"Facts that strengthen our Faith"

I shared these thoughts with the Parkrose Nursing Home Church congregation recently and both Renmark Uniting Churches.
This version was presented at Parkrose. It was slightly different at Renmark.
Below the sermon is the order of service and the Bible Reading.

SERMON

How are you going in the Faith department?

If you’re anything like me I often don’t have much.

I wish I could be more believing more often,

more effective as a Christian.

For some of us,

when we started our Christian life,

it was all very exciting and new.

It was for me.

God’s Holy Spirit had spoken to me about my need for salvation and need of our Saviour Jesus.

I was under conviction for 3 years before I became a Christian at 28.

 but at the time I could see how He was reaching out to me much earlier than that.

Some of us may have had a subsequent period in our lives,after we became a Christian, when we were “on fire for the Lord” as some would say.

Very involved,

attending this service and that,

this convention and that,

listening to prominent speakers,

attending Bible Studies,

sharing our faith with all who would listen,

Sometimes whether they wanted to hear us or not.

Singing in the choir,

taking up leadership roles in our Church.

And then some things might have come along to cause us to stumble a bit.

Relationship break ups,

the onset of chronic illness,

tragedies all around.

You might have worked out previously in your thinking,

like me,

 how God was going to give you a perfect life.

But like me your faith may have started to wain when challenges came.

Maybe we were  starting to become a bit sceptical and beginning to think our non Christian friends might be right.

They didn’t believe and maybe thought we were a bit delusional even though they still liked us.

They came up with questions that you didn’t always have answers for.

You were quite confident there were answers but found it hard to find them when needed.

They couldn’t see how Christians could have any fun and maybe you were starting to believe them.

Some of course who are here today have come from all sorts of Christian backgrounds.

For some our Faith is something that quietly started somewhere and then just grew over the years.

It may have been a slow and steady experience and you really just enjoyed and still do, being a Christian.

For some as we get older and come into places like this we know we are not that far off from passing to the next life.

We might ,even though we are advanced in years, still be searching for answers and assurance about what happens next.

We might be wanting a faith that works that will carry us through.

Well if what I have been describing resonates with you,

or is something you have experienced,

or even still are,

then I think today's passage can bring us some comfort.

A boost to our faith if you like.

We should always hope to leave a Church service feeling better than when we came in.

That can be if we allow God to touch us. 

My prayer is that will be our experience today,

Here are 4 things I think today's reading can help get us back on track.

1. The Fact of Jesus rising from the dead.

^1.8 Don’t ever forget the wonderful fact that Jesus Christ was a man, born into King David’s family; and that he was God, as shown by the fact that he rose again from the dead.

This passage is reminding us of the foundation of our faith which is a fact.

 A fact born about by History and Literature and the Word of God and God’s Holy Spirit.

And the testimony of those who knew Him when He physically walked this earth.

People will dispute this.

But the evidence is outstanding to those who are not prejudiced about becoming Christians.

You see many people, who are never likely to believe, are wanting to protect their right to be who they want to be.

That really means to sin without being accountable to God.

This blinds them from ever wanting to examine the evidence with an open mind.

Their minds are largely closed.

Some such people however may still be touched by God’s Holy Spirit even though it is against their wills.

After all such were some of us.

2.  We will be living in Heaven with Jesus. In a sense we are already.

¹¹ I am comforted by this truth, that when we suffer and die for Christ it only means that we will begin living with him in heaven. ¹² And if we think that our present service for him is hard, just remember that some day we are going to sit with him and rule with him.

This passage is a reminder that the best is yet to come.

That God has a purpose right now for everyone of us.

Suffering is something we are much more able to endure when we have all the promises God has for us and that He will keep.

And this following passage is a great encouragement when our faith is failing and weak.

3.God is faithful to us.

¹³ Even when we are too weak to have any faith left, he remains faithful to us and will help us, for he cannot disown us who are part of himself, and he will always carry out his promises to us.
God is aware of our human frailty.
He will and has already imparted His faith to us.
My mum used to love that little poem called footprints.
That is a very good scriptural example of what God, Jesus, is doing for us when we are that weak that our Faith is almost gone.
He will safely and faithfully escort us on through these tough times and over the hurdles we face.

One night I dreamed a dream.
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.

After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.
"Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,
You'd walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me."

He whispered, "My precious child, I love you and will never leave you
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you."

And this last bit from today’s passage is encouraging those of us who can, to encourage one another.

4.

¹⁴ Remind your people of these great facts, and command them in the name of the Lord not to argue over unimportant things. Such arguments are confusing and useless and even harmful. ¹⁵ Work hard so God can say to you, “Well done.” Be a good workman, one who does not need to be ashamed when God examines your work. Know what his Word says and means.

