West View Baptist Church, Hartlepool

A family friendly church in the town of Hartlepool

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When God calls, pack your tent and sing your song.

Tim and Jonny led today’s worship. Tim continued with the theme of looking at the highlights of the Old Testament. The Bible is mainly rooted in the history of people. The first 11 chapters are pre history, no iPads, no history books, all oral. The main purpose is to reflect God, God is , God is the creator who remembers his people.

There was probably a man called Noah. There definitely was a flood. The early writers were interested in getting us to follow God. These chapters lead us to Abram. The call of Abram is found in Chapter 12. Some 9 generations after Noah a man named Terah is born. This guy is loaded he has a big estate , father of a great family estate , lots of land, and has 3 sons, Abram, Nahor and Haran.

Tim tried to compare this to the Dallas series of the 1980s but not sure anyone was a fan! Haran has a couple of kids . Nahor marries Milkah, Haran’s daughter after he died in Ur. Abram marries Sarai and they take in Haran’s son, Lot. Abram is due to inherit a large part of the estate. Terah dies and the sons take over . But the family line is set to end because  Sarai is barren and carries that pain. Then God tells Abram to leave.

This family has a theme of barrenness , Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah all go through this pain. This family of the whole earth begins life in this situation of barrenness.

Let’s be honest if we wanted to write this story we’d have started from a better place. But God had other ideas . This is a speech of God. In the New Testament we will find God’s word is a person, Jesus! Not a chapter in a book.

Easter is fast approaching, here in two weeks. It’s  a celebration of resurrection, giving life to the dead and calling into existence things that don’t yet exist. People formed by Gods world. A world bringing order from chaos. God calls those who are barren and without hope into hope.

This whole story is about this contradiction that to stay in safety is to remain barren. The call to Abram is to go blindly into the future. Abram doesn’t know where he is going but God will show him. Today’s society is too focussed on self. The summons is an incredible promise . Who ever loses his life., This Sunday’s Word for , Acts 3:1 is a call for the faithful to move in life. There is an incredible promise wrapped in this call to Abram . God says “I will make…”,  “I will bless…”, “I will curse..” These are the gifts of god , in the self presentation of God. Compare these with what God gave Adam and Eve in Genesis 3.

They are simply given here as a gift of God. They do however depend upon Abram receiving the gifts. The Promise concluded with a commissioning. This text hints at purpose of the church. In Galatians 3:8 Paul traces that call of the church back to Abram. The good news is God wills life and hope for all people. For all people with no qualifier, and no criteria to meet. Nothing happens if there is no verse 4, no “So Abram went.” He believed the promise of God and went! He travelled the northern shrines . The geography is not really the point though. It’s about pilgrimage and journey. Abram trusts the promise. Would we, we like to be settled and secure. No one likes change. God is a God of movement,  of journeys, of stepping out in faith when called. There are numerous examples of this. God is a tent dweller he moves. Look at his Tabernacle. in Hebrews Jesus too has nowhere to lay his head . By faith Abram made his home in a foreign land, from this one man comes numerous decedents . All this from a man who because of his great age could be considered as good as dead. God calls us to be tent dwellers and it’s not one generation, not just the here and now. God’s promise assumes we pass it on to future generations. Abram enters the land, finds it full of Canaanites, he doesn’t fight them. The promise of God is hard, not easy, to believe and practice . Has to be done in the midst of others who don’t believe. Abram’s is an interesting relationship with no evidence of conflict. The Canaanites may even be a temptation. There is no evidence he tried to covert them. His task was simply to live amongst them , and he leaves altars as he moves around. Tim posed the question, “Where’s your place to connect to God, or is it maybe a simple wooden cross in your hand.” God was about to do something amazing for Abram. Abram simply responded . That’s all God wants us to do. Take the first step, let God bless others through you. Take the step even when you don’t know where the journey take you help us is to trust.

Tim then highlighted some of the inspiration behind the rewrite of the words to the hymn Jesus shall reign that we sang today. The inspiration behind this was Eric Liddell, of Chariots of Fire reputation. He was sitting in a railway station being mocked and questioned about his beliefs. His answer was simply to sing the words of the song to his mockers. Eric Liddell just sang the words to his mockers as a simple way of demonstrating that he was indeed a man not afraid to follow when God calls.

