Jimmy Carr, Repentance and Twitter

The comedian Jimmy Carr (@jimmycarr)was recently hauled up for a taste of trial by media after participating in a (legal) tax avoidance scheme (Go here for BBC's analysis).  Leaving aside the fact that most of the ire was of the 'there but for the grace of being a millionaire go I' flavour, and that there is an evident problem in the UK tax system which presents multifarious loopholes which are there to be exploited, Carr's eventual response was interesting, a little refreshing, but should also be noted for what it lacked.

I should, of course, point out, that the country would be in a far better state if people paid a fair tax, but justifying that position by saying 'if he doesn't pay much tax, then nor should I' isn't tenable logically or politically.  The better way is to make sure everyone 'gives to Caeser what is Caeser' (that is, what is rightfully owed to Caeser, not necessarily everything that Caeser would like to have in his coffers!).  So whilst clamping down on the moderately and fairly wealthy to up their payments from in the mid-teens of percent up to 50%, perhaps more effort should be spent ensuring that the top 1% of earners pay more in absolute terms than a bottle-washer or dinner lady.  Greater simplicity, greater parity will make it harder to dodge legally.  But I digress..

Three things struck me about Carr's apology: what it wasn't, what it was, and what it was missing.

Here it is in full (it ran to several tweets - an interesting note in itself.  This is at one at then same time the most significant medium for getting your message out in your own words without spin, which is why Carr used it, and also a medium ill-suited to a proper statement.  Carl Trueman puts it eloquently when he points out 140 characters are too few to satisfy the twin requirements for saying something significant - clarity and specificity.):

I appreciate as a comedian, people will expect me to ‘make light’ of this situation, but I’m not going to in this statement...as this is obviously a serious matter...I met with a financial advisor and he said to me “Do you want to pay less tax? It’s totally legal.” I said “Yes.”...I now realise I’ve made a terrible error of judgement...Although I’ve been advised the K2 Tax scheme is entirely legal, and has been fully disclosed to HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs),...I’m no longer involved in it and will in future conduct my financial affairs much more responsibly. Apologies to everyone. Jimmy Carr

What it's not


The first thing that struck me about the apology: it's not your usual celebrity apology (witness: Joey Barton after his sending off at the end of the season, etc., etc., etc.).  It wasn't:

• Sorry that I got caught
• Sorry that you got offended

What it is

It struck me that he got the shape of things right.  For once, a celebrity (whether he needed to or not), said 'I got it wrong.  I'm going to stop doing that, and start living right.'  Straighten up and fly right.  He got the 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 shape of repentance right - turning away from something, turning to something else.  It was refreshing to hear a celebrity admitting they were wrong, turning away from being wrong and turning to something else.

What it lacked

I'm always a bit wary of Christians having to 'claim' someone as one of theirs before they can agree with them.  Jimmy Carr doesn't have to be a Christian to get something right.  God's common grace means that bad people (and ok people and middling people and people people) can do good things.  We can applaud someone getting it right without them being 'on our team'.  But just it was a good illustration of the shape of repentance, it also served as a helpful illustration of what was missing in terms of content.  

It lacked Jesus.

Just as the shape was right (turn away from this, turn towards this), the object was ultimately misplaced.  He was right to turn away, but it should be from rebellion from God the Father, and he was right to turn towards, but it should have been towards the true and living God, and to wait for the Son from Heaven, who saves us from the wrath to come.  

That's repentance.

What Carr said was great - it was so much better than the usual 'whoopsie'.  But it was a huge leap short of what's really needed for every human.  It was a great apology.  But it wasn't repentance.

Getting my Web 2.0 on...

So it's been a while.  Best part of three years, I think.

Since the last post - got a job (hence the rather disgusting lack of further 'T4tU' posts - which I will return to one day!), had two kids (Roo and Gus), and several other bits and pieces.