 We need to keep working on our Faith,

reading the Bible when we can,

attending Church here and other activities such as the hymn singing and communion services during the week.

Talk to each other about your faith.

How you’re feeling maybe exactly how someone else is and you can work together to lighten the burden.

We are told also to avoid arguing.

It’s sad but there was for sometime, an argument going on as to who actually was the author of the poem footprints.

The simple fact is that God actually wrote it not word for word, but in truth, in His Bible

Conclusion.

So is our Faith weak?

Does our faith need to be stronger?

In simple truth it doesn’t really matter.

If you are a Christian you are God’s Child.

We have a sign on our mantelpiece.

“GOD,  I am in your Hands.

I know you won’t drop me.”

He won’t.

That’s a fact.

We will now sing our last Hymn.

Can you guess what that might be?

Parkrose service13/10/19

Welcome

Call to worship: 

Hymn: “This is my Father’s World”  4v 

Announcements:

Bible Reading: 2 Tim 2:8-15                      

Hymn: “Great is thy Faithfulness”  3v 

Communion: 

Offering: 

Church Prayer:

Hymn:  “Now I belong to Jesus”  3v

Message:  “Facts that strengthen our Faith”

Hymn: “He’s got the whole world in His hands” 5v 

Benediction and Vesper: Now unto Him 

2 Timothy 2:8-15 Living Bible (TLB)

⁸ Don’t ever forget the wonderful fact that Jesus Christ was a man, born into King David’s family; and that he was God, as shown by the fact that he rose again from the dead. ⁹ It is because I have preached these great truths that I am in trouble here and have been put in jail like a criminal. But the Word of God is not chained, even though I am. ¹⁰ I am more than willing to suffer if that will bring salvation and eternal glory in Christ Jesus to those God has chosen.
¹¹ I am comforted by this truth, that when we suffer and die for Christ it only means that we will begin living with him in heaven. ¹² And if we think that our present service for him is hard, just remember that some day we are going to sit with him and rule with him. But if we give up when we suffer, and turn against Christ, then he must turn against us. ¹³ Even when we are too weak to have any faith left, he remains faithful to us and will help us, for he cannot disown us who are part of himself, and he will always carry out his promises to us.
¹⁴ Remind your people of these great facts, and command them in the name of the Lord not to argue over unimportant things. Such arguments are confusing and useless and even harmful. ¹⁵ Work hard so God can say to you, “Well done.” Be a good workman, one who does not need to be ashamed when God examines your work. Know what his Word says and means.

Living Bible (TLB)

Why not be a Preacher? a book by Dr Arnold Caldicott

"Why not be a Preacher?"

That is the name of a book by the late Dr. Arnold Caldicott.

At one time he was our minister at the Church of Christ at Grote Street Adelaide.
That was where he last ministered before retirement.
His late wife Alice was also a wonderful supporter .
They were a great team.

 He was an evangelical protestant minister and passionate about His calling.

He wrote this book and a couple of other books:

"The Gospel under Canvas"

"The Vercoe Story"

Arnold Caldicot was my Minister for a number of years at the Grote Street Church of Christ.

 He was a wonderful mentor and friend  to me and a great encourager.

He  was often encouraging me to become a preacher.

 It is no small coincidence that later in life I've taken up that challenge and have become a lay preacher in both a Churches of Christ nursing home  and also in the uniting Church in Renmark, South Australia.
I fully Love doing what I do and realise that maybe I should've done so a bit earlier.

Arnold had a big booming voice and there's no way I could  replicate that here but I'm just going to read a little bit of what he says in this book in the preface.

"why write this book?  because I'm convinced that young people need a book like this.
 The years of youth  are decision-making years.
 Great numbers of young people are lost to the Ministry because their questions are not answered.
Satan often wins by urging youth to settle for second best rather than the best for God.
And ministers need this book to remind them that recruitment for the ministry depends greatly on them.
 No matter how heavy the load, ministers should not lose sight of recruitment and should allow time and effort for programming in this direction.
 Where ministers take time and effort to encourage young people to give themselves to the preaching ministry, a stimulus will come into the life of the minister as well as that of the church."

Here are the contents headings for each chapter.

1.How do I recognise God's call.
2. Start by being a cadet preacher.
3. Preaching and The beginning: can I do it?
4.Try this for sermon.
5. Advice  on those college years.
6. Dos and don'ts for the preacher
7. Don't squib on the invitation
8.On ministering to a Church
9.On submitting a time sheet.
10. Your question: can I possibly take a funeral?
11.You can use this wedding service .
12. Then don't give up on God, expect a miracle
13. The preacher and the other woman.
14. Loud and clear on what Bible study is
15. Called to be an Associate. preacher:What then?
16.A letter of invitation- For you too!

