more luxuries that you surround yourself with, the more comforts you have around you then the more fulfilled, the more happy, the more at peace you will be in this life. It's selling you a lie of individualism that it's really all about wonderful you. (...) This still happens to Christians. (...) It's not just to people in the world but it's to those of us who have given our lives to Jesus, who believed the gospel, who got excited, who raised a hand in the meeting, who came forward and now are an orchard or however it was for you that you responded to the gospel. This still happens because it's to Christians that Paul is writing. (...) It's to Christians that Paul is writing when he says you need to not allow the world to squeeze you into its mold but think again. (...) Think differently. (...) Secondly kingdom life is possible here and now.(...) Kingdom life is possible here and now. This is the gospel my friends. The kingdom of God is at hand. (...) It's within your reach.(...) The kingdom was impossible for us before Jesus came and forgave us for all of our sin and our rebellion against God. Before he put right the relationship between us and God, we were trapped in a life of sin. What I mean by that is we couldn't do anything about the fact that we kept just missing the mark and falling short of God's intention for our lives. We were trapped in that state of being. But Jesus came and dealt with that and made it possible,(...) possible for us to live in right relationship with God. (...) He forgave us for all our sin and he released us from the power of sin over our lives so that he made it possible for us to live a right life in right relationship with God. (...) We can enter into God's kingdom and be restored to our true identity. Colossians chapter 1. (...) It says this. (...) For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we've not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the spirit gives so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way, bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience and giving joyful thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the sun he loves in whom we have redemption the forgiveness. So Jesus has done this amazing thing. He has rescued you from the dominion of darkness.(...) You are free according to the word of God from the slavery that you once lived in where you were compelled to sin. You were compelled. You were always going to fall short of God's purpose for your life because you just couldn't help yourself.(...) But that you have now been rescued from that dominion of darkness and you have been transferred or translated into the kingdom of God's son.(...) You are in a different kingdom now. You're under a different authority. There's a different ruler of your life. You don't have to sin anymore. You are free to live as God intends you to live.(...) And that's wonderful, isn't it? It's amazing. We can celebrate that. We can sing songs about that. We can rejoice in that when we come to the table. We can congratulate one another. It's amazing. It's true and nothing is going to take that truth away from you. But in the same passage,(...) Paul has just told us that we are to live a life worthy of the Lord,(...) to please Him in every way, not just most ways,(...) every way, to bear fruit in every good work,(...) to grow in the knowledge of God, in intimacy with Him, to be strengthened with all power according to His glorious might.(...) In other words, we are called to move in the same kind of power and authority that Jesus moved in, in His demonstration and proclamation of the gospel. (...) We're called to abound in every good work just like He did. We're called to please God with our entire lives just like He did.(...) We're called to be fruitful just like He was. We're called to grow in knowledge, in intimacy with God the Father just like He did. (...) We're called to have great patience and endurance. (...) All this is possible because our sins have been forgiven and we've been translated into His kingdom. But not just so that we can rejoice that our sins have forgiven and we've been translated into His kingdom, not just so that we can update our status,(...) but so that we can live this kind of life that is pleasing to God in every way, that is fruitful, that is part of what God is doing in our world. (...) If we want to live the life of God's kingdom that we were made for, then we need to be thinking in these terms.(...) We need to change the way that we think, that our life is no longer just about me and my personal fulfillment, just about what can I arrange around my life that will make me happy and God forbid that we would even use Him as one of those things that will help us to get us what we want so that we can be happy. (...) We need to change the way that we think and we need to remember the reason that God forgave us. The reason He poured out His love on us is because He wants us to be part of His plan and purpose to fill the world with all that is good and amazing about Him.(...) That we would live in His blessing so that we can be a blessing. (...) So that we would live lives full of His joy and full of His peace so that we can share that joy and that peace with the world around us. So that we could know His unfailing love, that we could know that He will never let us down, whatever challenges or circumstances we face so that we can bring that same hope and comfort to the people that we work with, that we live amongst,(...) that we find ourselves sharing our communities and our neighborhoods with. (...) The true meaning and purpose of my life and yours is to live as an agent of God's kingdom, (...) to bring His life into this world. (...) Righteousness, peace,(...) joy, justice, love, community, holiness, obedience, healing and deliverance, mercy and compassion. (...) We need to stop excusing ourselves that this life isn't really possible because that's what we do.(...) The world squeezes us into its mold and the gospel we read about in our Bibles becomes a slightly unattainable ideal. (...) So we make little adjustments to our lives and we do our best but somehow we don't think that we can live that life anymore. (...) But the truth of the word of God is that God's kingdom is at hand. (...) It is within reach. It is obtainable to us. We can enter into God's kingdom. We have entered into God's kingdom and we can live as faith. We can live as a different path just going where life takes us this year.(...) But if necessary, let's think again.(...) Let's go back. Let's make sure we're on the right path believing the right things. Our final point is this.(...) The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (...) We must live naturally supernatural lives in the Holy Spirit. More for us. (...) Even from the power of the Holy Spirit who is within us, cooperating with us. He's not going to zap you and transform you without you cooperating and putting any effort in. Because the Bible talks to us about the fellowship of the Holy Spirit and that good fellowship means to share your life with him.