A Vision FOR US

On September 11, 2001, the world as we know it in the West changed.

When those two towers came down in New York,

the secular West started talking about religion as a source of evil.

Plenty of people started to echo the mantra of the new atheist movement,

that is, religion poisons everything.

And it wasn't just extremist Muslims in their sights.

Christianity, too, has become more and more isolated over the decades

because, in fact, of decades, if not centuries of abuse of power,

which has led to many, many vulnerable lives being damaged.

And our society is rightly angered by such abuse.

Fifteen years later, in Christianity,

and church leaders, once highly regarded in our society,

are no longer trusted or regarded.

The church has an institution is seen as a drain on society.

It's an institution which is connected to the dark ages with many dark secrets.

And Christians themselves find it harder and harder to talk about God or sex or politics.

The pressure is to keep your beliefs, whatever they are, private, silent for you back in the home.

And yet, into this pluralistic, post-Christian space,

we have the commands of Jesus.

The great commission that he gave his disciples,

gave it to us in Matthew 28.

Sam just read out to us,

And it's passages like that stand behind our vision statement that we are desperate,

Sorry, we united in our desperation for the world around us to encounter Jesus

and our desire to represent the diversity of Chatswood.

Sam has said it already.

It's Vision Sunday today.

It's our final day on this new vision statement for now.

We'll hear a lot more about it in the coming weeks and months and years.

But my focus today is the same as last week.

And it's on that part of the vision statement which says,

We are desperate for the world around us to encounter Jesus.

Why does the world around us need to encounter Jesus?

And it's because of the extraordinary claim that we looked at last week in 2 Corinthians 5.

We are convinced that one died for all,

and therefore all died, and he died for all.

Jesus' death, his resurrection, universal significance,

it crosses all generations, all cultures, all peoples.

And Jesus claimed it himself in John 14, 6,

I am the way and the truth and the life,

and no one comes to the Father except through me.

And here again, we see it again in Acts 4, 12,

when referring to Jesus as salvation is found in no one else,

for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which they must be saved.

That's why we have this vision statement.

Peter is before a court, is in front of the Jewish leaders of his day.

He isn't just saying that these Jewish leaders that he's speaking to need to acknowledge their Messiah,

their Savior.

He says there is no other name under heaven given to people by which they must be saved.

There is no other alternative.

There's no other name.

There's no other Savior.

There's no other religion.

There's no other truth.

That is an exclusive claim.

And exclusive claims are a very, very real problem in a pluralistic society.

And so we have a problem.

For some elements in our society, our vision statement is dangerous.

And is the reason, they would say, that there is so much abuse and division in our history.

And so with this vision before us, let's see what we can learn from the earliest church.

It should be noted that church was in fact born into a pluralistic society.

There were lots of different cultures and gods.

And even though that was the case right from the very beginning of Christianity,

they made universal claims.

Claims to absolute truth.

And not surprisingly, it got Jesus persecuted, crucified,

and the first Christian leaders and many Christians since persecuted.

So let's first of all have a look at the problem with truth claims.

In Acts 4, the religious heavies are responding to a sermon that's preached in Acts 3.

And in that sermon, Peter has said a bunch of things.

For instance, in verse 21, he says that Jesus has gone to heaven,

but will return to restore all things, everything.

And he's going to make everything right.

No suffering, no death, no evil, no sorrows.

And in verse 25, he says that through Jesus Christ,

the whole world, all peoples will be blessed.

And so when he says in chapter 4, verse 12,

that salvation is found in no other name than Jesus,

it is pretty much a summary of what he's just preached in Acts 3.

Peter is proclaiming that Jesus is the Messiah for the whole world.

He is the universal saviour.

And this pretty much annoyed everyone.

This is not what the Jews were expecting.

You see, for most, they were hoping that there would be a man,

a Messiah who would be a great leader,

who would do something about the Roman oppression.

Come in and beat up the Romans for them.

They believed in a private Messiah.

They believed in a Messiah for the Jews.

And as you go through the book of Acts,

you notice the Christians also got in trouble with the Romans.

You see, the Roman world was officially pluralistic.

The Romans let everyone worship their own gods,

whatever your god might be.

And there was gods in every town and village and household.

So long as you also worship the emperor.