Dr Caldicott uses many other resources to make this book.

Even in this day and age it is worth considering.

It may be just the challenge that someone needs to take up what God is calling them too.

You may find it listed on the second hand market, it was published in 1979.

I have a spare one for sale and will accept offers until sold. Perhaps $25(Au).

"The boy with the shining face"

   

Welcome to Parkrose Village Congregation 3/3/19

This is the message I brought to the residents of our Parkrose United Congregation at Parkrose Village on 3/3/19.

“The Boy with the Shining Face”

 2 Cor 3  ¹⁸ But we Christians have no veil over our faces; we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him.
Have you ever seen anyone glow?
We sometime make remarks about people we see in various circumstances.
We talk about them “glowing” or perhaps “Beaming”.
It can be a proud parent glowing in pride when their son or daughter has won a prestigious medal, award or competition.
It can be a bride and groom glowing as they exchange their wedding vows.
When I was a wedding photographer I used to stop couples half way down the aisle of the church ,just after they have been pronounced man and wife, to take a couple of quick photos.
My idea was to capture the “glow” from their faces.
What I call the newly wed glowing bliss look.
It was one of my must get shots.
When a young mum holds her new babe in her arms for the first time there is often a real glow notwithstanding the exhaustion.
When you see a group of performers taking their bows at the conclusion of a great performance, and they are given a standing ovation, they fairly glow with pride.
Particularly when their family and loved ones are in the audience.
We saw this  the other night at the Opera Tosca.
There were lot’s of people glowing this last Monday when people were presented with their Academy Awards.
And some of the people who came forward at the recent Franklin Graham crusade and their counsellors were probably glowing within and without.
And I could go on with lots of examples where we say people fairly glowed.
They have an expression on their face that radiates joy.
We have a passage read to us today that shows the experience of Moses who went from glowing joy when he received the 10 commandments to soon putting a veil over his face as the joy, the glow, was fading.
²⁹ Moses didn’t realize as he came back down the mountain with the tablets that his face glowed from being in the presence of God. ³⁰ Because of this radiance upon his face, Aaron and the people of Israel were afraid to come near him.
³¹ But Moses called them over to him, and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation came and talked with him. ³² Afterwards, all the people came to him, and he gave them the commandments the Lord had given him upon the mountain. ³³ When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face;^{[a] 34} but whenever he went into the Tabernacle to speak with the Lord, he removed the veil until he came out again; then he would pass on to the people whatever instructions God had given him, ³⁵ and the people would see his face aglow. Afterwards he would put the veil on again until he returned to speak with God.
And we read also.
¹² Since we know that this new glory will never go away, we can preach with great boldness, ¹³ and not as Moses did, who put a veil over his face so that the Israelis could not see the glory fade away.
He did not want people to see how he was really feeling.
He was perhaps thinking his people would never live up to these commandments.
Some have said that the people could not cope with seeing his face,his countenance ,glowing like it did when he had been in the presence of God in the Tabernacle.
He would put the veil on when he came out of the Tabernacle and remove it when he went back in as high priest to converse with God in person.
There has been much written about this veil Moses wore and also we think of what happened to the curtain, the veil, in the temple which was split from top to bottom when Jesus was crucified.
This signified that from that time on, through Jesus death on the cross, and His resurrection that we all had the opportunity to enter into the presence of God, made Holy by what Jesus has done for us.
Veils are still in use today of course.
Various religions have traditions about wearing a veil.
It was common once, and still is in some societies, for a Bride to wear a veil as she was about to be married.
Some say this was so the bridegroom was not distracted by her looks but was marrying her for the person she was.
As Christians today we are not precluded from the presence of God by a veil.
There is another passage that was recommended for this Sunday in the lectionary.
It is partly what suggested my title and subject matter.
I will read it for you.
It is bringing us forward to the ministry of Jesus.
³⁷ The next day as they descended from the hill, a huge crowd met him, ³⁸ and a man in the crowd called out to him, “Teacher, this boy here is my only son, ³⁹ and a demon keeps seizing him, making him scream; and it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth; it is always hitting him and hardly ever leaves him alone. ⁴⁰ I begged your disciples to cast the demon out, but they couldn’t.”
⁴¹ “O you stubborn faithless people,” Jesus said to his disciples,^[a] “how long should I put up with you? Bring him here.”
⁴² As the boy was coming the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus ordered the demon to come out, and healed the boy and handed him over to his father.
⁴³ Awe gripped the people as they saw this display of the power of God.
This is an encounter and healing that Jesus did with a man and his demon possessed son.
This family was in a terrible plight.
There were no joy filled faces here.
Not so until Jesus performed His miracle and set the lad free of his tormentors.
⁴³ Awe gripped the people as they saw this display of the power of God.
Can you imagine the joy that filled that father.
The glory of God was manifested here.
My imagination enables me to see this boy’s glowing wonderment, his shining face as he was set free.
“The boy with the shining face”.
We can only speculate what lay ahead for his boy.
We trust he was able to share his story with others to point them to Jesus.
We have all probably had our day in the sun where we beamed with joy in various experiences.
Even at our baptism perhaps.
I have witnessed many baptisms where the candidates were positively beaming as they rose up out of the water.
But how long do our shining faces last?
We can have a wonderful experience as we come into a real faith with the Lord Jesus.
The one who died on the cross for us.
But life is difficult.
We have many challenges along the way where we might lose some of our shine.
The cares of this world can at times overwhelm us
It is very easy to lose sight of the wonderful face of Jesus when we are in extreme difficulties or just a long period of hardship.
We could easily lose some of that shine in Parkrose.
We can get down in the dumps.
But the way back to Joy is to fix our eyes firmly on Him.
We can do that in these opportunities we have in our worship, as we touch heaven through our singing.
We can do it quietly in our rooms in prayer, and if we are able to read our Bibles, or have them read to us by a visit from the Chaplain or a Christian friend.
Or have fellowship with each other.
We can even minister to each other.
Here in this place.
We can forgive those that have wronged us.
That will always restore joy if we do it from the heart.
Shall we leave this place today with shining faces as we have been in the Lord’s presence?
¹⁸ But we Christians have no veil over our faces; we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him.