This Sunday was also the time when a small band of us went to Sheraton Court to share worship and songs with the residents.  Tim, Terry, Stella, Esther, Matty and Brenda went to share some time and sing some songs. It is both humbling and a privilege. Even though we had slightly less residents in attendance this time they truly made up for it with their enthusiasm in joining in with the songs. I’ve included an extract of some of the songs,  slightly croaky as some of us are still  getting over colds.

 

 

 

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It’s all about Grace, God’s plan and a man called Jesus

As promised I said I would try to add  the message that Judith was sharing last week. I’ve done this from other people’s notes so let me know if this is not a fair summary, Judith reflected on the message we heard last week from Tim on God’s amazing love, on the fact that despite man’s failings, and his continuing inability to do good, God still loves us and has made a way for us to be connected to Him.

Judith drew on the following scriptures for her message on Sunday.

2 Cor. 5:17 1 Peter 2 : 9 & 10 Ephesians 2:1-10 Ephesians 4:18 2 Cor. 4:3-4 Romans 7 : 14 – 25 Psalm 145:8 Ephesians 1:7 Colossians 2:12 Jeremiah 29 : 11 – 13

She highlighted three key elements to this. Consider your Past. Celebrate your Present. Rejoice in your Future.

In considering our past we need to reflect on the fact we were dead, separated from God, unrighteous and objects of wrath. We were born under the curse of sin and death, as part of the fallen Adamic Nature; Adam had been God-conscious but after he had disobeyed God he became Self-conscious. He’d lost his connection to the supernatural presence of God. This meant we all were alienated from God. The good news is that through accepting Jesus Christ as our saviour we step from one kingdom into the other, from an old management to a new management.

Under the old nature, courtesy of Adam we did not have hope, Now through Jesus we have hope, a future and a reconnection to the supernatural. Judith urged us not to be afraid of the spiritual life, reminding us that after all that is exactly where God lives

Helen Keller
Helen Keller

Many people are good kind and helpful – but is that enough? Can we earn our salvation; can we do enough good deeds to get us back into God’s good books? We were born into a sinful nature, because of Adam, because of this “Adamic Nature”. We could have been stuck there but God had a better plan. And the name of the plan is Jesus. God knew we couldn’t do it on our own. Without the Iife of Christ and the love of God we are just doing empty works – they don’t earn us a relationship with God!

Our good works, our love of the Word and putting it into practise, stem from a loving relationship with our Father God. Judith also reminded us that although children are born with the Adamic nature they are innocent in the eyes of God, the Bible talks about the age of accountability. Children go to Heaven. At a certain point we choose to go on our own path or choose God’ s path, and God knows what our level of understanding is. Inside everyone is a hunger to know our creator, and we can answer that call or not.

Judith reflected on Helen Keller’s statement. She was a blind and deaf lady, who was taught sign language and was eventually taught about God and Jesus. Her amazing reply was that “I always knew He was there, I just didn’t know His Name”. His name is Jesus.

We have to learn to become God-conscious again. Live your life from the inside out. Put Jesus the Living Word in first place and we’ll become more sensitive to the Holy Spirit, as we renew our minds and put these things into practise, He helps us & prompts us to communicate the love of God to others through different ways.
Judith urged us to celebrate our Present remembering that by Grace we are Saved, Raised and Recreated into a Masterpiece

God had a Plan! Thankfully God is rich in both mercy and grace, The humbling and amazing thing is that you’ve never gone too far or done too much for His love not to wash you clean. God is the initiator, the designer, the creator, the Lover of the plan of Salvation. When we step into God’s Kingdom we receive a new management.

We cannot earn our salvation. Paul makes it clear that it is from God, and from God alone. We have been given an everlasting gift. For that reason, we are to celebrate the present. We do not need to live under the power of sin! Yes of course we still miss the mark but we can choose to put things right again and carry on. We don’t need to keep making excuses like “well it’s just my nature, part of my character..”

Is it part of the Old Man, or Nature – or part of the New Man, or Nature?
We all have Christ’s Nature on the inside of us. It’s down to us we always have a choice!!

