“When a soul has attained a love filling the whole universe indiscriminately, this love becomes the bird with golden wings that pierces an opening in the egg of the world. After that, such a soul loves the universe, not from within but from without; from the dwelling place of the Wisdom of God, our first-born brother. Such a love does not love beings and things of God, but from the abode of God. Being close to God it views all beings and things from there, and its gaze is merged in the gaze of God.”

– Simone Weil

As another year ends and another Christmas approaches, there is in us, yet again, a renewed sense of our own uncertainty; a recognition that the world around us is perhaps, not much better than it was a year ago; a worry that the future may not be as bright as we had once envisioned it to be.

For the faithful, the beginning of advent marks a period of expectation. It is a reminder that all is not yet complete. It is also a reminder of that which we have received.

For the faithful, advent marks a time for reflection; a time to recall the moments in one’s life in which one has been without; a time to remember the moments in which it seemed that no hope could be found; a time to remember when “aloneness” threatened to swallow us whole.

Mysteriously though, advent also marks a time to reflect upon the moments at which, despite our aloneness, lack of hope or utter poverty, night miraculously turned itself to day; winter, once again to spring; hopelessness, once again to hope.

For the faithful, then, more than just a time of awaiting, advent is a time to recall what it has meant (and continually means) to hope for one’s salvation; the day when all old things will be made new; the day in when love will triumph over all.

In this vein, a sermon by an ethno-Hungarian Romanian comes to mind. In this particular sermon, the speaker described his parent’s reaction to the various warnings they had been given by “counselors of worldly wisdom.”

When the big persecution [in Romania] began in the life of my parents, some counselors of worldly wisdom advised my father to be “very attentive” because a great suffering was coming; because death itself was drawing near; because the great destroyer of our family was at hand.

My parents’ response to them was simple: “No, it is not a great suffering that is coming; nor is it death itself or the destroyer who is to come that will be overcoming us – it is the Lord, himself, who is drawing near.

And if the Lord happens to be coming through a great suffering, or in the form of the great destroyer, or as death itself, it is only because he wants to renew the life of the church. It is only because he wants to strip away all that is between our face and his, it is only because he wants to meet us apart from everything else.”

The speaker then went on to say,

In much the same way, there is a sense that we still have a great fear that “something” is coming – something that is unknown, something that is faceless, something that will overcome us – but the coming of Jesus is a continuous one. The coming of Jesus is yet again, this Christmas, approaching us in a different way.¹

As we await the coming of this Christmas then, let us, like the parents of the speaker, begin to become “very attentive.” Let us, like the speaker of the story, help one another await his coming in hopeful expectation. Let us again, like the faithful, look to his continued, new and present, coming.

What: An opportunity to raise money for TCM’s ministry through a dance party evening. Includes free hip-hop and swing dance lessons. Refreshments will be served.

When: Friday, November 9th. Doors open at 6:30pm.

Join us for a lecture and Q&A with Calvin Seerveld on The Exciting Ordinary Task of Redemptive Artwork, followed by dinner and performances, featuring Sung Chung and Laurelle Froese in the songs of Jake Heggie, Charles Ives, and music from The Greatest Song, translated by Calvin Seerveld, music by Ina Lohr

Sunday, May 27th
2:30pm
41 Britain St ground floor sanctuary

Cost: $25/adults $15/students
(or $30/adults $20/students at the door)
Tickets: http://gca.eventbrite.com/

Calvin Seerveld (b. 1930 in New York) received a BA from Calvin College in 1952, an MA in English literature and classics from the University of Michigan in 1953. He then went on to study under D. H. Th. Vollenhoven at the Free University (VU) in Amsterdam, where his doctoral dissertation dealt with Croce’s aesthetics. It was supervised by Vollenhoven and Carlo Antoni. He then taught philosophy and German at Trinity Christian College, and went on to teach philosophical aesthetics at the Institute for Christian Studies in Toronto. He is the author of several influential books, including Rainbows for the Fallen World.

Part V: Conclusion

Job had a belief in God’s goodness. He also had a wealth of experience and evidence upon which to base his belief of God’s “goodness”. Then, there comes the point where all of that evidence is stripped away and replaced by overwhelming evidence of God’s absence, indifference, impotence, and/or cruelty.

In these moments, it is only natural to ask where God is and to question whether one’s former beliefs were based on an incomplete or an incorrect evaluation of the evidence. It is only natural, because it is natural for reason to conclude that the tide has now turned and what once was is now different or was never correct to begin with. What is super-natural is to continue with a faith that despite all of the present evidence to the contrary, one’s belief based on what was once known will still prove to be true.

