Fruit of the Spirit: Self-Control (2 Peter 1:1-11)

“Like a city whose walls are broken down is a person who lacks self-control.” (Proverbs 25:28)

The Proverb above says, that if we lack self-control, we are like a city without walls. We become defenceless – not from external attack, but to our own destructive behaviours.

Self-control is a guard for our life. Without it all the other characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit become worthless. Listen, watch this Sunday to find out more…

As recorded at St. Luke’s
Listen on Castbox

Fruit of the Spirit: Self- Control (2 Peter 1:1-11)

Giving up tea and coffee…

Are you in control of yourself?

Early last year on a Tuesday, I woke up and did my normal routine, coffee breakfast, off to prayers, staff meeting and back home to work. But I found myself much more tired and grumpy than normal. And as the day went on it wasn’t getting better.

After lunch, I was feeling so bad, I tried lying down for a bit. But when I woke up, I still felt bad! Then came a eureka moment. The coffee I had made myself in the morning had been decaffeinated, because we had run out of caffeinated coffee. I was suffering from caffein withdrawal. So, I ran to Aldi, bought some caffeinated coffee and quickly recovered.

However, the experience made me think. Who is in control of my life? Me or caffeine? Lent began soon after, so I decided to give up tea and coffee for Lent. Then at the end of Lent, I decided to give it up for good. I enjoyed not being enslaved to caffeine, not having to worry about having to chase my next fix, and I think I felt less stressed and I wasn’t tired in the same way. I felt more in control of my own life.

 Now I am not saying everyone should give up coffee. Although, it is addictive, it is not harmful and arguably it may have some good effects. For me, however, regaining control from caffeine felt like a positive win.

 Self-control is freedom. It is freedom from control by our inner desires. Freedom to do what we know to be right, rather to be ruled by our natural and often evil impulses.

Fruit of the Spirit

Today, we are finishing our series on the Fruit of the Spirit, the list of characteristics that Paul says, we gain as Christians as we learn to walk in step with God’s Spirit, as we become more like God in our characteristics.

Before he comes to the Fruit of the Spirit, Paul talks about our freedom as Christians:

“You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature (or the flesh); rather, serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13)

He then lists, many examples of works of the flesh, before encouraging us to take on the fruit of the Spirit. Heading up the list and so taking the place of prime importance is ‘Love.’

But the last place in the list, also carries with it importance. And self-control is the last characteristic to be mentioned. Why does it hold such importance? Because the passage is all about self-control. Not giving in to the evil desires that destroy the world, the works of the flesh, but living in a way that pleases God.

Self-Control in thought down the ages:

Down the ages and across cultures, self-control has been viewed as a trait than helps us to be good and effective people.

 In modern times, ― Stephen R. Covey, in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People says:

“The ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of the proactive person.”

 During the Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci said,

“One can have no smaller or greater mastery than mastery of oneself.”

Back in Ancient Greece, Zeno of Citium, the founder of Stoicism said,

“Man conquers the world by conquering himself.”

But it is not just Greek or Western thought, Lao Tzu, a legendary Chinese Philosopher said,

“Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.”

Seeing self-control as a virtue, is not specifically Christian. Indeed, when the New Testament was being written, Stoicism was a popular philosophy in the Roman empire and Stoicism saw self-control as one of the most important virtues.

Why have self-control?

So, why have self-control? I want to suggest two reasons.

It Guards Us

Firstly, it guards us. There is a verse in Proverbs, which says:

“Like a city whose walls are broken down

is a man who lacks self-control.” (Proverbs 25:28)

In the ancient world, city walls, were a crucial guard against enemies who might come and raid your city, destroying and pillaging all that mattered to you. Without city walls, you were very vulnerable to raids and destruction. Even today, we spend lots of money on defence to make sure our country is protected from attack by enemies who might want to destroy us. You only have to look at what has happened to some parts of Ukraine, to see what happens when you cannot defend yourself against an aggressive neighbour.

But, on a personal level, self-control acts as a guard, not on threats from without, but from self-destruction. If we do not have control over our evil desires, then we will fall into behaviours that might destroy our life.

Many of those behaviours are what Paul lists as the works of the flesh in Galatians 5, before he talks about the fruit of the Spirit.

  • If you do not keep your sexual desires under control, then you are in danger of being drawn into an affair and ruining your marriage.
  • If you do not keep your curiosity for spiritualism or witchcraft under control, you may end up opening yourself up to evil spiritual influences.
  • If you do not keep your impulse to be angry under control, you may lash out at those around you whom you love and cause damage to them and your relationships.
  • If you do not keep your desire to be successful under control, you may end up walking over others in your desire to climb the career ladder.
  • If you do not keep your desires for drink or drugs under control, you may end up destroying your physical health or wasting all your money on them.

The list could go on and on. But you get the point. If we can control ourselves, then we can guard against the destruction that our evil desires or lusts might lead us into.

In 2 Peter, after giving a list of virtues including self-control, he says:

“Therefore, my brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall,” (2 Peter 1:10)

 Self-control acts as a guard to us from falling away from God and back into a life dominated by sin.

It Grows Us

Secondly and more positively, self-control helps to grow us.

 In 1 Corinthians, Paul says:

“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last for ever.” (1 Corinthians 9:25)

 If you want to be a success in sport, then you need self-discipline, which is a form of self-control. As we watch the World Cup, with the top players in the world competing against each other, it is easy to forget, the commitment and training that it has taken them to reach the highest levels of the sport.

 Why is Harry Kane England’s top goal scorer? Partly, because he has amazing natural ability, but also because he has the self-control and self-discipline to train over many years and to keep at it. He could have all the natural ability in the world, but without the self-discipline and training, he would be a mere spectator like the rest of us.

