Re-Gaining Perspective on Life.

Trying to re-gain perspective on life amidst challenging circumstances is essential when you are trying at the same time to come to terms with serious illness.  It is all too easy to lose perspective altogether, even as a Christian, and start to think in purely worldly ways.  Being able, by God’s grace, to see that “all things work together for good to those who love God” (Rom.8:28) is a great consolation when realised, but at times it can be a struggle to come to that realisation.  So much passes through your mind, much of it negative, that getting your head around your situation presents a major test. 

However, the struggle is well worth it not least because it restores peace to your heart.  It enables you to see the Lord in all circumstances, good and not so good.  But above all else, it helps you, as a Christian, to see that in God’s gracious and sovereign hands, it will work for ultimate good.  This is what we must keep in mind always.  God is at work in us and through us, working for our good and for His greater glory.  In our cooler moments we can see that God’s glory is what we desire to see accomplished through our suffering; but in the heat of suffering, frustration, disappointments and low moods, seeing this ultimate plan is much more difficult.  

THE BARTHOLOMEW LEGACY - Remembering the Martyrs

THE BARTHOLOMEW LEGACY

Remembering the Martyrs

But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now.

(Galatians 4: 29)

Dr Alan C. Clifford

Introduction

No, this is not about Bartholomew’s maps, nor about Barts Hospital in London. Neither can we aim to provide a biblical character study about the Apostle Bartholomew. Indeed, nothing at all is said about him in the New Testament apart from listing him among the apostles. Yet, during the early twentieth century, his name was known outside the circles of cartographers, tourists and medics. 

One can imagine a scenario somewhere in the West of England in 1923, where a Sunday school teacher tried to introduce his or her pupils to the twelve apostles. On declaring that the Bible tells us absolutely nothing about Bartholomew, an observant lad interjected with “I saw Saint Bartholomew a few days ago!” “Oh where?” To which the lad replied to the startled teacher, “Saint Bartholomew came through with the Cheltenham Flyer express” [the GWR’s new prestige train]. Our young train-spotting scholar then added excitedly, “I got the number - 2915!” 

Yes, we know more about G. J. Churchward’s famous Great Western Railway 2-cylinder, 4-6-0 Saint Class steam locomotives than we know for sure about the ‘saint’ himself. (Incidentally, 2914 was Saint Augustine and 2917 was Saint Bernard, not to ignore that 2923, 2913, 2920 and 2927 were Saints George, Andrew, David and Patrick respectively). Sadly, the superstition of ‘patron saints’ survives long after the last of these engines were scrapped in 1953. For the record (with some thematic link to our subject), Saint class 2903 Lady of Lyons (built in 1907) is credited with an unconfirmed 120 mph on a trial run. (One wonders if the current rebuild of a Saint at the GWR centre at Didcot might lead to a challenge to Mallard’s 1938 world speed record for steam of 126 mph). Whether or not the actual ‘Lady of Lyons’ was a saint (unlike 2904 Lady Godiva), the city of Lyons is associated with early persecution of Christians (177 AD) and later martyrdoms of Huguenots (1553, 1572).  

Apart from legends about his mission to India and Armenia, and his eventual horrific martyrdom (it is said he was flayed alive before being beheaded, miraculous healing properties being later claimed for his skin, hence the link with medicine), nothing is known for sure about the Apostle Bartholomew. Not to forget that imperial Rome was sacked by Alaric the Goth on 24 August 410, the medieval Roman Church appointed this calendar day for the Festival of St Bartholomew. Ironically, it was the later persecuting activities of the Roman Catholic Church that associated St Bartholomew with a most appalling atrocity that bears his name.

TWO BLACK BARTHOLOMEWS

During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, following the Protestant Reformation, two outrages were committed against good and faithful Christian people on 24 August. The first - in 1572 - was against French Huguenots (Reformed Christians, Calvinists), thousands of whom were butchered by Roman Catholics in Paris and beyond. This terrible event is known as the St Bartholomew Massacre. Queen Elizabeth I went white as she heard the news. 

 

The second - in 1662 - was against English Puritans or Nonconformists (Reformed Christians, Calvinists), when around 2,000 godly pastors were ejected from their churches by the then recently-restored Church of England. Queen Elizabeth’s church (in the hands of ‘secret Catholic’ King Charles II) repeated the intolerance of the Pope’s church. Both atrocities led to much suffering and injustice.