My plan is to get my Web 2.0 mojo back - I reckon blogging, like many things in life, is rather more habit and discipline than anything else.  If possible, I'm going to get more into a graded scale of W2.0 - Twitter for microblogging, and here for more detailed things.  If all goes according to plan, I'll put some follow-up from fellowship group (though that will come after the summer, as I'm on paternity leave for the time being), things that dropped out during 'massacre of the innocents' in sermon prep, big ideas and the like, and hopefully a series of 'Theology for everyday life'.  I'm thinking of starting this with working out some ideas for my job, examining what the bible has to say to someone who deals with security, trust and fraud, and maybe something broader for consultancy, IT or whatever I can pull together.  There will be a fairly big miscellaneous pot too, I think - thoughts on church, family life, what I'm reading, what's in the news, and whatever else I come up with.

In time, depending on readership (if any), I may get guest bloggers on, but my aim is to get myself back blogging again first!

So - hopefully I'll get something worth putting on here, something worth reading, something that has resulted from my heart being transformed and reformed, with a view to glorifying God and enjoying Him forever, that I might point to Jesus, and encapsulate the gospel in some small way in this dark little corner of the InterWeb.

To blogging resurrected...

T4tU Post #2 – Biblical Theology (Sin and the Fall)

Right...first, an apology. I had intended to batter these first four posts out quickly (maybe even a day each), but then I went on holiday at short notice, and had family to stay in London, so this went to one side for a bit. So by the time I've finished the first four posts, I'll probably be well into my new job (provisionally, I start next Monday). Sorry for those of you who got bored waiting ... who knows if this is worth waiting for! Anyway, on with the show...

Last time, I had a think about Creation, and how it helps understand the place of unemployment – how it fits in with God’s plan of creation, and how it sits at variance with it.

Today, I’m going to spend a bit of time looking at another part of the big bible narrative – sin and the fall.

I should say what I’m trying to do with these first four posts is understand better where unemployment sits in this big bible narrative, the better to understand the deeper biblical issues here, rather than just the superficial presenting issues.

Sin and the Fall

The origin of sin (Genesis 3)

In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve rebel against God, and Adam – our first human father – set the pattern that has been that of our race ever since. Amongst the features flowing out of their rebellion were the following:

• God’s judgement on sin: death is now a definitive feature of human existence
• Fractured relationships
• With God – the personal, close relationship enjoyed by Adam and Eve with the LORD is damaged horrendously
• With other humans – there will be constant strife where once there was fellowship
• With creation – the ‘creation mandate’ remains, but the hard work will be met with ‘thorns and thistles’ and the natural course of life will be met with pain. Futility is a feature of life

The nature of sin (Romans 1:21-23)

Paul gives an outline of what sin looks like in the human race:

• Humans have knowledge of God
• Humans choose to ignore God, despite what he’s given them
• Humans do not thank God for what he’s given them in creation
• Humans consequently become hardened towards God
• Humans claim to be wise but are foolish because they do not fear God (cf. Prov 1:7)
• Humans exchange the creator for a created thing

The effects of sin (Romans 8:18-30)

Again following David Wilkinson’s breakdown of the passage (in The Message of Creation), sin has certain effects on creation and our relationship with it.

• This is a suffering creation – suffering is a normal and to-be-expected (although not welcome) feature of it
• This is an expectant creation – it’s limited and it knows it is … it’s waiting for some monumental future event to change things
• This is a frustrated creation – humans are fallen and so can’t play their part in creation properly, and so creation is disjointed
• This is a groaning creation – there is a tension between there being some continuity from this creation to the new creation and there being a massive discontinuity. Redeemed people who have the fellowship feel this tension even more keenly, as this is creation fit for sinners. Like two tectonic plates, as this creation rubs against people bound for the next one, the rumbles build up and at some point, there will be a massive seismic event
• This is a hopeful creation – all of these features are sad and difficult, but point to a future event when creation will be unleashed to be what it is meant to be. It will be liberated by the great liberator, the Lord Jesus Christ.

All of these mean that there is an appropriate way to respond to suffering and difficult situations – not the ‘ostrich’ approach of burying your head in the sand (suffering is nothing), nor rocking in the corner (suffering is everything). I’ll mention a bit more of this when it comes to looking towards the New Creation, but we have a responsibility to recognise the reality and finitude of suffering in this fallen creation.

Also, again we see the inherent frustration in our creation – things don’t work the way they did in pre-fall Eden.

