Gospel Meeting 25/02/2018

John’s Gospel ch9 vs1 – 12.

SUFFERING… Why do we suffer?

Sin is the root cause of all suffering.

Death and suffering came to all people through Adam and Eve disobeying God in the Garden of Eden. They ate of the fruit of the tree which God had told them if they touched it or ate of it they would die.

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned…” – Romans ch5 vs12.

People sometimes refer to this world as “the land of the living”, but no, it is the land of the dying. The land of the living is up in Heaven!

There are many types and causes of suffering spoken of through the Word of God, and here in tonight’s passage of scripture the blind man’s suffering was for the glory of God, and to manifest His great power and works.

The sufferings endured by Jesus Christ at Calvary’s Cross are incomparable with any other human being. Yet He was completely innocent!

“… I find no fault in him”.

–   Pilate,  John’s Gospel ch19 vs4.

–         

“… Have thou nothing to do with that just man…”.

–   Pilate’s wife, Matthew’s Gospel ch27 vs19.

“…this man hath done nothing amiss”.

-    the repentant thief, Luke’s Gospel ch23 vs41.

“Certainly this was a righteous man”.

- Roman Centurion, Luke’s Gospel ch23 vs47.

“Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth”.

-   1^st Peter ch2 vs22.

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him”.

- 2^nd Corinthians ch5 vs21.

“Just as there were many who were appalled at him – his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness”.

–   Isaiah ch52 vs14.

Why? Why would The Holy Son of God allow Himself to be taken by wicked men, beaten horrendously, then crucified, suffering such a totally unjustified sentence?

The answer is, we sinners needed our debt paying that we could never pay…

Not a single one of us can ever work it off with good deeds.  God will not write our sin debt off because He is holy, loving and just. But sin is so serious that it must be punished, and the sinless, pure and holy Lord Jesus Christ in His great love towards us paid it off – in full! There was none other good enough to do this work for us.

Dear reader, how can you ignore or reject such a wonderful love as this!

“For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous”.

- Romans ch5 vs19.

All our sins were placed on Jesus Christ, and His perfectness is placed upon all we who believe –  we have received His righteousness!

“For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive”.

-    1^st Corinthians ch15 vs21 – 22.

Friend, if you have never yet done so, come to this wonderful Saviour tonight in sincere repentance of your sins, and in faith accept this full and free Salvation. With welcoming arms He bids you come – he did it all for YOU!

“… and whoever comes to me I will never drive away”.

- Jesus Christ, John’s Gospel ch6 vs37.

Gospel Meeting 18/02/2018

Exodus ch11 vs1 – 5, ch12 vs1 – 13.

The backdrop to this message is the children of Israel being in captivity to Pharaoh in Egypt. Their lives were hard, being used as slave labour without mercy.

Moses was instructed to go to Pharaoh and tell him that the Lord God said to let His people go and leave the land of Egypt.

Pharaoh stubbornly refused, resulting in the Lord sending nine successive plagues upon the land of Egypt…

The tenth and final plague involved “the Passover” – which was a representation of the coming death of God’s Son, Jesus Christ.

In due course, Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death when he laid down His life on The Cross, is the means – and only means – whereby we can be forgiven and saved from the penalty of all our sins.

The Lord Jesus Christ, by giving His sinless body and shedding His blood, took away our due judgement with Holy God. Through personal faith and sincere repentance, anyone can ask Him into their life as Lord and Saviour and be saved.

The lamb that each household needed to kill had to have various specifications including  –

a)      without blemish – a type of our Lord Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God, who was ever sinless, pure and holy.

b)      a male in it’s prime – just as our Lord Jesus Christ willingly died in His prime of life.

Jesus Christ’s whole life was completely without sin.

“I find no fault in this man”. – Pontius Pilate, Luke’s Gospel ch23 vs4.

“… I have betrayed innocent blood…” – Judas Iscariot, Matthew’s Gospel ch27 vs4.

Only the perfect sacrifice is acceptable to God as payment for our sins. His Son is perfect!

Ch12 vs2 tells us that this was to be a new beginning…

Dear reader, do you want a new beginning and a new life?

We read that Pharaoh constantly hardened his heart against God – how is your own heart towards God?

Don’t keep delaying making your peace with God through His Son’s atoning work at Calvary – one day it will suddenly be too late with no further opportunity to be saved from an eternal Hell, or to be made fit to enter into an eternal Heaven.

“…behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation”

-   2^nd Corinthians ch6 vs2.

“”Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near”.

-     Isaiah ch55 vs6.

Sin is everywhere – each and every one of us has inherited a sinful nature through Adam, the first man who disobeyed God.Sin entered in, followed by death.

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”. – Romans ch3 vs23.