And so everyone in the Roman Empire was commanded and requested and required

to say,

Kaiser Kurios,

Caesar is Lord.

And the implication being is that if you're free to worship whatever gods you want,

but you must also say Caesar is Lord.

And the implication therefore is,

well, you can't make an exclusive claim

because you're worshipping two gods.

Your god cannot be supreme over all gods.

And Christians couldn't do that.

All they could say is,

Jesus is Lord.

And it brought them in tremendous conflict with the Romans.

And in Acts 19,

there is this riot in Ephesus

when the preaching of the Christian gospel

was undermining the temple cult.

This is the first century.

Nothing much has changed.

When Christians come along and say today

that Jesus is the only way to be saved,

Christianity is the one true religion,

it is seen as incredibly exclusive,

narrow-minded,

arrogant,

and even dangerous.

And so what are we to do with that

in Chatswood?

Where our neighbours are Buddhists,

Hindus,

Muslims,

atheists,

and now Scientologists.

Do we just have to get with the times

and adapt so that people don't get offended?

Why not just make love the unifying principle?

Let's go back to the 1960s

and just peace man everywhere.

Why not just make love?

Because that is in fact

the popular unifying principle nowadays.

Not truth,

just love,

whatever that means.

Is the way to live in peace

with all the diversity

simply to affirm

that all religions and ideas

are equally valid?

I think not.

Christianity was born

into a pluralistic society.

The claims of Christianity

looked every bit as narrow and dangerous

in the first century

as it does in the 21st century.

And yet,

lots of people still believed

then as they do now.

So let's just take a moment.

I just want to pause here for a moment.

When I say pause,

it's going to be kind of a long pause.

And to address the problems

that I have

with the problem of exclusive claims.

I want to address the problems

that our society has

with the problem of exclusive claims.

The assumption seems to be

that the only way

to be truly inclusive

is to say that all religions

are equally valid.

The assumption is

that religion can be privately

and subjectively helpful

behind my closed doors,

in my home.

But there is not one right way

to think about God

and spiritual reality.

Now that is seen as inclusive

and therefore appropriate.

So first of all,

there's the historical problem.

There is pressure to do

what the first Christians

were pressured to do

under the Roman Empire

for the first three centuries.

And that is,

you can believe in Jesus

so long as you don't say

that Jesus is the best

or the most superior

or the only way to find God

and nothing much has changed

in 20 centuries of history.

The problem with that

is that the Jesus

we believe in historically

is the Jesus who says,

I am the way,

I am the truth,

I am the life

and no one comes to the Father

except through me.

That's the only Jesus

we've got in history.

No other religious leader

ever said it.

No other religious leader

ever claimed

to even work

on the level of Jesus.

There is no way

to believe in Jesus

if he is just the same

as all the others.

Buddha never said

anything like that.

Confucius never said

anything like that.

Muhammad never said

anything like that.

And the dude

who's in charge

of the Scientology

who's dead now,

whatever his name was,

never said anything like that.

No one ever said

anything like that.

And maybe Jesus is right

or maybe he's wrong

but he's not the same

as everyone else.

Either he is not

the Son of God

in which case

he is inferior

to everyone else

because they at least

have the common sense

and humility

not to make

megalomaniacal claims

about themselves

or he is the Son of God

and he is the only way

and all other claims

should therefore

be tested against him.

If he is true

he is the one way.

If he is not true

then he is no way.

He's not just a way.

That's the historical.

Christianity claims

that if you look

at the evidence

of the resurrection

the brilliance of his teaching

the brilliance of his character

then he is superior

by implication.

Secondly,

there's the logical problem.

How can all religions

actually be equally valued?

The statement

can only be true

if number one

there is no God

or number two

if there is a God

but that God

was so disconnected

so impersonal

that this God

did not care

what you believed

or what you did.

The God of Aristotle

for instance.

Greek

philosophy.

thirdly

I actually think

I have a problem

because I think

it's a hypocritical problem.

I think it's hypocritical

to say

to a Christian

you shouldn't have

that view of God

all religions are valid

there isn't one God.

What is happening

at that point

is pressure

for me

to abandon

my view of God

and accept

another person's

view of God.

It's a claim

in itself

which is exclusive.

