A Christmas Message

Ladies and Gentlemen, as we move deeper into the Christmas season. Many of us will not be celebrating happy families, content lives and rich presents. So, this season the The Filthy Jesus Experiment will not be celebrating that Christianity offers us some kind of tonic to make us happy, content and rich. Instead we will be celebrating that God has come to earth via an illegitimate family, amongst the poverty of an oppressed people and in the filth of an animal stable. No God did not give us a cleansing tonic to cure our ills, instead God gave us a Filthy Jesus.

Everything Does Not Happen For A Reason

Ladies and Gentlemen, something beautiful happened to me at our last gig that I thought I'd share. During the gig I preached the following mini sermon... 

Ladies and Gentlemen, I know that many of us have been through hard times, we have suffered loss and tragedy and sometimes at that moment a well meaning person puts their hand on your shoulder and says "everything happens for a reason". Tonight ladies and gentlemen I have good news! Tonight I am going to call bullshit on "everything happens for a reason". Everything does not happen for a reason, no shit just happens. And this my friends is good news. It's good news because God does not have any secret plans for your life that you don't know anything about and God isn't causing loss and tragedy in your life in order to guide you in some direction. No, shit just happens and it's awful. But when shit happens we know there is something wrong with the world and that the world needs to change and collectively we might join with God in making the world a different place. 

After the gig I caught up with an old friend. We talked life including some not so great stuff. She was about to say "I'm sure everything happens for a reason" when she stopped herself, chuckled and said "well I can't say everything happens for a reason". She paused and said "I'm really sorry that happened". It was beautiful. I felt heard and empathised with.

A Riff on Galations 3:28

Ladies and Gentlemen last weekend The Filthy Jesus Experiment received our first spontaneous "Amen" from the audience. It was shouted out after we read this riff on Galations 3:28... 

In Christ brothers and sisters,
there is no Jew or gentile,
no male or female,
and no slave or free,
for we are all one in Jesus Christ.

There is no gay or straight,
no refugee or citizen,
and no good Xn or backslider,
for we are all one in Jesus Christ.

There is no virgin or slut,
no sober or drunk,
and no sinner or saint.
For we are all one in Jesus Christ.