Will we be like the boy with the shining face?
I hope so.
Our last Hymn is an old one that Lesley remembered from the Alexanders Hymn book.
"Brighten the corner where you are".
It is our challenge today, as Christians who largely have lost our mobility and ability to venture out into the world.
Earlier we sang “I hear you calling Lord, I will go where you send me.!” 
But most of us can’t go too far.
But we can indeed Brighten the Corner where we are.
Shall we sing it.

1.     Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do,
Do not wait to shed your light afar;
To the many duties ever near you now be true,
Brighten the corner where you are.

o   Refrain:
Brighten the corner where you are!
Brighten the corner where you are!
Someone far from harbor you may guide across the bar;
Brighten the corner where you are!

2. Just above are clouded skies that you may help to clear,
   Let not narrow self your way debar;
   Though into one heart alone may fall your song of cheer,
   Brighten the corner where you are.
3. Here for all your talent you may surely find a need,
   Here reflect the bright and Morning Star;
   Even from your humble hand the Bread of Life may feed,
   Brighten the corner where you are.

 Here is the order of service for the day.

Parkrose 03/3/19  Order of Service
Welcome: Geoff
Call to worship:  Matthew 5:16
Hymn: “Shine Jesus Shine”
Announcements:
Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 3:12-18,
Hymn: “Within the veil”  “Into thy presence we come.”
Communion:
Offering
Church Prayer
Hymn:   “I the Lord of Sea and Sky”
Sermon: “The boy with the shining face”
Hymn: “Brighten the corner where you are”
Benediction and Vesper

 

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From Darkness to Light

Renmark West Union Church

Renmark Uniting Church

This last weekend I was privileged again to share with the Renmark and Renmark West Uniting Congregations.

Below is the transcript of my message.

Here is the order of service.

ORDER OF SERVICE RENMARK 16/9/18 

Welcome : Geoff

Call to worship: Worship leader.

Hymn: “Jesus lover of my Soul” AHB 139

Bible Reading: Jeremiah 4:23-28, Psalm 19:1-6

Hymn:”O Love that wilt not let me go.” AHB 525

Offering:

Prayers of Invocation,confession and intercession various

Hymn:“To God be the Glory.” AHB 85

Sermon: “From Darkness to Light”

Hymn:  ”Just as I am” AHB 497(1)

Benediction

Vesper: “May our Lord,God of Peace.” Edelweiss tune

   

  Here is an outline of the sermon and some additional materail.

SERMON

“From darkness to light” or “Victory over the Darkness”

Do you know that wonderful Gospel song?

“Praise the Lord I saw  the light!”

If I was great singer I would sing it for you.

I’ll come back to this song in a minute.

So if we saw the light were we living in darkness?

Do we recognise who is the giver of Light?

The written information I received from Joy to help with preparation for today focusses on preparing a message around the wonder of our worlds creation and how the light and dark can speak to us.