It's saying

I'm right

you're wrong

my take on spirituality

and God

is superior

to your take

on spirituality

and God

so dump yours

and believe mine.

So they're making

exclusive claims

as well

at least I'm

admitting it.

If it is

narrow and wrong

to say

that there is

one true religion

it is narrow and wrong

to say

that there is

only one way

to think about religion.

Everybody is making

exclusive claims

to say that

no one should make

a universal truth

exclusive claim

is in fact

a universal claim

in itself.

Fourthly

if truth

is culturally

relevant

and person specific

that everyone

needs to decide

what is wrong

and wrong

right and wrong

for themselves

that there is

no moral absolutes

that religion

is okay

in private beliefs

but in fact

should be kept

out of the public sphere

and it's wrong

to persuade others

to change their views

then it leads

to being helpless

in the face

of injustice.

If there is

no absolute

truth

and morality

is relative

then you can

never say

to another

individual

to another

company

to another

country

that they are

in fact

being immoral

and just.

You might have

moral feelings

but without God

there are no

moral obligations.

Moral feelings

is when I say

I feel

that that's wrong.

Moral obligation

is

you got to

stop doing that

because it is wrong.

you can't do

anything therefore

about greed

you can't do

anything about

materialism

you can't do

anything about

genocide

you can't do

anything about

slavery

you can't do

anything about

injustice

you can't do

anything about

refugees.

If people

finally come to

realise that

then the real

question

is how

is it

possible

for us to

live together

in peace?

