Worship led by Dawn Budd
Song: 268 I will enter his gates
What's the best gift you've ever been given? Maybe it's a toy that you were given as a baby, a brand new car or a gorgeous grand baby?? Some people have literally been gifted life, in the form of a new lung or a new heart, but we've been given the greatest gift of all..not only do we have life, but eternal life!! John 3 v 16 “ For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son,that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life “ As parents, I'm sure we've all taught our children to say thank you when they've been given a gift. Even Noah, at only 5 months, is being taught to say thank you when given a toy. The same goes for Christians, who receive generous gifts from God everyday- sunshine, rain, food, clothes.
SING 524 Thank you Lord for this fine day.
Psalm 136 v 1-3 “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good Give thanks to the God of gods. Give thanks to the Lord of lords” v26 ”Give thanks to the God of heaven “ Psalm 106 v 1 “Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his love endures forever “
SING 1241 Give thanks to the Lord.
I'd normally always quote the NIV verses but for the next verse, I'll read from The Message. 2 Corinthians 5 v 17 “Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons”
Former Vice President Dick Cheney had his heart transplant in 2012, having had his first heart attack at the age of 37, and then had 4 further attacks. He subsequently had bypass surgery, 2 angioplasties and had a ventricular assisting device inserted, which replaces the function of a failing heart. Finally, he needed a heart transplant to save his life! But I didn't need to have several procedures to have eternal life with Jesus. I only had to come to Him once! Dick Cheney spoke of feeling euphoric for his new heart, of the gift of additional life but, in Jesus, I get eternal life AND the euphoria of knowing that I do!!
SING 1015 Thank you for saving me
Prayer Lord Jesus, Thank you. Thank you that we can come to you as our Saviour, our Friend and our Redeemer. Thank you that because of your great love for us, we can look forward to an everlasting lifetime in your presence. Thank you that, as we have come this morning to worship you, that you are here with us. Heavenly Father, I pray that if there is anyone here today who does not have that reassurance of everlasting life with you, that they might come to you today Amen I'm so glad that I made that decision to accept Jesus I can be sure that He loves me, that I'm forgiven and that I'll be with him forever in heaven. Let's close by singing
522 Thank you for the cross
Breaking of Bread – led by Brian Legg
1 Peter 3: 18 “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.”
Words written by the apostle Peter to Jewish Christians – the Peter who had witnessed so much of the life and ministry of Jesus, who was there at the crucifixion of Jesus, he spoke with Jesus too after His resurrection, and went on to be one of the leaders of the early church in Jerusalem.
Jesus – the righteous One, giving up His life on the cross, for us, the unrighteous.
That’s what we’ve come to remember with thanksgiving today, as we once again obey His command to remember Him in this very simple way.
I want to look at that phrase in the verse we’ve read which explains the whole purpose of Christ’s sacrifice – where Peter writes “to bring you to God” – the “you” includes you and I today.
If you or I wanted to go and have words with someone high up in the Government or maybe to speak to a member of the Royal household, there’s no way we could just turn up at no.10 or one of the royal palaces and expect to gain an audience with them. We would of course have gone through a long vetting process, and would need to have had friends in high places before we ever got anywhere near the people we really wanted to see.
But here and now we’re thinking about coming before someone infinitely greater than the royals or high-ranking government officials – we’re talking about coming before the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the creator of the world, the Holy One himself. How can we possibly do that? In our state, with our records of failure, we’d surely never get near God himself.
Unless of course someone speaks up for us. That’s where Jesus comes in – He the sinless one, I the sinner, He taking my place on the cross, setting me free, making me right in the eyes of God. So I can come into God’s presence, thanks to the work of Christ on the cross.
So that’s why we are here – to once again give Him the glory, to bring our heartfelt thanks to Him for what He has done.
SONG 1111 – What kind of love is this
Prayer Time
Please pray for:
- Jan and Peter – for daily strength, and for right medical support
- Sue’s brother-in-law Andy – for good recovery from recent operation
- Sue’s husband Keith, as he has a CT scan next Sunday.
- John & Peter Caff – complete healing
- Chris Pipe (friend of Ted & Connie) – for a successful operation next week
- Maureen – who is very poorly with pneumonia
- Judy’s sister-in-law Janet – for good recovery from bowel cancer operation
- Continue to remember Gemma, Julie, Kay and Jonathan
Ken Cowell’s Message
The Uniqueness of Christian Love
I Corinthians 3.11, Galatians. 5. 22-23, Mark 12. 28-30, Ephesians 6. 24
If you see lots of delicious apples on a tree, what does that tell you about the tree? It is a tree thriving full of life and growth. A apple tree without apples is not a mature apple tree. It is not fulfilling the purpose for which it was planted. No matter how many leaves the tree has if there are no apples it shows there has been no growth. Fruit is the result of growth.
