Lee Street Church
Notes of Meeting Sunday 18th April 2021
We welcomed Paul Carter (from Sussex) as our speaker, and his friend Tim who brought him by car.
Worship led by Sue Clarke
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been thinking particularly about Easter and how privileged we are to be able to know Jesus as our risen Saviour.
Whilst sitting here last week, my eyes kept being drawn to the poster on the wall and the message “New Life” “New Hope!” This truly is our joy and leads us into our first song today, with the words “There is a new song in my mouth, a deep cry in my heart- a hymn of praise to Almighty God Halleluiah!!”
When I was lost 1607
When I was lost You came and rescued me
Reached down into the pit and lifted me
O Lord, such love
I was as far from You as I could be
You know all the things I’ve ever done
But Jesus’ blood has cancelled every one
O Lord, such grace to qualify me as Your own
Chorus
There is a new song in my mouth
There is a deep cry in my heart
A hymn of praise to Almighty God – hallelujah!
And now I stand firm on this Rock
My life is hidden now with Christ in God
The old has gone and the new has come
Hallelujah! Your love has lifted me
Now I have come into Your family
For the Son of God has died for me
O Lord, such peace
I am as loved by You as I could be
In the full assurance of Your love
Now with every confidence we come
O Lord, such joy to know that You delight in us
Many are the wonders You have done
Many are the things that You have planned
How beautiful the grace that gives to us
All that we don’t deserve
All that we cannot earn but is a gift of love
Kate and Miles Simmonds
I was thinking about that word new particularly. We’ve heard over the past weeks how God, through that tremendous sacrifice of Jesus, has wiped away all our sins and shown us the way, by accepting Him into our lives, into a new life with that tremendous new hope. No matter what’s happening in the world around us we can hold firm to His promises.
John 3 v16-17
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
2 Corinthians 5 v17
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! “
I am a new creation 197
I AM A NEW CREATION,
No more in condemnation,
Here in the grace of God I stand.
My heart is overflowing,
My love just keeps on growing,
Here in the grace of God I stand.
And I will praise You Lord,
Yes, I will praise You Lord,
And I will sing of all that You have done.
A joy that knows no limit,
A lightness in my spirit,
Here in the grace of God I stand.
Galatians 2 v20
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me”.
Our God is a God of new beginnings. He likes doing new things (just look at all the changes we see in creation day after day and season after season). He designed our bodies to produce new cells; new hair; we change as we experience each new day and year. We have a new life in Jesus Christ with new opportunities and new challenges. No matter where we are in our lives, we need to be open to the changes God puts before us. It won’t always be easy but He has promised His Spirit will work within us.
Jeremiah29 v11 “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”.
O Lord my God 425
O LORD MY GOD! when I in awesome wonder
Consider all the works Thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed:
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee,
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!
When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,
And hear the brook, and feel the gentle breeze;
And when I think that God His Son not sparing,
Sent Him to die—I scarce can take it in.
That on the cross my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin:
When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation
And take me home—what joy shall fill my heart!
Then shall I bow in humble adoration
And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!
One of God’s last promises in the Bible is that He will make all things new.
Our next song, particularly the last verse I feel, even more now, is probably what many of us yearn for, with everything that is happening in the world around us- “Creation longs for His return when Christ shall reign upon the earth.
Creation sings the Father’s song 2255
Creation sings the father's song;
He calls the sun to wake the dawn
And run the course of day
Till evening falls in crimson rays
His fingerprints in flakes of snow
His breath upon this spinning globe
He charts the eagle's flight;
Commands the newborn baby's cry
Hallelujah! Let all creation stand and sing
"Hallelujah!" fill the earth with songs of worship;
Tell the wonders of creation's king
Creation gazed upon his face;
The ageless one in time's embrace
Unveiled the father's plan
Of reconciling god and man
A second Adam walked the earth
Whose blameless life would break the curse
Whose death would set us free
To live with him eternally
Creation longs for his return
When Christ shall reign upon the earth;
The bitter wars that rage
Are birth pains of a coming age
When he renews the land and sky
All heav'n will sing and earth reply
With one resplendent theme:
The glories of our God and
King!
