Shabbat shalom chaverim. Thank you for joining me this morning for this short address. I had hoped we would be able to resume our study of the Book of Revelation but I regret I have been too ill to prepare for that. Unfortunately my condition has considerably worsened and I have not been up to concentrating let alone writing or speaking for very long.

What I want to do today is by way of having a heart-to-heart conversation with everyone. So many of you are going through extreme difficulties right now whether it be serious medical problems, economic hardship, difficult career choices, or just fear over the mad headlong rush into totalitarianism which the nations are currently experiencing. Whatever your difficulties, I hope that this short message will speak to you. And more than ever we all need to feel Yahweh much, much closer. We desperately need words of comfort, assurance and hope.

How do we get in tune with the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) and stay tuned? Part of the problem is that we can get so terribly occupied with lawful things, let alone unlawful ones, that we aren't following His will any longer for the pure and simple reason that we don't know what it is. I would like to suggest to you today that our primary purpose in life is to be following Elohim's (God's) will in the present moment. You see, even good and noble things can potentially divert us from that! The secret to a happy, vibrant and content Christian/Messianic life is knowing you are doing Yahweh's will at any one moment in time however menial or mundane the task may be. Only when we learn to abandon ourselves to Yahweh can we know Him because the moment we do that, divine providence is at work. Always, without fail.

What do I mean by that? To abandon ourselves to Yahweh through His Son Yah'shua (Jesus) quite simply means to give up, or yield, our life to His control or mercy. The fleshy nature, when it has full control in a man's or woman's life, resists that notion passionately. There are, you see, two passions at work here, because abandonment to the divine is a very active thing indeed too. It isn't only passive. You don't just turn yourself into jelly/jello and say, 'Take me, O Lord' or 'Have me, Master' while you metaphorically lie limp and flaccid. Abandonment is very much actively casting or throwing yourself toward or at the Master.

In so consciously and sincerely doing, something happens immediately, because you are casting yourself into a spiritual stream with a current that will most definitely take you somewhere, even if you don't know where, unless you choose to resist it. Your mind - your intellect, your heart - your feelings, your spirit - your will, will immediately be directed to the destination of that spiritual current that is specific to you and your life. And simply being in that stream of the Father's will will start making you qadosh or holy because you have allowed yourself to be set-apart to whatever Yahweh has willed and ordained for your life.

Complete self-abandonment to Elohim (God) means letting go of all your attachments and therefter trusting that Yahweh is watching over, protecting, and leading you at each moment in your journey through life. He may reattach you to some of the things you were attached to before you let go, only know there will be an overall purpose as part of something far greater than yourself. By this means you will experience the sacred, the divine, in each moment of your life, what Jean-Pierre de Caussade called called 'the sacrament of the present moment', the discovery of Elohim (God) in all things.

One of the first things that you must learn is the difference between passive and active loyalty to Yahweh's will. These two are parts of the same whole but you must be able to both differentiate between them and know their proper relationship to each other. In abandoning yourself to our Heavenly Father and His Son as a single act possessing these two components, you will be able to positively endure, and benefit from, every setback and hardship that you will experience in life...and there will be many of these for those of you who are young and are about to sally forth into life. You will come to learn the pure ahavah (love) of Elohim (God) that comes from pure emunah (faith) and trust in His providence - what He provides for you - and from this will emerge that authentic experience of shalom (peace) and quietude as opposed to the superficial peace that comes from the momentary gratification of the flesh for which you must strive so hard, and struggle even harder to maintain or reproduce.

Now hear this, and hear it well: Yahweh's will includes, rather obviously to you, I hope, fulfilling the obligations of our state in life. We are all born into different circumstances, into different 'states', as it were. We are born into our families and into one or more social environments that include the Messianic Community (Church) (if we have been so blessed), school, work, and so on and Yahweh's will lies hidden in our share of the duties of the present moment. To discover Yahweh's will means abandoning our self-will and embracing whatever is asked of us by Him from one moment to the next. Even worthy activities like reading and spiritual devotions are quite useless if they are not what Yahweh wants for us in the present moment. And this is the next truth I want you to be aware of: Holiness does not require an intricate knowledge of the truths of the faith but simply a willingness to embrace the Father's will in the present. What this means practically is that, when properly understood and dutifully performed, even the most trivial and otherwise unimportant tasks will sanctify you and lead you into communion with the Divine.