 But Paul’s point is not to become a successful athlete. His goal is something more important than winning the World Cup, it is winning eternal life. It is as Jesus put it, ‘storing up riches in heaven.’

 Our passage in 2 Peter, also makes this point. It lists a number of qualities, including, self-control, and concludes:

 “For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:8)

Self-control helps us to achieve things for God. To do the good deeds, that God has prepared in advance for us to do and ultimately as Jesus puts it, ‘to build up treasures in heaven’, so that as 2 Peter says:

“…and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:11)

How do we gain self-control?

So, if self-control is so important, how do we gain self-control as Christians? How do we gain this ability that guards us, and grows us as Christians?

Some people have it more naturally than others, and others have it because they were trained in it well by their parents when they were brought up. But, as Christians, whether we have it naturally or not, and whether we had good parenting or not, we can have self- control. How?

Well, the key comes at the start of the passage in 2 Peter 1:

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” (2 Peter 1:3)

Jesus gives us everything we need for life and godliness. It is by knowing Jesus, being in a relationship with him – which is what being a Christian is – that gives us the power we need for life and godliness.

Often when you buy furniture online, it arrives in a flat pack. You have everything you need to make your piece of furniture, but you need to actually put it together for it to be any use. I remember when we were first married, we bought a lot of furniture that was flat packed. Most of it we put together, but there were some boxes that remained unpacked. We had all we needed for the set of shelves, but the box remained unopened for years. It remained useless.

For many Christians, God has given us all we need for a godly life, but we have done nothing to construct the life he wants from us. Peter says, in verse 5,

“For this reason, make every effort…”

So, what are we to do? The list suggests adding one thing to the next. It starts with faith and ends with love. We build from faith to love. Faith is the foundation. Love is the goal.

Everything else, flows out of our faith and towards the goal of love: goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance godliness and mutual affection.  

So, how do we grow in self-control? We build it on the foundation of faith and with the goal of love.

To build on the foundation of faith, means to recognise what Jesus has done for us and continues to do for us.

  1. He died for our sins. It says in Galatians 5:24

“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature of flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:24)

Jesus died because of the sins arising from our sinful nature or flesh. When we focus on the cross, we remember how serious our sins are and how much it cost Jesus to deal with them. So, in a sense we crucify them.

If you are struggling to control a specific evil desire in your life, then remind yourself what Jesus did to rescue you from the consequences of that sin.

  1. He gives us His Spirit.

“Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25)

Jesus does not leave us alone. He is there to help us and train us by His Spirit. As we spend time with God in prayer, so we draw on his strength, to give us the self-control needed to control those evil desires. Don’t let time with God be squeezed out of your life, practice a deeper dependence on him for the support you need to gain self-control.

So, our faith is the foundation, but love is the goal. We need to remember the benefits of self-control, and it is to help us better love those around us, to be effective in our care for one another. You cannot love others, if you are controlled by drink of drugs. You cannot love others, if you are motivated by greed for self-gain or selfish ambition. You cannot love others, if you are overcome by fits of rage.

 If you are struggling with self-control, ask God to help you remember the goal. To show love through good deeds to those around you.

Conclusion:

Self-control is so important. Many cultures recognise that. We need it to guard ourselves from self-destructive traits, we need it to succeed in our life’s goals.

The great news is that as Christians, we have all the resources we need to grow in self-control and so achieve the true Christian freedom and love that God calls us to.

 As Paul says,

 “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature (or the flesh); rather, serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13)

This Sunday – 21st June

“Like a city whose walls are broken down is a person who lacks self-control.”

(Proverbs 25:28)

This week, the sections of the email are:

  • Opening Reflection: Fruit of the Spirit: Self-Control
  • Key notices: Service Team Leaders Needed
  • Coming Up: Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day, Men’s Group Croquet, Dare to Pray Meeting, Wendy Fuller’s Thanksgiving Service, Friends of St. George’s Art Show, Vicarage BBQs
  • Interesting Blogs: Class and Evangelicalism in Britain, Dyslexia: Superpower or Challenge to be Acknowledged
  • Weekly Calendar
  • Online Forms: Event application, Submit a notice, maintenance report, Safeguarding

Scroll on…

Opening Reflection

There is a lot of debate in the news at the moment about the level of funding needed to defend our country. Indeed, only last week, the Defence Secretary resigned, because he felt the government’s agreed increasing in funding was insufficient for the defence of the country. Defence matters, because without defence we risk losing control of our country to an agressor, like Vadimir Putin. Such an outcome would be catastrophic.

In Bible times, one of the most important forms of defence was the city wall. Citizens would spend lots of money to build a wall, to make sure they could defend themselves against hostile raiders, or hold out against invading armies, whilst they waited for their own army to turn up and rescue them. If the walls were broken down, then the city was left defenceless and in danger of losing control to any enemy who invaded.

The Proverb above says, that if we lack self-control, we are like a city without walls. We become defenceless – not from  external attack, but to our own destructive behaviours.

We need self-control to stop ruining our health, through lack of exercise, overeating, alcohol or drug abuse. It is also necessary to control what we say, so that we don’t blurt something out that makes us look stupid, gives away a secret or causes offence or hurt to those we love. At a more extreme level, if you are someone prone to bouts of anger, you need self-control to stop your anger flaring up when provoked so that you end up attacking someone violently.

In all these areas and more, self-control is a guard for our life. Without it all the other characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit become worthless. Join us this Sunday to find out more…

Paul Worledge

Key Notices:

Service Team Leaders Needed

We are looking for people to go on a rota to help us run our Sunday services by opening and setting up the church before the service and clearing up after the service. If you can help in this way, then please speak to Paul or Mark.

