Adam White

You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:13-16

This is a very well known quote from Jesus and is all about how we are meant to be as Christians in this world. But what does it mean to be like salt? I’m going to unpack some aspects of salt and see if it can help us understand the full meaning of what Jesus was saying.

Salt flavours

Why do we add salt to our food? Is it to add that great salty flavour to things? If you just eat salt on its own is it tasty? Of course not. Salt enhances the flavours that are already there and that is how we are meant to be. We are to go out into the world and enhance its flavours. We are to show people that there is more to this bland and seemingly pointless existence.

Salt cleans

Believe it or not but salt can be used as an environmentally friendly cleaning agent. And just like salt, we can be used to by God to clean up dirty aspects of this world. When I talk about cleaning up though I am referring to washing away the filth that comes along with sin and helping people get back on their feet.

Swindon Foodbank, Swindon Pregnancy Crisis Centre and Street Pastors are three great areas where Chirstians are using their saltiness to help people in need.

Salt preserves

Salt also used to be used as preservative for food. It was used to keep things fresh and stop them going rotten. We can do the same by hanging onto our morals in a world that is going more and more liberal with every passing second.

We are called to stand firm in our beliefs against increasing opposition. We will increasingly be seen as being bigoted and outdated as we “fail to keep up with the modern age” but we must preserve what God has told us to.

A topic like abortion has always been a point of contention and there seem to be lots of examples of Christians in the media for standing up for their beliefs and being prosecuted for them. It’s going to get harder and harder but we must not conform to the pattern of this world (Romans 12:2).

Salt heals

Salt is also used to heal wounds and we have been commissioned by Jesus to go and heal the sick (Matthew 8 ) with the power of the Holy Spirit. This is an easy connection to make.

Salt melts ice

Salt also melts ice (technically it absorbs water but the affect is the same) which, in a world where everyone is cold hearted towards God, it is our responsibility to go out and melt those hearts and guide people back to God through Jesus Christ.

Salt disappears

One final observation about salt is that it disappears into whatever you put it into. We are to do likewise. We shouldn’t stay isolated away from the world in our protective church bubbles but get out and into the community. Spread out amongst the people and dissolve into the world like salt does. However, we shouldn’t absorb the ways of the world but instead instigate change.

This was inspired by a recent preach at my church entitled “Let me tell you why you are here” by Nigel Howarth. You can download and listen to it from the Gateway Church website: http://www.gatewaychurchswindon.org.uk

Posted by Adam under Faith | No Comments »

I heard this illustration about faith and thought I’d share it:

There were two rock climbers climbing up a mountain, they reach a ledge together but then the ledge starts to give way. They both look around for somewhere safe to jump to and notice two rocks that are jutting out on either side of the ledge.

The first climber sees the rock to the left, takes a good look at it and decides that it is really sturdy rock and they are sure it will support their weight so they jump to get to it. The other climber spots the rock to the right and doesn’t think it could possibly support them, but they have to make a choice so they jump.

Which climber do you think chose correctly?

Well the climber who had lots of faith in their rock found that while it seemed to support them at first, it soon gave way and they fell to their death. The climber that had only a little bit of faith in their rock though landed safely and the rock didn’t move.

The purpose of this story is to show that it is not how big our faith is that saves us, it is the choice of rock that we chose to place our faith in!

…and in case anyone is unsure of a good solid rock to chose, Jesus is a good place to start!

Posted by Adam under Faith | No Comments »

Whereas justification is totally down to God and we contribute nothing towards it, sanctification is a co-operative effort between us and God. God wants us to be involved in our growth but doesn’t leave it entirely up to us…

God’s role in sanctification

Each member of the trinity (father, son and spirit) has a role in our sanctification:

God disciplines us as a father: He shows us the path to holiness  by correcting us in love when we stray. Hebrews 12:7-11 beautifully illustrates God’s discipline as a method of teaching.

Jesus earned our sanctification and became our sanctification with what he achieved here on the Earth (1 Corinthians 1:30). But just as importantly, Jesus is our example for sanctification. He came to show us how we are to live our lives. We are to pursue a likeness with Jesus (1 Peter 2:21 and 1 John 2:6)

However, it is specifically the Holy Spirit that works within us to change us and sanctify us. 2 Thessalonians 2:13, Galatians 5:22-23 and Galatians 5:16-17 all show how the Spirit within us works to change us.

