Bethesda Shalom

Galatians 5:1 I stand as a watchman to lift my voice in warning, against a movement that is fast growing in momentum across the evangelical world.  Some call it Hebrew Roots, others call it Torah Observant Christianity — call it what you like, the overriding emphasis is the same.  They tell us that the Gentile Church has been infected with Greek culture and needs desperately to return to its Jewish roots from whence it came!!  When asked what this “returning to its Jewish roots” looks like, one is speedily pointed to Moses and told that in order to be a faithful follower of Yeshua, you must keep Torah! Dietary Laws, Sabbath Laws, the Feasts and Festivals; if we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, then we must do so as Torah observing Christians! When everything has been said and done, the golden question that every professing believer in Jesus Messiah must answer is this; “Which Covenant are you Under?”.  To whom will you pledge your allegiance, Moses or Jesus Christ?  Y

Philippians 2:1-11 There are some things in this life that can only be truly understood by divine revelation.  No amount of seeing will ever see, and no matter how many times one might hear a thing proclaimed, it’s not until the penny drops that one really hears for the very first time!!   I do not think that one can begin to comprehend, Calvary’s dying love, without the aid of divine revelation, given them by God.  In this sermon, we attempt by God’s grace to walk through the first eleven verses of Philippians and to behold the humility of our Lord Jesus Christ.  In light of the depth of such humility, an exhortation is given to s, to walk in the same.  

Acts 3:19 Why is it that so many who name the name of Jesus Christ, can’t ever seem to break free from the cycle of “struggle”; never coming to a place of spiritual maturity in their lives, never seeming to be able to overcome the besetting sins that have so easily entangle them for years?  At the heart of the issue lies a life that is un-surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and until one turns in full repentance, one will never know the taste of victory.   

Genesis 21:1-8 Patience is one of those virtues that we all speak about, but none of us really like to experience it.  It’s a bit like “saving”, who likes to save when you can spend! Well similarly, who likes to have to endure the pain of waiting when you can have it now!!  The whole of Western consumerism is built on this model— if you want it now, you can have it now!! Solomon wrote, “Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life” (Prov. 13:12).  Why does God then delay?  Does He not want His children happy?  Our Heavenly Father is of greater substance than that! He cares for more than our mere happiness, it is character that God’s after!!  He wants to work in us the precious virtue of patience so that we might stand complete in Him by faith! 

Genesis 3:1-7 Faith is to undergird our whole Christian experience, without it, we cannot function!!  There is an enemy of our souls who well knows this fact.  You don’t need me to tell you that we are in a spiritual battle — we feel its effects hourly!!  As believers in Christ, we are not to be ignorant of Satan’s devices, lest he should gain an advantage over us (2 Cor. 2:11).  One of Satan’s modes of attack is to sow seeds of doubt into the mind of the Christian so as to take from under our feet, our ground of confidence in God.  By looking at three examples in the Bible, we learn more about this scheme of assault and how we are to overcome it!

Mark 4:23 Four pastors were discussing the merits of the various translations of the Bible. One liked a particular version best because of its simple, beautiful English. Another preferred a more scholarly edition because it was closer to the original Hebrew and Greek. Still another liked a contemporary version because of its up-to-date vocabulary. The fourth minister was silent for a moment, then said, “I like my mother’s translation best.” Surprised, the other three men said they didn’t know his mother had translated the Bible. “Yes,” he replied. “She translated it into life, and it was the most convincing translation I ever saw. Let him that has an ear to hear, hear.

Numbers 13:26-33 How many know that the God of history, is the same God of the present?  God is known by His attributes - those characteristics and qualities which define His person and nature.  For some, studying these divine attributes is nothing more than an academic exercise. Instead of the knowledge of the Holy impacting the life, for many, it merely impacts the head.  Friends, God reveals Himself to us, not because He has an inferiority complex, but in order that we might know Him and in so doing draw near to Him in full assurance of faith. In this featured sermon, we look at two of God’s attributes, namely, His omnipotence and His faithfulness.  Please rest assured, this shall be no dull exercise.  As we turn to look at the account of the twelve spies and the bringing up of their report to the people, we shall see that while the overwhelming majority saw only danger; two were able by faith to see past the danger unto the promised blessing because they were fully persuaded in the nature of the God who h

2 Chronicles 36:14-20 One of the fundamental ways by which we can know the nature and the character of God is by the attributes which He has chosen to reveal about Himself in Holy Scripture.  These attributes define His person —His eternality, his sovereignty, his omnipotence and omniscience, and His spiritual and triune nature. These very attributes define His character —His love, His grace, His holiness; His justice and righteousness; His faithfulness and mercy. In this sermon, we look at two cardinal attributes of God, namely His mercy and His wrath.  May the Lord be pleased to open the understanding of our eyes to see Him in His true glory and majesty.      