(...) But the more we do that, the more we share our lives with the Holy Spirit who Jesus pours out as a result of his death and his resurrection. The Holy Spirit who Jesus pours out into our life. He will transform us and he will enable us to live the kind of life that we read about.(...) Lives that are fruitful in every good work. Lives that are pleasing and honoring to God. Lives that are full of holiness and righteousness and justice and mercy and obedience.(...) Lives that overflow with love as we share our life with him. (...) But this will take effort and discipline on our part. (...) Turn with me for 1 Timothy chapter 4 and verses 7 to 10. (...) 1 Timothy chapter 4 verses 7 to 10. (...) Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales. Rather train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value but godliness has value for all things. Holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (...) This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance.(...) This is why we labor and strive because we have put our hope in the living God who is the savior of all people and especially of those who believe. (...) My friends if you want to become a professional football player you can't just turn up at the matches at the weekend and think that it will somehow happen. (...) If you want to be a musician you can't just start playing in concerts and never practice. (...) Why do we think that we can show up in the moment when it matters without having done any practice and suddenly be proficient in moving and the anointing and the power of the Holy Spirit that is readily available because of what he has done and not because of any goodness or skill on my part but we have to learn to cooperate with the Holy Spirit who wants to work in our lives. (...) What makes us think that we can move in power and authority by suddenly stepping out when the moment arises if there has been no prayer,(...) if there has been no waiting, if there has been no seeking, if there has been no fellowship. (...) What makes us think that we can endure hardship and suffering in the moment if we haven't practiced life in the spirit ahead of time? (...) We need to think again.(...) We need to think again. At the outset of this year we need to think again. The kingdom of God is at hand. We can enter into it and we can live as part of it but to be effective in this life we must live life full of the Holy Spirit. (...) Jesus lived as the perfect example of life in the Holy Spirit and we observe the following in his life. Prayer and solitude,(...) study of scripture,(...) fasting,(...) fellowship in community, generosity(...) and service. (...) And Jesus didn't do any of those things to earn God's approval because he'd already heard those wonderful words, "This is my son in whom I'm well pleased." He wasn't trying to earn brownie points. He wasn't trying to earn God's approval and yet still Luke 2.52 tells us that Jesus grew in favor with God. (...) He grew in his intimacy and relationship with God. He grew in the grace of God upon his life. (...) What makes us think that we don't need to grow the way that Jesus grew? (...) So as I say I don't know what kind of start you've made already to your year but before you travel too far would you take this moment to stop and think again? (...) We were made for kingdom life. (...) Any other standing of our identity is a lesser understanding and a lie. (...) Kingdom life is possible here and now. The kingdom of God is at hand but requires a whole new way of thinking. (...) And the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.(...) We must live naturally supernatural lives in the Spirit. (...) These are things that I'm certainly going to return to over the course of this year and hope that we can do so together as a community of God's people. (...) This is the destiny for our lives. This is our meaning and this is our purpose.(...) I don't want to keep going in a different direction less than the life that God intended.(...) So let's commit ourselves at the outset of this year. We want to grow in you this year Lord.(...) We want to be more filled with you this year. We want to put in the disciplines, we want to put in the practices that will enable us to grow and we will order all of those other things in which God moves and works and brings about his purpose. We will order them all around that central purpose. The God that you would be at the center of it all. (...) We pray together. (...) Lord, we long to be the people of your kingdom that you've called us to be. (...) We want to move in power and authority. (...) We want to announce and demonstrate the goodness of your rule and reign. (...) Lord, we want to see sick people healed this year.(...) Far more than we've seen before Lord God. (...) Lord, we want to see people set free from demonic strongholds in their lives. We want to learn to move in power and authority to set people free to demonstrate your kingdom breaking into our world. (...) Lord God, we want to see victories in areas of personal righteousness and holiness this year. We want to see such transformations in our lives. We want to see habits broken.(...) Lord God, we want to see righteous living. Lord God, we want to see a breakthrough in generosity this year. Lord God, we want to see giving that brings glory and honor to you. Lord God,(...) generosity in finance, in service, in action. Lord God, that is a test me to what you're doing in our lives. Lord, we want to reach out with your gospel this year. Lord God, we want to see broken lives make new. We want to see hope for the hopeless. Lord, we want to meet the needs of the marginalized and oppressed. There's so much that you want to do innocent through us.(...) We want to make a difference through our prayers. We want to see justice and righteousness to the ends of the earth. (...) Lord God, therefore we want to give ourselves to walk in closely with you.(...) We want to give ourselves to being people of your spirit. (...) By your spirit, we can live as true sons and daughters of your kingdom. (...) We want to move in power and authority. We want to endure under pressure and hardship. We want to be the people that you've called us to be.(...) So help us, Lord, as we give ourselves to thinking again.(...) Lord, where we need to go back,(...) where we need to go back, Lord, help us to be humble enough to stop and to go back. (...) Lord, where we need to set out on a different path, where we need to adjust our course, (...) where we need to give ourselves to walking more faithfully with you, help us in this moment to make that change. (...) That we might pursue the right direction for this year in Jesus' name.(...) Amen.