Questions

Well it’s been an eventful week, beginning with the royal baby – endless speculaiton about when she would be born, then when finally the baby did arrive the discussion continued about what she would be called.
Will the royal baby girl be named Alice, Diana, Elizabeth, one of the most royal names of all — or maybe  Alexandra, Charlotte or even Victoria? But of course after a little while all the speculation and guessing came to and end as the news was released that it was Charlotte, Elizabeth, Diana.

But no sooner was that all over when all the speculation started in avengence again as the general election hove into view and the political pundits tried to envisage every single outcome and what it might mean – A hung parliament, a Labour victory the SNP holding the balance of power, alliances here, pacts their. Everyone hedging their bets.
And this carried on into the night, after the polls had closed. Was the exit poll wrong? What about the other polls etc etc. speculation, questions, arguments, lots of interaction interspersed with some quite sensible comments of well let’s just wait and see we will know in a few hours.
On Friday we celebrated the 70th anniversary of VE day and thought about the many who had lost their lives in the second world war.

Yesterday I visited Bletchley Park made even more famous by the recent film the ‘Imitation Game’. Alan Turing

Bletchley Park was a place where many questions were asked but not the speculative ones where we could ‘just wait and see’ we would know the answer in a few hours. The questions which were asked here were crucial to the progress of the war, the main one being how to break the code of the Enigma machine which the Germans were using to encrypt their messages.

The film gives you some idea of what happened but when you visit and see the huts where the code breakers worked and the reconstructed Bombe machine which was used for decoding you understand how critical this work was. It is said that it shortened the war by two to four years, and that without it the outcome of the war would have been uncertain.
In the film they show the moment when Alan Turing suddenly sees the solution and then there is the astounding moment when the machine actually delivers a readable message. The question is answered, the problem solved, a solution found.
Of course their work was not over at this point, the code changed every day and later the Enigma machine had fourth rotor added which meant more work, more questions and answers.

Questions, problems, debates, discussion
Although sometimes we have enough of them how boring would it be if we lived in a world where no-one asked any questions!
And without questions we would never make any progress.
Man has been asking questions since the beginning – How can we make fire, how can we grow food more efficiently, how can we cure diseases, how can we stop wars? “What is the Answer to The Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything?”Well according to the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy it is the number 42

We all have questions.
Why go to church? Is there life after death? What about suffering?
Why isn’t God answering my prayers. I’m reading a good book on that right now which doesn’t pull any punches.
God, are you there?
It’s good to ask these questions, because we need to be honest with God about what we are feeling and thinking.

If we look in the Psalms we see a whole lot of questioning going on.
Take Psalm 10 Why, O LORD, do you stand far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

Even Jesus on the cross, “If it be possible let this cup pass from me, yet not my will but yours be done. My God, My God, why have you forsaken me? Deep questions with now immediate answers.

Jesus himself was always asking questions,
To the blind man -, “What do you want me to do for you?”
To the disciples in a storm
“Why are you so afraid?”
To Thomas
“Why did you doubt?”
To the crowds
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

To Peter
“Who do you say I am?”
He asks us these same questions – What do you want me to do? Why are you afraid? Why did you doubt?
Why are you worrying?

At the beginning of the book of Acts, Luke tells how on the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came as a rushing wind, and tongues of flame rested on the heads of the apostles, they were filled with the Spirit and they spoke in tongues – other languages so everyone could understand what they were saying. It was a dramatic, momentous event.
After this they went about preaching boldly, teaching and healing people just as Jesus had done.

In our reading for today Peter and some of the others are at the house of this Roman centurion, Cornelius. You can read the whole story of how they got there and of how God prepares Peter for what happened in Acts 10. Cornelius was a devout man, a God fearer. He spent a lot of time in prayer, he gave to the poor. He would have heard about Jesus and no doubt he would have had questions too. And God wants to give him some answers. He wants to show him who Jesus is and what it all means and that he, a Gentile can be a follower of Jesus too.

So here is Peter talking to the centurion and his household, it was quite a crowd. He says you know the message of peace God sent through Jesus Christ. You will have heard how Jesus came from Nazareth anointed by God with the Holy Spirit, how he had gone through the country helping people and healing everyone. How he was put to death on the cross but came to life again on the third day and how many people had seen him alive again and how all who believe in him will have forgiveness of their sins.

Luke, who is recounting this writes
44 While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. 45 The Jewish believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles,(those who were not Jews) 46 for they heard them speaking in other languages and praising God.
Cornelius had questions. Peter had brought him the answer he was looking for, God had responded by pouring out the Holy Spirit them all. Today we can still ask the questions and God will still show us the answers, lit may take us a while to get there, but God will respond to what is in our hearts. He will pour out the holy spirit on us too so that we can know and understand his overwhelming and complete unconditional love.