faith – Page 3 – Penuel Baptist Chapel, Roch

April 2nd 2017: Matthew Maxwell-Carr

Published on April 6, 2017 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Looking at Christ produces radiance on the face because it brings rest on the heart. Just by looking at Christ rest comes immediately. A look at Christ does something to the heart and you’re not ashamed anymore because you don’t fear God will fail you or let you down. The biggest battle you and I face now is the battle with sin – the sin of all sins is unbelief. It’s so natural to disbelieve and doubt because we’re sinners. Daily, how do we deal with this? Read the Bible? Pray? Look to Him is the answer, fix your eyes on Jesus Christ. He’s the answer to everything we need. A look at Jesus cures it all. This is what it means to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul directs us to the Holy Spirit, to walk in the Holy Spirit, to live by faith in Jesus Christ. He emits the Holy Spirit.

Paul says ‘the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.’ (Galations 5:22). These are all divine qualities. The Lord puts us all through trials and difficulties. The Lord wants us to have divine peace – peace in the midst of the storm. Keep your eyes on Jesus to have divine peace.

In Numbers 21: 4-9 we read how the people were discouraged because they took their eyes off Christ, And the people spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.” (Numbers 21:5). When the Israelites took their eyes of Christ this affected their relationship with God and with Moses. Their ingratitude is seen in their complaining and worry. Can you identify with that? I can! ‘So the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, and many of the people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.’ (Numbers 21: 6-8). Here we see the antidote to the problem. How does God deal with this? ‘… when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.’ (Numbers 21:9). The people had venom coursing through their bodies. The pole reminds us of Christ lifted up. Moses lifts the serpent up, those who look at it live. Look and live. That is the Christian life. Every look at Jesus Christ produces life. You are saved by faith alone, by resting in Jesus Christ. Look and you will live. It seems ridiculous to us that looking at a serpent could bring life, but that is the way of God.

2 Chronicles 12 is a chapter well worth reading. It is very encouraging. Here we see that to win victory all that was needed was praise. The people had tambourines out and were marching. The Lord Himself defeats the enemies – just because the people gave praise. We read in verse 5 that Jehoshaphat pleads to God because they are in difficulty. In verse 12 they cry out, ‘We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.’ Let the Lord move you by the Spirit. Trust in Him.

‘You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.’ (Isaiah 26:3). You, me – we don’t keep ourselves in peace, perfect peace is from the Lord. Our responsibility – ‘whose mind is stayed on you.’ Stay your mind on the Lord Jesus. Trust in Jesus every moment of your life.

‘Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.’ (Matthew 11: 28-29). Rest isn’t our focus, peace isn’t our focus, our focus is Jesus. He will sort the rest and peace out. The human condition is unrest. Jesus Christ is the medicine.

‘But immediately Jesus spoke to them saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” (Matthew 14:27). In our Christian life Jesus wants us to be fearless. As Jesus walked on the sea the storm raged. Peter experiences the supernatural, keeping his eyes on Jesus. Jesus was the focus. ‘So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.’ (Matthew 14:29). When Peter looked at Christ the power of the Holy Spirit supported Peter so he could do the supernatural. But then everything goes wrong, ‘But when he saw that the wind was boisterous he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”’ (Matthew 14:30). Peter saw the wind. He turned his eyes away from Jesus and this produced unrest in his heart. He cried out to the Lord to save him. He still had a little bit of faith. Even when we fail, Jesus still comes. ‘And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”’ (Matthew 14:31). Why do we doubt? Things get on top of us because we are fallen, sinners. Look at Jesus and He will conquer unbelief and unrest. He will sort everything out, we just need to look to Him.

Paul says whatever is not of faith is sin. Look to Jesus and H e will help you sort out all the rubbish. ‘I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.’ (Galations 2:20). This hits the nail on the head. The great apostle Paul lived his life by faith in the Son of God who loved him and gave His life for him. Look to Jesus.

March 17th 2017: Ian Middlemist

Published on March 26, 2017March 26, 2017 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Ian - March 17 Joshua 6: The ‘Battle’ of Jericho

The gospel message can be summed up in the words, ‘In my place condemned He stood; sealed my pardon with His blood.’ He’s done it all for us! We find that in the history of God’s people, from Adam and Eve being provided with garments, the provision of the Ark for Noah, the rescue of Lot, God providing for Joseph, Jacob and family, to the land given to the Israelites, as promised.

The amazing thing in Joshua 6, the Battle of Jericho, is that there was no battle! God gave Jericho into Joshua’s hands. In the New Testament, in Hebrews, we read the wall of Jericho fell down by faith, it was the Lord who did it all, ‘By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.’ (Hebrews 11:30).

