Australia Day (First Instalment

When we look at Australia to day and see the skyscraper skyline of Sydney and the development around Botany Bay this painting  of what took place on the shore of Botany bay in 1788 (only 228 years ago) seems almost unbelievable.

Many tribes of Aboriginal people had been living off the land here for many years of course, and they were as perplexed by what was happening as were the  British convicts who had arrived on the “First Fleet” of sailing ships and were forced to make this inhospitable looking piece of land their home.

It is interesting to note that the first thing the people in the painting above did when they landed on the shore, of what has become known as “Australia,” was to hold a Christian church service and thank God for their safe arrival and this set the pattern of weekly Church services on Sunday. As the years rolled by little church buildings were constructed wherever the people went to settle. These early settlers lived close to nature and had none of the luxuries of life that we have to-day so they became reliant on God and looked forward to the preaching of the Gospel from the Bible and learned to become more Christian in their behaviour.

I heard a story that goes like this: there was a boy who told his mother that he didn’t want to go to church because he didn’t understand the preaching and therefore thought it to be “a waste of time”. His mother didn’t comment but asked him to take the basket that she kept the dirty potatoes in, down to the creek and bring back a basket full of water each day for a week. At the end of the week she asked him how much water he had managed to bring back. “None” he replied “it was a waste of time”. “Did you notice anything about the basket” she asked, “yes” he said “it is a lot cleaner”.

 Similarly, going to church made these deported British convicts a lot cleaner too as I noticed when I was born in Australia 145 years after that flag was raised on Australian soil. We never had to lock our house, our car had no ignition key (just a switch) and when we went to the picture show on a Saturday night we left our groceries etc. on the back seat of the car where anyone could take them, (because it was an open car with no boot and no windows), but no one touched anything.  Women, girls, and anyone else could walk home at night unmolested. It is vastly different now though as we have to lock our house and turn on an alarm. Lock the car, and hide valuables in the boot and no one walks home alone at night.  For the moment then, imagine that we are “baskets” like the one I mentioned above and you will find it easier to see why things have deteriorated like they have.

What do I mean? Well like “potato baskets” people are constantly being filled with the “dirty potatoes” of immoral T.V. programs, also “dirty” rough and violent D.V.Ds and the “dirty potatoes” of excess alcohol and illicit drugs are used by many. The dirt out of all this rubs off and remains in people, and as most Australians don’t go to church anymore the Gospel of respect, love, and decency, doesn’t wash through their framework and help to remove this dirt. So a lot of people are affected by these bad things and the Police and law makers are at a loss to know what to do to solve this problem. As you see though, the answer is obvious. Revelation 1: 5 talks of Jesus blood washing our sins away, and Titus 3:5 talks of the “washing of regeneration” by Jesus. Paul got it right in Hebrews 10:25: “Don’t neglect worshiping together as some do”   Best wishes until we talk more on this subject next week. Regards, Tom.