calven blog

by Calven CelliersIf I had to ask you if you ‘have ever been thrown into a lions’ den?’ I’m certain the answer would be a definite NO! Metaphorically, however, that might be a different story. If I had to phrase the question slightly differently, and asked you, ‘have you ever been in a situation where you felt trapped, without options or a way out? Have you ever wondered if God is big enough to pull you out of that difficult thing you’re facing?’ I’m certain you would say YES! In the book of Daniel, we read that Daniel was a faithful follower of the Lord. That, however, didn’t guarantee him a problem free existence. In fact, we read that even though he had been appointed as one of King Darius’s top administrators, his peers were jealous and wanted to destroy him. So, they tricked King Darius into making a decree that anyone who prayed to any god except the king himself would be thrown into a den of hungry lions. Yet, Daniel was persistent and continued with his faithfulness to God. He prayed to God, asking for help; he trusted in God because He knew that God is more powerful than anything he would ever face in this life.“Your effectiveness and personal victory in Christ are linked to the time you spend with the Lord.”  (Charles Stanley)Daniel rested in the knowledge that God doesn’t promise us a trouble-free life, but He does promise to be with us through it all. Daniel knew that and experienced it first-hand, and so he continued trusting in, praying to, and praising God. “23 …And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.” (Daniel 6:23NIV)Here’s what this Biblical account teaches us: Everyone on this planet faces hardships in life. But as Christians we have the hope that no matter what, God will see us through. No matter how dire things may look, there is no situation that God cannot change. The whole book of Daniel gives us constant reminders of God’s sovereignty. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He is our one constant in a very unpredictable world. He is still a rescuer, deliverer, and miracle worker, even when circumstances are difficult. That is the great message resounding from the lions’ den. God will be with us in the midst of our adversity and difficulties. We need to place our trust in Him! No matter what’s happening to you, faithfully persist in praying, praising and investing in your relationship with Jesus.What are you having a hard time trusting God for right now? What is the seemingly impossible situation that you’re sitting in with no clear way out? The pressure may be on. You may not see a light at the end of the tunnel. But you can trust that the living God is in the den with you. He has the ability to “shut the lions’ mouths.” Keep your eyes on Jesus and be a faithful follower! God…

by Calven CelliersI was recently introduced to the amazing work and talent of Liu Bolin, a Chinese performance artist known for using chameleon-like methods to immerse himself in environments, earning him the nickname “The Invisible Man”. To do this, he covers his entire body in paint which perfectly matches his chosen backdrop, painting himself into real-life scenes. As I ‘paged’ through the online images of Liu’s fascinating work, I started pondering the call on us as Christians to be in this world but not of this world. As Christians, we sometimes try to walk the fine line between blending in with the world around us and standing out as citizens of God’s Kingdom. Becoming worldly may make us ineffective witnesses for Christ, while preaching from a holier-than-thou standpoint can isolate us from the very people God has called us to impact.In the Gospel of Luke 19 we read about the life changing, destiny altering encounter that a certain tax collector, by the name of Zacchaeus, had with Jesus as He passed through Jericho.“1Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. 5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. 7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” 8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”” (Luke 19: 1 – 8NIV)The conviction of Zacchaeus’ heart was not the result of any lecture or religious finger wagging from Christ. As a result of Jesus’ tender compassion Zacchaeus was open to the working of God’s Spirit in his heart and as a result volunteered to “give [the people] back four times as much” as he had wrongly taken from them. Jesus celebrated this change of heart. What we learn from Christ’s example is that although there is a time to confront sinful behaviour, we must be gentle and gracious with people who may, or may not, see their need for God. Although Jesus regularly engaged with sinful people, after all He reminds us in the Gospel of Mark that “17It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17NIV), it’s important to note that He never participated in their sin. He visited Zacchaeus’ home, but He didn’t go into business with him or accept shady money from the “notorious sinner”. When (not if) we befriend unbelievers, we should…

by Calven CelliersEarlier this week a good friend and I were chatting about the effects of the Covid pandemic on the life of the Church going forward, and my friend commented, “I think when Church opens up all together, it will be like going to heaven … you will look for people you know but they won’t be there!” Initially I had a good giggle, but the thought lingered in my mind all day and I found myself eventually feeling quite sad at the thought of (a) people in the New Harvest family who have succumb to Covid and will be sorely missed when we all return to Church, and (b) people who won’t come back to Church at all for whatever reason, and (c) the possibility of people who I love that might not be in heaven one day – that one got me really sad! And it’s that point that I want to spend a bit more time exploring. Can we be sure we’ll go to heaven? In his first epistle the apostle John says: “13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:13NIV) In other words, yes you can know! God loves you and He has provided a way that you can be absolutely sure where you will spend eternity.The problem arises when you consider the reality, however, that hell, not heaven, is our default destination. We are all sinners by nature – “…23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” (Romans 3:23NIV) As a result, we deserve death and hell. Sin has terrible consequences, but God has provided a solution – “23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23NIV) We cannot save ourselves – “8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8 & 9NIV) We cannot pay our own way – “12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12NIV)In his letter to the Church at Rome, the apostle Paul says that “9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile — the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”” (Romans 10: 9 – 13NIV) As He hung upon the cross, Jesus took upon Himself the hell we deserve so…

by Calven CelliersWhen asked during a radio interview why so many of the ‘heroes’ of the Bible had such serious flaws, author and pastor Ray Pritchard answered, “That’s all God’s got to work with. The talent pool has always been pretty thin when it comes to moral perfection. So, God works with sinners because that’s all he has to work with. In heaven we will all be vastly improved – perfected by God’s grace. But until then, He uses some pretty ornery people who fall short in many ways – and He does some amazing things through them.” Think of it like this, if God chose only well-rounded people with no character flaws, then the credit would inevitably go to the people and not to the Lord. By choosing flawed people with a checkered past, a shaky present, and an uncertain future, God alone gets the glory when they accomplish amazing things by His power.The apostle Paul makes this point abundantly clear in his first letter to the Corinthians saying, “26 Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. 27 Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. 28 God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.” (1 Corinthians 1: 26 – 29NLT) If you wanted to condense the message of this passage in just one sentence, it would probably go something like this: God won’t tolerate human pride, so He chooses people who have nothing to brag about.It seems God has never been impressed with self-sufficiency, which is probably why the apostle Paul said He is drawn to people who are powerless, despised by the world and counted as nothing. The Bible is full of examples of how God uses imperfect, ordinary people to do extraordinary things in spite of themselves. When you think of the limitations in your life you may be tempted to conclude that God could never use you, because you’re not perfect, but let me remind you of this Scriptural truth – God is not limited by your limitations! In fact, we read in Scripture that He enjoys putting His great power into ordinary containers. In his second letter to the Church at Corinth the apostle Paul wrote, “7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” (2 Corinthians 4:7NLT) Many of the principles of God’s kingdom are paradoxes (seemingly absurd or contradictory statements.) When the apostle Paul pleaded with God to remove his  ‘thorn in the flesh’, the Lord said to Paul, “9 …My grace…