Out with the old, in with the new!

Happy New Year!

We saw the New Year in with friends and family and then got up bright and early this morning to gather with more friends and family at the Angel of the North to witness the first sunrise of 2018. We reflected on the year that has past and all that we’re leaving behind as we head out into the unknown territory of 2018. We considered our intentions and resolutions, our hopes and aspirations, as we look ahead to fresh adventures and fresh expressions of our faith and love in action.

I’m ready for a year of action. Out with the old, in with the new!

Throughout December in Join Our Journey, we focused on the Christmas story. As you do. There were stirrings of anticipation and expectation, that sense that something mind-blowing had just taken place, something that would take a lifetime to process, a lifetime to express itself in words and in action.

As we start a new year, we focus this month on the words of Jesus. Of course, what Jesus did and what Jesus said are so often interlinked, but throughout this month of resolution and intention, we’ll concentrate on what Jesus had to say. We’ll be Red Letter Christians for a month (and beyond!) – those who ‘take the words of Jesus seriously’. There are versions of the Bible where all the words of Jesus are in red. They stand out from the rest. They carry more weight. Allowing the words of Jesus to shape our lives seems like a great place to start this new year.

When Jesus started out on his ministry, he was announcing that something new and radical was about to come into being. There was a real sense of ‘Out with the old, in with the new’. God had been trying to maintain a relationship with his people for generations and nothing had worked for any length of time. It was time to try something new. Something radical and different. Something that would turn all that had gone before on its head.

From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Matthew 4:12-17

These are the first words of the adult Jesus recorded by Matthew in his account of Jesus’ life.

Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.

And this is the first mention of the kingdom of heaven. The very first mention anywhere. Jesus was talking about a brand new kingdom, a kingdom never before imagined or proclaimed. The people knew all about kingdoms and kings. They’d demanded a king to rule over God’s people.

Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah; and they said to him, “Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint a king for us to judge us like all the nations.”  1 Samuel 8:4-5

They wanted to be like everyone else. And yet when they remembered who God was and what He had done, they recognised that the God of heaven was above all the kingdoms of the earth, that He ruled over all the kingdoms of the earth. It’s in the book of Daniel where this is taken one step further and we see visions of how ‘the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed – an everlasting kingdom.’

Then Jesus comes along, this nobody from nowhere, and announces that the kingdom of heaven is near. Matthew records many other situations where Jesus talks about the kingdom of heaven. We’re going to have a lot of fun unpacking those in the days to come. The other Gospel writers describe this kingdom as the kingdom of God. (especially Luke!) and Matthew uses ‘kingdom of God’ and ‘kingdom of heaven’ to mean the same thing.

One thing is clear. This is new. This is revolutionary. This has never been experienced before. This is good news.

‘The time has come,’ Jesus said. ‘The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!’  Mark 1:15

There’s a response required. We are called to repent. We bristle at that word, at its connotations, but the original word here is extremely positive. That word is ‘T’shuvah’.

And so this great word T’shuvah contains two sides of the same coin: our incredible potential to do good and be the best version of ourselves and our potential to screw up spectacularly. We hold that tension within us each day. All of us do. And it’s about turning towards the light, recognising the divine, moving towards a life that is lived to the full.  Returning to our best self, the one we were created to be

It’s basically all about affirming ‘Out with the old, in with the new’!

It’s interesting that that quote mentions turning towards the light, because in Matthew 4, just prior to these first words of Jesus, there’s a quote from the prophet Isaiah that Matthew firmly believes Jesus has come to fulfil.

the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.  Matthew 4:16

It’s all so wonderfully encouraging, isn’t it? The thought that there can be a better way. That is doesn’t have to always be like this. That we can believe in better. That there is more than this. The world around us can seem pretty dark and the thought that a great light can shine in the darkness fills us with hope. As it should.

This is great news. Great news that is good enough to share. Just as Jesus did.

‘I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.’  Luke 4:43

This is not an easy path to walk, however. Jesus stood up in front of his own people and nailed his colours to the mast. If we are to follow Jesus’ example, then we have to take his words seriously. We have to nail our colours to the mast too. We have to weigh up his words and work out what they mean for us in practice. I find this passage so immensely powerful every time I read it. It’s a radical manifesto for the year ahead.

Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’ Luke 4:16-21

Boom! That’s the kingdom of heaven right there!

Good news to the poor.

Freedom for the prisoners.

Sight for the blind.

Freedom for the oppressed.

What does that look like for us today?