Coming Up:

Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day

10am-3pm, Saturday 20th June, St. George’s Church. Encourage people to come along! If you can help with a tower or crypt tour on the day, then please let Paul know asap. You can now purchase tickets for the tours on the website.

Men’s Group – Croquet

On Tuesday 23rd June, at 5:30 for 6pm, the men’s group are holding a Croquet Evening at the Croquet Club on the Ramsgate Royal Esplanade (near the boating pool). It is £10 each. Please let Bruce know asap if you would like to come (07708 682464, brucestikes@btinternet.com).

Dare to Pray, Prayer Meeting

Due to clashes on 20th June, the Dare to Pray prayer meeting this month will be on Saturday 27th June, 9:30-10:30am at St. George’s Church

Wendy Fuller’s Thanksgiving Service

Saturday 27th June, 2:30pm at St. George’s. Everyone who knew Wendy is welcome to attend.

Friends of St. George’s Art Show

This will run from 10th to 19th July, 2-5pm, in St. George’s Church. If you want to enter a painting, drawings, prints or mixed media contact Elaine on e_hartnell@yahoo.com or Janet on 01843 852780.

Vicarage BBQs

These will take place on Saturdays 18th and 25th July, 5-8pm. Invitations to come.

Interesting Blogs to Share:

Class and Evangelicalism in Britain

In this more academic paper, Kirsten Birkett explores the topic of class as understood in Britain and why the evangelical church has not been great at reaching the working classes. Read more… (Long read)

Dyslexia: A Superpower or a Challenge to be Acknowledged

In this 6 minute read, Zoe Strong reflects on an interview with Tom Holland, the actor where he shares the challenges he faces because of his dyslexia. Read more…

Weekly Calendar

Sunday 21st June – Third Sunday after Trinity

Eucharist (St. George’s Church) 2 Peter 1:1-11 – 9:30am

Monday 22nd  

Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Tuesday 23rd  

Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Community Meal (St. George’s Hall) – 5:30-7:00pm

Men’s Group Croquet (Croquet Club, West Esplanade) – from 5:30pm

Wednesday 24th 

Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm

Thursday 25th  

Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Saturday 27th  

Dare to Pray Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:30am

Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm

Thanksgiving service for Wendy Fuller (St. George’s Church) – 2:30pm

Sunday 28th – Fourth Sunday after Trinity

Eucharist (St. George’s Church) 2 Peter 1:1-11 – 9:30am

Thanet-wide Prayer Gathering (United Church, Hardres Street) – 6.30pm

Life Groups

Will you dare to share the Christian life with others? Life groups are a great way to meet together regularly with a small group of other Christians, for mutual support, to share in reading God’s word and to pray for one another.

Please see Paul if you are interested in joining one. There are now more groups available! They meet at the following times:

  • Monday evening (two groups)
  • Tuesday afternoon
  • Wednesday morning
  • Wednesday evening
  • Thursday morning

There is also a youth life group on a Sunday afternoon.

Online Forms:

Under the ‘Contact’ tab on the website, there are now three forms that you can use to help us in managing the church:

  • Events Application Form. Use this if you are organising a church event that needs a church room booked, advertising or ticketing.
  • Submit a Notice. Use this if you want to ask us to include a prayer request or other notice in the church notice sheet or email.
  • Maintenance Reporting Form.Use this to report any non-urgent issues with our buildings or grounds.

Safeguarding

Our website is now updated with the latest information about Safeguarding and links to the Diocesan form for reporting concerns and accessing training.

Training

If you volunteer in anyway at church the national authorities you should take at least the Basic Module in safeguarding training once every three years. If you hold a role connected with vulnerable adults or children and young people, then you will also need to take the Foundation Module. Once you have completed your training, please forward that certificate to James, our administrator, (office@churchramsgate.org) so that we can keep records of who has done the training.

Finally, let’s ask for God’s help to keep control of ourselves.

Yours in Christ

Paul Worledge

(Priest in Charge, St. George’s Ramsgate)

Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness (Galatians 6:1-10)

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently.” (Galatians 6:1a)

As Christians we want to challenge one another to become more Christ like, but if we try to push someone to change too quickly or too aggressively, then they may not be able to cope and just leave the church or give up on faith. That is why the verse above says, that when someone is caught in a sin, we need to go about restoring them gently.

As recorded at St. Luke’s
Listen on Castbox

Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness

A Less Gentle World

It feels like we are living in a less gentle world.

The events earlier this week in Northern Ireland illustrate this well. First there was the horrific attack where a man in the street tried to cut off the head of another man with a knife. That in itself was hardly a gentle act and was rightly condemned.

But what happened next was even less gentle. Because the original assailant was a migrant, gangs of men went around from house to house looking for migrants and setting their homes on fire. Anger and violence is certainly the opposite of gentleness. Indeed, this was a massive escalation, attacking and terrorising a whole community in response to the attack of one deranged man.

This was one incident, but it reflects a growing trend fuelled by social media. On social media, where you cannot see the person you are talking to, it is much more common to respond aggressively or harshly than with a gentle word. Indeed, aggression and outrage are far more likely to create engagement on social media, than a gentle calm comment. Social media itself seems to be promoting a less gentle world.

The Fruit of the Spirit: How do we develop Gentleness?

But as Christians we are called to gentleness. We are going through a series on the fruit of the Spirit, the kind of godly traits we develop, the more we learn to live in step with the spirit. Today, we are looking at the second to last trait: ‘gentleness.’

So, how do we develop gentleness?

Imitate our Gentle Messiah

We can see that ‘gentleness’ is a godly trait, by looking at the gentle Messiah, the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

In the Old Testament, Zechariah forecast the Messiah, God’s promised king for his people, coming to Jerusalem with this prophecy:

“Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9; cf. Matthew 21:5)

 In Zechariah’s day and in Jesus’ day, the great kings did not ride donkeys they rode war horses. The horse was the symbol of military might and strength. Many empires had come and gone, and they had risen to power through military might, symbolised by the power of the horse. You didn’t become king by being gentle, you became king by crushing your opponents.