The new beginning was (ch12 vs3) “unto all the congregation”, and the good news of the Gospel is also to everyone… this full and free Salvation through Jesus Christ is available to YOU this night! God loves YOU just as much as He does anyone else in this whole wide world!

All the Old Testament scriptures point to the coming Lord Jesus Christ as the Redeemer.

“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake". -  1st Peter ch1 vs18 - 20.

Many people still admire The Lord Jesus Christ’s teaching, morals or life, but this is not enough! Friend, can you truly say tonight he is “MY Saviour”?

In the Passover, the blood had to be applied around the door for the home to be protected… we must also apply the blood that Jesus Christ gave on The Cross for us –by faith, then this cleanses us from all our sins.

“…Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, And has made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen”.

 – The Revelation ch1 vs5 – 6.

How does one become a Christian?... by realising your own sins, being genuinely sorry for them, and in faith accepting Jesus Christ is God’s Son, asking Him into your heart and life as Lord and Saviour.

Friend, you can never save yourself from the penalty of your sins, only by entering into a personal relationship with this lovely Man, Jesus Christ.

No – one is then promised an easy life – you will still have trials and temptations!

The children of Israel fed on the lamb, and we too must feed on The Lamb of God, by reading His Word and speaking with Him through prayer each day.

Vs8 – the Passover lamb was to be roasted with fire… The Lord Jesus Christ felt the full fire of God’s wrath on Calvarys Cross for our sake. He suffered intensely from cruel, wicked men and Holy God. This is how much Jesus Christ loves us and values us, that He willingly suffered so much on account of our sins.

Vs12-13 – the applied blood provided the only safe refuge from the judgement of God that night…just as all those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ are covered by His own shed blood.

“Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world”

-          John’s Gospel ch1 vs29.

God’s justice is satisfied, paid by the blood of His Son.

“…Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us”. – 1^st Corinthians ch5 vs7.

One coming day, The Lord Jesus Christ is returning to take all His saved people home to be in Heaven with Him. If you are not saved, you will be left behind to face an awful scene in this world. Please grasp this offer of forgiveness while it is still the day of grace.

Ch12 vs4 speaks of “the lamb”, vs5 speaks of “Your lamb”… can you say Jesus Christ is YOUR Lamb of God tonight, dear friend?

Please offer to Him a simple prayer of repentance in faith, and be saved for eternity!

Gospel Meeting 11/02/2018

Gospel of St. John ch4 vs46 – 54.

The prominent words in John’s account are “believe” and “life”.

“But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name”. – ch20 vs31.

John was very selective in the miracles he wrote of, to show specifically that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, Messiah.

God sent His beloved Son into the world, born of a virgin, that He could willingly die to become our Saviour - the sacrifice for all our sins, giving His life and blood on Calvary’s Cross.

He alone lived a holy and sinless life. His death and resurrection paid the price of our sins in full and was wholly accepted by God The Father.

God did this work FOR US, and also works IN US a work of grace, that we as believers in a personal relationship may benefit all that His Son has done and achieved for us in our Salvation.

Faith is essential, and God gives us the gift of faith.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God”. – Ephesians ch2 vs8.

God does not believe for us, nor is it by proxy – it is the personal responsibility of every human being.

Faith is more than accepting that certain things happened, or there was “a man called Jesus”.

Belief is personal conviction and commitment, entrusting ourselves to Jesus Christ.

Coming in repentance of our sins to Him, believing He is the Son of God who died on the Cross and arose from the grave. Simply ask His forgiveness and ask Him into your heart and life as your Lord and Saviour. Then by surrendering your will to Him, you can turn away from being sinful and begin a new life pleasing to Him.

Death, as ever, is no respecter of persons – in this passage of scripture we are told of a rich nobleman’s son who was at the point of death.

He pleaded with Jesus Christ to come down from Cana of Galilee to Capernaum, that there He may heal his son.

However, being in someone’s presence is not essential with The Lord Jesus Christ…

“The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed”… “And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way: and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed the selfsame hour”. -  Matthew’s Gospel ch8 vs8 &13.

For Jesus Christ’s power to be exercised, the nobleman had faith and believed the word of Jesus –

“The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die. Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way”… “So the father knew that it was at the same hour, in the which Jesus said to him, Thy son liveth: and himself believed, and his whole house”. – vs49 & 53.

When Jesus Christ becomes our own Lord and Saviour, we too must trust Him at His word. He is always with us through His indwelling Holy Spirit.

Friend, come to Christ tonight, in genuine repentance, in a real and lasting saving faith. Know and enjoy the peace of all your sins forgiven, and a personal daily relationship with God’s Son, Jesus Christ.

“And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.” – John’s Gospel ch21 vs25.

Gospel Meeting 04/02/2018

The Acts of the Apostles ch13 vs13 – 43.