Obviously, this tracks mainly the effects of sin on creation, and the natural outflow for our broken relation with it (I’m following that line because the nature of work is closely tied to the theology of creation we hold, and so the absence of work is informed by that too!). Having said that, being a sinner has other personal effects on us. It makes us rebels and spiritual adulterers, law-breakers and morally dissolute. Sin needs a solution.

God and suffering (Job 38-40)

God’s discussion with Job shows us some key features about God’s perspective on suffering in a sin-wrecked world.

• The LORD is greater than our intellects – He knows what’s going on (and has even allowed it!) … but more than that, he understands why it’s happening
• The LORD is greater than our circumstances – He filled the storehouses with snow, He set the boundaries for the oceans, He made the great beasts of the Earth, He measured out space and time and all there is, was and will be. How quickly do I forget that when compared to my personal situation?
• The LORD is greater than our expectations of Him – He understood what the end would be for Job, what the big gameplan was for the righteous man. And not just in terms of camels and kids at the end of life … but in terms of eternity. His gameplan is of staggering, magnificent scope – and His provision in the eternal-term will be not only sufficient, but outstandingly generous.

So what for unemployment?

So what does all this give us in our understanding of unemployment? Here’s some suggestions…

1. Loneliness is a feature of the Fallen World – human relationships were seemingly irreparably fractured that moment in Eden, and have remained so as we each followed in our daddy Adam’s line. Consequently, a creation intended for companionship and partnership is instead marked by individualism, combativeness, and ultimately isolation and loneliness. Whilst there ought to be some restoration of this in the establishing of the Church, too often, when you’re out of work, you’re stuck with your own company, and confronted again and again with this feature of the fall.
2. Frustration is a feature of the Fallen World – The Creation mandate involved fruitful work, and suddenly, work is no longer fruitful. However, this effect is dulled in the place of employment when you get paid at the end of the month! When you spend your days sending application forms, filling out you CV, attending interviews, and have no guarantee that it will produce fruit, you can feel like a farmer in the worst year for crops. And it’s easy to forget that you’re still working when there is no payslip for the hours you devote to your task. One of the insulating factors, protecting us from realising that this is a frustrating world, doesn’t appear in your bank account each month!
3. Suffering is a real part of this creation, but not a final part of the final creation – we need to be both realistic (hard things will happen) and yet not fatalistic (bad things are not the end of the story)
4. Idolatry is a feature of my sinful heart – We can’t define ourselves by our job … nor by our lack of one. And yet we try to! How often have I started saying, ‘I’m out of work just now …’ and then gone on to apologise for that status, to justify myself in someone else’s eyes? There’s idolatry grasping at my worldview at every turn. I define my existence and am so often controlled by my lack of a job that I have swapped the covenant God for a Jobseeker’s allowance…
5. Sovereignty is an undeniable factor of God’s character – to be honest, it’s easy to say (but not necessarily to hear) – that God’s in control. I’ve heard very few phrases more often from well-meaning brothers and sisters over the last six months. But there’s knowing this is true, and knowing this is true. And to be honest, there’s also a difference to saying it, and knowing it to be true. But God’s sovereignty is more than just ‘He’s got something lined up for you,’ and ‘God’s in Control.’ Oh, so much more. Let’s think about that another day, though…

Right, then. I don’t know I’ve really done this justice, and it’s a bit rambly … but hopefully there’s something helpful in here. As I’ve said previously, the aim of these first four posts is to understand and explain a bit more about unemployment in the big bible story. That way, we can begin to respond to it more biblically later on…

Next time, Jesus and the crux of redemptive history … and what it means for this topic.

T4tU Post #1 - Biblical Theology (Creation)

So here’s the first of the promised posts bringing the bible to bear on my unemployment. As I said before, my hope and prayer is that it’ll help me understand the situation more myself, and give me more helpful things to say and do and pray for others in unemployment in future – to guard against the line of preaching applications that say ‘so go into your office and glorify God by… Oh, and if you’re out of work, keep trusting God.’

The gospel is effective for the whole of life, for the whole of the person, for any person in any situation. As has been said, ‘the whole of the gospel for the whole of the person for the whole of life.’ In line with the Reformation view of life, there is no ‘sacred/secular’ divide, so there must be something more that the gospel has to say to people in my situation*.

