Lee Street Church
Notes of Meeting on 9th August 2020
About 21 people joined our Zoom meeting. We welcomed our speaker David Witherall and his wife Jenny to our service.
Jason, Sue, Matt, Jacqueline, and Terry were at the church to present the music and songs on Zoom.
Brian led the Worship time.
Lockdown has affected the lives of us all – life may never be the same again. But it has given us more time – to clear up our homes, do the gardening, walk to the shops, and maybe even to talk to other people. And also to look at the wonders of the God-created world around us. – the amazing beauty of even the daisies and dandelions in our lawns! What a wonderful world our God gave for us to enjoy.
Song: O Lord my God
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!
Stuart K. Hine.
Copyright © 1953 Stuart K. Hine/ Kingsway’s Thankyou Music.
Indeed, such a great and mighty God of power, and of love.
In our recent Wednesday evening Zoom bible studies, we were reading 1Timothy 6: 15 – 16 where Paul speaks of “God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and lives in unapproachable light, whom no-one has seen or can see.”
“Unapproachable light” – a wonderful picture of power – we know we can’t look into the sun, it’s just too bright. God revealed himself in light on a number of occasions (e.g. leading the Israelites through the desert, and when Jesus was transfigured before 3 of his disciples on a mountain top). Here we find God himself dwelling In unapproachable light. These verses and thoughts lead us into our next song:
Song: Immortal, invisible, God only wise
IMMORTAL, INVISIBLE, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessèd, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.
Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might;
Thy justice like mountains high soaring above
Thy clouds which are fountains of goodness and love.
To all life Thou givest, to both great and small;
In all life Thou livest, the true life of all;
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
And wither and perish; but naught changeth Thee.
Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight;
All laud we would render: O help us to see
’Tis only the splendour of light hideth Thee.
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessèd, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.
Walter Chalmers Smith.
Our next song takes our thoughts of God a little further as we give thanks to Him for Jesus, who was there with Him at creation
Song: Almighty God, we give You praise
ALMIGHTY GOD, we bring You praise
For Your Son, the Word of God,
By whose power the world was made,
By whose blood we are redeemed.
Morning Star, the Father’s glory,
We now worship and adore You.
In our hearts Your light has risen;
Jesus, Lord, we worship You.
Austin Martin.
Copyright © 1983 Kingsway’s Thankyou Music.
Our last song leads us into another thought about light, where it likens God’s love to light which is “shining like the sun”. But however much it shines, it still has to be received – and each verse ends with the words
“I receive – Your love; Your grace; Your peace.”
Just what each of us needs each day, to help us conquer our fears, to give us joy, and a confidence to face the pressures of each new day. We need to allow ourselves to be enveloped by these waves of love which God graciously pours over us each day.
Song: Your love, shining like the sun
YOUR LOVE, shining like the sun,
Pouring like the rain,
Raging like the storm,
Refreshing me again.
I receive Your love.
Your grace frees me from the past,
It purges every sin,
It purifies my heart
And heals me from within.
I receive Your grace.
Pour over me,
Pour over me,
Let Your rain flood this thirsty soul.
Pour over me Your waves of love,
Pour over me.
I come and lay my burden down
Gladly at Your feet,
I'm opening up my heart;
Come make this joy complete.
I receive Your peace.
Stuart Townend
Copyright © 1999 Thankyou Music
Prayer Time
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We prayed for a number of members and friends with particular needs at this time.
Brief Summary of David Witherall’s talk
David began by looking at Colossians 1: 15 – 27 to see (1) who Jesus is, (2) what He has done, and (3) what he has called us to be .
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Who Jesus is
v15 He is the image of the invisible God; v16 He is the creator (NOT a created being). It’s God’s word that holds everything together – he created the world out of nothing – He speaks and things happen.
He is the head of the body – the church.
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What He has done
He has reconciled us (v22) – we’re no longer alienated – He justifies us, we receive His righteousness, so we become qualified to share in his inheritance (v12). God gets involved with hie creation.
He has rescued us from darkness (v13), and has brought us into the kingdom of His Son (v15).
In v23, Paul speaks about “hope” – this is elaborated in vs 25 – 27 , and summarised in v 27 “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
David then turned to John 14 v 9 – 27
V10 – 11 shew that what he taught his disciples were the words of His Father living in Him – remember too that He depended on His prayer life with His Father.
V20 are words of jesus to his followers “You are in me, and I am in you.” Jesus Christ in us – Jesus is not sitting at a distance, He doesn’t want us to be alone, so He comes right into us, to be our closest friend.
Vs 16 & 17 remind us that the Counsellor (the Holy Spirit) comes to be with us forever – He and the Father want to make their home (v23) in our hearts and souls. Jesus also (v21) promises to make himself known to us.
So, 3. What He has called us to be
We are called to live the life of Christ – He is dwelling in us, His words and actions should become ours.
Rev 3:20 reminds us that what Jesus wants is a relationship with us.
How can we please God? Only by being born again and having Christ in us.
David concluded by referring to the vine and the branches in John 15.