Words and music by Keith and Kristyn Getty and Stuart
Townend
1 Peter 1 v3
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you”.
2 Peter 3 v13
“But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness”.
Revelation 21 v1-5
“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!"
There is a higher throne 1541
THERE IS A HIGHER THRONE
Than all this world has known,
Where faithful ones from every tongue
Will one day come.
Before the Son we'll stand,
Made faultless through the Lamb;
Believing hearts find promised grace:
Salvation comes.
Hear heaven's voices sing,
Their thunderous anthem rings
Through emerald courts and sapphire skies,
Their praises rise.
All glory, wisdom, power,
Strength, thanks and honour are
To God, our King who reigns on high
Forever more.
And there we'll find our home,
Our life before the throne;
We'll honour Him in perfect song
Where we belong.
He'll wipe each tear-stained eye,
As thirst and hunger die;
The Lamb becomes our Shepherd King:
We'll reign with Him.
May each breath I take be for You Lord, only You. Giving You back the life I owe!
Notes of Paul Carter’s Message
Paul began by reading Isaiah 53 v 1 – 12.
He then noted some of the many phrases in common use today which originate in verses of scripture e.g. apple of the eye; patience of Job; thorn in the flesh; salt of the earth; rise and shine; heart of stone; laughter is the best medicine; a friend in need is a friend indeed; etc..
Another is “Land of the living” – we’re alive in His world which He has entrusted to us. See Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it”.
Genesis 1: 31 reminds us “God saw all He had made, and it was very good”. Mountains, deserts, jungles, oceans, the amazing variety of creatures on the earth.
As we sung earlier,
O LORD MY GOD! when I in awesome wonder
Consider all the works Thy hand hath made,
…………. Thy power throughout the universe displayed:
However we view God’s creation – by telescope or microscope, it’s a wonderful world.
But our reading in Isaiah shows that trouble and tragedy has entered the world as a result of transgression or sin against God’s laws. As Romans 3:10 reminds us, we’ve all failed “There is no-one righteous”, - Romans 3:23 “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”.
Another phrase “The writing’s on the wall” – see Daniel’s account of the downfall of King Belshazzar – the consequences of our sin are clear – see Numbers 32:23 “..you may be sure your sin will find you out”.
Even Job, of whom God said there’s ”No one like him” – he had trouble, and Job 28:12 – 13 asks “Where can wisdom be found?”
The answer is found in v3 of our song: He bled and died to take away my sin.
As Paul reminded Timothy (1Tim 1: 15) “ … Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”
Yes, God provided the way for our relationship with Him to be restored. As another hymn says, “Because the sinless Saviour died, my sinful soul is counted free; for God the just is satisfied to look on Him, and pardon me”.
Jesus’ call is still as when he called his first disciples – “Repent – and follow me”.
His call is for us to live a life of continual trust and dependence upon the Lord. The psalmist David is often recorded as “crying out to the Lord” in his times of deepest need.
Our need is for a Saviour – Hebrews 9:28 tells us “Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people”. Let Christ put us on the “straight and narrow”, so we can make the most of life now and for eternity.
Another phrase occurs in Matthew 21;16 “Out of the mouths of children …” – Jesus was being welcomed to the temple in Jerusalem, and it was the children who were calling out “Hosanna”, which literally meant “Save us now”
The challenge to each of us - to love, serve and trust the Lord . And remember the last verse of the hymn we sang earlier:
When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation
And take me home—what joy shall fill my heart!
Then shall I bow in humble adoration
And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!
Notices
- Wednesday Zoom Bible Study 7.30pm
- Next Sunday – Breaking of Bread. Speaker is Ken Cowell.