Paul tells us to put off the old Man – (Thankfully Judith wasn’t saying divorce your husbands….) – and put on the New Man. Remember that in order for us to put something on we have to take something off.
So that’s where we are now, on this journey of ups and downs, choosing to renew our minds and our nature with the Word and character of God, through Jesus, with the help of the Holy Spirit
God not only saved us, He has raised us up from death in sin to Life, and seated us with Christ. It’s worth noting that some translations refer to being enthroned with Christ.
So we are seated With Christ in Heavenly Places – we are enthroned with Him

Physically we are still here and face the challenges of life on Earth, through good times, hard times, and challenges. Always remember He didn’t leave us by ourselves, we have a Comforter. One who comes alongside and Helps us in our weakness.

A bit like a good Mother, God’s character is one of comfort, nurture, and love.

It is through God’s Grace that we are saved and raised – not our works –We are therefore not called to please ourselves anymore but just like a relationship with someone you love, we live to please Him by our obedience to His Word (cleaning our mind) and acts of service – out of a Love relationship
Paul writes that “we are his workmanship,” literally we are his making. We have been created. We have been formed. This is not in the general sense, but in the sense of a new creation.
Paul says we have been re-created “for good works.” The emphasis here is on holy living, the exact opposite of how we lived in the past. We are God’s special treasure – valuable, and His Masterpiece. Our salvation is something only God can do, when we say yes to Him.
He loves us regardless – He loved us before He even made the earth – and He longs for a relationship with His children! He loves everyone the same, so don’t dismiss yourselves as not worthy – or else you will be saying God is a terrible artist & His masterpiece is rubbish!

Rejoice in your Future : God has given you a hope and a future, now and in eternity
Vs 10: For we are God’s handiwork (Masterpiece), created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Yet again the message from Jeremiah 29 : 11 – 13 is heard. I’ve reflected elsewhere on this message and Judith yet again draws it out: For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call on Me and you will come and pray to Me, and I will hear [your voice] and I will listen to you. 13 Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.

There is nothing in all creation that has the power to change us on the inside – our best efforts or good works cannot pay for our salvation. It’s only God’s grace which is a gift that we need to accept. Jesus gives us that way to become re connected to God through the born again experience of our spirit

We were dead but now we are alive on the inside because of God’s great love – there’s nothing we can do to make Him love us more or make Him love us less – we are recreated on the inside into a masterpiece, and are seated with Him as part of His Bride

We now exist for God’s glory. He doesn’t exist for our glory. We don’t glorify him when we hold back! Just like the Heavens – we declare his glory by showing God in a physical way when we obey him.

Let’s learn to be still before Him, to draw near to Him and ask for more of His Supernatural Presence; Let’s be willing to let go of things that we value higher than Him – whether that’s a person, a thing, or something hidden – like an unforgiveness or grudge.

And finally Judith reminds us all to rejoice in the Love of God that gives us a Hope and a future

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Service interrupted.

Ian led today’s service, ably supported by Jonny, who turned up at the wheel, getting a quick lesson off time. We had some fun worship songs today including one of our current favourites, My Lighthouse. Judith brought us the word today but sadly I missed it as I was called out to assist Mark in dealing with the fact that someone had tried to set our gent’s toilets alight.

Fortunately the cardboard and lighter used hadn’t set anything else alight and there was no  damage to church and no injuries. Incidents like this do highlight the need for us to all be vigilant. Hopefully I’ll be able to gather some thoughts from others from Judith’s sermon from today. Meanwhile I thought it might help to share some thoughts around today’s incident. Attempted arson is no laughing matter and we did report what happened to the police. We will be fitting some internal CCTV cameras to try to prevent any repeat of this.

It did however lead me to ponder on the reasons behind it. I’m currently reading Mend the Gap by Jason Gardener which looks at the practical difficulties of bridging the proverbial generation gap.  Church by it’s very nature is committed to family values and trying to build and keep a sense of unity amongst diverse congregations.

Mend the Gap poses the question “Why do young people commit crime?” and one young person replied “Kids commit crime because there’s no sense of community any more!” The challenge for the church is of course how we deal with this.  We now live in a time where old community traditions and values appear to have been eroded without anything to put in its place. I agreed with Jason Gardener that churches should not be backward looking. What they should be doing is acting as a community in their own right with their own traditions and values. Ministering to young people is fraught with problems. Look at the New Testament and seek out the youth ministry received by Jesus. You’ll find it in Luke’s evidence driven gospel. It states Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and Man. That’s a tall order for anyone involved in trying to bridge the generation gap.