Those who thus learn to be sensitive to the Ruach (Spirit) are like the hand of a clock that achieves its appointed task from one minute to the next. When you are under the constant influence of divine grace - the undeserved loving kindness of the Father - you will faithfully fulfill your duties from one moment to the next with little fuss, stress or forethought. Take Mary the mother of Yah'shua (Jesus) as an example. It's clear from the scriptural accounts we have of her that the reason she was so pure of heart, and why she was chosen to be the mother of the Saviour, was that she was someone who followed Yahweh's will at each moment of her life. She did whatever she was asked of her in a spirit of humble surrender - with a true servant's heart. She saw these tasks as gifts from the Father and received them with great simcha (joy) without comparing them to the gifts given to others.

I am a continuationist, meaning I believe that Yahweh still speaks today as He spoke to our ancestors in Scripture. I absolutely believe that, and this at a time when there were few, if any, spiritual tutors around. Take Abraham who certainly had no tutors or mentors to guide him. He went to no theological seminary to train. Wasn't this true of the original apostles too, Paul being the exception, yet for some reason most Protestants seem to think they must be like Paul! In ancient times spirituality consisted of fidelty or faithfulness to the designs of Elohim (God) without anyone having to go to scholars and teachers. But this was only possible because then people were more upright and simple. There were no psychologists and philosphers to clutter their minds with abstract words and concepts.

It was enough for our ancestors who led a spiritual life to see that each moment brought with it a duty to be faithfully fulfilled. Duty then was a natural thing. Their attention was fully fixed on that duty at each successive moment, like the hand of that clock I mentioned. That's how Joseph of Egypt, a messianic foreshadowing, was. For was not our Messiah fully fixed on His duty to the will of His Heavenly Father? (Jn.14:31) Did He not give Yahweh complete loyalty and willing obedience in ahavah (love)? Those like Abraham and Joseph tuned in without conscious effort and thus they were able to give of their very best in every situation without anxiety. They dealt with each matter as it presented itself. When Mary received angelic instruction, she did not get all flustered; her response was simply:

"Let it be to me according to your word" (Luke 1:38, NKJV).

"Speak, Yahweh, for your servant is listening" (1 Sam.3:9, NIV).

That is the sum of all that some call 'mystical theology'. That's it! And all it requires is the abandonment, surrendering or yielding of our will to His. It's not complicated. Yah'shua (Jesus) was exactly the same: "Thy will be done" (Matt.6:10, KJV). We cannot see the splendour of the glory of Elohim (God), nor move in it to accomplish His purpose for us, without first seeing or knowing that we are acting in His will. How we learn to know that it is His will I will explain presently.

All life is a function of the execise of free will but really we cannot understand the glory of that freedom until we have freely given it to Christ as He asks. Until then we'll be on our own and not know what Yahweh's will is. Whether the things we do are commonplace or lofty, clear or obscure, so long as we are operating in His will it won't matter.

I came to Scandinavia on the basis of a simple instruction given in a vision. I abandoned everything I had known in England and went forth in faith. When He showed me in a dream this building we are meeting in today and I saw a picture of it in an advertisement, I completely abandoned all my plans in Norway and moved country again to Sweden, and made an offer to the owner the very same day I first visited on the basis of knowing I was operating in His will. I had no survey made, which would have been the wise, sensible thing to do without such guidance. It's been like that in so many things in my life. If I have needed a car, it's just been 'there' one day and I have known and gone ahead and bought it. If I needed a job, it's suddenly been 'there' - I have walked into a building not knowing if there were any jobs available or not and got it that same day. It makes life so much easier, so much less complicated. And whilst I am not saying Yahweh's will is realised so quickly and simply always, often it is. Sometimes it has taken a long time because His will involved responding to many different steps that required the response of others in a long chain of events and choices too, and we must simply wait for all that to happen. I have simply chosen to walk in faith. Have I made mistakes? Absolutely, because I stopped listening in my over-eagerness or fear.