19 The heavens are telling the glory of God; they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship. ² Day and night they keep on telling about God. ^3-4 Without a sound or word, silent in the skies, their message reaches out to all the world. The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it ⁵ and moves out across the skies as radiant as a bridegroom^[a] going to his wedding,* or as joyous as an athlete looking forward to a race! ⁶ The sun crosses the heavens from end to end, and nothing can hide from its heat.

From the passages offered I could have opted to do a whole sermon on the creation of the universe and the earth and what’s in it.

That is a “hobby horse” of mine.

I am a firm believer in the creation account in the Bible and do not support evolutionary theory in anyway but I did not ever think too much about such things until after I had become a Christian.

In those days,my pre Christian days, I certainly looked on the sky, the earth, space in awe and was in wonder about our whole world and everything in it.  

Those lights still speak to all mankind.

The whole of creation still speaks to us in particular by creating that sense of wonder.

Causing us to think about our existence and what it all means.

The wonder of our world is universal and goes  go beyond our human language barriers.

It spawns lots of documentaries by people like David Attenborough to try and explain our existence.

But I instead for today started looking at other passages and decided to focus on the concept of light and dark.

Not just what causes it.

Of moving from darkness to light.

We can all experience a physical light and dark, but also it can be a state of being, where what  we see, from a personal emotional point of view, is full of light and happiness, or is what we see an existence of everything appearing dark and gloomy.

Maybe some of us here are fully experiencing the former,

light and happiness,

 but I doubt it.

We probably have some good or great days but some days where all we can see is blackness, gloom, even despair.

It doesn’t take much to upset us, sometimes unexpected events, things we have been blind to.

Some of us, or people we know, may only know the gloom and blackness and despair.

They call that depression in modern terms.

So if we are living in darkness how can we move into the light.

How do we move into the light?

Getting back to that song I mentioned earlier, here are the words.

"I wandered so aimless my heart filled with sin
I wouldn’t let my dear Savior in
Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night
Praise the Lord I saw the light

   I saw the light I saw the light
   No more darkness no more night
   Now I’m so happy no sorrow in sight
   Praise the Lord I saw the light

Just like a blind man I wandered alone
Worries and fears I claimed for my own
Then like the blind man that God gave back his sight
Praise the Lord I saw the light"

Have you been in a Christian meeting where you were singing that song.

Were you singing it with gusto, really entering into it?

Singing it with conviction!

A lot of times in Church we sing hymns that are often beyond and not really our own experience.

They are designed to enable us to praise God if we want to.

If we are people who are just getting used to the idea of going to church we might often not have much of a clue about what the words mean but we are nonetheless intrigued.

It can create a longing in our hearts to sing something like that and mean it.

From darkness to light.

“I saw the light!”

A blind person can usually know a form of visual darkness but can also find happiness notwithstanding their condition.

A greater darkness is where we are blinded to God and His presence, His existence, and how He can become our friend.

Many people are spiritually blind, indeed we all are until we come to know Jesus as God’s only Son.

Some will argue that they can be enlightened spiritually by other metaphysical experiences and religions.

Not through Jesus.

The Bible’s message is that this also is a spiritual blindness and darkness.

In the book of Proverbs we read this:

Proverbs 14:12 King James Version (KJV)

^“12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”

Many fall into the trap of spiritual counterfeits.

Some of it seemingly dressed in Christian clothes, others definitely not.

So if we are today feeling a little bit muddled,

Recognising that we have a longing in our hearts to know the peace of God,

Wanting to move from darkness to light what are the first steps.

Do we find it impossible to get started?

We don’t know where to start!

We do long for the freedom that God gives and we sense He can give.

How do we access Him?

How do we come to Him?

Now some of us may have gone to Church for years,

Sung all the Hymns,

Prayed all the prayers,

Attended Bible studies,

Camps,

But we are still thinking things could be better.

 As our closing hymn today we are going to sing a well known song often used for altar calls in Churches and at Billy Graham crusades.
It is “just as I am without one plea”.
This would be sung in Churches,still is, and people were invited to come to the front of the church at It’s conclusion to indicate that they wanted to be a follower of Jesus.
To receive him as their saviour.
The free gift of God.
It is recognising that none of us are perfect but whatever state we are in when we come to Him, God accepts us.
Then when we do seek to walk in the light with Him, then we can see the changes that are possible in our lives, with Him in control and not us.
God’s gift of Salvation and forgiveness is free but we do need to respond to Him.
It doesn’t happen automatically.
And it is also a process.
A process we may have started long ago but have lost our way a bit.
Before we sing this I would like to read you out the origin of how Charlotte Elliott came to write this.(1789-1871)