In such moments, while the questions of “why?” and “where?” are being considered, one might also consider the separate question: “upon what is my faith feeding?” or “how is my faith being sustained?”

Those who have suffered will likely know that both hope and faith can be painful thorns with which one must contend. When all the evidence is weighed against one’s faith, to destroy that faith may seem to be the only reasonable way that one will be able to survive. Yet, for those who have been gifted with faith, once the thought of destroying that faith is contemplated, they often discover that this is harder to accomplish than first thought. Perhaps, more painfully, they discover that they are powerless against it.

Paradoxically and even painfully, the individual believes, based on the evidence, that their hope will never be realized. At the same time, their faith believes, despite the current evidence and their desire to be free from their faith, that their hope will be realized.

But what does the powerlessness of the person speak to if it does not speak to the power of the gift? And if the gift carries with it such power, then what can be said of the giver? If “faithlessness” or, perhaps more accurately “the fickleness and frailty of our beliefs” cannot divorce us from God then what does this say about God? Might this be evidence that we should not be afraid or discouraged because He does go before us, will be with us and never forsake us?

Nearing the end of his life, Ferenc Visky preached a sermon in which he referred to a passage in Matthew 7:

“Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!”

After reading this passage, Visky paused for a moment. He asked permission from his audience to, for a moment, stop being “Christian” and just be honest.

When I was taken from my home, taken from my family, taken from my congregation; when I was placed in prison and sentenced to 22 years by the Communists; when my captors mistreated me; was I not given a stone?

Visky, went on to say that it was only by looking to the giver and not just the gift that he was able to recognize how much more good the gift of a stone or a snake might be if it was being given from the hand of his heavenly Father.

Explanations for suffering abound. Some offer rational explanations for the continued existence of suffering. Other explanations offer meaning for the sufferer. More important than explanations is the knowledge that one has been seen or is being seen in all of their suffering.

Visky finished his thought, forgetting the audience for a moment, looking heavenward and shaking his head with utter dis-belief,

“ . . . it’s amazing . . .

. . . it’s amazing.”

Further reading:

 “The Foolishness of God” by Ferenc Visky

“With God in Solitary Confinement” by Richard Wurmbrand

“Vicorious Faith” by Richard Wurmbrand

“Suffering, Martyrdom, and Rewards in Heaven” by Josef Ton

Part 5 of 5

Read Parts 1, 2, 3, & 4.

We are stretched thin. Our jobs, our families, our volunteer work, our friends, even our leisure activities…  they require time and energy. So how do you rest?

Faith & Work invites you to consider what it means to rest. This event will build on our recent explorations of Calling and Ambition, and challenge us to discover what role rest has in God’s design for our lives.

Sunday, April 1
1:30-3:00pm
41 Britain Street

Prayer for the City:

Pray for the recent string of violent acts that have occurred in and around the city over the past couple weeks:

- For 3 separate Scarborough homes where shots were fired in a period of 36 hours

- For the Regent Park community, who continually suffers acts of domestic violence, gang violence, and most recently, the death of a man who has lived there for many years.

- For the family of a Richmond Hill man who was fatally shot in a park last week.

• Pray for the grieving families – that they would be surrounded by those who can comfort and grieve with them.
• Pray for the police and authorities who are working on the investigations – that they would have wisdom and integrity in their research and that they would allow justice to prevail in these situations.
• Pray for the perpetrators of these crimes – that they would feel the conviction of their actions and would have hearts of repentance for what they have done.  Pray that they would be willing to accept their consequences and would be healed and freed from their brokenness.

Prayer for the Church:

• Pray that we would be a church community of repentant people – a people willing to confess our sins to one another for the sake of prayer, accountability and healing.

• Pray that our GGs would be places of authentic community and transparency.  Pray for the GG leaders to know how to model this through their own openness with their groups.  Pray for this to allow a deeper expression and maturity of our faith to develop amongst us.

• Pray for a culture of repentance that would lead to turning from sin, extending forgiveness where needed and healing and restoration in place of brokenness.

Praise the Lord!

See below for the ways we can praise God for the way He has been answering our prayers for Jon Collissimo, who suffered paralysis from the chest down since his accident this past November.