In line with a suggestion from a friend, my first attempt at tackling the topic is going to be a sweep of Biblical Theology – what does the story of creation, the fall, redemption and the new creation have to say on the issue of unemployment?

Creation

God is sovereign. God is creator. He made the universe, he made it good, he made it ordered where there was chaos. And into that, he brought humans, creatures of immense dignity because they were made in the image of God (there’s Genesis 1 and 2 for you right there!). But what does that mean?

David Wilkinson suggested that being image bearers is not about God ‘putting an extra part into us’ that the other creatures didn’t get. It’s not like the thread in films like A.I. or Blade Runner which (like all good Sci-Fi movies) are mirrors held up to humanity, the thread which discusses what ‘extra’ feature makes humans humans and robots not. It is about the fact that we are made for relationship – with God! He highlights four features of what humans are ‘made for’:

• God gives us relationship, not slavery
• God gives us community, not isolation
• God gives us the responsibility of a royal steward of his creation, not purposelessness
• God gives us fruitful rest, not fruitless toil

So right from creation, a big part of being made in God’s image is order, not chaos, community, not isolation, and a balance of work and rest – both of which produce fruitfulness. There is immense dignity given to humans, because part of being image bearers means taking on a ‘creation mandate’ (see Genesis 1:26-28), which seems to have some continuity across the Fall.

Part of the challenge of being unemployed is retaining the dignity that is normative to human beings when you have no clear ‘task’ in which to be fruitful (beyond firing off CVs and application forms!).

So where does unemployment map onto this? Where are the touchpoints we can hit when we’re thinking about how to help people who are unemployed? What does creation suggest or explain about the difficulties and opportunities it presents?

1. One of the big problems with unemployment is that it brings chaos into your life where once there was order – you don’t have the structure of a set place to work, you don’t have clear ‘office hours,’ and so on. There is something there that sits quite uneasily and I suspect that is because the process of moving from employment to unemployment is often almost like a ‘decreation.’
2. Where once there was community, now there is isolation. Although the Genesis ideal of Adam and Eve working together maps most closely to marriage, there is a facet that informs us here – it’s not good for us to be alone in our work! One of the great difficulties facing the unemployed is loneliness. One of the most dominant communities in your life (especially, it has to be said, if you live in London) is surgically removed, which means you need to re-examine community.
3. Both work and rest are designed in creation for fruitfulness, not fruitlessness. It’s very hard to rest when you’re looking for work, because there’s always something else you can do. And yet when you do do some kind of work (complete an application form, attend an interview), there is no guarantee it will lead to any fruit (more on this tomorrow!). One of the massive differences I’ve found is that, no matter how hard you work, no matter what you do, no amount of work can guarantee that you will be fruitful in your labours, and no amount of rest seems to help you be refreshed, to stand back and admire the creativity of what you’ve done.
4. The creation mandate to rule and organise our ‘little corner of creation’ is still possible, but the balance shifts – how do take on the ‘royal steward’ responsibility in the whole of your life when you remove your paid employment? How does it now affect your family life, your church involvement, etc.? The mandate was always meant to apply to the whole of our interaction with Creation and not just ‘the work you do to live’. Unemployment forces you to think about this mandate more widely and less tritely (which is a good thing, but a painful thing too!).

Let me quote David Wilkinson again. After a discussion of the creation of humans, he says this:

‘What does this mean for human beings made in the image of God? It says that at the heart of our humanity is the need to be involved in creativity, and the space and time to enjoy the accomplishments of that creativity. We need to ask whether our work reflects this. We also need to affirm the importance of human creativity in music, drama, dance, painting, art, sport, sculpture, film and humour. It is in this that we find what it means to be human.’

So what does that look like when you don’t go to the office each day? What ‘creativity’ can we stand back and admire? Our dignity is found in the fact that we are God’s image bearers, not in performing a specific task. Our role is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever – and that in any situation (Paul’s secret in Philippians 4 is what allows him to be happy with much or little – God’s strengthening. It’s often quoted out of context as a kind of ‘do whatever you can think of and God will gas you up’ motto, when it’s a truth meant to sustain the believer in ministry regardless of the circumstances’). Because God is sovereign, God wants us where He’s got us.