The central question here is not big, complicated schemes. I have usually let Yahweh work all that out. My job is to deal with the little moments, one at a time. For in each of these apparently insignificant moments are treasures of grace. On the surface, these events seem no different to those that happen to everyone, but that is the exterior or outer only - there is always an inner or interior component too, the most important part, where the divine hand guides and moves.

Time is sacred. It was created by the Creator. He appoints times and seasons for the world, nations, communities, churches, families and individuals in an intricate tapestry that we cannot begin to fathom. He gives us a sacred calendar to facilitate our awareness of that. We can get glimpses of this, one moment at a time, and what may at first seem insignifcant is actually pregnant with huge possibilities. In such moments you may find a pearl of great price or cost (Mt.34:46), some heavenly manna (Jn.6:31,58).

The manger in which Christ was born may have only consisted hay and straw but what happened on that humble hay and straw changed the destiny of the Universe forever. So do not deride hay and straw! Simple folk presented Yahweh with hay and straw and upon it He placed His own Son. By this means He fills the hungry soul with "good things" (Lk.1:53) by revealing Himself to the humble and lowly while those who consider themselves to be 'great' never delve beneath the surface, never see beyond the straw and hay, and cannot find Yahweh even in great events. They are too proud to see, too blind to understand.

Holiness is not difficult. It is not complicated. It requires no complex rituals or mantras. It consists entirely of, and solely in, being faithful to Elohim's (God's) will.

I want to finish this little excursion - and perhaps we can take it further another time if that interests you - by explaining carefully the difference between passive and active faithfulness, because this is so important. Active faithfulness means following Yahweh's torot (laws) and mitzvot (commandments) and fulfilling the duties of our station in life as sons and daughters, teachers and pupils, fathers and mothers, employees and employers, elders and deacons, and so forth. Passive faithfulness has to do with the loving embrace of whatever Yahweh sends us from one moment to the next. And here's the thing - neither active nor passive faithfulness is difficult since Yahweh never tests us beyond our limits.

The secret to holiness and being in right relationship with Elohim (God) is to view everything that happens to us as a manifestation of His will and to embrace whatever is required with every fiber of our being. Is this not what Joseph did when he was taken, under adverse circumstances as a slave into the household of Pottiphar, separated from his beloved family, becoming the best servant he could become? And when he was falsely accused by Pottiphar's adulterous wife and thrown into Pharaoh's prison, is this not what he did, serving to the best of his ability until he was appointed head of the prisoners? Is this not what he did when his circumstances became completely reversed and he found himself as Prime Minister of Egypt, becoming both that nation's saviour from starvation and the saviour of his father's house and nation, Israel, too? Did he not become the saviour of his wicked brothers and become the reconciler, as the one wronged, restoring unity in Israel? And all because he accepted what he could not himself change. Yes, we should change the things we can change, but what of that which we cannot? Is this not what all the nevi'im (prophets) did too, culminating in John the Baptist and the Saviour Himself?

Recently I said that life on this world is never easy, nor was it intended to be, but that if we did what's right, it would be absolutely worth it. So long as we understand why we are here, to learn how to be saved through self-surrender or self-abandonment to the One (Christ) who did what Joseph of Egypt did on a cosmic scale for all mankind, and to develop character, we will not go searching for meaning and purpose down all the wrong avenues. Joseph did not become the second most powerful man in the Kingdom of Egypt because he had ambitions for power but because He daily - moment by moment - learned to submit to the will of Elohim (God). He was not made Prime Minister to fulfill some hunger for power that he was driven by, but because he had a servant's heart. He did the very opposite of what the world teaches, including many misguided ministers abd clergymen, I might add.

One of my Danish students years ago, upon being asked what kind of profession he would like to follow, replied to me that he wanted to become a Lutheran clergyman, the state-appointed religion in Denmark. Knowing the boy as his teacher I wondered at this because I had never seen any signs of spirituality in him, I asked him, why? He told me because the salary was reasonable and the job secure for life. He had no clue about ministry because he did not have the heart of Joseph, let alone the Messiah whom he would have been representing! I hope he never did become a clergyman because he did not have a servant's heart, or that if he did, He had a radical change of heart.