Joshua 6 is a wonderful narrative of a great victory – the grace of God working and the powerful judgement of the Lord. Jericho was not a particularly large city, about 7 acres in total. It was a strong fortress. It was shut up, secure, no-one could go in or out, ‘Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in.’ (Joshua 6:1).

This was a classic siege. Jericho was on the road to the mountains. It geographically affected the tactics; if Israel was to capture the hill country, it needed to defeat Jericho. Joshua’s strategy began and ended with the Lord. Yes, there were armed men, but they were followed by priests carrying huge trumpets, not swords. The trumpets were the ones used to announce the year of Jubilee throughout the land – the presence of God’s kingdom. The Ark of the Covenant was prominent as they were marching, behind which were armed men and the people. The people’s whole focus was centred on the power and presence of God.

When we think of the cross of Jesus Christ, how could a man, bleeding and dying, destroy the dark powers of Satan? How could the cross destroy sin and death? In Joshua 6 we see an example in what God does again and again in the history of redemption. Our weapons are not swords, it is our humble Christian testimony of our broken and fragmented lives lived in unity with Christ. Our great weapon is prayer. God takes the foolish things of this world and confounds the mighty and strong.

The salvation of Rahab. How was Rahab delivered? ‘But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive. And she has lived in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.’ (Joshua 6:25). She was saved because she hid the men who Joshua had sent. She didn’t merit salvation, ‘You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way.’ (James 2:24-25). Rahab demonstrated her faith in the amazing promise the spies had brought her. She was brought out with her faith (Joshua 6:23).

Because she was unclean she was set outside the camp, then brought back in because she was now clean, fully part of the people of God. In chapter 2 it seems as if the spies knocked on a door and there, by chance, stood Rahab. Rahab herself explained that this wasn’t the situation (Joshua 2:10). She had heard of Yahweh, the eternal God of great deeds. The citizens of Jericho had heard of what the Lord had done but only Rahab believed and wanted a sure sign. She pleaded for God to have mercy on her.

David, in Psalm 51, also pleads for mercy, ‘Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!’ (Psalm 51:1-2). Rahab’s family was the only family to turn in faith, that He might show mercy on them. If you appeal to God’s grace you can be saved, the arms of the Lord will welcome you. Rahab received mercy from a gracious God.

There is something deeply disturbing about what happened to the city of Jericho. The people were slaughtered – women and children. Only gold and silver were taken out for the treasury of the Lord. The scriptures have set this up – it’s not covered up, it’s spelt out in detail. It’s a totally righteous judgement. Jericho was ‘shut up’ (Joshua 6:1). If the city opened up its gates and pleaded for mercy, then mercy it would have received. But the people’s hearts were hardened and would have nothing to do with God. The worst judgement – hell’s eternal agony for all who reject Him. When we see our Saviour crying out, ‘My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?’ (Matthew 27:46), we begin to appreciate the depth of the righteousness of God.

When Christ comes, this is how it will be: when Jesus heals He restores. He will utterly destroy everything that stands in His way. The wall of sin is broken down by the cross. We live in gospel days. Today is the day of salvation. But death is near. People are interested in the materialistic things of this world, but the judgement of God is coming, there is no escape. We long for our friends to take hold of the promises of God. We must pray that they might be rescued from the coming judgement.

Sunday 25th October – Morning Service

Published on October 25, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

This morning’s we listened to the Word of God being preached from 1 Samuel chapter 30, which our guest speaker, Gaius Douglas of Calvary Church, Haverfordwest, referred to as “The Pain of Loss.” We were shown that David was a man after God’s own heart. At his most difficult times he grieved, yet he encouraged himself in the Lord. God allows His people to come to that point so that we may realise that we have no control, we need to find our strength in the Lord. We may go through desperate situations but we need to encourage ourselves in the Lord, to wait upon Him. Matthew 11:28 promises “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” We need to exercise our faith, to meditate on God’s goodness, on what He has done for us. Don’t try to do things our own way; see the Saviour who came into this world and showed His love, the love of God. Rely on His promises, they will never fail. Put your hope, your trust in Him. Go forward in God, listen to God, hope in God.

Sunday 20th September – Morning Service

Published on September 20, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist Roch2 Comments

Today’s services were taken by Gareth Evans from Port Talbot. This morning he preached from 1 Peter chapter 1, a letter of encouragement to early Christians as well as Christians of today. When we go through trials we are reminded to put on God’s armour, to be clearly identifiable as Christians, living a life of faith and trust. A Christian is one who has been changed from within by Christ. We need to prepare our minds for action, be alert, for the time when Jesus returns. Our Salvation is kept for us in heaven until Jesus returns. We must set our hope fully on Jesus.