Roger Aubrey

Rain Choir

Thanks to Beth Jones and Pat Broome for this unusual video.

Hupernikao - my new favourite word

Today I have been preparing for speaking at All Nations this coming Sunday. I will be ministering on Faith that Overcomes. As part of the preparation I have been studying again the words for overcoming and victory in the New Testament: John 16:33; 1John 4:4; 1John 5:4-5; 1Corinthians 15:57, for example. The word means success, victory, supremacy, conquer. That in itself is a great study.

For Paul in Romans 8:37, however, the word is not strong enough. So he adds the word huper to it; the only time it occurs in the New Testament. In doing so the meaning of the term is heightened significantly (that's what huper does). Now it means not only to overcome or conquer, it means that through Christ we are more than conquerors (NIV); we over-conquer; we overwhelmingly overcome; we over-conquer; we thoroughly vanquish; we go beyond conquest (I liked that one!)

The key for all this overwhelming overcoming is that it comes 'through him who loves us' (verse 37). Jesus said in John 16:33 that he has overcome the world. He said this before he went to the Cross. Now he sits enthroned in heaven as the Glorious Overcomer and we sit with him in the heavenly realms. So, whatever we face, we already have over-conquered it, even though we may have to walk through the valley of the shadow.

Looking forward to preaching this on Sunday.

The ever-growing kingdom

The parables of the kingdom found, for example, in Mark chapter four, teach us that everything to do with the kingdom of God will always grow and never decline and pass away. There is something inherent in the genetic nature of the kingdom that ensures its growth: a growth of life, power, influence, health, numbers and dominance. It is the only kingdom that does this. All other kingdoms have a life span and then pass away; even if they last hundreds of years.

The genetic nature which makes the kingdom of God unique in this aspect is none other than Jesus Christ himself: he is the Kingdom. The kingdom is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17), and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus Christ. That's why Isaiah could say in chapter nine: 'Of the increase of his government [kingdom reign] there will be no end'. It's not just that the kingdom of God lasts forever: because Christ is the infinite - unlimited, unending God - then his kingdom by its very nature will always continue to grow, to increase.

The church, as the agent and instrument of the kingdom, has to manifest this nature of the kingdom on earth. Not in political machination, religious activity and ungodly domination, but as it allows the life of the Spirit of Jesus to be expressed in fullness. Where a church says no to the Spirit, it ceases to express the kingdom, and it dies. It may well continue to limp along as an institution for centuries, but it is dead all the same.

What a Time!

'Now is the time: what a time!' This is how Bryan Shutt closed the final meeting of our Without Borders 09 Bible Week on Thursday evening. It was a great time: great to see friends; great to hear some powerful teaching (especially from David Emmett); great to be in a youth meeting where there was such faith and passion for Jesus; great to hear testimonies about miracles and salvation; great to be in the presence of Jesus.

There were about 1,800 people at the Week, from our churches here in the UK. Each of the churches was well represented, and all of them are in health. It's wonderful to see people from the larger and the smaller churches come together as one family, worshipping together and supporting each other. There is no competition as to who is the biggest or the best (until it comes to football and basketball!). There was a fabulous sense of family and unity; it always takes an age to get anywhere because you stop and talk with friends, then twenty yards later you see more friends! Just great.

This may sound obvious but there was a real sense in our worship of a love and passion for Jesus. Constantly, the Holy Spirit brought us to a place where we adored the Lord and felt his presence tangibly in the place. This resulted in spontaneous miracles and healings, where people testified to being touched by Jesus without anybody laying hands on them or praying for them. This was a feature in the youth meetings too: on the night I was there a young man received a healing in his knee. He actually told me he felt he had a new one inside him. Some of these testimonies will appear in future editions of our magazine: Times of Restoration.

The ministry was based on the phrase 'now is the time' (2Corinthians 6). The DVDs and CDs will be available early September. I recommend you get them, especially David Emmett's ministry on Being an Overcomer. Life changing stuff from David.

And now we continue on back home at All Nations. It's good that we don't leave the highs of a Bible Week and slide back into mediocrity at home, then get all hyped up again next year. No way: we are in the flow of the life of the Holy Spirit each day and week here. We just want more of Jesus!

Now is the time

Tomorrow sees the start of our annual Bible Week, this year entitled 'Now is the Time'. Over 1,700 people from our churches here in the UK will come together at the Staffordshire Showground in the heart of England for five days of envisioning, worship, fellowship and a lot of fun. It's a great opportunity to catch up with friends that one doesn't get to see very much. It's also the time when we hear and see what we as a group of churches have been able to do as Ministries Without Borders throughout the world. Looking forward to it very much.

Have a wonderful week; I'll be back here around the 27th. Blessings.

I will continue to Tweet while I'm away; you can read them on the Twitter updates column on the blog. Or you can join Twitter.

Persecution in Laos

Officials Announce Ban on Christianity in Lao Village http://bit.ly/75VKZ

Thought for the day

The Lord's Table is an invitation and summons from heaven, for us to meet Jesus face to face and receive directly from him all the benefits in full of his broken body and shed blood.

Biblically illiterate

A new survey by Durham University reveals that only five percent of Britons know all the Ten Commandments; and sixteen percent don't know even one. We should not be surprised at such statistics, however arbitrary they may be.

When a nation decides to turn its back on God it will inevitably forsake God's ways. Here in the UK, successive governments have introduced anti-biblical legislation. Our political leaders by and large are avowed atheists or agnostics. The 'state church' - the Church of England - advocates beliefs and practices that contradict God's Word. The press resolutely ignores the fact that churches where the Bible is received as the infallible and inerrant Word of God are thriving; preferring to report the demise of established religion. Christianity is viewed as intellectually bankrupt by the chattering classes. Fundamentalist atheism is promulgated in the media. And we wonder at these statistics.

But this is history. The same things happened in the Bible when God's people abandoned him and turned to other gods. Their societies crumbled and were destroyed. The Ten Commandments are not the Ten Suggestions: they form the basis of our relationship with God and each other. When we abandon them we tear up our roots and wither and die. It's true that each of them has to be understood in the light of the Person and Work of Jesus Christ (the Sabbath, for example); but they are what they are - God's Ten Words.

In case you'd like to read the Ten Commandments: Exodus 20:1-17.

For more on the report go here.

Jesus the Giver

An outstanding time at All Nations yesterday. Jonathan Cooper spoke on Jesus the Giver; we worshipped Jesus the Giver; and received from Jesus the Giver. Testimonies of healing included a damaged retina and a smashed up knee.

Listen to Jonathan's message here.

Think before you speak

Be transformed by the renewing of your minds. (Romans 12:2)

Words are verbalised thoughts; so think before you speak. So many people suffer from Foot & Mouth Disease: every time they open their mouth they put their foot in it. If you've been following this blog for any length of time you will know that words are important; they have creative and destructive power. Faith comes through hearing words.

Faith has to affect your thought processes. It's not just believing in the heart and blurting out words. What you believe in your heart comes out of your mouth in words; but it has to go through the process of what you will say and how you will say it. I am discovering these days the importance of measured words: words that have been formed in my heart and then processed so my faith is verbalised accurately and powerfully. All it takes is a little thought from a mind renewed.