But, Zechariah, said God’s king would be different. He would come gently and riding on a donkey. Jesus embraced the prophecy. He deliberately rode into Jerusalem on a donkey as the crowds proclaimed him king.

His power came not by killing his enemies, but by dying for his friends. He builds a kingdom with gentleness and humility, not imposing his will on others, but offering forgiveness and a new way to live.

As Christians, Jesus is our hero. The more we reflect on his gentle character, the more we will learn to be gentle ourselves.

Be confident in His Grace

We can see in Jesus, that gentleness is closely linked to humility. Indeed, the word for gentleness in the Greek is almost the same as the word for humility. Gentleness is not imposing yourself on others but treating others as better than yourselves.

 The verse before our reading from Galatians, which comes immediately after the passage on the fruit of the Spirit says,

 “Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Galatians 5:26)

Conceit is boasting in our own abilities, our own works. But a conceited nature does not lead to gentleness, it loves to make others feel less worthy than ourselves. Such an attitude seeks to put down the other.

Paul, however, does not want to boast in himself:

 “But I do not want to boast, except in the cross of our lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14)

 His boast is in the cross, as the source of salvation. We are saved by Christ’s gracious sacrifice, not by our own works. If you are saved by grace, you can be both confident and humble. Confident, because you know Jesus has secured your place in God’s home, despite your failings, but also humble, because it was Jesus who did it not you. And with confidence and humility, you can be gentle with others. Gentleness grows out of a deeper understanding that we are saved by grace and so boast in the cross and not our own works.

Pray first!

The third way to grow in gentleness is through prayer about what is causing you anxiety.

One of the most helpful set of verses come in Philippians 4. Philippians itself is a book, which has as a major theme humility. But in chapter 4, he turns to a dispute in the church and gives some advice as to how to bring an end to the dispute.

He says,

“Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:5-7)

You can see here, two of the attitudes that promote reconciliation in a conflict. Gentleness and prayer that leads to peace. Yet, I think these are entwined.

Disputes often arise out of our anxieties, and most of us find that the more anxious we are about an issue, the harder we find it to be gentle in our treatment of others. So, Paul gives us the solution to anxiety: prayer. When we pray about what is worrying us rather than being anxious about it, we discover the peace of God, that gives us a deep security and removes our anxiety. When we have this peace in ourselves it is much easier to be gentle with others. How do we learn gentleness? Pray about our anxieties.

Gentleness in Action:

So, what does gentleness look like in action?

In Restoring Others:

Firstly, gentleness is important in the way we go about restoring Christians who are caught up in some sin or other. The first verse of our passage says,

“Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.” (Galatians 6:1)

Notice it says, ‘you who are spiritual’. Remember, this verse comes only a few verses, after Paul has spoken about the fruit of the Spirit and immediately after the verse about not being conceited. To be ‘spiritual’ here, does not mean someone who does lots of religious stuff, it means someone who has learnt to walk in step with the Spirit, who exhibits the qualities of the fruit of the Spirit, who is not conceited, but has understood the gospel and so is both confident and humble in their faith.

This is the kind of person who is most likely to be able to help someone back to a confident faith after they’ve fallen into sin, or to know how to help someone out of sin.

But Paul also says, they should do so gently.

When people first become Christians, there may be all kinds of ways, in which their lifestyles are out of sync with how the Bible teaches us to live. They may have drink or drug issues, be in unmarried sexual relationships, be claiming benefits when they could be working, addicted to gambling, swear a lot, have a short temper and so on. They are not going to change overnight.  God does not expect them to change overnight. We know from reading the Bible, that God called and worked through imperfect people.

So, gentleness and patience must be combined. We don’t bully or harass people to change, we gently teach, encourage and support them and allow God to work in their lives to transform them. That is what it means to be gentle with people.

I was at a conference this week and a lady spoke about when she first came back to church after some time away. At the time she was out of work and using lots of excuses not to bother applying. One excuse was that it was hard to get to interviews, because she had no transport. The Christians around her could have just told her to buck her ideas up and try harder, but they did something amazing and gentle. They clubbed together and bought her a cheap £500 car, so that she could get to interviews. Through generosity and gentleness, she was encouraged to get into work. Now she is a CEOof a charity, a Christian author and speaker at conferences!

In Reconciliation:

Gentleness is also important if we want to seek reconciliation when there are arguments withing the church community.

 As it says in Proverbs:

“A gentle answer turns away wrath,

but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

(Proverbs 15:1)

If we respond angrily to disagreement, then we will stoke up anger and might soon end up falling out or the church dividing and falling apart. The better way is to respond with gentleness. This is true even if others are clearly in the wrong.

Paul’s advice to Timothy in dealing with someone who oppose his teaching. He says of the Lord’s servant:

“Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,” (2 Timothy 2:25)

In other words, the secret to tackling those with wrong ideas is not to shout them down, cut them out or try and turn everyone else against them, it is to gently instruct them in the truth.

Let’s be honest there are plenty of issues around that we disagree on as Christians and historically, the multitude of denominations points to the fact that we have not always been able to resolve these differences gently.

Today, when people turn up to church and see angry discord in the church they tend to quickly walk back out the door. I met someone a few months ago who had gone on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and was inspired to try church again when they returned. Unfortunately, their first time in church was at a particularly contentious annual meeting and they were totally put off!

It is crucial that we learn to deal with those we disagree with in the church with gentleness.

In Reaching Out:

But this also extends to those outside the church. If we want to persuade people to turn to Jesus in faith, we need to do so gently.

