From Revd Dr. Mark Cheetham
Dear Friends,
In the context of John 15: 9-15 I note how Jesus is looking for friends who love why he does what he does even more than they love what he does. In our shared life together I think engaging this truth is absolutely crucial.
There are moments when I wonder if we speak too often about the why of kingdom ministry, the theology of the kingdom of God from which Jesus operated, all the things he did and taught, the postures of the apprentice of Jesus, and what apprenticeship to Jesus means. But then I think back on the lives of my own mentors and the dangers I’ve seen when influential people have the wrong ‘why’ motivating their use of power. What I have seen convinces me that laying our foundations well on what it means to follow Jesus as apprentices in the kingdom of God is of the utmost importance and is well worth our time.
If we are apprentices and the Master is doing the ministry through us, then our work is to trust and obey. (Do you hear the hymn in the background?) And that leads me to note that you or I are not the ones doing the ministry. Jesus is doing the ministry through you. Is that a cop-out? Should we be working harder to do what Jesus did? Or is it the actual, central, essential idea behind ministry that goes beyond what humans can do?
Healing through a moment of prayer: Can you do that? I can’t. Some may say they can, but no follower of Jesus in Scripture has ever claimed anything other than “what I do have I give you” when talking about ministry in the love and power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 3:6). And for those fixated on the power part of ministry over the love part, here is a passage to consider. This is a “new level” of power that some caught up in the language and excitement of power ministry miss.
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Eph. 3:16–19)
Paul is not asking for power to do miracles. Paul is asking for power for us to grasp the love of God. Paul is not asking for power to show who God is. Here Paul is asking for power to receive the reality that Jesus dwells within us, power to grasp the length, height and depth of his love, and power to know this love that we might be filled with “all the fullness of God.”
Back to John 15:9–15, which says, beloved people live from love, through love, and to love and end up knowing the intimate, holy business of the Trinity. People who can abide with God don’t spend much, if any, time looking only to themselves, nor are they/we lost-in-worship or hoodwinked by the apparent trappings of modern culture. People who abide in God are people of holy, discerned, loving, powerful, and right action. They/we don’t wander on endless side trails instead they try to feed the poor.
People who abide in God are listening people. They/we remain in Jesus and know his voice. As we come to know his voice better and better, we minister in partnership with his Spirit in some incisive and profound ways. We walk in the Spirit, keep in step with the Spirit, and follow the guidance of the Spirit. So what do those who wish to apprentice Christ pray for? I think it is a prayer of invitation, welcome, and surrender, one that has been on the lips of the saints for centuries. It is a simple three-word prayer. Let’s pray it out loud, together. “Come, Holy Spirit”.
Best wishes,
Rev Mark