These two expressions of ‘politically-correct’ religious tyranny (Roman Catholic and Anglican) reveal the darker side of Christian history. In the long battle between the Light and darkness, it has always been ‘right forever on the scaffold, wrong forever on the throne’. Yet, in His sovereign wisdom and providence, Almighty God uses such atrocities to promote His everlasting kingdom, as surely as the sacrifice of His only-begotten Son brought salvation to the world.  

THE FRENCH BARTHOLOMEW

First, the facts:

1. The spread of the Reformation in France saw numerous conversions among the nobility as well as the general population. Among John Calvin’s numerous correspondents was Gaspard de Coligny, Admiral of France.

2. After a decade of religious war (following the massacre of a Reformed congregation near Vassy by soldiers of the Catholic Duke of Guise), a peace-promoting marriage between the Protestant Henry of Navarre (the future Henry IV of France) and Margaret of Valois, sister of King Charles IX took place at Notre-Dame, Paris on 18 August 1572.

3. The Protestant aristocracy were invited for the occasion, including Admiral Coligny. Much admired by the young Charles IX, he proposed policies which advanced the interests of both the French monarchy and the French Reformed Church.

4. Jealous and fearful of this influence, the Duke of Guise and the queen mother Catherine de Medici hired an assassin to kill Coligny. An attempt while the Protestant leader was walking the streets of Paris failed, only leaving him wounded. Gravely concerned, Charles IX promised an investigation and punishment for the plotters.

5. The king’s sympathy created panic among the Catholics, who did all they could to counter Coligny’s influence. Catherine, the Duke and Henri de Anjou (later Henri III) managed - after prolonged psychological pressure - to persuade the feeble-minded monarch that Coligny was really a threat to royal power. On Saturday evening, 23 August, confused Charles lost his temper: “If you want to kill Coligny, I agree, but then kill all the other Huguenots, so that no one will be able to blame me on account of his death!”

6. At 3 am, the Duke and his men surprised and assassinated Admiral Coligny at his lodging. Mortally wounded, he was thrown from his window, his head being kicked on the ground by the Duke. All the other Protestant leaders were killed by the royal guard. Sadly, the young Henry of Navarre instantly professed to be a Catholic to avoid death. While returning to the Reformed party soon afterwards (his evangelical convictions yet doubtful), this was sadly a ‘conversion’ he repeated in later years to gain the crown of France. 

7. Urged on by priests and nuns, the Paris mob attacked Huguenots in their homes for three consecutive days. In the ensuing horror, it is estimated that at least ten thousand lost their lives in the city. The streets flowed with blood and dead bodies were thrown into the Seine. Urged on by Charles and Catherine, the atrocity spread to the provinces. The total number of victims is hard to estimate accurately - 30, 000 might be a conservative figure. It should be said that the Bishop of Lisieux forbad such killing in his diocese. But he was a rare exception.

Second, who were the guilty?

Charles IX surely. He was no match for all the intrigue surrounding him. Yet clearly overwhelmed with remorse, this weak individual suffered acutely. Two years later he died in agony, seeing blood everywhere. Refusing to see his mother at his death bed, he found a measure of comfort through his faithful Huguenot nurse. Catherine herself, a political schemer, had been married to an unfaithful Henri II. An Italian Catholic, and disciple of Machiavelli, she ruthlessly retained her influence. She hated Henri of Navarre and the Protestants, yet died unhappy and almost unnoticed in 1589. Providing the real dynamic behind the Bartholomew massacre, the Duke of Guise was a fanatical Catholic. His partner in the crime, Henri de Anjou, later Henri III, eventually turned against the Duke, having him assassinated at Blois in 1587. Then there’s the Paris mob. Hating their Protestant neighbours for their godly and prosperous life-style, they were stirred up by fanatical priests to kill and plunder. With all restraint gone, the basest human instincts took over.

The Roman Catholic hierarchy was the chief culprit in the atrocity. Always in favour of persecution, the Vatican viewed religious toleration as an unpardonable sin. Pope Pius V had written accordingly to King Charles IX in 1569:

Your majesty must consider as certain that this (namely the restoration of public order) will never take place, as long as the whole kingdom will not accept unanimously and keep faithfully the one and same Catholic religion. In order to reach that goal with God’s help, it is necessary that Your Majesty act without mercy against God’s enemies, his own rebellious subjects, and punish them with the rightful pains and torments stated by the law (cited in Jules M. Nicole, ‘Black Bartholomew’, Christian Graduate, December 1972 (25: 4), 111).

