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The 3 parables of Luke 15: the lost sheep , the lost coin, and the lost son. Part 4 The three parables in Luke 15 Definition: A parable means something to ‘lay alongside’ something else. The story in the parable lays it against a truth to make it easier to understand. These three parables are usually thought to be about salvation but let us consider them in the context of fellowship. The parable of the lost sheep Luke 15:1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. Lost in this passage does not mean dead, the sheep always refers to believers e.g. not 99 sheep and 1 goat! The 100 sheep belong to the shepherd, but one wanders off out of the shepherd's sight c.f like a Christian getting out of fellowship. The shepherd goes after the lost sheep finds it and put it on his shoulders. That is how the Lord feels when out of fellowship believers are found by him, there is great rejoicing in the same way we rejoice over sinners who come to repentance and faith in Christ. The parable of the lost coin Luke 15:8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbours together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’ 10 Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The woman owned the silver coins. Of course, this parable can be applied to the ‘salvation’ situation but does need a bit of tweaking as to who was the owner of the lost coin. Again, there is great rejoicing over a sinner come to repentance i.e. changed their mind. The joy is from God in the presence of the angels. The parable of the lost son 11 Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. 14 But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. 15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything. 17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! This parable is the best example of how God feels about sinners returning to him. By faith we are all children of God (Galatians). This is a believing family. No matter what we change we remain our father’s son. Life lived out of fellowship does not produce fruit for God. Both sons got their inheritance (v12). God gifts and talents are to be used in his service. The younger son wasted all his inheritance and got out of fellowship with his father. v15 younger son comes into discipline by looking after pigs (no self-respecting Jew would do this). No-one would help him. He was in a bad place with no friends. v17 Comes to his senses, he repents (changes his mind), and he comes to terms with his lifestyle. 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’ 20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ v20 and the father ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. That is what the Father God did with you and me when we first repented and believed. How might the Father react to our repentance today? v21 Confesses his sins as in 1 John 1:9. Luke 15:22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it and let us eat and be merry. 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry. v22 His privileges are fully restored as a son, as are ours when we repent. v23 A feast of celebration is organised, repentance is a time to be celebrated. v24 This father’s love for his lost son reminds us of the fervent love of our heavenly father who embraces us when we confess our sins in repentance. When we do sin, we must keep short accounts with the Lord and come into repentance ASAP. Conclusion Confessing your sins is agreeing with God that it was wrong and inappropriate for us as God’s family, then we can immediately receive our forgiveness by faith and come straight back into fellowship with the Lord. Amen Personal Prayer For an in depth study of this topic please refer to Roger Price audio BBS 012 and BBS 021.

The ongoing remedy for our sin: 1 John 1:9 explained 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. All Christians have an ‘old sin nature’ inside us. See Paul’s comments in Romans about his 'old man'. v9, we need to name our sins before the Lord and somehow God is able to cleanse us from them all –perhaps even the ones we did not remember! This verse is constantly available to all true believers. The verb 'confess' is in the continual tense meaning ongoing. Yes it is available every time as often as we need need it. We receive our forgiveness instantly by faith. This allows us to pick up on our walk with the Lord. Unconfessed sin festers inside us and makes us unable to conduct the Lord’s work. When we confess our sin then we agree with God that it is a sin and are instantly brought back into fellowship. PTL The ongoing remedy for our sin- Keywords ¨       Repent-metanoeo (Greek) means to change your mind. ¨       Confess- homologeo (Greek) means to say the same thing (used in a court of law). Meta =change   noeo = mind So what this word Repentance means is to ‘change your mind.’ This means that we have changed our minds about the sinful things we have previously done and then we agree with God's view of the sin . We then confess (say) to the Lord the particular sin, which means we now are taking the same view as the Lord. Paul called the Jews to repentance (change their minds about Messiah on a big white horse defeating the Roman invaders etc.) Paul called the Gentiles to believe (did not know anything about the Messiah). 2 Cor 7:10 Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians had produced godly sorrow leading them to repentance and life in contrast the world’s sorrow can only produce death. Amen Personal Prayer In Part 4 We consider the three parables in Luke 15 in the context of both salvation and fellowship.

