God – Page 7 – Penuel Baptist Chapel, Roch

Sunday 7th February 16 – Morning Service

Published on February 13, 2016 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Ian-Feb16 Ian Middlemist, evangelist at Hill Park Church, Haverfordwest, took last Sunday’s service in which he preached on the final verses of Acts chapter 3. His sermon began by saying that too easily we give way to the culture around us. However, Peter says we are not to do this. Our God has a great plan – it’s about having an encounter with the risen Jesus Christ. Ian’s sermon raised three points:

Receiving Christ The Sent Christ and Restoring all things.

Christ must be received into heaven before He is sent. The author of life was killed – without Christ there is no life (Hebrews 1). He was murdered on a cross. But the wonderful truth is death could not hold Him. He is risen. Jesus then revealed Himself to His disciples. Later they saw Him ascend into heaven. Jesus told them to wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit. This was still not the end – the church grew and the name of Jesus Christ spread into the world. We are still waiting for more to come. Jesus Christ is now seated at the right hand of God. He sits. He has completed His work of Salvation. He sits as a perpetual reminder than sin has been dealt with. He sits because He is reigning. He is not simply the king of the church but He is king of the universe, the King of Kings. All authority in heaven and earth has been given to Him.

Christ sends His disciples and preachers into the world. They respond to His call to share the Gospel which is spoken with Holy Spirit authority. Peter quotes Moses (v. 22). Moses didn’t just speak about the coming of Christ, Moses was like Christ. The Israelite’s were crippled under the reign of pharaoh, not unlike the cripple at the gates. Peter draws our attention to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only one to give us hope – not Moses or anyone else. Too often we hear the voice of the community around us who want nothing to do with the future, with the second coming. They want to hear about now. Our purpose is not to reform society. Peter says it is to give the message of repentance. The people around us don’t need our help, they need the gospel. Christ has defeated death, sin and Satan. He has truly secured a victory.

Everything in history is leading up to when Jesus will be sent. The great event creation is moving towards. Is Jesus coming again – that’s the answer for this world. He will come ‘with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God.’ (1 Thessalonians 4:16). He will come to restore all things. We are waiting for Christ, for His second coming. Jesus is coming very soon!

Sunday 10th January 2016 – Morning Service

Published on January 10, 2016January 16, 2016 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Sunday’s morning service was taken by evangelist Ian Middlemist who preached from Acts chapter 3, focusing on two of the blessings of God: sins blotted out if we repent and times of refreshing.

Sins blotted out if we repent:

There is no good deed we need to do to accomplish Salvation, we just need to be a sinner and know our need of Jesus Christ. God chooses people such as us, He holds out His grace for us and calls to us to turn and receive His blessings. They are not just one off blessings, they continue on and on. Our sins are blotted out. This speaks of total annihilation (Revelation 3:5). Our names will be in the Book of Life for evermore. God no longer recognises sin in us, it has been blotted out, covered in the blood of Christ. It is costly; Jesus’ death was the most costly (Isaiah 43:25).

We need to turn away from sin. God doesn’t blot out everybody’s sin, there must be repentance. We remember our past sins, the evils committed against us and from us. The devil uses this to dishearten us. When we are filled with doubts caused by the devil, look again to the cross. This is why we come regularly to the Lord’s Table, to remember again His precious love towards us (Psalm 32).

Times of refreshing:

This world makes us weary. We have to be refreshed. God has promised us times of refreshment as we hear the Gospel. The Lord is the source of our refreshment. Turn to Him and then you can face tomorrow. Trust in Christ alone, start trusting in Him. Refreshment is the recovery of breath after exhaustion, it is also the cooling and relief from heat. It is the sense of relief that comes from the knowledge of removal of sin, the removal of guilt. It is spiritual refreshment. Rest in Him. Seek His refreshment.

There is no greater burden on the soul than the feeling of guilt. God has seen our failings and dealt with it entirely appropriately. Hold onto Christ to know His blessings, the times of refreshment. Although the Author of Life was killed, we are still called ‘brothers.’ The Gospel tells us we have total forgiveness.

Christmas Day 2015

Published on December 25, 2015December 28, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Our Christmas morning service was led by Reverend Doctor Gareth Edwards who preached from Matthew 1:18-25 –the uniqueness of Christmas. It is both a mystery and a miracle; it is a mystery, not a secret, which confounds our minds. It is a miracle in that Jesus was not a mere baby who was naturally conceived but rather begotten by the Holy Spirit, the birth of a sinless man. No other event is as significant as the birth of Jesus. Here is the hope for all humanity.
The birth of Jesus is unique. Both Matthew and Luke emphasise the truth of the virgin birth. The virgin birth draws our attention to the uniqueness of Jesus’ birth. He is unique in being untarnished by sin, His birth was like no other. Whenever a child is born there is great excitement. In the virgin birth God the Son became a man. We celebrate, we rejoice in the virgin birth.
Matthew tells us Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. It is a great mystery how humanity and divinity can be united in one person. He is fully man and fully God, so utterly unique. It is essential that His uniqueness being the God Man provides our salvation. The just wrath of God requires punishment of sin. Who could bear such eternal punishment on our behalf? No-one but the almighty Himself. Who could take responsibility for our sin? It had to be a man who represented man. An angel or other being could not stand in our place. It had to be a perfect man, a man without sin to be a sacrifice on our behalf. In becoming a man the Son of Man identified with us and became our representative. Adam was our first representative, our federal head. But when he fell in sin, we all fell in sin with him. He brought death. But God sent a new federal head, one without sin yet who paid the penalty of sin. He brings us salvation and freedom from sin. He paid our debt.
For the world, Jesus’ birth was an unknown event, yet it shaped the whole of history. The real cause for celebrating Christmas is God sent Jesus to be our Saviour. The world celebrates with no understanding of the uniqueness of the birth of Jesus, its celebrations are empty.
It was our joy to share in Jeremy’s and Megan’s wedding. We had a personal involvement. Through Grace, Christians know Jesus personally. This is the reason for our rejoicing.