Although Pope Pius V had died by the time of the Bartholomew massacre, his successor Gregory XIII welcomed news of the event, ordering Te Deums to be sung in all the churches. He also had an infamous medal struck to commemorate the Church‘s triumph over ‘heresy’. 

Naturally, King Philip II of Spain rejoiced that Protestantism had been thus suppressed in France. His own scheme to humble Queen Elizabeth I and Protestant England found eventual fruition in the Spanish Armada of 1588, a scheme which, in the merciful providence of Almighty God, ended in ruin.

Not all Catholic princes rejoiced. The Emperor Maximilian II, Charles IX’s father-in-law expressed deep sorrow over the cruelty displayed. Even Charles’ wife, daughter of the emperor, the devoutly-Catholic Elizabeth of Austria pleaded tearfully with her husband that some Protestants who had taken refuge in her room might be spared. The liberal and tolerant Chancellor of France, Michel de l’Hospital was so overwhelmed with grief that he died shortly after the massacre.

Third, what effect did the massacre have on the Lord’s Reformed people in France?

Having observed that over many years the French Reformed churches had provided ‘a vast multitude of most zealous and faithful martyrs, far more in number and quality of sufferers for the Gospel, than in any one of the Reformed Christian nations in Europe’, the English Presbyterian historian of the Huguenots, John Quick (1636-1706) provides a judicious and moving assessment of the aftermath:

The churches after the Parisian massacre were at a stand. That deluge of Protestant blood, which was then shed had exhausted their best spirits. Multitudes were frighted out of their native land, ... and others were frighted out of their religion. In such a dreadful hurricane as that was, no wonder if some leaves, unripe fruit, and rotten withered branches fell to the earth, and were lost irrecoverably. However, a remnant escaped, and, which was no less than a miracle, generally the ministers, God reserving them to gather in another harvest. And the churches in many places revived. God staying the rough wind in the day of His east wind, and giving them a breathing time, a little reviving under their hard bondage (Synodicon in Gallia Reformata, 1692, i, p. lx).

John Quick goes on to outline the sad effects of Henri of Navarre’s ‘Paris is worth a mass’ apostasy by which he obtained the throne of France as Henri IV in 1593 . Yet never entirely forgetting his former Protestant friends, he granted them the tolerant provisions of the Edict of Nantes in April 1598. In the decades that followed, the Reformed churches of France flourished until further persecution descended on them during the reign of King Louis XIV. However, we may conclude that this history assures us beyond all doubt the truth of our Saviour’s words that, despite all the persecution of all the ages, ‘the gates of hell will never prevail against His Church’ (see Matt. 16: 18), the true Church of the Reformation and all who faithfully profess the pure truth of the everlasting Gospel.

THE ENGLISH BARTHOLOMEW

Following the end of the Cromwellian era, pent up resentment and revenge burst on the heads of the Puritans. Their attempts to complete the English Reformation proved a disappointment. The restoration of Church and Monarchy prompted appallingly brutal persecution. The regicides were arrested and disembowelled. The Act of Uniformity, coming into force on St Bartholomew’s Day, 24 August 1662, drove around two-thousand puritan clergy from their livings. Many were to experience imprisonment. The day was known as ‘Black Bartholomew’. Clearly the date was deliberately chosen, an intimidating reminder of the French Bartholomew massacre ninety years earlier. J. C. Ryle said of the Act of Uniformity:

Taking all things into consideration, a more impolitic and disgraceful deed never disfigured the annals of a Protestant Church. ... To show the spirit of the ruling party in the Church, they actually added to the number of apocryphal lessons in the Prayer Book calendar at this time. They made it a matter of congratulation among themselves that they had thrust out the Puritans, and got in Bel and the Dragon (‘Richard Baxter’ in Light from Old Times, 1890, 1902 rep. 316-7).

Led by Richard Baxter and others, the Presbyterians made up around two-thirds of this godly company. They were the ‘cheated party’. Being honourable monarchists and moderate revolutionaries did not shield them from the wrath of King and Bishop. They had the misfortune to trust the word of a King who had few of his father’s virtues but several of his vices. Having promised ‘liberty to tender consciences’ at Breda in 1660, Charles soon forgot such seeming magnanimity by the time he reached London. However, with the Restoration, the fruits of the Puritan Revolution were not entirely lost. The new monarchy was never to have the power of the old. The Star Chamber and the High Commission were never revived. Taxation was never again levied without parliamentary consent. 