This was Paul’s sermon given in the synagogue at Antioch, Pisidia, (now Turkey).

What a subject he chose – Jesus Christ, God’s promised Saviour!

The whole Bible from beginning to end concerns God’s love for His creation and the sending of a Saviour.

 Paul outlined the history of Israel, which was in preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ.

Though Israel was continually rebellious, God was sure and faithful in sending the long – promised Saviour of sinners.

No ruler, king or anyone else could do what The Lord Jesus Christ did!

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” 

– Luke’s Gospel ch2 vs11.

God’s plan for Salvation, known even before the foundations of the world, had now arrived in the birth of His Son!

No amount of “religion”, or any teacher, ever saved anyone, but this Man is able to save everyone who will come to Him in repentance and faith.

“…What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he…” – Matthew’s Gospel ch22 vs42.

How will you answer this question tonight?

We all need a Saviour, and God provided Him in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Being saved from the penalty of our sins – an eternity in hell – is the most important thing that can ever happen to you!

Friend, can you say tonight that He is your Saviour?

It is an incredible thing to be a Christian, to have a real change of heart and life!

Ask this most wonderful man to be your personal Lord and Saviour tonight – He is willing and waiting to save you!

Despite Israel rejecting Him, and mankind’s disbelief, God provided The Saviour.

Jesus Christ was holy, pure and sinless. He gave His life at The Cross as a sacrifice for the sins of everybody, taking our punishment on Himself. He arose justified!

“But God raised him from the dead” – vs30.

“…Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen…”

- Luke’s Gospel ch24 vs5 – 6.

History was forever changed at Calvary!

Jesus Christ is unique. He is the Lord of Glory!

vs38 – “Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins”

- just what every human being needs!

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”        

 - Romans ch6 vs23.

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him”. – 2^nd Corinthians ch5 vs21.

We have a wonderful God and a wonderful Saviour.

If we still have our sins unforgiven, they are a crushing burden upon us, taking us to a lost eternity separated from God, in that most awful place called Hell.

Friend, if you have not yet done so, please make sure that tonight you come from certain death into certain life, through The Lord Jesus Christ.

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”.

- Romans ch10 vs17.

Embrace it – say this is for me! Have all your sins washed away for ever by the blood of Christ, and a home awaiting you in Heaven – with Him, the one who loved you and gave Himself for you.

Gospel Meeting 28/01/2018

Mark's Gospel ch1 vs1-15

Verses 14-15 give a clear precise message - 

...the kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe the gospel!

John the Baptist prepared the way for The King, The Lord Jesus Christ.

What is the Kingdom of God like? ...

1) CHARACTER .

Christ is absolute King and ruler over all.

He is righteous through and through.

He entered Jerusalem humbly, on a donkey, but wins hearts by His great love and devotion.

What a wonderful eternity it will be for all those who will be with Him!  To be ruled by Him is a great blessing.

The Gospel is the best news to all mankind ever!

Normally, citizens die for a king, but Christ The King dies for His subjects!

At Calvary's Cross Jesus Christ showed the extent of His love for us all, being crucified as the sacrifice for our sins so that we can be forgiven. This sacrifice was fully accepted as He was God's sinless Son, and He arose from the grave three days later, triumphant over sin, death and Hell.

2) MEMBERSHIP QUALIFICATIONS.

Genuine repentance is essential!

"Godly sorrow brings repentance to salvation and leaves no regret, but wordly sorrow brings death”
 – 2^nd Corinthians ch7 vs10.

These are different sorrows…

People may grieve sorrowfully over many things, based on wordly considerations.

The rich man of Luke’s Gospel ch16, in Hell, was sorrowful but without any mention of repentance… Judas Iscariot was remorseful, regretful, but it was wordly sorrow.

Having Godly sorrow for our sins brings us to God, having sorrow before Him.

“Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight…”–   Psalm ch51 vs1 -4.

We have all disgraced Holy God with our sins against Him, but our Godly sorrow produces repentance unto salvation.

The death and resurrection of God’s beloved Son, Jesus Christ, has removed our offence - for those who will personally receive Him as Lord and Saviour of their hearts and lives.

In the parable of “the prodigal son”, he was in his lowest condition before he finally came to his senses. It is so today, that many people need to be brought to this point before God touches their lives and they truly repent of their sins and turn from them.

“And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him: and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again: he was lost, and is found…”
 – Luke’s Gospel ch15 vs21 – 24.

Our loving Heavenly Father is always happy to receive us through accepting His Son as our Saviour, in repentance and faith!

“… joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth…”

-   Luke’s Gospel ch15 vs7.

Repentance is sincere – putting God firmly in the centre of our lives.

