Issue 074
When I was a young clergyman in North Kensington I
met with a senior colleague and we prayed for our
respective congregations. I remember he prayed for
the salt peppered all over London as they did their
work. I remember laughing out loud at the language but
I also remember the validity of his point.
If you go to work each day, you are a member of the
peppered or scattered church. It’s become a favourite
image of mine when I think of Christians at work.
Christians, except the apostles, were scattered all over
the regions after the death of Stephen in a seemingly
random way. On Monday morning, after gathering for a
good church service on Sunday, some take that feeling
of being randomly scattered to work. But the scattered
first Christians took their faith with them in a way that
the early clergy could not by virtue of their numbers
and positions. So for you being scattered each day
amongst those with no faith or other views is an
opportunity, not a random happening. Here are some
suggestions to help you think about making the most of
your privilege.
Salt was scattered in Jesus’ time to act as a preservative
and a seasoning. So bring life and stop the rot where
you work and never be afraid to encourage what is
good and stand against what is bad.
Seed was scattered and grew amongst weeds. So God
has placed you amongst others as a sign of his life so
don’t be surprised if you are in a minority – take your
stand.
Yeast was scattered throughout the dough to bring
spectacular growth. God has prospered many of his
people and put them in positions of spectacular success
and influence, so if that’s you, thank God for your success and
remember that it’s a gift given to you for a purpose and not
just for your own benefit. I’m neither a cook nor a
farmer, nor do I profess to be an expert on herbs and
spices, so I don’t know what you can make out of salt,
seeds and yeast but I suspect God has got something
brewing.
Acts 8:1-5
1And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.
2On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at
Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. 4Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ
Acts 11:18-20
18When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles
repentance unto life.” 19Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews. 20Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.
Matthew 5:13
13″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.
Matthew 13:24-33
31He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” 33He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour
until it worked all through the dough.”
24Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. 27″The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28” ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29” ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ “
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Work well
Geoff Shattock
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