Sunday 1st November – Morning Service

Published on November 1, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

The message this morning came from Dafydd Morris who preached from Genesis chapter 28 verse 12. He spoke about Jacob, who was born into the most important family on earth. Although a privileged man, prior to his dream of the ladder, Jacob was a godless man. Until the Lord comes into our lives we are ungodly. At this point in Jacob’s life he was spending his first night away from home in the darkness. The darkness outside is the reflection of the darkness inside – until we are saved. Jacob put his head to rest upon a stone, he sought comfort where there was none. He lay down alone, illustrating his vulnerability.

Yet whilst he was asleep Jacob saw a ladder going from earth to heaven. This ladder illustrates that Jesus perfectly spans the gulf between heaven and earth. At Calvary he brought reconciliation. The bottom of the ladder was on earth – it came right to where Jacob was, just as the Gospel comes to us where we are, not where we should be. We are dead in sins and trespasses, we can’t take the first step, it is all of Grace.

The top of the ladder is in heaven. Christ died to bring us to God. The salvation brings us to the place where we need to be, to be in fellowship with God, in the presence of God in prayer.

Jacob learnt by looking at the angels ascending and descending the ladder, that Jesus is the only way to come to God. We don’t come in our own merit, we come through Christ. The angels came down to serve, we also need to serve. Whatever we do we need to ask for the Lord’s help.

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 18th October – Morning Services

Published on October 18, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

This morning’s worship was led by Reverend Hugh Michael of Zion Free Church, Pembroke Dock. He preached from The Sermon on the Mount and illustrated God’s goodness in answering prayer in His amazing provision for Zion Church when it was being renovated. Daily prayer meetings were answered in miraculous ways, with God providing everything the church needed. God truly is our provider, our Heavenly Father.

Sunday 4th October – Morning Service

Published on October 4, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Our morning service was led by Ian Middlemist, evangelist at Hill Park Church, who preached from Acts chapter 1 verses 1-10, Peter healing the crippled beggar. We learnt that as Christians we all have something to give, something perfectly relevant to whatever situation we find ourselves in. The beggar held out his hands hoping for silver and gold, but he received so much more. As the world holds out its hands, waiting for riches – for what it thinks it needs, we have the greatest message to give, what the world needs – the life-changing message of Jesus Christ. Those who are spiritually dead can be raised to a new life, to walk with God, to praise God. We need to bring the message to a needy people, to a crippled world, to let them hear about Jesus Christ.

Sunday 27th September – Morning Service

Published on September 27, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

This morning’s worship was led by Reverend Doctor Gareth Edwards from Hill Park, Haverfordwest, who preached from Exodus chapter 25, verses 1-22. He painted a vivid picture of the Ark of the Covenant depicting the reality of Calvary. The Ark is the place of God’s Law, the righteous requirements of a pure, holy God. Judgement of sinners is a necessary outcome. Because of the suffering of our Lord on the Cross we have been forgiven, our sins have been punished. The Ark is also the place of Mercy. The sacrifice made at Calvary satisfied the demands of the law. Christ’s blood was shed so we know mercy and the blessing of eternal fellowship with God.

Harvest Thanksgiving- Thursday 24th September 2015

Published on September 24, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

Our guest preacher for this year’s Harvest Service was Reverend Dafydd Taylor of Zion Free Church, Pembroke Dock. He preached on Psalm 67, speaking of our Gracious, Great and Giving God. We were reminded that we are blessed abundantly, we should count our blessings and also be a blessing to others. It was lovely to have fellowship with members from local churches and churches from further afield, including Cosheston, Bethesda Tenby Road, Clarbeston Road, Hill Park, Calvary Haverfordwest and Emmanuel Newport.

Sunday 23rd August – Morning Service

Published on August 23, 2015November 5, 2015 by Penuel Baptist RochLeave a comment

andy-millership-2 Our services were taken by Andy Millership, who preached from Jeremiah chapter 2 in the morning. It was a challenging sermon, reminding us God never changes, despite our actions. We need to take the opportunity to examine ourselves and look to growing our faith, never forsaking God. It was lovely once again to have many visiting friends join us and have fellowship after the morning meeting