If England was safe from anarchy, she was not secure from the relentless intrigue of the Roman Catholic Church. While Puritans suffered for nearly thirty years, England’s Protestantism remained threatened. However, even the Cavalier Parliament was too strongly Protestant for King Charles II whose sympathies for popery were known. Indeed, in 1670, the King entered into a treaty with Louis XIV of France to curb the aspirations of the Dutch Calvinist, William of Orange. 

Unknown to Charles’ protestant ministers, the secret clause of the shameful Treaty of Dover (1670) was signed by the Catholic members of the Cabal, Lords Arlington and Clifford. Louis hereby promised to supply Charles with French troops and money if, at an opportune time, Charles would declare himself a Roman Catholic. The article’s chilling words actually read: ‘The King of Great Britain being convinced of the truth of the Catholic Faith, is determined to declare himself a Catholic...as soon as the welfare of his realm will permit.’

CONCLUSION

If Englishmen had retreated from the anarchy and repression of the revolutionary era, they were not about to forget the danger of Romanism. Parliament maintained the necessity of a protestant church and a protestant monarchy. Roman Catholic influence in the persons of Charles II and James II - the sons of Henrietta Maria - was firmly checked. After the failure of the ill-fated Monmouth rebellion of 1685, it was the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688 that finally ensured a protestant constitution and succession when William and Mary ascended the throne. Constitutional monarchy thus replaced Stuart absolutism. Protestant safeguards were enshrined in the Bill of Rights (1689) and later in the Act of Settlement (1701). With the passing of the Toleration Act (1689), persecuted Nonconformists became legally-worshipping Protestant Dissenters. 

With the aid of Huguenot regiments formed from refugees driven out of France at the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685), William of Orange finally rescued this country from the popish menace when he defeated James II at the battle of the Boyne in 1690. During the eighteenth century, England’s Protestantism was reinforced by the Methodist Revival. Until the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 and the restoration of the Roman Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales in 1850 (after which Cardinal Manning effectively declared war on protestant England), one may say that the zealous Protestantism of Puritan England continued to exert its liberating power.

Three centuries later, in an age of ecumenical and multi-faith apostasy, we must ensure by God's grace that the essential protestant legacy of the puritan period is maintained. We dare not imagine that the Church of Rome has changed: as surely as she meddled in British politics in the seventeenth century, so she is active in the heart of Europe today.  In view of the UK visit of Pope Benedict XVI in 2010, we cannot deny that these dark forces are still at work. Let us never forget the significance of 24 August. May all who name Christ as Lord and Saviour (and others who value religious liberty) be careful to honour His godly servants of the Reformation era, determined still to ‘contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints’ (Jude 3).

POSTSCRIPT

Dr Edmund Calamy (1671-1732) published An Abridgement of Mr Baxter’s History of His Life and Times with An account of the Ministers...who were Ejected after the Restoration of King Charles II (1702). Integral with his ministry, Calamy clearly felt called of God to transmit the heroic faith of Baxter and his brethren: “To let the Memory of these Men Dye is injurious to Posterity”. His Abridgement involved great courage, and it provoked a storm. At a time of continuing Anglican-inspired hostility to the heirs of the Puritans, this inspiring material marked out Edmund Calamy as ‘the Champion of Nonconformity’.

Apart from modest attention from nonconformist scholars, Dr Calamy is a largely unsung hero of a depressing period in English church history. While he never had the impact of his hero Richard Baxter (and how many could claim that until George Whitefield appeared in 1735?), Calamy shared most of Baxter’s convictions, a good deal of his piety and an equally-strong pastoral and evangelistic commitment. In addition, besides documenting the sacrifice of the ejected ministers of 1662, he perhaps more than any other preacher and theologian transmitted Baxter’s wonderful legacy to the eighteenth century and beyond. 

NORWICH 'GAY PRIDE' DEMO - Christian Gospel Witness

The Norwich 'Gay Pride' demo is now an annual feature of city life, as in many other cities across the UK. Five of us gathered to make a Gospel witness against this unashamed carnival of perverted carnality.