The true believer has but one object and that is holiness. That is why in Scripture believers are called qodeshim or saints - holy ones, set-apart ones dedicated to service in the House of Yahweh. Every single human being is called to be that. And holiness consists of one thing alone, and that is, faithfulness or fidelity to Yahweh's plan in your life whether you are called to be a pastor or president, plumber or postman. And this faithfulness is equally within everyone's capacity in both its active and passive exercise. It's what you were naturally designed for. The only thing you have to resolve in your mind is whom you will serve: Yahweh or yourself because that pretty much what every choice you make boils down to (Joshua 24:15). Serving self is the unnatural way, it's not what we were designed for, and it requires an extra, needless struggle that wears you out and leads only to frustration and disappointment.

I had all sorts of plans when I was young. I became none of the things I planned to be: I wanted to be a pilot (because I loved planes), the Postmaster General (because I loved postage stamps), the President of Europe (because I loved politics), an army officer (because I loved the military), and much else besides. In the end I became, first, a laboratory assistant, then a private tutor, a school teacher, a pastor, an author and finally the pioneer of a new spiritual movement. And though I am in the late autumn of my years, I am prepared for a change again, if that's what He wants. Indeed this sermon is not at all what I had planned but it was what I know Yahweh wanted me to share with you today, and he gave it to me literally at the 'last moment' with some assistance from de Caussade.

Abarahm had been a wealthy merchant in Ur of the Chaldees before Yahweh called him to be a pioneer. He used his skills to good effect later as a herdsman earning a living to support his large family. He left all of that behind to embark on an unknown journey to an unknown destination, completely changing his lifestyle. Yahweh does that, causes big changes to happen in our lives, but when He does, He always provides. I can only assume that in Ur, Abraham was a dutiful man as Mary would later become a dutiful woman in Roman Judea. What they did and accomplished was not done in their own strength but in their dependence on Elohim (God).

Yahweh has made only two requirements of us: active and passive dependence. Which of these is beyond our strength? Certainly not active faithfulness, since the duty it imposes ceases when it becomes beyond our power to do them. If your health is so bad that you cannot assemble with other believers on the sabbaths and festivals, then you are no obligation to do so. It's the same with all positive precepts and mitzvot (commandments) which lay down duties to be done. If you are unable to carry out a duty then you should not feel guilty because Yahweh never expects you to do what you cannot do. The thief converted by Messiah on the cross could not obey the mitzvah (commandment) to be baptised just as someone in the middle of the Gobi Desert could not be baptised immediately because of a lack of water. I could not go abroad to assist in the care of my dying mother-in-law both because I was too ill, we could not afford it, and I would have been compelled to undergo a dangerous medical procedure that would have required me to violate a mitzvah (commandment). The only duties to which no exceptions can be allowed are those which forbid the doing of things - things that are evil in themselves like murder, adultery or theft - because it is never permissible to do evil. And yet there are those who torture their consciences because they cannot carry out positive mitzvot (commandments) because of circumstances. Thus a political prisoner in a concentration camp, compelled to do forced labour seven days a week against his will, may not be able to observe the sabbath through no fault of his own.

So, again, I ask, could anything be easier or more reasonable? What excuse can we give? This is all that Yahweh demands of us in the work of sanctification - of becoming qadosh or holy as He is qadosh or holy. Even the Saviour Himself could not care for His mother while He was nailed on a cross for our sins which is why He assigned the sacred task of a son taking care of his parents in their old age to the apostle John (Jn.19:25-27). Yahweh makes this same demand of the high and the low alike, from the strong and the weak too - in short, of everybody, always and everywhere. It's a level spiritual playing field. All that is needed is a reservoir of good will and such obedience will always bear good, not to mention everlasting, fruit.

Yahweh our Heavenly father is always careful to accommodate the tasks He gives us to our character and where we are at in our spiritual maturity. He is sensitive to these things. It's the way in which grace - His undeserved loving kindness - enables us to accomplish our duties in spite of character defects and limited spiritual maturity, and that is truly remarkable, because He never pushes us beyond our strength and abilities. Again, what could be more just? Our duties are tailor made to us. So don't be discouraged, let alone envious, when you see other believers doing what you are not equipped, let alone called, to do.