It involves a radical change of mind and heart – a real turnaround in our daily lives, surrendering them to The Lord Jesus Christ.

One profession of faith and no change in our ongoing life is not repentance!

“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth them shall have mercy”
 – Proverbs ch28 vs13.

A loathing of our sin is always a good sign.

3) FAITH

The Gospel is about a person – the Son of God –  having faith in Him and His great work of redemption at Calvary.

This was the power and promise foretold around 6,000 years ago!

There are different types of faith…

temporary faith – as in the parable of the sower ( Matthew’s Gospel ch13).

dead faith – without obedience and without works following.

real, saving faith – steadfast, going on for Him and His work.

“Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting”. – Psalm ch139 vs23 – 24.

Dear friend, the Kingdom of God is indeed at hand. If you have not yet done so, please repent and believe the gospel, while there is yet still time!

Come to Christ tonight, in genuine repentance and faith, accepting Him as your own Lord and Saviour for now and eternity.

Gospel Meeting 21/01/2018

Romans ch5 vs1 – 15.

“Stop being God’s enemy, make peace today” …

1) Sin –

Look what sin has done to the world!

Lives are ruined, countries are corrupted.

Just one person can have a devastating impact on mankind – Stalin was responsible for around 40 million deaths. Pol Pot, Hitler and many others are examples of how much one person can affect millions of lives for the worse.

However, one person’s sin was responsible for affecting every single human being in the whole world… Adam’s sin against God in the Garden of Eden. His sin brought death to all who followed –

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” – vs12.

We are all of Adam’s bloodline and we are all sinners.

We did not do what Adam did, but we too are all without excuse.

2) Enemies -

Hitler again, is an example of how one man can make enemies, but if we are without Jesus Christ, God’s Son, then we are all an enemy of God.

“For God so loved the world, that he have his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”

–        John’s Gospel ch3 vs16.

“… but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance”

–     2^nd Peter ch3 vs9.

Ours is a God of mercy!

We are reconciled from being enemies to God through The Lord Jesus Christ.

This is through having personal faith that Jesus Christ is God’s eternal and holy Son.

If we come in repentance and believe that He paid the price of all our sins in the sacrifice of His own body and shed blood on the Cross, inviting Him to be Lord and Saviour of our hearts and lives, then we will be saved from condemnation and have a home in Heaven.

Then we will have…

3) Peace with God –

Only The Lord Jesus Christ can bring enemies together and reconcile us.

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus”

-    1^st Timothy ch2 vs5.

We, the believers, as the “Bride of Christ”, are invited to the greatest wedding reception ever – in Heaven, and what an incredible occasion it is going to be!

Friend and reader, are YOU invited? Are YOU saved from your sins? Have YOU made your peace with God through accepting Jesus Christ?

Ensure your sins are forgiven tonight without delay, and that you have been made righteous for Heaven through Him.

Gospel Meeting 14/01/2018

Romans ch6 vs1 – 23

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

 God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” – vs1 -2.

Being “dead to sin” evokes a high ideal… what does it mean? -

We who know Christ as our Lord and Saviour should not want to sin, especially knowing what the cost of His love was for us at Calvary’s Cross.

“Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” – vs4.

“Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof” – vs11 – 12.

We could not do this living under Law, but through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ we can!

With His Holy Spirit indwelling us, we have power to be delivered from the dominion of sin in our lives.

Why, and in what way did Jesus Christ “die unto sin once”? – vs10 …

The only One who never sinned because He is the Holy Son of God, died for our personal sins and the sins of the whole world.

God the Father made Him to be sin for us as a sacrifice on The Cross, so that we can be forgiven and cleansed.

In love, Christ came to us in our need and gave everything, laying down His own body and shedding His blood to save us from the penalty of our sins –

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” – vs23.

Friend, have you confessed your own sins to this most wonderful Saviour, and accepted His full and free Salvation? Have you asked Him into your heart as your Lord?

His sinless sacrifice was fully sufficient for Him to be raised from the dead, ascended and seated at the right hand of The Father – he is absolutely our Surety too!

“When Satan tempts me to despair,

And tells me of the guilt within,

Upward I look, and see Him there

Who made an end of all my sin”

-         (hymn by C L Bancroft).

 “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace” – vs14.

The Christian’s freedom from the power of sin is truth -  in and through Jesus Christ!

What a wonderful blessing to have and enjoy!

Nothing compares to the glorious news of the Gospel!

The love of The Lord Jesus Christ for us is beyond compare.

More Law = more sin, more death… only the Gospel brings freedom from the Law and dominion over sin, through grace.

The Gospel is pure and should never be changed in any way.

“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” – Romans ch8 vs1.

Calvary’s Cross is where our true freedom is found, and our hearts are transformed

 – The Lord Jesus Christ sets you free!