It’s even more challenging at the point in time we find ourselves at. Communities are established through their shared stories and generationally our stories are now coming from very difference sources.  Word of mouth and written records are replaced by social media channels. How many of us know what the latest Youtuber is saying, who’s got the most popular vlog? Young people now,  more than ever,  are relying on peer advice derived from these social media channels.  Church I think needs to be part of a young person’s idea of family. Mend the Gap leads to the conclusion that church needs to be intergenerational, young and old together with sons and daughters prophesying,  young seeing visons and old dreaming dreams.

Young people buy into the myth of rebelling against adult society. Hopefully today’s incident was just that. We will continue here at West View Baptist Church to build our caring worshipping community reaching out through Filling Station and our other missional work. All of us have to be church youth workers and try and offer friendship, family and new traditions.

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An Ark, a lament, a promise and a new beginning

Tim, Roy and Jonny provided the music on Sunday 4 March, Jonny led worship and Tim brought us the message.

Our new song for this week,  Weep with Me, courtesy of the Rend Collective is a lament. We’ve been looking at the highlights of the Old Testament,  and it is surprising how many are actually in the very first book, Genesis. Focussing in on Genesis 6 we hear the story of Noah and his family. It is a long story so Tim only selected some snippets to illustrate but he encouraged us all to go home and read it in full. It’s clear that Noah did everything he was commanded to do. 150  days of flood occurred before the waters started to recede. Noah used birds to try to find dry land and signs of life. The raven explored but found nothing, the first dove explored but found nothing, the second returned with an olive sprig.  Not a bad present for Noah’s 601st birthday.

God’s new covenant serves to remind him and us of his promise. Never again would water be used to wipe out all life. The rainbow is the sign of that promise.

We teach the story of the Ark to our children,  at home and in our Sunday Schools or Young Churches. But as we get older there is a dawning realisation, “Seriously, we’re teaching this to our children,  a tale of the destruction of humankind!”

It doesn’t sit very well with the carved wooden animals, the cuddly ark playset, the jovial bearded Noah character or the cartoon picture that seems to appear on every children’s Bible.

Too often we focus upon the behaviour of humankind,  and the judgement of a wrathful, vengeful  God. What we miss and what we really need to hear, realise and reflect upon is the pain at the heart of God in this situation. This is a God who weeps here.

The story of Noah “borrows” from other earlier stories. The Great Flood from the Epic of Gilgamesh has a flood hero Utnapishtim who is rewarded with immortality.  Many scholars believe that it is clear that the first 11 chapters of Genesis draw upon many older stories drawn from elsewhere. The story is told because the Jewish  writers wanted to tell us more about the relationship between humans and God. The focus here is and should be on the change in the character of God.

It is about covenant and promise. It is about God’s creation not living up  to God’s intent.  We’re invited to penetrate to the heart of God. God is grieved, not angered, as he sees the state of humankind. Can God abandon the world he made so joyously? The turnaround begins and is done through God’s pain and anguish. He feels the pain of his broken world .

In the midst of the story is this one man, Noah, and his family who offer the world hope. They show that faithfulness is possible even in a violent unbelieving world. Resolution of this whole story comes by the change in God’s heart, God speaks from his heart, in the full realisation that even after the flood humankind will not be changed forever. They will repeat the same mistakes. They will be just the same. Rain and flood will not change them forever.  Hope depends upon God’s heart. God promises to stay with man. This marks an irreversible change in God. Such a commitment is costly for God.  A grieved God is set against a resistant and resisting world.  The self abandoning god of Philippians 2. We finish with Chapter 9 of Genesis with God restating the purpose of humankind and his role.

God restates the original Genesis promises.  The rainbow is established as a covenant, a promise, but who is it a reminder for? It is the equivalent of a Post It note for God. “God remembered…” 

This is what gives hope through the Old Testament. The flood story tells us we cannot be forgotten by God. God remembers. Tim urged us to read it again if you have difficulty believing. God’s purpose and plan for creation will not be thwarted by humankind’s inability to live up to the hype.  The reality of chaos is all around us and we are invited to live a life of hope.