• Jon has been making great recovery lately! On Saturday, Jon moved his left ankle for the first time and his physical therapist has been working to get him to push with his legs.
• On his left leg he now has the ability to move his quad, calf, and hamstring.
• Then on Sunday he lifted the bottom half of his right leg!
• Praise God that although everyone at the rehab centre is shocked by his recovery, we can see God is at work healing him, despite the most recent comments from the doctors that hope for recovery was dwindling.
• Please continue to pray for full recovery. Jon is excited but still scared to be too hopeful, as it takes a lot of muscles to work and core body strength before he can stand.
• Please pray for Jon’s ability to have an extended stay at Lyndhurst so he can continue to get the best treatment possible.
• Please also continue to pray for Karman’s situation with her job. It has been very busy for her and she is concerned about how much longer her boss will let her work in the current pre-arranged limited capacity. There will be a lot more work put on her as Jon’s discharge date nears and she is struggling to juggle it all even with the lighter work load she currently has.  On harder days she feels like she is really getting burnt out.  She also feels it is getting harder to be upbeat and energetic on the hard days.  Please pray for her workplace to continue to be patient and understanding with her situation. Pray that she will have times of rest and time to herself.

James 5:16

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

Hebrews 4:14-16

¹⁴ Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. ¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶ Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

by Ethan Park

3) Our reaction to successes is different from what our society expects, because our successes don’t define who we are.

After Tim Tebow led the Broncos to improbable victory, he approached the podium. When asked about how he felt about being a national phenomenon, he responded quite humbly. Our society has taught us that our abilities, successes, experiences, and accomplishments define who we are. That’s how we get jobs and how we measure ourselves against others. Yet, the Gospel tells us differently. Our accomplishments don’t define who we are– Jesus’ death has already given us the identity that we need.

We are children of God, loved so dearly by the maker of this universe. Our identity doesn’t need, nay, can’t have more than what Christ has done for us on the cross.

4) Our work is a platform for the Kingdom agenda: to make Him known and redeem this world.

When Tim Tebow was asked about the overtime win, he said that he considered it a bigger win to be able to cheer up a girl who’s gone through a lot of medical issues. You may think it’s just words. I choose to believe it’s his heart.

Tim Tebow in his college days would write bible verses on his eye black. After his games, Google stats on searching the verse shot up drastically. He believes in what the Lord has called him to do– use the platform to make God known and bring redemption to this world. That means talking about Jesus at every opportunity he has– not because he has to, but because Jesus means so much to him. That means using his fame to care for those in need. He stated in his college days that he wants to use his platform as an NFL quarterback to bring hope to people in their darkest hour of need.

How can we use our work as a platform for Kingdom agenda? We have unique insight to non-believing coworkers who need to hear. We have opportunities to influence our employers and coworkers to help redeem this world. We can be a Kingdom-worker by using our position and influence for His Kingdom.

What we see from Tim Tebow isn’t fake– it’s a genuine display of faith. He will sin and put football before God at times — all of us do. But no one can deny his genuine desire to display his faith. He’s been criticized by so many in this world for displaying and expressing his faith to others– and they aren’t wrong. He is! And, in fact, that’s what we are called to do. As a blog puts it, “If Tim Tebow sold steak knives for a living, he’d be the same way. Except he’d be the “crazy religious steak knife guy.” Football is just what he happens to be doing now. He wants to win games and be the best quarterback of all time because it broadens his territory. His final destination is not money or fame or victory, they are means to an end: to hype Jesus on the biggest platform in America.

This Sunday (Jan 22), we will be discussing how we ought to understand and live “ambition” in light of the Gospel. Tim Tebow seems very ambitious—making the play-offs, making dramatic comebacks, and capturing the hearts of many football fans. But, his ambitions are rooted in something much deeper.

Join us this Sunday as we discuss ambition.

Read a blog for Tim Tebow and his faith:  http://supermassiveblog.com/post/14237066259/timtebow

Read a blog by Chuck Klosterman against Tim Tebow and his faith: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7319858/the-people-hate-tim-tebow

The buzz around the NFL this year has been predominately about Tim Tebow, an unorthodox NFL quarterback for the Denver Broncos, who started for the team in their last 11 games, posting 7 wins, most of them miraculous comebacks. A college phenom, he was doubted by the professional scouts that he would not be a successful quarterback, and grasped international attention with an unorthodox NFL quarterback skill set, ability to help his team win, and… his demonstration of his faith.

Religious displays in the NFL are not new. Most players will point fingers to the sky, giving thanks to God after touchdowns. Some talk about their faith. But for some reason, Tim Tebow’s displays look genuine.

