AblazeUK 2010: Tuesday Morning Seminar 2

His Rule, His Reign in the Family

Next up was Ps Jonathan Morgans (Aberdeen assembly), speaking on His Rule, His Reign in the Family. Jonathan started off reading from Isa. 1:16-17. The ministry of the kingdom finds its source and motivation in love. We won't know the work of the Spirit unless there is love.

1. In Family Relationships

Sometimes we diminish the importance of the family to God. In order to undo this mistake, Jonathan took us through a number of Scriptures which highlight the importance God places upon the family. God even uses family relationships to reveal something of the relationship between Christ and His Church and something of the relationships within the Trinity.

After scaring a good number of pastors into thinking they were about to undergo a mid-life crisis, Jonathan suggested that the antidote to such a problem is to really know our identity as a child of the Father.

Prov. 22:26 speaks of training up a child in the way he should go, not the way he should stay. Coupling this with Gen. 2:24 Ps Morgans spoke of the need for freedom from the positives of the past in order to be able to live in the present, looking to the future.

2. In Loss

After highlighting the extent of those impacted by loss, Jonathan pointed out that God is a God who heals, He is the God of all compassion, and that this place is not our home. Therefore we need a kingdom perspective on our loss.

3. In His Family

Taking up a prophecy from last year's Convention and the story of Mephibosheth in 1 & 2 Samuel, Jonathan pointed out the need to call people to come home. Like Mephibosheth, we may feel unworthy and prefer to flee to a backwater, yet we must know the welcome that Jesus extends to us, just as David invited Mephibosheth to eat at His table.