(Note this below is an expansion on what I shared at Renmark. )

"Patrons and invited guests gathered and witnessed a verse recital by one of the most physically beautiful young women most had ever seen; and they say that her voice was a wonder of beauty and crystal clarity. But her health was failing. At the conclusion, and as the gathered guests raved and fawned over her, a pastor waited patiently. At a private moment of opportunity, he introduced himself (Rev. Dr. Caesar Malan of Switzerland) and said, "Young lady, your talent and beauty are a thing of wonder. But, without Jesus, you are no better than the lowest prostitute out in our streets!" Reeling back with shock at these words, 33 year old Charlotte Elliott (1789-1871) gasped, "Sir! What you said is an insult beyond belief!"

That night Charlotte was troubled, restless, and could not sleep. At the height of her upsetness, she knelt beside her bed and prayed. A few weeks later, she saw Dr. Malan and apologized, saying, "I am sorry for my rudeness. Actually I would like to come to Christ, but I do not know how to find him."  Dr. Malan looked at her and said, "Come just as you are!" and she accepted Jesus as her savior that day.

Twelve years later (1834), in very weakened health, she desperately wanted to help her brother (H. V. Elliott) raise money for a college (St. Mary's Hall at Brighton, England) for daughters of poor clergymen, but her useless, invalid physical condition gave her no options.

[As a very young person in Brighton, England, Charlotte had been a popular portrait artist and a writer of humorous verse. She had a serious ailment that made her a lifelong invalid of sorts.]

One morning just prior to dawn, remembering Malan's words, her mind began to fill with the words of a poem that was published 2 years later and sold without her name. Not realizing that Charlotte had written the poem, her doctor came by one day and handed her a copy of the poem leaflet. Tears streamed down her face as she read the six verses and was told that, "...copies of this poem are being sold and the money given to St. Mary's Hall." That poem supplied the words for what would become that great alter-invitational hymn, Just As I Am... "Just as I am, without one plea..."

Let’s be reminded of what God has done for us as we sing this hymn.
I am going to read the words first for us to think before we sing.

1	Just as I am, without one plea, But that Thy blood was shed for me, And that Thou bid’st me come to Thee, O Lamb of God, I come! I come!
2	Just as I am, and waiting not To rid my soul of one dark blot; To Thee whose blood can cleanse each spot, O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
3	Just as I am, though tossed about With many a conflict, many a doubt; Fightings within, and fears without, O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
4	Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind; Sight, riches, healing of the mind; Yes, all I need, in Thee to find, O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
5	Just as I am, Thou wilt receive, Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve; Because Thy promise I believe, O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
	Just as I am, Thy love unknown Has broken every barrier down; Now, to be Thine, yea, Thine alone, O Lamb of God, I come, I come! When we have failed, and are failing, this Hymn, the truth expressed in it,  can become a real and practical way  back to Him  anytime. Just as we are we come to Him. Not just when we first become Christians but anytime during the journey. This getting right with God,  getting in right relationship with Him,  is an ongoing process. (It does have a starting point.) We need to be constantly taking who we are to Jesus. Constantly going to the Lamb of God. Just as we are. Taking who we are to Jesus in prayer alone with Him. When  we do,  we can move from Darkness to Light  no matter how dark the darkness is. One of my favourite true stories is called “the Hiding Place” written by the late Corrie Ten Boom. Her family were in prison camps in the 2nd world war as they had been caught hiding Jewish friends in their home. All of the family except Corrie died in the prison camps. She had a strong faith in Jesus that could not be extinguished even by the darkness and despair of the prison camps. After her release she went on to write numerous helpful Christian Books and conducted meetings around the world. One of her sayings in her books is “No pit is so deep, that He is not deeper still!” Shall we sing “Just as I am”.

The Dwelling Place of God-- Geoff Thompson

 This message I brought to the two Renmark Uniting Churches last Sunday.

  I am an occasional lay speaker there.

The Dwelling Place of God

 

Renmark Uniting Church

Many years ago, as a new Christian, I went to hear a sermon at a mission being held in Adelaide with a Southern Baptist preacher as the guest speaker.

Renmark West Union Church

The night I went, I might have gone more than once, but this one sermon left a lasting impression on me.

It was called “What’s right with the Church?”

I still have somewhere a very poor copy of the tape I recorded that night.

This man was tall large and probably a texan.

He started off slowly and gently but wound up to a crescendo.

Some of the old time southern Baptist preachers I think you needed to fasten your seatbelts.

In the talk he really got home to me, or God actually did, of how important the local Church is and how essential it is in the greater scheme of God’s plans for humanity, for us as individuals.