how can

we have

a pluralistic

society

and a world

in which

people

deeply

differ

in their

beliefs

and able

to live

together

and respect

each other

and work

together

and be

civil

and the

way to

get to

that point

is not

for some

small minority

in the world

generally

in our

current culture

the elitist

secular

atheists

who are

permeating

everything

in our

culture

saying

the rest

of you

believe

what we

believe

you see

our society

has rightly

rejected

the Christianity

that uses

its universal

values and

truth claims

to oppress

people

I believe

they have

rightly

rejected

that

that's

where we

sit right

now

the world

does not

need

any more

exclusive

truth claims

as a leverage

to oppress

people

what this

world needs

is absolute

truth and

values

that do

not turn

believers

into oppressors

what we need

is non-oppressive

universal truth

the believers

of Jesus

claim to

universal truth

we need

for that

truth

truth to

turn us

to turn

us believers

into agents

of justice

and service

we need to be

people who

don't look

down on

others

or feel

superior to

others

or ridicule

and rubbish

others

we don't

people who

don't oppress

others

people who

don't coerce

others

but people who

love and

serve others

and I believe

that's the

solution

to this

universal truth

claim

the Christian

gospel that

proclaims

Jesus is

savior and

lord is

exactly what

this world

needs

and a hint

of that

solution

to the

problem is

in Acts 4

take a look

at verses

8 to 13

with me

then Peter

filled with

the Holy

Spirit

said to

them

rulers

and elders

of the

people

if we

are being

called

to account

today

for an

act of

kindness

shown to

a man

who was

lame

and being

asked

how

he was

healed

then know

this

you and

all the

people of

Israel

it is

by the

name

of

Jesus

Christ

of

Nazareth

whom

you

crucified

but whom

God

raised

from the

dead

that this

man

stands

before

you

healed

Jesus

is

the

stone

you

builders

rejected

which

has

become

the

cornerstone

salvation

is found

in no one

else

for there

is no

other name

under

heaven

given to

mankind

by which

we must

be saved

when they

saw the

courage of

Peter and

John

and realized

that these

were unschooled

ordinary

men

they were

astonished

and they

took note

that these

men

had been

with

Jesus

note

firstly

that Jesus

saves us

through

rejection

verse 11

the stone

you build

is rejected

which has

become

the

cornerstone

he saved

us not

through power

but through

service

through

rejection

not by

accumulating

power

but in

fact by

giving up

power

surrendering

himself

dying

on the

cross

for our

sins

so that

God's

love

would come

flooding

into

our

lives

he saved

us through

grace

through love

through service

the only way

to become a

Christian is

in fact to

give up

all notions

all notions

of superiority

all notions

that we are

better than

other people

salvation

only comes

to people

who admit

that they are

sinners

and they

need grace

and it is

this work of

salvation in

Peter and

John's life

that's behind

verse 13

when they saw

the courage of

Peter and

John and

realized that

they were

unschooled

ordinary

men

they were

astonished

and they

took note

that these

men had

been with

Jesus

let me tell

you why

these

religious leaders

were astonished

by Peter and

John

outside of

Jesus

as it was

in the first

century

so it is

in the 21st

century

outside of

Jesus

our identity

is based

on relative

status

we are

normally

proud

we are

not normally

proud of

being smart

we just

generally get

proud of

being smarter

than someone

else around

us

that's

generally

it's

relative

status

that's

generally

how we

work

everyone

gets an

identity

through

salvation

by works

we don't

usually use

the word

salvation

it's more

self-esteem

through works

or self-worth

through works

in a

traditional

society

such as

mostly

eastern

societies

your

identity

is attached

to

roles

that have

been assigned

to you

your worth

is attached

to the

roles

that have

been assigned

to you

so

you feel

good about

yourself

because

you are

a good

father

or a

good

mother

or a

good

husband

or a

good

wife

or a

good

son

or a

good

daughter

in an

individualistic

society

like

western

societies

we get

our identity

through

accomplishments

I am

smarter

than you

I've

got a

better car

than you

I am

richer

than you

I'm

better

looking

than you

I'm

more

talented

than you

it's

all

relative

but it's

always

relative

so that

there are

always

people

that we

feel

superior

to

and

there will

be

people

that we

will

feel

inferior

to

and

the

religious

leaders

were

shocked

when they

talked to

Peter

and John

they were

ordinary

it's

emphasized

they were

ordinary

unschooled

men

and in

a

patriarchal

society

ordinary

men

didn't

have

the

pedigree

or the

schooling

and like

these guys

and they

would have

been ashamed

and quiet

in the

presence of

these leaders

they would

have had

their heads

bowed and

they wouldn't

have spoken

them

and these

leaders

are astonished

that these

two men

have a

brand new

system of

identity

they aren't

ashamed

and they're

not afraid

of anyone

above them

but they're

also not

feel superior

to anyone

below them

it wasn't

below them

for an act

of kindness

to the

crippled

man

what a

transformation

these

religious

leaders

witness

this is the

Peter who

boldly speaks

here

he's the

same

Peter

who

went

all

jelly

mead

in front

of a

servant

girl

of the

high

priest

and yet

here is

Peter

this is the

Peter who

denied

Jesus

and here's

the Peter

who's

proclaiming

the exclusive

claims of

Jesus

not just

before the

high priest

servant

but in

fact the

high priest

and all

the rulers

of Israel

their self

esteem is not

based on their

accomplishments or

their works

it's based on

the grace of

God

that's what's

happened to

Peter and

John

and that's

what happens

to every

Christian

you can only

become a

Christian

if you

admit that

you in

fact deserve

hell