Gentleman's Walk was teeming with people on this warm afternoon (Saturday, 27 July 2013). Arriving early, I noticed that the Charity Stall from which Norwich City Council ejected Norwich Reformed Church last year was being used by ‘Gay Pride’ personnel. Wandering over, I asked for a copy of their official pamphlet. I then offered my leaflets ‘Good News for Gays’ and ‘Jesus Christ, the Saviour We All Need’. Accepting the ‘exchange’, they seemed a little disconcerted. I smiled and said, “You need them, they will do you good. God bless you.” 

When the other brethren arrived, we gathered for prayer, asking the LORD to grant us faithfulness, wisdom, compassion, peace and courage.  

Police were evident in considerable numbers. We engaged in discussion with them. It has to be said that they were more threatening towards us than the gay marchers were. We were told by one officer that if we caused offence and distress we would be arrested. Will Harrison (church identity withheld) then asked, “Since I find gay demonstrators offensive and distressing, will you arrest them too?” No reply was made. Tony Cox (Surrey Chapel) challenged the strident attitude of this officer with his legal expertise, supported by Len Smeath (Norwich Reformed Church). It seems that the public parade of gay perversion is not considered offensive whereas Christian counter-witness is! Will Harrison was accompanied by his wife Laura and baby Elouise in this stand-off. 

Joining in, I said that the marchers had less cause to fear harassment from us than we from them. I asked the officer if he would arrest those who might harass us? Somewhat nervously, he replied that he would. On offering him copies of my leaflets, the officer said I would be arrested if these were distributed. So much for freedom of expression! When I said they were only available for enquirers, the visibly-irritated officer said I would be arrested even if they were displayed. Well, they were displayed - together with another leaflet 'Gay Pride' - but none of us were arrested!

As the several-hundred strong procession advanced with drums, whistles and circus-style antics, we informed the officers that we intended to go ahead of the procession at a distance of 30-40 yards, displaying our Gospel texts (see pics). Hundreds of bystanders watched as we advanced along the route - Len to my left, Tony to my right, and Will and his family with me in the centre. With little Elouise in her pushchair, we were making a family-based, biblical demonstration - ‘A little child shall lead them’ (Isa. 11: 6). Several police officers provided a buffer between us and the noisy marchers behind us.

The planned route took us past the market and the City Hall. Shamelessly displaying the City Council's decadence, a 'rainbow' drape stretched along the entire width of the building. On the balcony, the Lord Mayor, resplendent in his ceremonial robes waved to the crowd, supported by other members of the Council. It was a truly shameful display of official support. As we passed by beneath, I lifted my arm, and - despite the din - shouted “Shame upon you, shame upon you!”

Eventually, we and the main procession reached the Forum where a large crowd applauded them. The police kept between us and the marchers while the noisy celebration reached its climax. Providing evidence of today’s religious apostasy, Quakers and Unitarians were conspicuous among the marchers.  An Anglican-looking clergyman (Methodist? Roman Catholic?) was shamefully smiling. At one point, Tony and Len made their way to the end of the procession to display their Bible texts. In response to the Unitarian’s poster ‘Jesus loves you’, Len rightly said , “Yes Jesus loves them, but He hates their sin!” Turning his back, the man was not amused. It was tragic to see little children among the marchers. May the LORD protect them from sodomite wickedness!

In the end, the whole event seemed less aggressive than in previous years. We were able to make a visible witness, and a good quantity of leaflets were taken. Apart from the leading officer, his fellow officers were quite friendly and helpful towards us. If we are spared, another witness will be made next year (DV). In the wake of the Same-sex Marriage developments, only time will tell if our relatively-low key witness will be tolerated in the future. It would be worth it if only one soul was saved. We leave events to God and His sovereign and gracious purposes. May HE have mercy on our city and country.

Dr Alan C. Clifford

Pastor, Norwich Reformed Church

God Not Welcome.

BY A 15 yr. OLD SCHOOL KID

who got an A+ for this entry

(TOTALLY AWESOME)!

Since the Pledge of Allegiance

And

The Lord's Prayer

Are not allowed in most

Public schools anymore

Because the word 'God' is mentioned.....

A kid in Arizona  wrote the attached

NEW School prayer:

"New Pledge of Allegiance"

-o0o0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~0o0o-

Now I sit me down in school

Where praying is against the rule

For this great nation under God

Finds mention of Him very odd.