The chastening of the Lord How does God deal with Christians who are out of fellowship?: Hebrews 12: 5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; 6 For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.” 7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. v5 Chastening= humbled by defeat or wrongdoing with a view to doing better rebuke=express sharp disapproval or criticism of (someone) because of their behaviour or actions: scourges= whips v6 When the Lord brings us correction (chastening which may involve grief and pain), we need to be willing to accept it (or even welcome) since we are true sons and daughters of God. We ought to be pleased that the Lord loves us enough to chasten and rebuke us. v7-8 We need to come under his discipline of our Father (discipline is a family matter-see Zechariah 3:3) v10 God only chastens (trains) his children for their benefit which should lead us into holiness. v11 The Lord’s chastening is painful for a season but later brings peace and a more holy lifestyle. Carnal vs Spiritual Christians ¨       Carnal = a Christian who is out of fellowship with Lord ¨       Spiritual = a Christian who is in fellowship with the Lord 1 Corinthians 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; 3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? 4 For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal? A carnal Christian can behave just as badly as an unbeliever. An unbeliever cannot receive the things of God see 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 A spiritual believer can operate through the Spirit, 1 Cor 3v3 mere men= unbelievers Amen In Part 3 we consider what confession and repentance means.

1 John 1:9 The ongoing remedy for our sin In some ways when we get saved or born again the Lord could say ‘I have cleansed every sin from your life so go and sin no more.’ However, we know that we often slip and fall into sin (due to the old sin nature), and we would be stuck in sin if the Lord had not provided an ongoing way to get us back into fellowship with him. That is what we are going to study today ‘how do we keep in continual fellowship with the Lord. We can only bear fruit when we are in fellowship with the Lord and when are in sin we can bear no good fruit. This is like playing badminton say 20 years ago or more, you could only score when serving. The suggestion is that we can bear fruit only when we are in fellowship with God. Relationship versus Fellowship ¨       Relationship is permanent. ¨       Fellowship is conditional. Amos 3:3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed? Salvation has two parts to it: kindred relationship and fellowship. If like me, you agree that once saved always saved then our kindred relationship is permanent (eternal). If you disagree then you must consider just how permanent our relationship with Father God is, and what could break it. However, hopefully we can agree that our relationship is stronger than our fellowship. We are born again into the family of God and are secure in it. Fellowship (koinonia) is our ongoing interaction with God and can be broken quite easily. Amos 3:3 can be understood as ‘how can we walk in agreement with a Holy God’? When we are out of fellowship with him through sin. Fellowship in this context is our old friend koinonia which means an intimate sharing of our life with God and with our fellow believers. Fellowship with Him and One Another 1 John 1:5 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. As always when we want to correctly interpret scripture, we need to put in in context. v5-7 God has no darkness or sin in his being whatever and has no truck with sin. If we live in sin our fellowship (koinonia) with God is broken and we are kidding ourselves on (self-deception). If we walk in the Spirit, we are agreed with the Lord, this brings us into fellowship with each other and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. v8 If Christians say that they do not sin then John says that they are lying indicating an aversion to the truth. v9-10 We will return to these verses further into the sermon. In Part 2 we will consider 'the chastening of the Lord'.