In Church you will more than likely be in the only place that you will actually hear the Gospel.

Hear the challenges that we need to hear about our non Christian behaviour.

How we should live our lives as we make Jesus not only our Saviour but our Lord.

So what is the Church, who is the Church and how relevant is it today in this age when the Church is so ridiculed at times in the media?

We had read out earlier these words.

Ephesians 2:

^“19 Now you are no longer strangers to God and foreigners to heaven, but you are members of God’s very own family, citizens of God’s country, and you belong in God’s household with every other Christian.

²⁰ What a foundation you stand on now: the apostles and the prophets; and the cornerstone of the building is Jesus Christ himself! ²¹ We who believe are carefully joined together with Christ as parts of a beautiful, constantly growing temple for God. ²² And you also are joined with him and with each other by the Spirit and are part of this dwelling place of God.”

“The dwelling place of God!”

^“20 What a foundation you stand on now: the apostles and the prophets; and the cornerstone of the building is Jesus Christ himself! ²¹ We who believe are carefully joined together with Christ as parts of a beautiful, constantly growing temple for God. ²² And you also are joined with him and with each other by the Spirit and are part of this dwelling place of God.”

What does that mean? 

The dwelling place of God?

Surely God lives in Heaven?

Well that’s the popular notion and has some validity but-----------

Consider this.

Ephesians 4:4-6

“Jesus said the Church is His body, that He is the life of the body.

“There is one body,and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call,

one Lord,

one faith,

one baptism,

one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all.”

In light of this God lives,

dwells in us,

the living Body of Christ.

In many places today it seems the life has gone out of the body.

In the early Church all Christians were intimately and actively involved in the vibrant life of the body..

Their witness to unbelievers coupled with their deep love for each other rocked the Roman world.

And it must be so again.”

I have been quoting from inside the cover of  the book called “Body Life” by the late Ray Stedman.

He was a Church pastor in California. The Peninsula Bible Church.

It is based on principles outlined in Ephesians Chapter 4.

Apart from the Bible this book and it’s message is one of the most life changing books I have read.

It tells how a local church decided to reach out to their community with a view to re introducing Jesus to their community in the way the early church did.

They did so in their church by learning what it meant to be part of the body of Christ and thus what were their(our) responsibilities as Christians.

This church, that Ray Stedman had been called to be it’s minister, learnt that each Christian according to the scripture, is given at least one spiritual gift.

Sometimes more than one.

There are lists of these spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12,(the most detailed list),Romans 12 and 1 Peter 4.

1 Corinthians 12:4-31

⁴ Now God gives us many kinds of special abilities, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. ⁵ There are different kinds of service to God, but it is the same Lord we are serving. ⁶ There are many ways in which God works in our lives, but it is the same God who does the work in and through all of us who are his. ⁷ The Holy Spirit displays God’s power through each of us as a means of helping the entire church.

⁸ To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; someone else may be especially good at studying and teaching, and this is his gift from the same Spirit. ⁹ He gives special faith to another, and to someone else the power to heal the sick. ¹⁰ He gives power for doing miracles to some, and to others power to prophesy and preach. He gives someone else the power to know whether evil spirits are speaking through those who claim to be giving God’s messages—or whether it is really the Spirit of God who is speaking. Still another person is able to speak in languages he never learned; and others, who do not know the language either, are given power to understand what he is saying. ¹¹ It is the same and only Holy Spirit who gives all these gifts and powers, deciding which each one of us should have.

²⁷ Now here is what I am trying to say: All of you together are the one body of Christ, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it. ²⁸ Here is a list of some of the parts he has placed in his Church, which is his body:

Apostles,
Prophets—those who preach God’s Word,
Teachers,
Those who do miracles,
Those who have the gift of healing;
Those who can help others,
Those who can get others to work together,
Those who speak in languages they have never learned.

²⁹ Is everyone an apostle? Of course not. Is everyone a preacher? No. Are all teachers? Does everyone have the power to do miracles? ³⁰ Can everyone heal the sick? Of course not. Does God give all of us the ability to speak in languages we’ve never learned? Can just anyone understand and translate what those are saying who have that gift of foreign speech? ³¹ No, but try your best to have the more important of these gifts.

Romans 12

⁶ God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, then prophesy whenever you can—as often as your faith is strong enough to receive a message from God. ⁷ If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. ⁸ If you are a preacher, see to it that your sermons are strong and helpful. If God has given you money, be generous in helping others with it. If God has given you administrative ability and put you in charge of the work of others, take the responsibility seriously. Those who offer comfort to the sorrowing should do so with Christian cheer."