Our role in sanctification

To begin with our role is a passive one: We depend on God to save us and allow him to work in us.

However, we need to be cautious so not to become lazy and fall back on the passive role and wait on God to do all the work. So we also have an active role in that we strive to obey God and take steps to increase our sanctification. Philippians 2:12-13 says we need to “work out our own salvation” and I love how Hebrews 5:12-14 tells us to grow up and train ourselves for God.

Both the passive role and active role are important but if we neglect our active role of striving to obey God we become passive, lazy Christians and if we neglect the passive role of trusting God and yielding to him we become proud and overly-confident in ourselves. The correct balance is vital!

To be continued…

View entire series

Posted by Adam under Faith | No Comments »

Don’t you find that Christians make being a Christian more complicated than it is meant to be?

You don’t become a Christian by coming to church every Sunday without fail.

You don’t become a Christian by praying a “special prayer”.

The gospel can be summed up in one sentence. And it is in the most famous sentence in the entire bible…

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16

But what does this verse mean to us? It can be broken down into four easy to remember words:

“For God so LOVED the world” – Firstly God loved us. Before we did anything and even though we don’t deserve it He loved us unconditionally. No matter how far we wander from him and no matter how much we ignore him he loves us more than can be understood.

“That he GAVE his one and only Son” – In fact, he loved us so much that he gave us the thing that was most precious to him: His son. To restore the gulf that was between us and God he gave up his only son, he sent him into human history to live, suffer and die for nothing that he did wrong but for everything we ever did wrong.

“That whoever BELIEVES in him” – And all we have to do is believe. No special prayer. No clever ritual. Just believe. Put aside the issues we have created against God. Lay down our pride and our self-importance. Just believe that Jesus was who he said he was and that he died for us.

“Shall not perish but HAVE eternal life” – Then for that tiny step of faith we get to live forever in a place of absolute joy where all the negatives of this world are but a distant memory: Heaven.

Simple!

Then why do so many of us resist? Why do so many of us choose to ignore this simple invitation?

Each of us have our reasons (I did). I just hope and pray that your reasons are worth the risk you are taking. What if you ignore God’s invitation your entire life and then you miss the opportunity?

Have a chat to God tonight. Find a bible in your loft and dust it off. Look into this amazing invitation before it is too late.

It’s a decision I made even though it went against my better judgement but I don’t regret that decision for a second.

This was based on a message from Nothpoint Ministries‘ Go Fish! sermon series.

Posted by Adam under Faith | 2 Comments »

“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” – John 3:14-15

Whenever I had read this verse in the past I had always glossed over the fact that Jesus compares himself to a snake. The snake in the bible is most famously used to portray Satan in the garden of Eden. This does not make the snake a good animal to compare yourself to.

So why does Jesus compare himself to a snake in this scripture?

First let’s understand which snake he is referring to:

“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.” – Numbers 21:4-9

This is the snake Jesus is referring to and as soon as I read this passage my heart lept. This snake that Moses put on a pole was put there so that all who look upon it will be healed. Sound familiar?

Everytime Jesus talks about being “lifted up” he is referring to his death and resurrection (see also John 8:28 and John 12:32). So what he is alluding to is when Jesus is crucifed and dies for us, anyone who believes in him and “sees” him for who he truely is will be saved. Just like those that look at the snake will be healed.

I find parallels in the bible like this absolutely amazing. It always increases my faith when I see Jesus alluding to old testament passages which actually talk all about him. It’s amazing that if you read the old testament in light of Jesus it is revealed to say so much more. God is amazing!

This post was based on a talk by John Piper. To listen/read the whole talk visit desiringgod.com

Posted by Adam under Faith | 1 Comment »

I thought I would start this series with a question about Jesus. This bloke that supposedly lived (and died) 2000 years ago, did he actually exist or is he just aanother character in this book called the Bible?

When I was an athiest I thought that the Bible was a fictional book full of myths and fables and this Jesus that everyone keeps going on about was just a character in one of the stories. So it came as quiet a surprise to me when I later discovered that actually no serious historian actually doubts that he was a real man that was crucified by Pilate 2000 years ago!