God is committed to the world he made. He sent his Son into the world as part of that commitment.

Tim also read the story of Noah by Frederick Buechner. Be thankful God is not forgetful or easily distracted!!

“In one way, then, it gave Noah a nice warm feeling to see the rainbow up there, but in another way it gave him an uneasy twinge. If God needed the rainbow as a reminder, he thought, that could mean that, if someday God didn’t happen to look in the right direction or had something else on his mind, he might forget his promise and the heavy drops would start pattering down on the roof a second time.”

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Out of the Ashes with Peter Gladwin

Last night we joined friends in Owton Manor Baptist Church to listen to the testimony of Peter Gladwin and his wife Sarah.

Peter was badly burned as a baby. He started his message by simply asking us to think about what a start in life that was. He also urged us to not let people out a label on you.

As young Peter was growing up he kept asking his parents “Mum, Dad what happened to me?” The answer he always got was “We don’t talk about that son.” He later came to realised that evasive answer was probably driven by feelings of guilt. At 10 Peter went off track, stealing drinking, so many petty offences at the age of 13 the judge sent him to prison! Once out of prison he ended up on probation afterwards. At the age of 15 Peter got on a bus with a friend, a group of young people from a different area got on the bus and Peter and his friend were attacked. One guy stabbed his friend with a 10 inch knife. Peter thought his friend was dead. Then the knife attacker came at him. Peter remembers thinking I’m only 15 years old and about to die! He turned away from him as the knife came for him.

Years later John Lennox was preaching on Issaac . John said I bet none of you can imagine what it to be stabbed with a knife. Peter couldn’t help himself. He shouted back ” I do!”. Unlike the Isaac story there was no angel on the bus that night to save Peter. The lad with the knife stabbed Peter in the arm, severed tendons in his right arm. Back in hospital Peter found himself yet again asking himself “Why me?” He couldn’t answer and didn’t know where to turn as he didn’t know god. Because he couldn’t use his arm he lost his job as apprentice cutter. His arm didn’t work for two years. Peter turned to drink and drugs and tried to bury pain. That doesn’t work. Buried pain never stops buried.

He couldn’t keep a job down or a relationship down. Then at the age of 24 he was hit by a car flung 16 feet in air broken skull femur etc. Again he found himself asking “Why me?” He couldn’t get off this treadmill of gloom and doom. Then at 27 his Dad committed suicide. Peter found himsef filled with a void and emptiness that no one could touch, nothing in the world could help and he felt so so broken. One Sunday Peter thought if I jump off North bridge 80 foot down it will be all over. He’s standing on the bridge and realised that he could see his mum’s flat. He goes to see her instead, Mum lets him in. He was distressed, dishevelled and she didn’t know what to say to him. So she reverted to what she knew “Do you want a cup of tea son?” Then mum rang his big sister Annette. She didn’t give him a quick fix or a glib answer.

Annette just said God had a plan for his life and he could have a personal relationship with Jesus. Peter says that at this point it was as if the room filled with mist and he looked in corner and saw a man in a cloak. “Jesus is here” he said to his sister. There and then he surrendered to Jesus and asked for help and to be saved. Sister took him to church for the first time and he went forward to be prayed for. Peter remembers amazing grace played as he walked . His eyes were opened to Jesus, who is alive, and he knew for the first time that God loves him and has a plan for his life. He was so on fire for Jesus. When God reveals himself you can’t get enough of him. Peter cautioned though that we need to test everything as there are a lot of things out there that look like Jesus. He reflected on the fact that those who have sinned much love much.