The summary of the onward transmission of Jesus’ Manifesto and the biblical basis for it applying to all believers. The summary of the onward transmission of the Great Commission is as follows below. Jesus -Luke 4:18-19 manifesto for humanity-given in the synagogue. Jesus -Mark 16:15-18 the 11 disciples-when Jesus appeared after the resurrection. Jesus -Matthew 28:18-20 great commission- to the disciples-spreading out to the nations The Holy Spirit-Acts 2:1-4 Pentecost- to the 120 in the upper room then to thousands in the Jerusalem-then beyond The bible and the church through the ages - to you and me today Does the Great Commission still apply today? Was this not just for the original 12 disciples? No see the biblical evidence below. Not everyone is an evangelist! -True but we are all called to be witnesses. Evidence that it still applies to all believers. 1.      The command to witness is for all believers. 2.      The example of ordinary believers in the early church. 3.      The Gospel places a stewardship on us. 4.      The work of the ministry in Ephesians 4:12. 1.The commands to witness are given to all followers of Christ. Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” This verse gives a command from the risen Lord to all his followers. 2 Cor. 5:18-20 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 2. Consider the example of “ordinary believers” in the early church. As we follow the storyline of the early church it is obvious that the apostles sought to evangelize and disciple others. But we see ordinary believers sharing the gospel as well. We read in Acts 8:1, “And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” And what did those ordinary believers do?  Acts 8:4 “Now those who were scattered went about preaching (euangelizomenoi) the word.”  They went about sharing the gospel with others. 3. Consider the stewardship the gospel confers on us. Jesus reminds us, “Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required” (Luke 12:48). We have been given no greater gift than the gospel, and we have no greater stewardship than to share that message of good news with others. Paul expresses it well in 2 Corinthians 5:14: “for the love of Christ compels us.” 4. Finally, consider what Paul calls “the work of ministry” in Ephesians 4:11-12 The 5-fold ministry (apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers). The reason God “gifts” the church with such leaders is so that they will “equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” -(Eph. 4:12).  And we should certainly include sharing the Gospel in “the work of ministry.” In conclusion all believers need to be carrying on the work of the Great Commission today. Amen Personal Prayer

The Great Commission Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus’ mission (manifesto) was passed down to the disciples and so on, all the way down to us believers today. Mark 16:15-18 is similar to Matthew 28:18-20 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” Jesus’ manifesto was first passed to the 11 disciples and ultimately to the whole church including us- c.f Matthew 28:18-20 The Great Commission is our commission. Many believers look for confirmation in a “calling.” But Jesus did not call some (or any) of his followers to his mission. Rather, he called them to himself and sent them on mission. If you are walking with Jesus, his manifesto is incumbent on you and me. Every disciple must be a disciple-maker, whether God sends you down the street or to the other side of the world. As you go to work, to the grocery store, to the foodbank, or to the gym- live and love like Jesus. Be confident in his authority. Mark 16:15-18 describes the full gospel: salvation from sin, deliverance from demons, healing and curing of sickness and disease, and immunity from poisons. The next transmission of Jesus’ manifesto was in: The Great Commission Matthew 28:18-20 18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Consider the four “alls” of Christ’s commission, “All authority”, To go to “all nations”, To communicate “all his teaching,” strengthened by his presence “all the time” (translated always). Jesus claims to have all authority in the universe to lead us on this journey. He claims that his teaching is the most important thing in life to follow and therefore, he claims that all nations need to know his teaching. And last but not least, he claims that he will be with us for all time. Huge claims, and in the literal sense, incredible — you would not believe them unless Jesus is God. Whatever, the four “alls” might mean for you and me and wherever the Lord takes us, be it near or far we must not let fear crowd out our faith. Jesus spoke these words to give us a task and to give us courage in and through the task. These four “alls” remind us that the burden is not on us but on Jesus Christ himself. However, we are obliged to obey Jesus’ command, for the Great Commission is for every believer. Amen Personal Prayer In Part 4 we consider the onward transmission of Jesus’ manifesto on the day of Pentecost.

Isaiah 61:1-2 and Luke 4:18-19 Isaiah 61:1-2 1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound. 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God. To comfort all who mourn, Jesus quoted from this scripture showing that the Holy Spirit had anointed him, like the holy oil used to consecrate holy persons (the priests) and holy things (in the tabernacle and temple). Yeshua Ha’Meshiach in Hebrew becomes Jesus Christos in the Greek i.e. the anointed one and we Christians are the little ‘anointed ones’. The anointing confers God’s power on the anointed one showing that the Messiah is chosen and empowered by God. The Messiah would fulfil this scripture which is exactly what Jesus did in Luke 4:18-19 These verses describe the essence of Jesus’ mission or ministry. The ministry of the Messiah is empowered to bring healing, freedom, and comfort to his people i.e. full redemption. Back to Luke Luke 4:20 Then He closed the book and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 So all bore witness to Him and marvelled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” v20-21 Jesus did not prolong his message but stuck closely to the point which was that those people privileged to hear these gracious words were actually simply hearing not only these prophetic words about the coming Messiah but were witnesses to the actual Messiah proclaiming them- in a sense Jesus is saying – the promised Messiah- I am he. v22 the congregation were astonished by these (lit.) words of grace- but wanted to dismiss Jesus claims of being ‘the Messiah’ – who does he think he is – I kent [1] his faither Joseph. Will not the Messiah come from royalty and come on a big white horse to defeat the Romans? In Part 3 we will consider the onward transmission of Jesus’ manifesto (mission) through the church. [1] Scottish vernacular used to make a point.

