Thoughts this weekend turn towards the future. What will next year bring? Joy and success, or disaster and ruin? Will our personal faith flourish and grow, or will it atrophy and decay through neglect? How should we face the future?
The media consensus about people who talked religion on Christmas Day is that Queen Elizabeth showed more clarity of conviction about her personal faith than did the Archbishop of Canterbury in his politically correct sermon. She highlighted the Bible's teaching that there is light in all religions; because one God is the creator of humanity, it's no surprise he is being sought by all he has created. The Queen then affirmed the Christian truth claim that there is a complete revelation of God in history in Jesus Christ and she unashamedly confessed her trust in him for past, present and future.
Another monarch, King David, came up with a similar object lesson in clarity in the context of a multi-faith society when he wrote Psalm 138:
"I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; before the `gods' I will sing your praise.
I will bow down before your holy temple and praise your name for your love and your faithfulness.
For you have exalted above all things your name and your word.
When I called, you answered me; you made me bold and stout-hearted." (vs. 1-3)
Though surrounded by pagan temples, with their exotic sights and sounds designed to dazzle the senses, this king still remembered Jerusalem and, as a symbol of that, turned in the direction of the city when he prayed. If Queen Elizabeth's confession was one that came from the heart - for never had she been so personal and explicit, the media noted - this king likewise is crystal clear in his faith commitment. His praise of the true and living God is "with all my heart". The insistent demand of God is that the lives of his worshippers indicate their hearts' allegiance to him moment by moment, not just offering the tokenism of an hour or less on a Sunday morning or Saturday evening. True religion and godliness carry their own 24-hour authentication tag; as Jesus Himself put it, "by their fruits you shall know them."
Rightly so, for this God has "exalted above all things his name and his word". It really does matter to God that his character and reputation are unsullied as the faithful, caring, promise-keeping God, and that his people can testify to his absolute reliability in all kinds of situations. This the king bears witness to in a potentially hostile environment:
"May all the kings of the earth praise you, O Lord, when they hear the words of your mouth. May they sing of the ways of the Lord, for the glory of the Lord is great." (vs.4-5)
Surrounded by idol worshippers in Ireland in 2001, bowing at the shrines of power, influence, family, children, money, good looks, talent and all the rest, those who will bow only in one direction and before one God should expect hostility, too, when they imply that to give one's life to those ultimately insubstantial and unsatisfying goals is laughable.
The New Testament in its turn is replete with the conviction that the Christian's ultimate destiny is heaven and that meanwhile the business of life, under all circumstances, is to bring praise to God's name and word.
It is achieving realistic goals in this area which will preoccupy committed Christians in 2001. Our faith odyssey has never been summed up better than in the opening words of the great Reformation belief statement, the Westminister Shorter Catechism:
Q: What is the chief end of man?
A: The chief end of man is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.
G.F.