So what is the evidence for this? First off there is the Jewish historian Josephus. This man was a Godly man but not a follower of Christ. However, in one of his most famous passages from The Antiquities (A.D. 93) he describes Jesus as “a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man” who was crucified and who “on the third day he appeared [to those who loved him] restored to life”. To be fair, the authenticity of some of the more supernatural references in this passage are disputed by scholars but nobody doubts that the man Josephus was writing about was Jesus.

In A.D. 115, Tacitus (the most important Roman historian of the first century) wrote about how emperor Nero had persecuted the Christians as a scapegoat. Tacitus had referred to them as followers of the Christ who had “suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurator, Pontius Pilatus”. So while this passage does not refer to Jesus by name, it does refer to a man who was crucified by Pontius Pilate, from whom a the religious movement of “Christians” was borne.

On top of these there are also references to Jesus by Pliny the Younger and Suetonius, two more Roman historians.

The fact that authors and historians that were outside of Christianity confirm that Jesus was a real man that did exist and was crucified like the Bible says was really important to me. It meant that the option of him being a totally made up character was no longer an option and what that left me was to decide who he was instead.

If you want to know more why not read these Wikipedia articles: Josephus on Jesus and Tacitus on Jesus. Or if you would rather read a book written by a respected author I highly recommend The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel.

Or if you would rather have the opportunity to discuss this with people why not find a local Alpha Course to go on where you can debate your issues with real people who probably have the exact same questions as you!

Posted by Adam under Faith | No Comments »

I’ve been playing with the idea of launching a new series of posts for a while based on some of the questions I have had surrounding God and Christianity. It struck me what better time to kick it off than Easter, the day that Christians around the world celebrate the resurrection of Jesus about 200 years ago.

I need to put in a disclaimer before I start this series though: I am not a theologian, I have not been to Bible college and I am not a great reader. However, I do tend to be naturally sceptical and if there is something I have trouble with I will do as much investigation as I feel necessary to come up with a suitable answer.

This means that everything I write in this series is solely my opinion so if anybody wants to question of criticize anything I write please be my guest; that’s what the comments are for!

Also, if anybody has a question of their own that they find is a real sticking point with them believing Christianity or is something you ignore in you walk with God as you just can’t get your head around it please ask it and I will attempt to share my opinion (and hopefully others will share theirs!)

Posted by Adam under Faith | 1 Comment »

I stumbled across this article the other day. Basically, a man who kept getting fed up by his over-evangelistic work colleague decided to trip him up with a soul-searching dilemma. This dilemma pretty much comes down to the following question:

If given the opportunity, being present at the crucifixion and knowing what you know now, would you save [Jesus] from murder? If you knew you could succeed and assuming you love him as much as you claim, would you retrieve him from torture and death, or would you watch him suffer and expire in order to win your so-called salvation? Which is essentially a selfish act.

In the article the Christian walked away frustrated and baffled and the athiest had won a personal victory.

It got me wondering what I would say if asked the same question.

First off let’s deal with the practical issue of being able to save His life (and scupper God’s plans to save us all). If Jesus was who He said He was then He knew about everything that was goinf to happen to Him; from Judas’ betrayal to dying a painful death on a cross. If this is true then He would also know that I would go back in time to try and save Him.

If I was to succeed in saving His life then this was part of God’s plan and I was just playing my part, otherwise something would stop me in order for the events to play out exactly as God had planned.

However, this is not the purpose of the question the athiest is asking. He is trying to find out if a Christian would do “the right thing” and save Jesus if we could or if we would let Him die to save ourselves.

My answer to this question would be this: I would walk up to Jesus and ask Him if He wants me to save Him. As my Lord and King I would respect His answer and follow it. If He said yes then it is part of God’s plan and I am doing my part. If He said no (which is what I am certain He would have said) then I would watch Him make the ultimate sacrifice and bow at His feet in thanks.

Posted by Adam under Faith | 3 Comments »

There is no doubting that Michael Bay is the unquestioned master of the dumb summer blockbuster. No-one can make a film as loud, stupid and entertaining as Michael Bay can. But his greatest achievement is not the over-ambitious Pearl Harbor, or the slick and cool Bad Boys or even the loud and disappointing Transformers. It was the loud, cool and ambitious Armageddon.

I love Armageddon. I think it is a great film. It is non-stop, action filled and most important of all: Lots of fun!!