What is true of an apple tree can be applied to the Christian life. Through repentance of sin and faith in Christ many profess to becoming Christians. Sadly, for a good number, following their confession of faith there appears little growth in their new faith resulting in no fruit that God desires and expects to see. When there is no fruit to be seen we begin to question if the person whereby has genuine faith. Jesus himself clearly states that it is by the good fruit that people reveal, that their faith is seen to be true. It is not just any kind of fruit but that which God decides in his word. What is the true fruit that God sees that clearly proves I am a Christian?
In a garden to produce the right fruit you must plant the right seed. If I plant orange seeds I will never grow apples. We would be amazed that someone could make such a foolish mistake. However, when it comes to producing the fruit God that is looking we can be unaware that the right seed hasn’t been planted. To change the metaphor we are not building our lives on the right foundation that will stand firm when the storms of life come. What is the seed or the foundation that produces the fruit that God desires to see?
In 1.Corinthians 3.11 it says, “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which Jesus Christ.” Firstly, this tells us there is only one foundation not many. That doesn’t popular in our days of political correctness. But that is what God’s word says, and his word is the truth and more important than the opinions of men. It states that the foundation has already been laid. I don’t need another foundation of my own making and I also don’t need to add anything to the foundation. It is the perfect foundation that I can completely rely on to obtain God’s salvation. I don’t need to speculate as to what this foundation is for it is clearly stated, it is Jesus Christ.
Why is it only Jesus Christ to the exclusion of all other religious leaders?
It is because of who he is. Peter gave the perfect answer when Jesus asked his disciples who he was, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus is the only person who claimed to the Son of God and accepted that claim when others made about himself. He also lived out the truth of his claim with a perfect life and miracles that only the Son of God could do.
It is also because of what said. He declared “I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” He declares that he is the one and only way to God. He states that he is the only one who speaks the truth of God. He says he is the only one who can give eternal life which is from God.
Lastly, he is the true foundation because of what he did. He did two things that no other religious leader ever did. He died on the cross to take away man’s sin by the sacrifice of himself. This was the reason for his coming into the world. As he says he came “to give his life as a ransom for many.”
He dealt with man’s greatest problem which is his sin that separates man from God. We through faith in his death on the cross for our sin we can receive the forgiveness of our sin.
The second thing he did which no other person has ever done, “he was raised from the dead on the third day.” Not only that, but he is alive today and we can meet him and have a personal relationship with him. This is the very essence of becoming a Christian. 1 John 5. 12 says “He who has the Son has life, he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” My being a Christian revolves round the question of, do I have Jesus in my life or do I not. Sadly in our generation we have substituted Christianity for Christ. We have focused on following Christianity as a religion instead of having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The word Christianity is not mentioned in the Bible. Paul’s personal testimony was “For me to live is Christ” (Philippians 1.21) not Christianity. Our foundation for salvation is built alone on Christ and his death and resurrection.
Another important aspect to understand to our becoming a Christian is the source of power that causes the growth which produces the fruit. Jesus describes becoming a Christian as being “born of the Spirit.” (John 3.8) My existence into this world comes through having a natural physical birth. Jesus says I also need a supernatural birth by the Holy Spirit through whom I receive a new spiritual life. That is the only way the Christian life begins. Without receiving the Holy Spirit you cannot be a Christian. It is the Holy Spirit within the believer that is the source of power to grow and produce the fruit that God desires. What is the fruit that God expects to see. The answer is in Galatians 5. 22, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love.” Fruit is visible, tangible and even tasteable. How is this love to be seen in the life of a Christian?
The word love can be used in many ways and has different meanings. I can say I love chocolate. I love going to Japan. I love Chris. Whilst it’s the same word used the meaning of each use is different. In the Bible there are four different Greek words used for love. One word describes romantic love, another a love amongst friends, the third one is within a family. The last word is one that is only used for God’s love. It is the word “agape.” This is the word used for the love given to the believer by the Holy Spirit. It is not natural love that all possess but supernatural coming from God. It is none other than God’s love. God’s love is selfless, unconditional and sacrificial. We can see his love when God gave his Son to die on the cross for our sin. It is that same supernatural love of God that has been given to us through the Holy Spirit. What are the main differences of this Christian love compared to other loves we see in the world? There are many wonderful examples of love demonstrated in the world. Some people because of their love sacrifice their lives to save others. What makes the Christian’s love special and different. It is not just loving people but loving God. This love for God was given to us by the Holy Spirit when we became Christians. On one occasion Jesus was asked which is the most important commandment. In other words what is the most important thing to do in life. Jesus answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12. 30) Who is the person I should love first? It is the Lord our God. Why should I love God first?