One of the most painful lessons I’ve learned over the last six months is that my dignity as a human is dependent totally on God and not on me. I am, left to my own devices, a somewhat undignified creature, because I play down the image of God and play up my self-worth. Unemployment dents my self-worth … but in light of the doctrine of creation, that’s a good thing. Sometimes my self-worth needs dented (or destroyed), before I remember that I was created in the image of God.

But unemployment also sits out against some of the shape of the way God built creation. Work and rest are often fruitless. Days are often marked by loneliness and isolation, and not community. Life becomes less ordered and more chaotic. It is harder ‘rule and subdue,’ and easier just to coast through life – to ‘react’ as situations present themselves, and not to order life creatively.

Anyway, much of this leads into tomorrow’s post – on to sin, the Fall, and living in a broken creation. We’ll see where this all takes us then!

(Oh, and as a closing note, I’m mainly writing from my perspective, that unemployment arises unbidden, and is an unwelcome situation. I recognise that this isn’t always the case – it’s sometimes a choice and is often the right choice to be out of paid work. However, as I write, what I mainly have in mind is the unwelcome situation of being in forced, uninvited unemployment)

Tomorrow: Sin and the Fall

*Interestingly enough, the day after I introduced the series, I actually got offered a job, which I plan on accepting. God works in mysterious ways… However, I still feel this is a useful endeavour!

Theology for the Unemployed

So it's been a long time since I've posted on here and I reckon it's time to get back into the blogosphere.

I've now been out of work for close on six months, and I'm here to tell you - it's not fun! The joys of being out of work during the worst downturn in decades are extensive - the fact it's an employer's market, so they can treat you how they like; the difficulty of keeping some amount of discipline when your day comprises trawling the same websites applying for the same jobs; the repetative conversations at church which go, 'So have you found a job yet,' 'No.' 'Oh, well - God's in control!' (as if that might come as news to me!); finding yourself watching Dave at two in the afternoon; knowing exactly how this episode of 'Everyone Loves Raymond' is going to work out (Debra shouts, the kids run around, Robert complains about being neglected, mum bakes lasagne and doesn't respect boundaries, dad eats lasagne and makes cutting comments about wife).

Anyway, I got to thinking ... just what does the bible have to say to someone in my situation. I've been working on a few things for other situations, but it struck me that we form a theology of work, and apply our sermons to help those in offices, schools, etc., but our applications seem to stop at, 'Don't worry, God's in control.' What do you say (or not say) to someone who's out of work for a long time? What comfort is there? What challenge? What ways can you glorify God whilst unemployed?

So I'm going to try to post a bit over the next few weeks. I think I may try to cover issues such as:

• Identity
• Community
• Pride, shame and humility
• The sovereignty of God
• Grace for every situation
• Hopefulness and Hopelessness
• The resources God gives to a believer

But we'll see what happens. I hope that if nothing else, it'll force me to think these things through and be a more Christ-like jobseeker. I pray that it might be useful to someone else, too - whether in the future as I seek to counsel others in this situation, or to someone reading this now. But we'll have to see what pans out...

Watch this space!

'Living as Stewards of God's Resources' (11/3/09 Bible Study - Philippians 4:10-23)

So last night, we finished the letter of Philippians.  I think I've learned a lot and encountered a lot of new challenging material over the course of the 9 studies - as I said in week 1, Philippians is a letter about Jesus, about the gospel, about partnership and about joy ... probably in that order.  If you want to download the handouts (both the study questions and the session summaries), you can now get them on the APC Website here.

Often, we summararily ignore the last few verses of Paul's letters because, after all, they're regularly just personal things that don't necessarily have any value for the modern day church, yes?  Well, in actual fact if we do that with Philippians (or any book of the bible, for that that matter!), we miss some key practical applications to gospel workers - which is to say, all Christians!