Luke 4:18-19 The UK news media is buzzing at present with speculation as to when the next UK general election will take place. Once the date is announced the politicians will be delivering their manifestos to entice the electorate to vote for them and their party. The manifesto contains the promises of what the politician intends to perform If the people elects them. In a sense that is what Jesus did in in the scripture Luke 4:18-19 which you could say was his manifesto, or his mission, or his agenda, or his platform, or even as his job description but please note his manifesto was based exclusively on the will of Father God as described in the Holy Scriptures. A what a wonderful manifesto it was, no one has before or since gave such wonderful promises to humankind as Jesus did in his manifesto. And unlike many politicians, Jesus delivered, then and now, each and every promise in his manifesto. PTL. Context of Luke 4:18-19 Luke 4:16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: Jesus’ Manifesto 18    The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed. 19    To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. Jesus was anointed (saturated) with the Holy Spirit to fulfil the specific purposes for which the Father God had sent him. Each point Jesus makes is part of the wonderful news in his manifesto. 1.To preach the Gospel the good news of salvation to the poor. The poor* being everyone who was as sinner and had no way of obtaining forgiveness of their sins and receiving God’s salvation. * biblically =dependent on others i.e. spiritually speaking to us all. 2. To heal the broken hearted- one of the Teen Challenge (addiction recovery) leaders explained to me that everyone who has addiction problems has had a broken heart in their relationships in life. Many other people have had their hearts broken too in their life relationships and experiences but without addiction. Jesus came specifically to bind up the broken hearts to restore meaning, purpose, and wholeness to our lives. Remember Matthew 12:20 A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench, Till He sends forth justice to victory; (Isa 42:3) when we feel that we are hanging by a thread or that our candle flame is going to go out. Jesus binds up our strands and breathes his oxygen onto our flames. The wonderful news in Jesus’ manifesto continues. 3. Jesus came to set people free from the bondage and slavery of sin which takes them captive at will. The believer no longer is at the whim of sin but can stand against it in using the full panoply of armour of God and the weapons Jesus has given us. Jesus came to remove all our guilt, and shame-these are often Satan’s weapons to hold us back from serving God. 4. Not only did Jesus often heal the physical blindness in his earthly ministry but more importantly took away the blindness of the unbelievers when we were saved into God’s Kingdom. Remember the hymn line from ‘Amazing grace’: ‘I once was blind but now I see.’ That was you and I until we became believers. 5. Jesus came to set at liberty those who are oppressed by the devil, those held down from living their lives to the full by demonic oppression in its various manifestations. v19 The acceptable year of the Lord refers to the Jubilee year (50th) of the Lord in which land was returned to the original owner, all debts were forgiven, slaves were released- these are good parallels in the life of the believers when we are first saved. The Jubilee year was the year of redemption, Jesus announced that He was bringing full scale redemption to humankind in his manifesto. Amen Personal Prayer In part 2 we consider the words that Jesus read from Isaiah 61:1-2