Over time Peter got the message “I want you to go to bible college”. Peter couldn’t help thinking, this must be a mistake, “I didn’t even go to school.” He told his pastor who pointed out how much money would be needed and said he would pray about it. 6 weeks later a cheque for £8000 come through the post and Peter is off to college. He had to humble himself and ask students for help with even the most basic things. In second year a friend asked him “Have you seen the new girls that have come from Switzerland?” “I’m not interested” he said and then went to see them. He sees Sarah for the first time but the deceiver’s voice is saying “she won’t like you.” Peter believed the lie. Then he met her in the corridor and took her to cinema. He realised he was not going let this girl go. He asked he to be his girlfriend but she said no. The Lord said to Peter do not give up! God’s got a way of perfect timing, his timing not ours. Listen to the Lord and he will open great doors for you . Peter tries to forget her and then he sees Sarah sitting in park looking troubled. He plucks up the courage to ask her what is wrong and she replies “I can’t stop thinking about being asked by you to be your girlfriend.” Outside Peter appears calm. Inside he’s cheering and thanking Jesus. Peter acknowledged that it was difficult for Sarah and her parents. Yet within two years they are married. Sarah’s sister had shown her mum a magazine article about Peter and this helped them.

Peter ended up working for a drug and alcohol service . Then the Lord told him over and over to apply for probation service. Revelations says the doors I open cannot be shut. Peter thought this was a waste of time, he’d been on probation himself and they would not want him. When it came to the bit about criminal convictions he ticked the box to indicate Yes. The box for details was too small for Peter to list what he had done but the Lord said to him just put “Would like to discuss further if selected for interview”
Interview day came and he shared his background and what he was up to now with the panel. He was convinced that they would not want him but to his surprise they said he was just the man they are looking for.

In prison visiting he met a glum prisoner. When he quizzed him he found out that he’s got 12 months for non disclosure of criminal background. This seemed a bit severe until he revealed the job was at Barclays Bank. None of us are perfect. We’ve all ticked the wrong box at times. Tick the yes to Jesus box. The works could not heal me but Jesus can! Be aware that Jesus can speak back. God speaks today. Will we all make time for God to speak to us. God loves you.

Peter got promoted. Got job in crown court for probation service. A real Joseph moment from prison to palace.

Peter did 2.5 years in crown court . Best money ever then Holy Spirit said don’t get comfortable this is only temporary. Never know what God has planned. God said hand in your notice and follow me. Peter took 7 months but handed notice in and went to work with Sarah. Sarah had opened little cafe as Christian witness. This was then they had a valley time, Sarah got cancer and they faced a long battle until she was eventually declared cancer free. Throughout they decided as a couple that regardless God would reign over whatever happened. God was faithful, Sarah was cured, Peter’s book was published out of ashes and their ministry was born. Will you come when God calls?

Their calling has led them to South Korea, Cambodia, India, Australia and many other places. God opened up the world. Peter had never been out of Halifax before becoming a Christian . Out of the Ashes is now going to be a musical.

Peter asked us to reflect on being at peace with your past, content with your present and prepared for an exciting future. Cry out to god , how do you want to use me?

God has no grandchildren, no favourites.

Peter shared an experience of time he visited a women’s prison. He got a 10 page letter from someone who wasn’t at the service, but one of the other prisoners threw a copy of book into cell.

8 weeks later at a really low point she read book and said it saved her life. She was feeling suicidal.
Peter stressed the need for us to take God off the shelf. Let God walk in front of you. Life will grow in excitement, experiences and challenge. Aim at things for God. If your heart is burning for Jesus you’re in for an exciting life. He closed by saying he’d been on fire once nearly killed me, second time in church he was set alight for Jesus.

At the end of the session people asked him to expand on when his sister Annette came to Christ. Annette has been working in a butchers when a man from a small roadside church had come in asking to put up a poster about the church’s activities. She agreed and the man went to leave the shop. Then he paused, turned and told her that she would be born again in Jesus. Needless to say she thought he was two pork pies short of a picnic. Then a fortnight later she sees the man walking into his church, follows him in and gives her life to Jesus. 12 weeks later she helps Peter after he comes down from the bridge.

Peter’s mum came to Christ as well and he was finally able to have that conversation about how he got burned. Peter finally learned that his mum had gone next door to the neighbours, that she had forgotten to put the fire guard up and a hot coal set the rug on fire. He learned that Annette had tried to rescue him, couldn’t and in going to get help, leaving the house had pulled the door shut, stopping people from being able to get in to rescue him in time for him not to be injured. A burden was lifted from them all once they were able to talk about what happened.

Best summed up as Annette may have closed the door that affected his earlier life but she also threw open the door that changed his later life.