1. Gospel workers and their situation (vv10-13)

It's worth noting that v13 is one of the most oft-quoted promises by Christians, but oh, so often, out of context - it's generally read as a triumphalist, 'God will award you whatever you want, you can walk through walls or swallow fire if you have enough faith,' kind of promise.  God's strenght becomes a bit like Popeye's ... stuff in the spiritual spinach and off you go with anvils on the biceps of your soul.  But if we think it means that, we do the context of Paul's letter a sever injustice.

Paul, remember, is stuck in prison, perhaps awaiting an execution order.  It's easy to say, 'I can be content with much or little' when we have much!  But the true test of veracity is if we can say that when we're down, when we've got little or are hungry!

No, Paul doesn't want the Philippians to be Spiritual Popeyes...rather, he's telling them that he has uncovered a secret - how to survive as a gospel worker faithfully and consistently working for the gospel, irrespective of the outward circumstances.  He's not saying that you'll be immune to hardship, or not notice it like some weird monk ... rather that our outward circumstances don't control whether or not we're faithful in our gospel ministry.

Paul unveils the secret that allows him to do this - not untapped reserves in ourselves, but in the God who will strengthen you to do what he's asked you do in the situation he's asked you to do it.  The emphasis is not on what I can do, but on the one who strengthens me.  This is not a verse about making triumphant demands of God...but of contented service of God.  We should serve faithfully in the situation we're in now, rather than spend our lives demanding a different situation tomorrow.

2. Gospel workers and their temporary resources (vv14-17)

Paul is encouraged that, since day one of their faith, the Philippians have supported his ministry (probably financially) - even when they were in the very first days of being a church (Paul went straight onto Thessalonica from Philippi ... and they supported him there), and even when Paul was something of an anathema (as he was in Thessalonica, and also currently in prison - yet they're still willing to be associated with him).

However, his focus is not on the giftst hey give as an end in themselves, but rather what their gifts can acheive (namely, the furtherance of gospel work).  Their sacrifice of their temporary resources can enable a profit that'll stick in their account for all eternity - and will keep on growing!

The important thing is to make sure we take the resources God gives us and invest them in something of eternal significance.  Giving money is not an end in itself - instead Paul gives a different measure of succes.  Has your investment returned the eternal fruit that the gospel brings?

3. Gospel workers and their God (vv18-23)

Finally, Paul points out that the gifts they have given to Paul operate also as a beautiful offering to God.  But Paul is clear that their offering is acceptable (which suggests that some offerings that look like this can be unacceptable!).  The reason that it is acceptable and pleasing to God is that it is evidence of a heart devoted to the same things that God's heart is devoted to (see 1 Samuel) - the growth of His kingdom and the honour of His name.

Gifts can be unacceptable to God if they are to further any other kingdom - especially our own kingdoms and names and reputations.  God hates unacceptable gifts.  Question: do we worship our money and what it can do, or do we worship with our money and other resources?

The Philippians are giving in such a way that they need to hear the reassurance of v19 - so sacrificially that they need to know that God will meet their needs.  They are giving beyond their means to support gospel work, and so they need to know that their needs will be met from a guaranteed bank - a bank of eternal blessings, guaranteed by Jesus' sacrifice.  Paul is teaching not prosperity, but rather stewardship.

So Paul is not focused on the need, but on God who supplies strength for the ministry. Not on the gift, but on the eternal significance it can have. And not on prosperity, but on stewardship and trust.

4. In Conclusion...

Paul closes off the letter with a few comments that allow him to bring home some central truths that have underpinned all that he's said.

• The key sign that we're on the right track is this: that God is getting the credit He deserves

• The gospel is so massively effective, it has even infiltrated into the very court of the Emperor himself!

• The only reason we can live this life is because of the mercy of Jesus

• That Jesus is both our Lord (master of the universe) and Christ (God's chosen rescuer) - so we really need him!

'A Strange Fellowship and an Uncertain World' (4/3/09 Bible Study - Philippians 4:2-9)

Almost there with Philippians...not much left in volume, but considerable depth!  Paul begins to wrap things up with three directions for the Philippians:

1. When there are divisions in the church, there is a core to keep (vv2-3)

It has often been said, 'The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing' (variously attributed, but said to me most often by UCCF staffworkers in my CU Committee days).  That is the essence of what Paul is telling the church here.  It seems that Euodia and Syntyche are Christians - they are, after all, co-workers, partners in the gospel, and the passage seems to indicate that their names are written in the book of life.  As far as Paul is concerned, they have not gone so far as to be regarded as heretics or currently destructive to the church.