After an improbable upset over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first playoff game with a dramatic overtime finish, Tim Tebow answered questions from the media with the following:

“I am just so blessed to have an opportunity to be the quarterback for the Denver Broncos and play games in front of such great fans with great teammates and I’m just very thankful for the platform that God has given me… I felt like we had a great week of practice and we practiced hard and had a great game plan and we knew that we were playing a very good Pittsburgh Steelers team. I was very glad that we were able to get the win. First and foremost, I’d like to thank my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ he’s done so much in my life and I also want to thank my teammates for the efforts they put out there and just showing so much character whether it’s good whether it’s bad all year and our coaches who constantly every game whether I’m doing good or bad just stick with me so I’m very appreciative of that.”

Soon after, a reporter asked this question: I know you have a faith in God, but do you have a sense of the kind of phenomenon you are nationwide?

“You know, I’m just very thankful for the platform God has given me and the opportunity to be a quarterback for the Denver Broncos, what a great organization. It is special to have the platform of playing football, as I have an opportunity to affect people. I was very excited to have Bailey Knaub here at this game. Football is amazing, we love it, we’re so passionate about it as you can see there but the real win, at least as far as I’m concerned, was being able to comfort a girl who’s gone through 73 surgeries before this game. I get a chance to go hang out with her now and that’s the biggest win of the day and so they’re both exciting but that’s what I’m even more proud of.”

In our view of work, there’s much to learn from Tim Tebow.

1) Whether we are called to become an NFL quarterback or an assistant at a bank, we should see our job as worship to God.

Tim Tebow is by far not an ideal quarterback. Stats like 2 completions on 8 attempts in a game doesn’t bring much confidence in his abilities. But, when he plays, he plays with passion for the game. His coaches love his work ethic and his poise. His teammates believe in him and follow him because of what he stands for. He believes that he’s called to play football right now and he plays football like he believes it. That’s what we are called to do. God calls us, in his mysterious wisdom, to work in this world as agents of His common grace to this world. Tim Tebow understands that.

2) God is more important than our performance. Kingdom matters are far more important than success in our job.

When Tim Tebow plays, he plays differently. He helps his opposing players up after hard tackles. He prays on the sidelines when others would be studying the next plays. In his attitude and action, he applies Kingdom principles, God’s moral standards, and the Gospel in what he does. He never sees himself as better than others. In the team’s wins, he gave all of the glory to his teammates, coaches, and God. In his losses, he took responsibility, and moved on. Often, we are too far concerned with the performance of our job. Likewise, our faith should triumph over achieving success in our job. We are in the habit of pursuing success while ignoring our faith when, in fact, we should look for opportunities to display our faith at the expense of our success.

We’re often rewarded for staying later, performing better and trying harder at work. Is this what God wants for our lives?

Join us on Sunday, Jan. 22, 1-3 at 41 Britain St. as we continue to consider Faith & Work by looking at what it means to be an ambitious Christian.

For more information, contact Faith & Work.

Part IV: Faith as distinct from belief

In this self-titled “age of science,” there are many who demand tangible proofs before they are willing to surrender to faith. They seek to see, in His hands, the imprint of the nails, put their finger into the place of the nails, and put their hand into His side. They are forever longing to see.

 Still, there are others (like Nathanael)[1] who long to be seen. 

God’s voice tells Job that he has been seen. Job’s faith tells him that if God has seen then He is working for the good. Job then leaves the question of how God is working as immaterial. 

For those who have faith, the question of suffering is transformed from the question of “Why?” (or “for what purpose?”). It is satisfied by an answer to the question of “Where are You?” (or “have You seen?”) For us, who are not presently experiencing God’s voice, what solace can we find? Was there anything else that we can find within the situation of Job? 

If faith is evidence of Satan’s powerlessness then “faithlessness” is evidence of God’s sovereignty.

In the modern mind, faith and belief are often mistakenly conflated (faith meaning precisely what one believes). The problem with this understanding is that it discounts the fact that the majority of our beliefs are merely a direct function of our experience. 

An individual begins to sit upon a chair with the “belief” that the chair will support their weight. This “belief” is based on years of experience and uncontradicted experimental evidence telling them what a chair looks like and in what manner a chair acts. 

Another individual makes plans for their future based upon their “belief” that the sun will set and rise again.

Each believes what their experience tells them it is safe to believe. Their “beliefs” are based entirely upon what their reason tells them. There is no inconsistency between what they believe and what their experience and reason tells them it is “right” to believe. 

But what will occur if all of the evidence on which one has based their “belief” is at once contradicted? Should their “beliefs” not continue to follow where the evidence is telling them to go? In other words, when there is no more reason to believe, when all of the evidence contradicts what one knows to be true, when one cannot believe in their beliefs any longer, what is one to do? 

Here, we begin to discover an even deeper mystery of faith.

Part 4 of 5

Read Parts 1, 2, and 3