According to Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 The Apostle Paul came to preach the gospel to the Roman church to a society much like ours today in terms of the unrighteous lifestyles as described in Romans chapter 1. The Gospel was the only answer to the downward spiral of human activities in Rome and is still the same answer to the same problem in the modern world today, which is the preaching of the one true Gospel. So what is the Gospel according to Paul? Romans 1:1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. 5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, 6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ. We find in the above passage in Paul’s own words,• the message he preached is the gospel of God (verse 1)• the good news Paul preached, the gospel of God, was foretold by the holy prophets long before Paul lived (verse 2)• the gospel message focuses on Christ Jesus, a descendant of King David according to the Scriptures (verse 3)• though born of a woman and, thus, being fully man, Jesus was also fully God and divine in nature; His Sonship was indisputably established by the Holy Spirit through His bodily resurrection (verse 4)• Paul’s authority as an apostle, being called to preach the gospel of God, was granted to him by none other than the Lord Jesus Christ (verse 5)• those called of God, having heard and believed the gospel of God, now belong to the Lord Jesus (verse 6). Romans 2:16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel. Paul speaks of the gospel message he proclaimed as “my gospel” in Romans 2:16 and 16:25. What, then, is the “gospel of Paul”? Does it differ from the true gospel, the gospel the other apostles preached? Paul also lays out the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, According to this passage, • there is only one gospel: it is the gospel of God that Paul preached and in which the redeemed have taken their stand (verse 1)• this is the gospel that saves, the gospel Paul delivered, and the gospel that must never be forgotten or discarded (verse 2)• according to the Scriptures, the Lord Jesus died for our sins. His sacrifice paid our sin debt (verse 3)• after His lifeless body was taken from the cross and laid to rest in a borrowed tomb, Jesus miraculously walked away from where He lay, as foretold by the holy prophets, proving His absolute power over sin and death (verse 4) This is the Gospel truth! Paul’s gospel teachings are in harmony with the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, his New Testament contemporaries, and, most importantly, the teachings of Jesus Christ. Those who accuse Paul of having strayed from the gospel have no evidence to support themselves. Scripture proves that, rather than teaching a “different gospel,” he gave the church greater insight into the only true gospel, the gospel of God (Romans 1:1). The following passage gives ample evidence that Paul’s prime motive was not in making a name for himself, but in furthering the cause of Christ: 1 Corinthians 1:17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. This is the one and only true gospel that will save your soul -have you believed it? For further reading see also Romans 10:9-10 Amen Personal Prayer

Common pitfalls in using the scientific method The scientific method is indeed a powerful tool. Like any tool, however, if it is misused it can cause more harm than good. The scientific method can only be used for testable phenomenon. This is known as falsifiability [1]. While many things in nature can be evaluated and measured, some areas of human experience are beyond objective observation e.g. the meaning of life. An everyday example of something not falsifiable is the statement ‘cake is always better than biscuit’ this is because it is very subjective. Both proving and disproving the hypothesis are equally valid outcomes of testing. It is possible to ignore the outcome or inject bias to skew the results of a test in a way that will fit the hypothesis. Data in opposition to the hypothesis should never be discounted. What type of questions does the scientific method best address? It is widely accepted that the scientific method is particularly good at answering the ‘how’ questions in science e.g. how do antibiotics such as penicillin kill bacteria [2]. However when it comes to answering the ‘why’ questions as to the meaning and purpose of certain things including your life itself, the scientific method has less to contribute. This can be best understood by posing the ‘why’ questions to your own life. Amongst these big questions we might ask ourselves we might include the following. 1. Who am I? 2. What Is My Life Purpose? 3. What is My Life Plan? The go-to place for life’s big ‘Why’ questions is the bible. A good starting point with our ‘why’ questions can be found In just one bible verse: John 3:16 KJV: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. The answers we can deduce from this verse include the following: 1.       There is a loving Creator God who adores his created human beings including you. 2.       The Creator God loved humankind including you enough to sacrifice the life of his Son. 3.        The Creator’s plan for us (including you) is that we believe in the Gospel of his Son Jesus Christ so that we can enter eternal life with him. Amen [1] Falsifiability is the capacity for a proposition, statement, theory, or hypothesis to be proven wrong. The concept of falsifiability was introduced in 1935 by Austrian philosopher and scientist Karl Popper (1902-1994). [2] The antibiotic properties of the mould Penecillium genus were identified and described in 1929 by Alexander Fleming in London. He named the active agent as penicillin.