It came at a time when Bruce Willis was reaching his peak (it was the year after Fifth Element and the year before The Sixth Sense) and starred a host of up and coming talent like Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler and Owen Wilson alongside the more established names of Billy Bob Thornton and Will Patton. It tore up the big screen with it’s loud explosions, cool characters and witty banter.

What surprised me the most when I was watching it (again) were the special effects or, more accurately, that I didn’t notice them. Even when I watch films that are only few years old I can’t help but notice how special effects have come on a long way and how dated they look but with Armageddon that thought didn’t occur to me. From the meteors hitting Earth to the scenes in space, the special effects just worked beautifully. They didn’t try anything too spectacular and just kept it simple but effective.

[Spolier Alert] So, I have to mention it: Was Bruce Willis’ character Harry meant to be a Jesus metaphor? The way he sacrificed his life not just for his friends and family but for all mankind; it does kind of point to what Jesus did on the cross. The big difference was that Harry’s sacrifice saved the physical world and allowed people to keep on living. What Jesus did was all about what happens after we die: He enabled us to live forever with God in heaven.

If you are looking for a light hearted, fun and enjoyable action film with lots of explosions and funny characters I highly recommend this film. If you are a sci-fi fan like me too then even better :)

[8/10]

Posted by Adam under Films | No Comments »

It is best to start my testimony with some history: I was not born a Christian. I did not attend church growing up and by the time I was a teenager I had come to the conclusion that religion was a dying fad and that science had virtually killed it. I was confident in evolution, the big bang and all the answers that modern science had provided. To me the stories in the bible were just that; stories. Jesus was just a man who was made up and written about in a book.

So how did all this change? You can read the history of where I came from on my About Me page but in summary, when I moved to Swindon as a student to work I met some Christians who were not at all what I expected. In my mind Christians sit in pews in a cold church and sing hymns like on Songs of Praise. Suddenly I was confronted with normal people who were funny, enjoyed life and weren’t at all odd. They just loved God and attended church every Sunday.

I still resisted though. The fact that I met some people that were normal didn’t change my mind about religion. But I went through some tough times at the end of my working year that got me asking questions. So, when I went back to university and found out that one of my best friends there was actually a Christian too I was very surprised! She invited me on something called an Alpha course that her church was going to be running and I thought “Why not?” I went on it and by the end I thought all my questions had been answered, I asked God for forgiveness and I considered myself a Christian. I got myself a bible and started to pray. The peace that came with this decision was quite remarkable but I still didn’t go to church or really change my ways very much.

Fast forward about a year and I was living in Swindon again and I still wasn’t attending church but my housemate Phil was. He started to run a football game on a Saturday and he would invite various people from his church along and through that I got to know a variety of new Christians.

When it was time for Phil to get baptised I thought I would attend and check it out. I made the decision there and then that no matter how weird it was I would continue to go back week after week. It wasn’t what I was expecting at all. The church was in a renevated warehouse, there were comfy chairs, not pews and the music was modern and kinda cool and not hymny at all!

I still struggled though. I came from a history of science and fact and this “blind faith” that I was working with didn’t suit me at all. It got to the point where I stopped attending church as I was finding it too confusing. Thankfully God was looking out for me and He put an idea in the minds of two people who are now very good friends of mine to invite me over for dinner to get to know me better. I ended up going round to see them every week for months. I would ask them lots of questions about God and religion and sometimes I would get frustrated and other times I must have frustrated them so much. I tried to trip them up and I think I had it in my mind that if I could convince them that they were wrong then I would have my answer. Thankfully I was never successful!

All these discussions were great and really helped but there were just some questions that couldn’t be answered or I wasn’t content with the answers I was given. I needed to know some facts. I am a scientist and I need to know solid facts about this story I was meant to be believing. There were far more than I was expecting to find: Jesus wasn’t just some character in a tale. He actually existed! Also the bible is considered a more reliable document than the writings of Plato and Homer!

So with these new facts at my disposal I was able to come to God and church with a fresh mind and renewed confidence. And the more I trusted in God the more He has blessed me and helped me along. I got baptised in 2007 and despite the occasional hiccup I’m moving on leaps and bounds with God all the time.

It wasn’t easy for me to be a Christian. My head was trying to stop me at every opportunity but in the end it was the facts that convinced me to trust in God with everything. I’m still a work in progress and I think I always will be but I now know I can trust God with everything. I just have to remember to walk in that and continue to grow under His direction.

Posted by Adam under | 3 Comments »