It says in Proverbs:

“Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a gentle tongue can break a bone.” (Proverbs 25:15)

 Indeed, gentleness and patience often go hand in hand and maybe especially when it comes to reaching out with the gospel. We cannot bully people into the faith we need to persuade them gently and that can take time.

But it also needs respect. We are not trying to impose our point of view on them, rather we are seeking to introduce them to Jesus as Lord,

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defence to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence.” (1 Peter 3:15-16)

Again, this can be difficult, because when we speak to non-Christians, who disagree with us, we can take it personally and if we are not careful, we can allow ourselves to be provoked and respond with anger or frustration. I remember, once having a conversation with some teaching colleagues about the faith back in the 1990s, and finding myself becoming quite worked up. It’s not helpful when that happens.

Evangelism is not about winning an argument, it’s not about proving yourself right, it is about sharing what you have discovered about Jesus in the hope that others will want it for themselves. We will only be persuasive if we do this with gentleness and respect.

A Gentler World

Indeed, as Christians living in a less gentle world, we should be modelling something different, a gentler world! People should be able to see in the way we relate to each other and to them, a gentleness that is attractive and welcoming.

They should see this characteristic as a reflection of the Messiah we follow, the one who gives us peace when we pray to him, who saves us by grace and who came as the humble one, riding on a donkey.

This Sunday – 14th June

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently.”

(Galatians 6:1a)

This week, the sections of the email are:

  • Opening Reflection: Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness
  • Key notices: Service Team Leaders Needed
  • Coming Up: Antonia – Mini-Opera,  Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day, Men’s Group Croquet, Dare to Pray Meeting, Friends of St. George’s Art Show
  • Interesting Blogs: Social Media and Coming to Faith, Freya India’s Girls
  • Weekly Calendar
  • Online Forms: Event application, Submit a notice, maintenance report, Safeguarding

Scroll on…

Opening Reflection

At the Youth Life Group recently, we played Jenga. The game involves a tower of wooden blocks and you take it in turns to remove a block from lower down the tower and place it on top of the tower. You keep going until the tower falls over. To be successful you have to remove the blocks gently. Press or pull too hard and the whole tower falls down and, like me, you lose!

When working with fragile things you need to be gentle. Delicate items need to be handled with care, otherwise you may well end up breaking them.

People are fragile. We all have our emotional breaking points and if we are treated harshly or aggressively we may snap. We need to treat one another gently.

As Christians we want to challenge one another to become more Christ like, but if we try to push someone to change too quickly or too aggressively, then they may not be able to cope and just leave the church or give up on faith. That is why the verse above says, that when someone is caught in a sin, we need to go about restoring them gently.

Sin needs to be challenged, but in a way that enables restoration and spiritual growth, not in a way that destroys the other person. That means starting by trying to deal with issues privately and one to one rather than in a public setting that might bring shame and humiliation to the other (cf. Matthew 18:15-17). It also means approaching the issue in a gentle manner, rather than with an aggressive tone and not badgering or nagging someone to change quickly, but giving people time to grow into a Christ-like character. After all, that is the way God deals with us, gently changing us bit by bit into his likeness rather than demanding we become perfect overnight.

Paul Worledge

Key Notices:

Service Team Leaders Needed

Are you interested in taking on a key role in opening up and setting up for our Sunday Services on a once-a-month basis? We are looking to create a team of 4 or 5 people to carry out this important role. Check out the role description.

Coming Up:

Antonia – Mini-Opera

This One-Woman Mini-Opera about Marie Antoinette features Petra, the organist at St. George’s on the harpsichord. Tom Thumb Theatre, Margate, Friday 19th, 7:30pm. Find out more…

Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day

10am-3pm, Saturday 20th June, St. George’s Church. Encourage people to come along! If you can help with a tower or crypt tour on the day, then please let Paul know asap. You can now purchase tickets for the tours on the website.

Men’s Group – Croquet

On Tuesday 23rd June, at 5:30 for 6pm, the men’s group are holding a Croquet Evening at the Croquet Club on the Ramsgate Royal Esplanade (near the boating pool). It is £10 each. Please let Bruce know asap if you would like to come (07708 682464, brucestikes@btinternet.com).

Dare to Pray, Prayer Meeting

Due to clashes on 20th June, the Dare to Pray prayer meeting this month will be on Saturday 27th June, 9:30-10:30am at St. George’s Church

Friends of St. George’s Art Show

This will run from 10th to 19th July, 2-5pm, in St. George’s Church. If you want to enter a painting, drawings, prints or mixed media contact Elaine on e_hartnell@yahoo.com or Janet on 01843 852780.

Interesting Blogs to Share:

Social media and coming to Faith

In this article, Freya India, writing from a Generation Z perspective, questions whether connecting with faith through social media alone is enough. Read more (5mins)

 

Freya India’s, Girls

If you are wondering who Freya India is and what she writes about, then this excellent article celebrates what Freya India does brilliantly (points out the problem for Generation Z women), but laments the lack of solutions… Read more (2 mins)

Weekly Calendar

Sunday 14th June – Second Sunday after Trinity

Eucharist (St. George’s Church) Galatians 6:1-10 – 9:30am

Monday 15th 

Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Tuesday 16th 

Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Community Meal (St. George’s Hall) – 5:30-7:00pm

Wednesday 17th 

Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm

Thursday 18th  

Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Saturday 20th  

Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Midsummer Yard Sale (St. George’s Church) – 10:00am-3:00pm

Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm

Sunday 21st – Third Sunday after Trinity

Eucharist (St. George’s Church) 2 Peter 1:1-11 – 9:30am

Life Groups

Will you dare to share the Christian life with others? Life groups are a great way to meet together regularly with a small group of other Christians, for mutual support, to share in reading God’s word and to pray for one another.