What is the scientific method? Can science explain everything these days? Is there a need for a supernatural hypothesis to make sense of life? Why should we believe in an invisible God? Modern science and its multiple successes has since the 17th century has been based on a procedure called the scientific method. The scientific method consists of a methodical approach that involves the systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and the modification of hypothesis for the study [1]. We should also note that a critical approach to each stage forms the backbone of the scientific method and that the process must be based on currently validated scientific methods. Here is an example: The scientific method and the development of the smallpox vaccine [2] Edward Jenner (1749 – 1823) was a medical doctor and scientist who lived in England [3]. At that time smallpox was a dangerous disease for humans, with a mortality rate of around 30% of those infected and also leaving survivors badly scarred or even blind. However, Jenner knew that smallpox in cattle was comparatively mild and could be spread from cow to human through sores located around the cow’s udders. Jenner discovered that cattle workers thought that if they had already contracted cattle pox (which was cured quickly) then they would not get human smallpox. Observation: The starting point of Jenner’s work was that the belief that immunity from smallpox might be obtained from the subject having had the lesser infection of cattle pox. From this observation Jenner went on to the next step of the scientific method, starting with the hypothesis that this belief was true and developing the necessary experiments to prove or refute it. Hypothesis: Infection with cattle pox gives immunity to human smallpox. Experiment: The experiments that Jenner performed would be considered highly unethical today, since they were performed on humans. Although at that time there was no other way to evaluate the hypothesis, experimenting on a child today would be completely unthinkable. Jenner took cowpox sore contents from the hand of an infected milkmaid and applied it to the arm of a boy. The boy was ill for several days but then fully recovered. Jenner later took material from a smallpox sore and applied it to the same boy’s arm. However, the child did not contract the disease for a second time. After this first test, Jenner repeated the experiment with other people and later published his findings. Conclusions: the scientific method confirmed the hypothesis. Therefore infecting a person with cowpox protects against a smallpox infection. Subsequently, the scientific community was able to repeat Jenner’s experiments and obtained the same results. This is how the first “vaccines” were invented: applying a weaker strain of a virus to immunize the person against the stronger and more harmful virus. [1] For a useful overview of the scientific method see https://www.britannica.com/science/scientific-method [2] The smallpox example was adapted from Examples of Scientific Method - Examples Lab [3] Jenner’s life story see https://www.jenner.ac.uk/about/edward-jenner In Part 2 we investigate what questions can be answered by the scientific method and also the type of question it cannot answer.

The imprecatory Psalms The integrity of God’s character is a better explanation of our apparent conundrum of how the God of the Old Testament approves or even commands the things found in the imprecatory Psalms. God has always possessed integrity as part of His eternal, infinite, unchanging and perfect being. The integrity of God is composed of two divine attributes working in tandem which are perfect righteousness and absolute justice. Divine integrity cooperates with the divine love; together forming one perfect, integrated system through which God deals gracefully with humanity. Grace is the expression of God’s love, and integrity is the uncompromising method of His justice. [1] Divine integrity ensures that the God of love and grace is neither inappropriately emotional, nor does He play favourites [2], nor does He fail to be decisive in any human situations. We should note that God’s attribute of absolute justice demands punishment not only upon sin but also of the sinner. If it is right for God to destroy evil including evil persons and even to go as far as commanding his servants to perform the destruction of evil and evil persons, then it can be argued that it was right in God’s eyes for the Psalmists to pray for the destruction of the wicked. If indeed, the imprecatory psalms were inspired by the Holy Spirit and therefore, they must have reflected God’s will. The late Bible teacher Roger Price (Chichester) on a radio programme was asked in the dying seconds of his interview whether his God was the same God who was capable of terrible acts against humans as in the imprecatory psalms. Roger’s reply was clear ; ‘Yes, the God of the Old and New Testaments is a God of love and mercy, but He is also a God of absolute justice and decrees punishment for the unrepentant.’ This is the reason that Christians must urgently share the Gospel of Jesus Christ before it is too late for sinful men and women to come to repentance. The best explanation as to why the imprecatory psalms (and other terrible scriptures) seem to be so different from the God of the New Testament, and is found in the consideration of God’s integrity as mandated between His two divine attributes of His righteousness and His absolute justice. God employs both attributes as required in his dealing with humankind. This seems to me to be closer to explaining why the imprecatory psalms were written but also bids us remember God’s lovingkindness and mercy. What do you think? Footnotes [1] God the Father showed his integrity by not sparing Jesus from the cross. In Psalm 22 we find the Messiah crying out ‘My God my God why hast thou forsaken me’? The Father and the Holy Spirit turned their back on Jesus as he became sin on the cross. [2] For example in Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.