In our Church here, we are the dwelling place of God.

Using the gifts God has given us, we can and should fulfill our calling.

To tell others about Jesus and manifest His love in this community.

A place to start is:

1.     Make sure we are Christians according to what the scripture says.(5 things that man does, the rest is continued by God)

Recognise our sin. Believe Jesus is our only saviour through His death and resurrection.Repent. Turn our backs on sin.Be Baptised. Receive the Holy Spirit.(Receive Jesus)

2.     Decide we want to work together as the body of Christ.Build each other up and support each other.

3.     Decide we want to share the amazing message of the Gospel in our local community.

4.     Identify what our own individual spiritual gifts are. (often our gifts can be found among the things that come naturally to us) Often others may recognise our gift or gifts before we do. Use the lists for this.Ray Stedman has good info on the gifts in his book and his tape library.

5.     Start using our God given gifts to reach out to others.

When Lesley and I were new Christians we had the privilege of having two fine Bible teachers as our Pastors.

One was Harold Long and the other was Frank Hunting.

They taught us many things including about the gifts of the holy Spirit.

We did a whole series of Bible studies on what we called Mutual Ministries including some of the teaching found in Ray Stedman’s Body Life book.

Ray came and did a Bodylife seminar in our Church back then.

I was unable to attend but have listened to the tapes of those meetings many times.

We were so inspired by what we learnt that we started using the gifts we thought we had.

I was asked to be the leader of a new Youth Group.

The old one had ceased to operate.

I was also given a role as a Sunday school teacher with a small group of teenagers.

Lesley started up a Kid’s Bible club in our home.

She used some supplied material but also modified the teaching where she thought it necessary.

The Kids Club grew to the point where we had to move it to the local Scout Hall and then eventually to the local Church of Christ.

There were two other thriving kids Clubs in our Church family at the time and many home Bible studies started up.

I heard Ray Stedman talk about a young man who worked in the Post Office in Ray’s home town who decided to start a work place Bible Study.

He thought he had the gift of teaching.

I was inspired by this as I worked in the Post Office in Adelaide.

I started up a similar group under the expert guidance of our two pastors.

The group met every Tuesday for about 15 years until I left the organisation.

It was great blessing to all of us who took part and became multi denominational.

Lesley and I have continued to regard ourselves as Christians who exercise the Spiritual Gifts we discovered we had.

We now use our gifts in ministering to residents of a nursing home.

This is not about us boasting how good we are but about Jesus who lives in all Christians.

All Christians are the dwelling place of God.

We are all equipped with gifts for the Church to function properly.

Everyones' role in a Church family is just as important as everyone else.

It’s about how we can be part of God’s Body.

Part of His plan.

So do we in Renmark want to go the way of so many Churches just close our doors eventually?

Or do we really want to manifest ourselves as the dwelling place of God?

Do we want to be the caricature or popular opinion of the church or the real thing?

A word of caution. The studies on spiritual gifts can be the breeding ground of false doctrine.

We shouldn’t  get too bogged down in discussions on tongues,miracles and apostles.

The other gifts are the important ones for this day and age.

For instant the gift of Helps is a very important gift.

I have seen many in both the Renmark Churches who have this gift.

The Church is the dwelling place of God.

God lives also in the Christian through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit.

The early Church turned the whole world upside down.

If we return to New Testament Christianity, as it should be practised, there is no reason why the town of Renmark cannot have a revival.

Does anyone here have a heart to reach out to others with the Gospel?

The Good News?

One of the gifts you will find listed in the NT is the Gift of Faith.

Faith means the ability to walk in Faith, not by sight where we might say this situation or that situation looks bleak,but to be able to see things through God’s eyes.

To see the possibilities.

To apply Faith that works.

So do we know the Dwelling Place of God ?

He lives here within us.

Do we want to be resuscitated?

Resurrected if you like?

New life surging through our bodies and our Church.

In a moment we are going to sing our closing hymn.

“The Churches one Foundation”

Jesus!

We are His body.

Here in Renmark.

Waiting to be renewed.

I quote again from Ephesians 2:20-22 to close.

²⁰ What a foundation you stand on now: the apostles and the prophets; and the cornerstone of the building is Jesus Christ himself! ²¹ We who believe are carefully joined together with Christ as parts of a beautiful, constantly growing temple for God. ²² And you also are joined with him and with each other by the Spirit and are part of this dwelling place of God.”

Amen

NB. Below is a link to the late Ray Stedman's library of works and in particular his book Body Life.

https://www.raystedman.org/thematic-studies/body-life 

Please note if you go the link you will find some excellent study guide questions that can be used as a congregation.

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