Please see Paul if you are interested in joining one. There are now more groups available! They meet at the following times:

  • Monday evening (two groups)
  • Tuesday afternoon
  • Wednesday morning
  • Wednesday evening
  • Thursday morning

There is also a youth life group on a Sunday afternoon.

Online Forms:

Under the ‘Contact’ tab on the website, there are now three forms that you can use to help us in managing the church:

  • Events Application Form. Use this if you are organising a church event that needs a church room booked, advertising or ticketing.
  • Submit a Notice. Use this if you want to ask us to include a prayer request or other notice in the church notice sheet or email.
  • Maintenance Reporting Form.Use this to report any non-urgent issues with our buildings or grounds.

Safeguarding

Our website is now updated with the latest information about Safeguarding and links to the Diocesan form for reporting concerns and accessing training.

Training

If you volunteer in anyway at church the national authorities you should take at least the Basic Module in safeguarding training once every three years. If you hold a role connected with vulnerable adults or children and young people, then you will also need to take the Foundation Module. Once you have completed your training, please forward that certificate to James, our administrator, (office@churchramsgate.org) so that we can keep records of who has done the training.

Finally, let’s keep being faithful!

Yours in Christ

Paul Worledge

(Priest in Charge, St. George’s Ramsgate)

Fruit of the Spirit: Faithful (Matthew 5:31-37)

“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.” (Deuteronomy 7:9)

This Sunday we return to our series on the Fruit of the Spirit, this week focussing on the characteristic of faithfulness.

As recorded at St. Luke’s
Listen on Castbox

Fruit of the Spirit: Faithfulness (Matthew 5:32-37)

What does faithfulness look like?

Michael Hyatt an American leadership guru tells of an experience early in his career. He was given the job of marketing director at one of the larger publishing houses in the US, even though he didn’t have any experience.

So, his boss put him on an informal three-month probationary period, so that if it didn’t work out, they could give up on the experiment and Michael would leave and look for another job, but if things went well, he would be kept on and given a 10% pay rise.

Michael worked and studied hard to succeed at the job and things went really well. When it came to the end of the probationary period, he was actually looking forward to the end of probation review.

His boss started off by commending him for doing so well and told him he was really impressed with how hard he had worked and how well he had done. Then he told him there was a problem. The company had instituted a wage freeze. They wouldn’t pay him the extra 10% that had been promised on the completion of a successful probationary period.

Michael felt deeply disappointed. But then something amazing happened.

His boss handed him an envelope. In the envelope was a cheque for the extra 10% that had been promised, which his boss had decided to pay out of his own money. The boss felt he had made a commitment to Michael and he needed to live up to it, even though it cost him.

This is an amazing example of what it means to be faithful. To stick to your promises, even when it costs you or hurts you to do so.

Faithfulness the 7th Characteristic of the Fruit of the Spirit

We are going through a series on the Fruit of the Spirit. In Galatians, Paul lists nine characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit, characteristics that we learn as Christians when we learn to keep in step with the Spirits, the kind of characteristics that reflect the very character of God.

We have already looked at six of the characteristics in two bouts of three. Now we are starting on the last three. So, this week, it is the seventh characteristic, which is faithfulness.

Faith is at the heart of what it is to be a Christian. The key Christian message is that we are saved when we put our faith in Jesus Christ.

But faith and faithfulness are two-sides of the same coin. You have faith in someone because they are faithful. You can trust someone when they are trustworthy. You depend on someone when you think they are reliable. As Christians, we have faith in the God of Jesus Christ, because we believe he is faithful.

God is Faithful

The New Testament is clear that we can trust God, that he is faithful.

Because God is faithful, we can be confident that we are protected and secure:

“But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” (2 Thessalonians 3:3)

Because God is faithful, we can have hope:

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23)

Because God is faithful, we can know that our sins are forgiven:

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

Indeed, the whole Biblical narrative is set up to show God’s faithfulness. At its most basic, the plot of the Bible is that God makes promises and God proves faithful to the promises, despite the unfaithfulness of his people.

God promised Abraham that he would become a great nation. The first half of the Old Testament, shows bit by bit, how God fulfilled that promise until, by the time of David, Abraham’s descendants were indeed, a great nation.

Then God promises, David, that there would always be one of his descendants on the throne. This remained true in Jerusalem for hundreds of years. But in the end Jerusalem became incorporated into the great empires of the time.

Yet, the prophets said, God’s promise to David was not forgotten, a Messiah would come to sit on his throne.

Then comes Jesus, who is both the descendant of David, who rules on a far greater and eternal throne at God’s right hand not as king in Jerusalem, but as king of the universe and who truly blesses all nations, by dying for the whole world and sending his followers to share the good news with all nations.

As Paul says in 2 Corinthians:

“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)

The whole story of the Bible points to the faithfulness of God.

And if faithfulness is a key characteristic of God, then as those who have His Holy Spirit within us, it will be a key characteristic for us as well.

Our Faithfulness:

So, what will our faithfulness look like? It will mean that we are honest and reliable.

Honest with the Truth

First of all to be faithful means to be honest. It means people should be able to trust what we say as speaking the truth.

Honest speaking is so important. It is impossible to make a good decision unless people tell the truth.

Take a court of law. If the witnesses do not speak the truth, then justice will not be done and either the guilty will go free or the innocent will be condemned.

So, for us as Christians, we need to be people who can be trusted to speak the truth. We need to be trusted to speak the truth about what God says. Paul says to Timothy,

“and what you have heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well.” (2 Timothy 2:2)

In preaching or teaching the Christian message, whether in conversations with friends in the workplace, at home with the family or from the front of church, we need to speak God’s word faithfully. That takes courage. The temptation is always to speak in a way, so as to please those who are listening to us, rather than to be honest about the truth. To be a faithful messenger of Christ means being willing to say the hard truths when they need to be heard.