and only the

costly sacrifice

of Jesus

and his

triumphant

resurrection

has saved

you

God's

grace means

you cannot

feel superior

to anyone

anyone

is there

anything

more

repugnant

than to be

proud about

the grace

of God

anything

the universal

truth of

Jesus is

that he

died for

his enemies

he said

father forgive

them for

they do

not know

what they're

doing

Christianity

has the

truth

but it's

a truth

that's meant

to turn

us into

non-oppressive

grace-bearing

merciful people

what this

world needs

is truth

and people

who have a

new identity

because of

that truth

which makes

them into

humble servants

to everyone

around them

Christians

Christians

have been

oppressors

in the

past

can you

find that

anywhere in

the Bible

that justifies

that

can you

get that

out of the

person of

Jesus

at all

one of the

most exclusive

claims I've

ever heard

is the

claim that

good people

from all

faiths will

eventually find

God

it's terribly

exclusive

what about

the bad

people like

me

what happens

to them

see their

claim is

incredibly

exclusive

it's only

the good

people

Christianity

says it

doesn't matter

who you are

or what

you've done

it doesn't

matter

it doesn't

matter

repent

rest in

Jesus

and what

he has

done

for you

and God

delights in

you and he

gives you a

new identity

and the

Christian gospel

is an

exclusive

truth

but it is

the most

inclusive

truth

there is

in the

world

everyone's

making

exclusive

claims

but Christianity

is the only

the most

inclusive

of the

exclusive

truths

and it's

what our

world

needs

let me

just say

about

in terms of

where we

are in

our society

our

Christian

mission

has always

thrived

by surging

in the

margins

and under

the radar

when we

somehow get

into positions

of power

the wheels

fall off

and that's

what we're

experiencing in

the west

at the

moment

it's

pretty much

the way

it's always

been since

the third

century

in fact

as

Christianity

spread

throughout

the first

three

centuries

as a

persecuted

minority

people

it

just

exploded

and the

conversion

of

Constantine

paved the

way for

it becoming

the official

state

religion

of the

Roman

Empire

by the

end of

the fourth

century

only

Christianity

became the

official

religion

and from

that moment

the church

lost its

prophetic voice

and its

vibrancy

many religions

like Islam

for example

seem to

thrive on the

conquest

and power

Christianity

grows best

through hardship

through by being

marginalized

pushed to the

edges

and so I

think where we

exist right now

in the west

in this culture

where we are

right now

is an

unprecedented

opportunity

for the

Christian

gospel

the history

of the church

tells me

that even

a culture

that wants

to get rid

of Christianity

isn't a

hindrance to

the church

being effective

in representing

Jesus

the early

Christians

it just

exploded

40% a

decade for

nearly 300

years was the

growth rate

and at a

time when

early Christians

did not

engage in

public

preaching

because it

was too

dangerous

there were

practically no

evangelists

no missionaries

there was no

mission boards

there was no

organizations

they didn't have

evangelistic

courses

Christian

explained

after Nero's

persecution

in the mid

first century

church services

in fact closed

its doors to

visitors

churches

you weren't

welcome in

the church

if you're a

visitor

deacons used

to stand at

the front

doors of the

church gatherings

not to hand

out bulletins

but as

bouncers to

keep people

out

just in case

you're an

informer

prominent people

scorned

Christianity

Christians were

discriminated

against in

countless petty

ways it was

incredibly hard

to be Christian

and yet the

church exploded

why?

because Christians

were attractive

their concern

for the weak

for the poor

the marginalized

their integrity

in the face of

persecution

their financial

generosity

their sacrificial

love

even for their

enemies

and the high

quality of their

common life

together

non-believers

were first of

all attracted

to the

community

and lives

of Christians

and therefore

became open

to talking

about the

truths

the exclusive

truths of the

gospel

I'm very keen

for us both

corporately and

individually

as a church

to be engaged

in acts of

justice and

mercy both

here in

Chatswood and

wherever God

has placed us

Monday to

Saturday

to be non-

oppressors

to be servants

of others

for instance

it is not

well known

that Chatswood

is home to

more than a

dozen legal

and illegal

brothels

and there is

currently no

ministry

whatsoever

into that

space

it's in our

parish boundaries

and so we as a

church are going

to seek to reach

those in the

sex industry

in Chatswood

through acts

of care

acts of

kindness

our hope is

that over time

we'll be able

to develop

deeper trust

with those

affected by

this industry

and possibly

build systems

of referral

and exiting

options for

those workers

God has

opened the

door already

for initial

steps

I've been

taken

a pilot

team of

five women

yesterday

attended a

training

ministry

which I was

very excited

about

and on

Wednesday

they went

around to a

number of

these brothels

stood out

the front

of those

brothels

and prayed

for them

the next

steps are

going to

include a

whole lot

of prayer

where God

will take

us and

give clarity

on what

concrete

things we

need to

put in

place to

build

relationship

with

brothels

hope

purpose

meaning

joy

satisfaction

is found

in no

other

name

salvation

is found

in no

one else

for there

is no

other name

under heaven

given to

man by

which we

must be

saved

and at

St.

Paul's

we believe

that exclusive

truth claim

and so we

exist as a

church to

know Jesus

to treasure

Jesus and

to represent

Jesus for

God's glory

and the joy

of all

people

and because

we believe

that claim

is true

for all

people

may we

have the

confidence

and the

boldness

of Peter

and John

and be

united

in our

desperation

for the

world around

us to

encounter

Jesus

and our

desire to

represent the

diversity

of Chatswood