However, the problem seems to be that they have allowed some issue of secondary, tertiary or lesser importance cloud out the major issue, the main thing.  That is a problem for the church - when a minor issue gets so much airtime that it distracts the church from the core issue - the progress of the gospel.

Think of it like this.  Sally and Jake go on a roadtrip from New York to Seattle - a journey of some 2400 miles.  They have consulted Google Maps, installed their SatNav, mapped out their route and take off.  Everything is progressing fine, and for days they are on target - the plan is to take a week to get there.  However, on day five, at about four in the afternoon, they decide to stop for coffee.  Sally wants to go to Starbucks, and Jake to Dunkin Donuts.  Apart from the fact that Jake is far wiser, they quickly become heated in their discussions.  So much so that they miss their exit from the interstate, and end up heading south to Salt Lake City by mistake.  Whilst they agreed on the essentials, they allowed a minor decision to cloud that goal, and so got pulled off target.

Paul tells the Philippians to 'get their head on' ... the other members should get alongside Euodia and Syntyche, in order to help them back on track, and the focus on the fact that the core to keep is the gospel - it's a helpful flag for us that if we're distracted from this task, from the centrality of the gospel, then minor issues have undoubtedly become too major!  The command for the other members to help them out rings with last week's command to walk closely with those who imitate Christ, as it's the best way to expose where we aren't thinking with the mind of Christ.

2. When the World Seems Uncertain, There is One to Trust (vv4-7)

The key truth Paul wants them to remember here is this: Jesus is not far away.  This is true in at least two senses:

• He is not unimportant or insignificant to everday live
• He is not disinterested in this world, nor will he be away long before he comes back as Lord of all creation

It might seem that Jesus' work and word are far removed from real life today, but nothing could be further from the truth.  In an uncertain world, there are two ways to go:

• Live as if Jesus is far removed from rela life, and so be anxious and uncertain all the time
• Live recognising that Jesus is significant for every feature and moment of life ... and so pray, ask God and give thanks to him with regards to all the things that would otherwise make us anxious!

How much we pray as individuals and churches show how much we trust that Jesus is significant to our lives.  How much we worry as individuals and churches shows how much we assume that Jesus is irrelevant - we can be verbal Christians and practical atheists!

the result of living in trust that Jesus is significant and involved in everyday life will mean the peace of God will set up camp all aroudn our hearts and minds to protect us from uncertainty - it will transform our affections, decision making, the things that make our hearts flutter or swell - they will all be surrounded by an impregnable wall of certainty, and so protect us not from the things that make us anxious in this world, but from anxiety itself.

3. When you become a Christian, there is a life to live (vv8-9)!

Paul sets up two features of the Philippians' lives that should be lived in a particular way:

• Think Character-forming thoughts.  The things the Philippians are to focus their minds on (compare 3:19) are not eight individual thoughts, but a character of things to think about - thoughts that will shape a type of person, a Christ-like person.  thoughts that will bring a church together, because they mark the mind of Christ.  Thoughts that will focus the church on the things of the gospel.  They are a means to an end, not an end in themselves - so fix your mind on things that will shape your character this way!
• Live the habit-forming gospel.  The Philippians have received the gospel, essentially Jesus Christ, from Paul et al - and they are to make these an everyday habit.  The gospel is passed on to transform lives, not merely produce changed status.  Again, we see the gospel is not informational but transformational.  What are our habits?  Are they gospel habits?  Do we every day attempt to put into practice the truth of the gopsel?

Essentially, Paul wants it said of the Philippians what was said once of John Bunyan: 

'Prick him anywhere; and you will find that his blood is Bibline, the very essence of the Bible flows from him.  He cannot speak without quoting a text, for his soul is full of the word of God.'

If they live this life, there is a great guarantee.  Just as the peace of God would guard them as they trust that Jesus is significant to and interested in the world, then the God of peace will be their constant companion as they live gospel-transformed lives.  What a blessing!