Honest with Promises

It also requires being honest with what you promise. In our reading from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus challenges the people of his day about the practice of adding special ‘oaths to what they say’.

But he says you should not need to make an oath:

“Rather, let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’ be ‘No’. Anything more is from the Evil One.” (Matthew 5:37)

In other words, we should be faithful in everything we say, not just when we are made to swear a special oath. He is not saying we should not swear an oath when we are required to do so, as in a court of law, but that we should treat all that we say in the same way. All of it needs to be faithful and true.

This requires wisdom and courage. We need to be careful about what we promise. It can be easy to promise to do something, because you do not want to disappoint someone, but we should be willing to say we cannot commit, or to explicitly say, I won’t promise anything, but I’ll do my best, rather than commit to something we know we will not be able to do.

It is better not to make rash promises, than to make a promise you do not want to keep. Because being faithful also means being reliable, not just saying what you will do, but doing what you say.

Reliable

Reliability is an aspect of faithfulness, that means we keep our promises, but we also carry out the duties entrusted to us.

In talking about our role as Christians, Jesus compares himself with a master who entrusts his servants with resources whilst he goes away. Those servants who do what is expected he commends:

“His master replied, `Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!'” (Matthew 25:21)

Jesus expects us to be reliable in carrying out our duties as Christians in this life.

In the same way, we should be reliable in keeping our promises. That is not always easy. At times to keep your promises means making sacrifices. If you have promised one friend to be at their party, but then another friend invites you to a more exciting party, then the cost of keeping your promise is missing out on the better party.

If you have agreed to accept an offer on a house, but then a better offer comes along, then the cost of keeping your promise, is to lose out on the money you might have had on the better offer.

As we saw in the example in the introduction, being faithful can at times mean having to make sacrifices.

So, being faithful means sticking with your promises, but also carrying out the duties entrusted to us as volunteers, employees or even in marriage.

Marital Faithfulness

Marriage is of course a relationship based on promises. The vows made at a wedding ceremony are important promises and at times they can be hard to keep.

 In Jesus, day, many people were quoting the verse from Deuteronomy:

“Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.” (Deuteronomy 24:1)

and claimed that a man could divorce his wife whenever he became fed up with her.

 But Jesus is clear that although there may be serious reasons that require divorce, like your husband or wife having an affair, God’s plan for marriage is for it to be a permanent union. Later in Matthew he says,

“What God has joined together, let no one separate.” (Matthew 19:6)

So, to be reliable in marriage will take sacrifice. It will mean putting up with the times when you find each other annoying, it will mean sticking by an ill husband or wife and coping when they are made redundant and the money is tight. This can feel like sacrifice, but it is worth keeping with it.

It can also mean saying, ‘No!’ to the potential affair with the more attractive or charming person who offers themselves to you. This too can feel like a sacrifice, but it is worth keeping with it.

 And to be faithful in marriage means more than just sticking with it, it means working at it, being faithful to the role that has been entrusted to you to love, cherish and care for your husband or wife.

Sadly, many marriages do fail. You can be the perfect husband or wife, but if your partner is unfaithful or bails on the marriage, you can still find yourself divorced. Even if you know that your marriage failed partly or even wholly because of you, Jesus is also clear that his forgiveness covers all sins. We should never want divorce, but if it comes, we can still turn to the one who is ultimately faithful and true, Jesus Christ.

Faithfulness is a key characteristic for marriage. But I think all the characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit will help to create a flourishing marriage. The more you can both grow in the characteristics of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, the more your marriage will be amazing. 

The Man on the White Horse

Faithfulness is a hard characteristic to put into practice, whether in marriage or life more generally. At times it takes courage and sacrifice. But when we do, we will find that our relationships with others flourish. The more they see we can be trusted, the more they will trust us. That will mean we have a greater opportunity to share the good news about the one who is ultimately faithful.

Remember that with all the characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit, Jesus is our model.

At the end of the Bible, there is a vision of Jesus leading the forces of heaven to their ultimate victory over evil:

“I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True.” (Revelation 19:11)

Midsummer Yard Sale

Coming up soon is the Midsummer Yard Sale at St George’s on Saturday 20th June.
The Yard Sale will take place in the church yard from 10am til 3pm and stalls can be booked via Jo Mapp on 07724804905 – £12.50 (table supplied) £10 (bring a table). There will also be tours of the tower and crypt, with booking available here.

Summer Art Exhibition

Calling all artists and art lovers…

The friends of St. George’s Church, Ramsgate, invite you to their Annual Summer Art Exhibition. All proceeds go to their Church Restoration Appeal.

The Exhibition runs from 10th to 19th July in St. George’s Church and the opening hours are 2-5pm. Art works can be viewed freely and available for purchase.

This is an open exhibition of paintings, drawings, prints, mixed media and photography. It is in the setting of the beautiful Grade 1 listed church building, and you can also view the Dunkirk Stained Glass window. Light refreshments will be available.

Entry forms are available online from: e_hartnell@yahoo.com .

Please register by 1st July at the latest.

This Sunday – 7th June

“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.”

(Deuteronomy 7:9)

This week, the sections of the email are:

  • Opening Reflection: Fruit of the Spirit: Faithful
  • Key notices: Service Team Leaders Needed, Our new PCC
  • Coming Up: Churches Together Prayer Breakfast, Men’s Group Croquet, Relationships Matter Course, Antonia – Mini-Opera,  Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day, Dare to Pray Meeting, Friends fo St. George’s Art Show
  • Interesting Blogs: Safeguarding advice
  • Weekly Calendar
  • Online Forms: Event application, Submit a notice, maintenance report, Safeguarding

Scroll on…

Opening Reflection

One of the most important themes in the Bible is that God is faithful. The key moments in the Old Testament are when God makes his promises to Abraham and David. These are promises that God keeps over many generations and centuries and are ultimately fulfilled in Jesus, who is both the seed of Abraham who brings blessing to the nations and the Son of David who rules for ever.