The reverse is true too. The mitzvah (commandment) of Christ to "be perfect...as your Heavenly Father is perfect" (Matt.5:48) doesn't mean you have to become a godlet. Rather, it means being perfect within the capacity you have been given by Yahweh as a human being. Some people, quite frankly, have ghastly ideas about perfection that may result in them ruining and destroying themselves. Perfection for you and me is being obedient to the tasks and duties of the moment. Last night I knew I could not possibly have prepared another sermon in the series on the Book of Revelation. Yet as I was about to go to bed, Yahweh told me to go and write this which I finished only about an hour ago. I managed it because I obeyed and though I am still very ill, I am none the worse physically for having obeyed. I did what was perfect within my own limitations thanks to His grace - His unmerited favour toward me - in equipping me to do it.

Yahweh is an Elohim (God) of goodness. He puts within easy reach all the things which are necessary and common to everyone else living in the natural order. We have to be wage-earners or house-keepers, take care of those around us, and live the life given to all humanity. We need to breathe, sleep, eat and rest - nothing could be easier. But love and faithfulness are just as necessary in the divine order of creation and aren't nearly so hard to do as we might suppose. Your life, and mine, consist of an infinite number of seemingly unimportant actions. This morning I have had to be a janitor and to attend to animals, as have some of you, ordinary, menial tasks. But it's with these very things, so insignificant in the minds of the overly religious, that our Elohim (God) is pleased and satisfied. They are your share in the work of perfection. Solomon's great summary of the meaning of life after the long struggle of his soul was this:

"Fear Elohim (God) and keep His mitzvot (commandments), for this is the whole [duty] of man" (Eccl.12:13, NIV).

That what we have to do for our part in the relationship - this is what active faithfulness consists of. And if we fulfill our part, Yahweh will do the rest. He says so. Believe it. Grace will take full control of us, and the wonders that that grace works upon us will surpass all understanding. As Paul himself reiterated:

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what Elohim (God) has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Cor.2:9, NIV).

Now the passive part of holiness is even easier than the active! It consists solely of accepting what most frequently cannot be avoided, in suffering in love, instead of enduring it with weariness and discontent. This is the whole truth about sanctity. This is the mustard seed grain which, when lovingly planted and tended, sprouts up and becomes a mighty tree (Mt.13:31-32; 17:20; Mk.4:303-32; Lk.13:18-19; 17:6). Just because it started small does not mean it won't become big. Accept being small and see what Yahweh can do to grow you. This is the coin that was lost, which the woman diligently sought for, until she had found it and celebrated the event with a party! (Lk.15:8-10) That's what I'm encouraging you to do today. Get a hold of that seed and plant it. Search for that lost coin and then, then you've found it, celebrate. Because that's what everything is about down here in mortality.

So don't go searching for deep, mystical secrets. They don't exist. It's the false religions that tell you they do. This treasure is everywhere. This pearl of great price is in the ground of your life and just needs to be dug up and used. All things in life's experience, both the good and the bad, the friendly and the hostile, pour out this truth freely and make it infuse every faculty of body and spirit, right down into the very depths of our hearts. All we have to do is open our mouths and they will be filled. Divine activity floods the Cosmos, pervading all things, flowing over them all. But we have to allow ourselves to be carried forward on the crest of its waves. We can't make those waves ourselves and possibly hope to succeed.

If you like, we could maybe talk more about this next week? So until then, Yahweh bless you as you grab this the simplest and most important truth-seed in creation. Amen.

Acknowledgements

[1] Jean-Pierre de Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence (Christian Classics, Notre Dame, Indiana: 2021)

Comments from Readers

[1] "Thanks for your last sermon. It was really good and helpful. Sometimes I am really exhaused [and] a little bit overwhelmed because of all the theology and intellectual doctrine. I always had this simple view of faith I gained in childhood through all the Bible stories and other stories from missionaries" (JS, Germany, 14 December 2021)
[2] "Wow, what a wonderful inspiration you are, Brother Christopher, with the sharing and demonstration of your faith. Precious Father, please heal our precious leader and shepherd. Send Your magnificent healing touch through the flow of Your Ruach haQodesh to our Brother as we so need him to continue to help poor, seeking souls as myself. We certainly have the power You graciously promised us that the prayer of righteous followers would be moving (paraphrase). We lift Brother up in unison with all the many who love him, You and Your precious Son our Savior, Yah'shua" (MW, USA, 2 January 2022)