Hebrews 3:12-13 The little phrase, “take heed”, appears more than 50 times in the Word of God.  It may only be a tiny phrase consisting of two words but boy does it pack a punch and fire a shot across the bows. It is a phrase of warning; a sound of alarm; like a bell ringing or the town crier heralding FIRE!!, so the words “take heed” call immediately to arrest one’s attention. When one sees the words BEWARE, DANGER AHEAD, it is only a fool who chooses to ignore them to his own destruction. In this sermon, a strong warning goes forth to those who name the name of Jesus Christ.  Play with sin to your ruin! God is calling, today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts!   

Revelation 2:1-7 The Church in Ephesus was a Church that was in declension in regards to love.  They had departed from that they once knew in glowing fervour and had grown cold in that most vital of areas.  The heat of the battle had done something to them.  All that contention against the false had jaded their glow of love.  Simply put, their love had grown cold in Jesus because they had lost that vital love relation with Him!!  Oh, Brethren, if this can happen in a marriage, it can happen with the Lord.  We grow estranged.  Other things come in, we stop spending devotional time with Him and before we know it, we’re going through the religious motions.  What effect do you think it will have on other relationships?  Cold here...cold everywhere!!!!  Brethren, it is our God-given responsibility to love others, but we can’t love as we ought without the Lord!!   

Matthew 26:17-25 Imagine being seated around the table on the night of the Last Supper with the twelve.  As you’re enjoying some last and final moments together with the Lord, Jesus suddenly turns and interjects these words, “...Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me”. You try to compose yourself — who’s He talking to?  Has an unwanted guest snuck in among us?  Looking around, you realise, no, it’s only us—the twelve.  We who have been His companions for the last 3½ years.  We ate together, drank together, and slept together under the same canopy of night.  We seldom ever left his side, how could it be that one of us should now betray him? Having no idea or suspicion as to who the Lord could possibly be pointing to, they began each of them to point the finger at themselves!  Oh, Brethren, we have a great need in this deceitful and perilous hour, to put the spotlight on ourselves and to ask the Lord this question in earnest. “Lord, is it I?”  

1 Thessalonians 5:25 Some of the most profound and sublime truths in life are not found in the abundance of paragraphs, but in the trimmed leanness of a single sentence.  Take for instance the sentence, “I love you” — it’s not rocket science, you don’t need a degree to understand its meaning, and yet it speaks a thousand words. How about, “I’m sorry” — two words strung together in three syllables, taking a single second to say, and yet how much irreversible damage could have been prevented if someone would only have stood up to say these elementary words, “I’m sorry”.  How many wars could have been averted? How many innocent lives could have been saved from premature death? In this sermon, we take just four words at the close of Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians as the subject matter for consideration. Four words, don’t seem like a lot, but as we shall see, the strength and power of these words are life-changing! 

Isaiah 40:1-2 Isaiah is the most quoted prophet in the New Testament Scriptures, and one of the most quoted books, second only to that of Psalms. It has been referred to by scholars as a miniature Bible. There are 66 Books in the Bible, and there are 66 chapters in the Book of Isaiah. There are two divisions in the Bible, and there are two divisions in the Book of Isaiah. The first part of the Bible (OT) is comprised of 39 Books, and the second (NT) is comprised of 27 Books.  The Book of Isaiah? Ditto...39 chapters in the first division (1-39), 27 chapters in the second (40-66).  It is my heart to walk you through just one chapter — the first of the second great division, Isaiah chapter 40.  As we walk together through this chapter, you will see that the central theme so prevalent in the second half of this Book —hope, the future restoration of Israel, salvation through her Messiah, is here found in this single opening chapter.  It is my hope that we might fix our eyes on God so as to be encouraged. 