We need to know that God is faithful, because it shows that he can be trusted. If we cannot be confident in that, then we won’t put our faith in him, and ultimately it is only through faith in God’s promises that we are saved.

It follows that if God is faithful, then we should be faithful. To become like God, to grow in the fruit of the Spirit will include becoming increasingly faithful in our dealings with others. Since God keeps his promises, we will want to keep our promises. Jesus puts it clearly in the Sermon on the Mount, when he says, “Simply let your `Yes’ be `Yes’, and your `No’, `No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” (Matthew 5:37).

So, do people consider you to be faithful? Do you always do what you say and say what you do? Are you careful not to promise what you are not able to deliver? Are you careful to do what you have promised, even when it is going to cost you in some way? Will you stick at your marriage, even when it becomes hard, because you have promised to do so in your wedding vows?

If we as Christians show that we cannot be trusted, then who will believe that our God is faithful? Let’s pray that we are increasingly faithful in all our dealings.

Paul Worledge

Key Notices:

Service Team Leaders Needed

Are you interested in taking on a key role in opening up and setting up for our Sunday Services on a once-a-month basis? We are looking to create a team of 4 or 5 people to carry out this important role. Check out the role description.

New PCC:

The new PCC elected at last week’s APCM:

Church Wardens: Elaine Hartnell and Penny Williams

Deanery Synod Reps: Francina Beard and Mark Ogden

PCC Members: Maureen Claringbold, Sue Martin, Tom Martin, Janet Reid, Malcolm Searchfield, Joyce Thomas

Coming Up:

Churches Together Prayer Breakfast

This Saturday, 6th June, 9am-10am, Newington Free Church.

Men’s Group – Croquet

On Tuesday 23rd June, at 5:30 for 6pm, the men’s group are holding a Croquet Evening at the Croquet Club on the Ramsgate Royal Esplanade (near the boating pool). It is £10 each. Please let Bruce know asap if you would like to come (07708 682464, brucestikes@btinternet.com).

Relationships Matter Course

A seven-week course exploring the good, true and beautiful picture of relationships, sex and sexuality expressed in the Bible. Newington Free church are running this Evangelical Alliance course on Saturday evenings (Saturdays 13, 20, 27 June; 4, 11, 25 July; 1 August), 7-8pm.

Antonia – Mini-Opera

This One-Woman Mini-Opera about Marie Antoinette features Petra, the organist at St. George’s on the harpsichord. Tom Thumb Theatre, Margate, Friday 19th, 7:30pm. Find out more…

Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day

10am-3pm, Saturday 20th June, St. George’s Church. Encourage people to come along! If you can help with a tower or crypt tour on the day, then please let Paul know asap.

Dare to Pray, Prayer Meeting

Due to clashes on 20th June, the Dare to Pray prayer meeting this month will be on Saturday 27th June, 9:30-10:30am at St. George’s Church

Friends of St. George’s Art Show

This will run from 10th to 19th July, 2-5pm, in St. George’s Church. If you want to enter a painting, drawings, prints or mixed media contact Elaine on e_hartnell@yahoo.com or Janet on 01843 852780.

Interesting Blogs to Share:

It’s not just policy, it’s personal

The latest guidance from the Church of England on what to do when a safeguarding concern arises. Find out more…

 

Barriers to Reporting Safeguarding

Reporting a safeguarding concern can feel complicated. This article names some of the most common reasons church officers hesitate, and why the Reporting Safeguarding Concerns and Allegations Code is there to support you through all of them. Read more….

Weekly Calendar

Sunday 7th June – First Sunday after Trinity

Eucharist (St. George’s Church) Matthew 5:31-37 – 9:30am

Monday 8th 

Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Tuesday 9th 

Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Community Meal (St. George’s Hall) – 5:30-7:00pm

Wednesday 10th 

Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm

Thursday 11th  

Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Saturday 13th  

Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am

Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm

Sunday 14th – Second Sunday after Trinity

Eucharist (St. George’s Church) Galatians 6:1-10 – 9:30am

Life Groups

Will you dare to share the Christian life with others? Life groups are a great way to meet together regularly with a small group of other Christians, for mutual support, to share in reading God’s word and to pray for one another.

Please see Paul if you are interested in joining one. There are now more groups available! They meet at the following times:

  • Monday evening (two groups)
  • Tuesday afternoon
  • Wednesday morning
  • Wednesday evening
  • Thursday morning

There is also a youth life group on a Sunday afternoon.

Online Forms:

Under the ‘Contact’ tab on the website, there are now three forms that you can use to help us in managing the church:

  • Events Application Form. Use this if you are organising a church event that needs a church room booked, advertising or ticketing.
  • Submit a Notice. Use this if you want to ask us to include a prayer request or other notice in the church notice sheet or email.
  • Maintenance Reporting Form.Use this to report any non-urgent issues with our buildings or grounds.

Safeguarding

Our website is now updated with the latest information about Safeguarding and links to the Diocesan form for reporting concerns and accessing training.

Training

If you volunteer in anyway at church the national authorities you should take at least the Basic Module in safeguarding training once every three years. If you hold a role connected with vulnerable adults or children and young people, then you will also need to take the Foundation Module. Once you have completed your training, please forward that certificate to James, our administrator, (office@churchramsgate.org) so that we can keep records of who has done the training.

Finally, let’s keep being faithful!

Yours in Christ

Paul Worledge

(Priest in Charge, St. George’s Ramsgate)