Perfetcionism
Categories: god
Tags: Church, Jesus, Christ, Huddersfield, Advent, Christmas
Date: 14 December 2012 09:27:36
Blogging through Advent 11
Perfetcionism
Colossians 2:16-23
I have a tee shirt with the word "perfetcionist" on it. That is not a typo, that is the way it is deliberately spelled.
Sometimes we strain to get things right. But no matter how hard we try things don't seem to turn out exactly the way we planned them.
My wife and I got married in 1981, late April, we knew that there was a chance of rain at that time of year, but we didn't plan for the weather we got. It snowed. A lot. Some members of the family couldn't get across the Pennines to the wedding.
One week earlier we had been walking around the church, Lockwood Baptist Church in Huddersfield, in short sleeves. The weather was beautiful and warm. Prime Minister Harold Wilson once famously said, "A week is a long time in politics." A week is a long time in wedding preparation too.
Since then I have been involved in the wedding preparation of two daughters. Though there was no snow at these (just horizontal winds making the veil hard to photograph) things are never quite as perfect as you planned.
In fact life is often like that, hence the perfetcionist tee shirt.
So what has this to do with Paul's letter to the Colossians?
16 Let no one therefore judge you in eating, or in drinking, or with respect to a feast day or a new moon or a Sabbath day, 17 which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ’s. 18 Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshiping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding firmly to the Head, from whom all the body, being supplied and knit together through the joints and ligaments, grows with God’s growth. 20 If you died with Christ from the elements of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to ordinances, 21 “Don’t handle, nor taste, nor touch” 22 (all of which perish with use), according to the precepts and doctrines of men? 23 Which things indeed appear like wisdom in self-imposed worship, and humility, and severity to the body; but aren’t of any value against the indulgence of the flesh.If we keep from partying we will be criticised: No one likes a puritan, especially one who criticises everybody else. On the other hand if we do celebrate Christmas with partying and enjoyment and, shock, even alcohol, there's sure to be someone thinks it wrong. Frequently the people who criticise either side are both inside the church. They can even be the same person. A person can at one time complain that Christmas is over commercialised, and in almost the same breath complain that McDonald's do not mention Christmas in their decorations. Make your mind up. So whether we feast on the feast day or not, don't let them judge you. Let us celebrate God's coming into the world this Christmas in whatever way we see fit. But make sure that Christ is at the centre of whatever we do.