Nehemiah 4:1-6 When God begins to stir the hearts of His people to a work that He has determined to do, you can be sure of one thing; the devil will also stir the hearts of his own subjects to rise up in opposition against it.  There’s scarcely a work that God has ever set about to do, that has not gone without such opposition.  In the days of Nehemiah, God was at work in the rebuilding of the city walls and sure to form, Sanballat and his men opposed the work with one objective in mind, the hinder the work and to cause it to stop.  This sermon is an encouragement to all who are part of living work in this last hour.  The work of God shall be opposed, and you too shall suffer blows from the enemy, but be of good courage, the Lord is with you in the work for good, and he shall bring it to completion!! 

Hebrews 12:1-2 A man’s sickness is known by his symptoms.  The symptom is not the sickness, but rather, the symptom is the indicator of the sickness present.  As I look around at the Church of Jesus Christ in the West, I don’t know any other way to say it, I see a sick Church.  You say, Brother, judge not, and I say, Brother, how can I not when the symptoms are staring me in the face!!  When a man’s temperature is registering 42 degrees C on the thermometer and his face as pale as a sheet, I’m not waiting to ask him how he feels, I’m calling the doctor!!  In like manner, when you see a Church that has lost its appetite for doctrine/teaching, it is symptomatic of a Church that is sick with sin!!  This sermon is a call for the purity of the Body of Christ.

Psalms 57:1 If I was to task a man with the arduous job of naming the greatest hymn ever written, I’m sure that opinions would abound.  Take, for instance, Charles Wesley; it has been calculated that he wrote no fewer than 6000 hymns during his lifetime. Of these 6000, many are in agreement in concluding that the greatest of these (and arguably they would say, the greatest hymn ever written) is the hymn, “Jesus, Lover of my Soul”.  No one is quite certain as to the events that led Charles to pen these words.  One story tells how that on one Atlantic crossing, as Charles returned to England, a frightening storm arose at sea.  Just as it seemed that the ship would go down, threatening to take all on board with it, a frightened bird flew into Wesley’s cabin through an open window and sought safety and protection in the folds of his coat!     Jesus, Lover of my soul, let me to thy bosom fly, while the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high: hide me, O my Savior, hide, till the storm of life be past;

Matthew 24:3-14 Some view the Christian race as a 100 m dash.  On your marks…get set…go!!!  1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and it's over!  However, as one looks in the text of Holy Scripture, one quickly discovers that the Christian race is no 100m dash, but a marathon of lasting endurance!  In this sermon, we look at two indispensables that are necessary for Christian perseverance.  There’s a race to run dear Christian; let us run the race with endurance so as to finish!     

1 John 2:12-14 What man plants a sapling, who upon his return ten years later, does not expect to find a fruit-yielding tree?  Imagine the horror at discovering that the bendy sapling is no further on in its progression as in the day it was first planted.  If it is an apple tree or a pear tree, we’d expect that tree to have come to maturity, and the sign of its maturity would be the beautiful fruit hanging from every branch.  As it is in the natural, so it also ought to be in the spiritual!!  Tell me, is the maturing of your spiritual man in proportion to the length of years you’ve walked with the Lord?  It is the heart of our Lord to see His children go on to spiritual maturity, growing from little children to young men, to fathers.  Let us prepare our hearts as to what we will do with what is said in this heart-searching sermon.

1 John 1:5-7 There’s something about light — its piercing rays of glory, its all-pervading brilliance, is no match for the darkened shadows cast by nature's night.  I find that for so many, though they name the name of Christ, they are content to live in the bluey shades of the twilight hours when Christ is calling them into the brightness of daylight.  Neither hot nor cold, neither wicked nor good — they’re content to pitch their tent in no man's land between the borders of heaven and hell.  As I look at the Bible, I don’t see any shades of grey, just life, and death, light, and darkness, day and night. If this is so, why then do we allow for shades of grey in our lives?  This is a call to walk in the light!!

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 The athlete on the field of games is not passive.  There’s no passivity about him — see him on the starting line, he’s not passive; he is thinking through the race before him, he’s focussed.  Everything about the life of an athlete is disciplined.  You name the sport, and I’ll show you an Olympian that’s under the rule of discipline.  What he eats, what he drinks, what time he lies down to sleep, what time he rises up again; the intense training schedule for the space of four years, in season and out of season. The Apostle Paul draws on this powerful and well-known imagery to make his point.  How run ye, O Christian?