The first reason is because God loved me first! 1 John 4. 9 says “We love him because he first love us.” Why do children love their parents? It is because they have first been loved by their parents. Their love is a response to the love they have received. Love in most cases is a response to love which has been received. God loves me is not because I loved him first. Because he loved me first and that’s a good reason why I should love him back.
The second reason I should love God first is because he created me. My creation is an act of God’s love to me. God loved me before he created me. God’s love for me is a causeless love. I did nothing to merit his love. Why did God love me then? The only answer is that God is love. It’s his nature to love. That’s the kind of God he is. He loved me into existence. What a wonderful job he did when created me. The average human heart beats 115,000 times a day. Our blood travels about 12,000 miles everyday. An adult takes an average of 18,000-30,000 breaths a day. All these functions take place without our awareness and we just take them for granted. We should echo the words of Psalm 139.14 “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
The third reason I should love him first is that even though I rebelled and sinned against him he continued to love me so much that sent his Son to die for me. Romans 5.8. states, “God demonstrates his own love for us: While we were still sinners Christ died for us.” God’s love for me is unconditional. It is not a “because love” but a “not withstanding love.” When were still sinners but God loved us and gave his Son for us. That’s a good reason to love God first.
The fourth reason to love God first is because it is the most satisfying and joyful way to live. Living for God’s purpose is what I was made for. In the 1600’s many clergyman got together to give an answer to the purpose of man’s existence. They came up with the phrase “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” On the surface that doesn’t seem an exciting life style. Yet although the first part is making God my priority the second part is my experience of joy. In our mindset God and joy don’t go together. We believe God is a killjoy. But that is a lie from the devil. God made us for joy and satisfaction. But the key is that only true joy is found when God has first place in our lives.
If God loved us to create us, and kept loving when we rebelled against him, then sent His Son to die for us, surely he would have the best plan for our lives now. How much should we love God? It should be with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. He is the God who is worthy of all our love. He deserves the best because he gave the best when he gave his Son.
Our love for God is to be seen in our obedience to his commands. Our ideas of God’s laws and being commanded to obey them gives the impression of God restricting our freedom and making our lives miserable. Whereas actually the laws are given to protect us from harm and danger and gives us freedom to enjoy life. Can you imagine any game of sports without rules where the participants can do anything they like. The purpose of living according to God’s ways is for our highest good and pleasure. Sadly in our own strength we can’t keep God’s way or obey his commands. But when we become Christians God gives us his Holy Spirit to enable us to obey his commands and so find purpose and joy in doing God’s will.
Another important evidence of the Christian’s love in found in Ephesians 6.24 “Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with undying love.” Here the definition of a Christian is a person who loves Jesus Christ. If I ask a person do they believe in Jesus Christ they will probably answer yes without hesitation. However, if I ask do you love Jesus Christ many would hesitate to answer. Many might say they wouldn’t go as far as saying they love Jesus but they believe in him. In the Bible believing in Jesus and loving Jesus are the same thing. That would indicate that many just have a head knowledge of Jesus but not a heart knowledge where they love him. In other words that isn’t true faith from the Bible’s understanding.
How important is it to love Jesus? Is it an option? On one occasion Jesus asked Peter the same question three times, “Do you love me?” It must be important to repeat it three times. Loving Jesus is a major part of the Christian life. Why I should love Jesus? I just need to look at the cross where he died for me. Who could be more worthy of my love than the one who died in my place to save me? How much should we love Jesus? We are to love him with “undying love.” That is a love which is unwavering and steadfast irrespective the trials and problems we may face. It is based on a firm commitment to Jesus. It is a supreme love which is only possible as I seek the power of the Holy Spirit.
What is the fruit in our lives that proves we are Christians. Some would say I go to church each Sunday. Others would say I read the Bible and pray everyday. These are good things that which a Christian does but they aren’t the true fruit. True fruit goes deeper than that.
The fruit that shows we are Christians is that we know, love and obey God and His Son Jesus Christ. The call to love and obey God and Jesus is not to earn our salvation. That is eternally secure through the foundation that laid by his death and resurrection. This command to love and obey God and Jesus is not a call to perfection. God knows that is impossible. It is a major part of the process our transformation into the likeness of Christ. With our desire and the power of the Holy Spirit we can be changed into his likeness with ever increasing glory. That is God’s goal for us now. Until we reach heaven we shall always be a work in progress but even that gives God joy and our love and obedience to him and the Lord Jesus gives true assurance of our salvation.
Closing Song: 102 Father, we love You
Notices
- Speaker next week will be Robin Thomson
- Our Annual Church Members meeting will be at 12 noon on 25th February.