If scripture now the class recites,

It violates the Bill of Rights.

And anytime my head I bow

Becomes a Federal matter now.

Our hair can be purple, orange or green,

That's no offense; it's a freedom scene..

The law is specific, the law is precise.

Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.

For praying in a public hall

Might offend someone with no faith at all..

In silence alone we must meditate,

God's name is prohibited by the state.

We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,

And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks...

They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.

To quote the Good Book makes me liable.

We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,

And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.

It's 'inappropriate' to teach right from wrong,

We're taught that such 'judgments' do not belong..

We can get our condoms and birth controls,

Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles...

But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,

No word of God must reach this crowd.

It's scary here I must confess,

When chaos reigns the school's a mess.

So, Lord, this silent plea I make:

Should I be shot; My soul please take!

Amen

If you aren't ashamed to do this, Please pass this on..

Jesus said, 'If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you before my Father.'

~~~~~~~~~~~AWESOME~~~~~~~~~~

Not ashamed. Pass this on. 

It is a scandalous situation that we have got ourselves into in this world where its Creator and Sustainer has been banished from His own world. All over the western world, God is being driven out. His Name is not to be spoken because those who hold to a false religion might be offended. Reading of His Word in public places is fast becoming a criminal offense. 

This is what we can only expect the godless world to do, but where is the church while all this is going on? She is involved in spiritual adultery with the gods of this world - political correctness, immorality, lust, greed, moral laxity, sodomy legalised, same-sex marriages being accepted, etc, etc.

This world is clearly under divine wrath, because it is clear that God has given this world up to all kinds of iniquity. Because the churches are milking this with all their might, they have lost their ability to discern the times in which we live. Hence their deafening silence. Churches that once stood solidly for the Gospel are now persecuting those good men who preach the Gospel with power and passion; they preach it as men who give the clear impression that they actually believe what they preach.

Sadly, and predictably, the world is but following the example of the churches. May God have mercy on us as He pours out His deserved wrath upon us.

Jesus Christ - the Lamb of God

If you would like a Gospel tract that you can give to someone for whom you are praying, then visit this website where you can download for free this leaflet.

Perhaps you find it difficult to speak to people about your Saviour and afraid that you might not get the right words to speak. Well, this little tract will help you spread the Gospel in an easier way.

Tell others where they can get as many free copies as they can use - the supply is endless. Got the Gospel out to the whole world, and be the means under God of bringing sinners into a right relationship with Christ.

Good News At A Time Of Bad News

If you get word that you have a bad disease like cancer, ought you to be worried? Many get this ‘bad news’ on a daily basis. Just sit in a cancer clinic for a while and you’ll see patients going and coming constantly, young and old and middle-aged. They are anxious, fearful, worried. What the consultant will tell them will change their lives. 

We sat and waited in such a clinic, and saw two ladies as they were coming out from the consultant; one whispered to us, “Bad news,” and the other left in tears. They were clearly shaken. Our hearts went out to them.  Should they be worried?

Well it all depends upon their relationship with Christ. Nothing else matters. Does someone getting such unwelcome news know Christ personally as Saviour and Lord? If they do, then ultimately there is nothing to worry about. All must die, but we do not know when or how we will leave this world; but die we will. Therefore, the urgent need is to be right with God. 

What is death? Some think it’s the end. Well, it’s not the end, for one thing. It is the end of life in this world, but it is not the end. It is the end of suffering in this world, but it is not the end. People foolishly say, “It’s good for them; their suffering is over at last.” But people who talk like this do not believe that ‘this world is not our home, we’re just a-passing through.’ We are going somewhere because the soul is eternal, it lives forever, and it does not die. So the real ‘you’ does not cease to exist when you leave this world of time. You are going somewhere after death.

Some think (wrongly) that all go to heaven when they die. All Christians go to heaven when they die, but only Christians. What is a Christian, then? A Christian is someone, a sinner, who has realised his lostness, guilt, godlessness, rebellion against God, opposition to Christ and the Gospel, his lovelessness towards Christ, and repents of his sins. He sees sin, maybe for the first time, as the ugly thing it is, and flees from it to Christ the Saviour of the world. And this God-provided Saviour receives all who come to Him in faith (Jn.6:37).

Death is not ‘termination’; death is ‘separation.’ It is what separates us from this world and all that is in it. For those who are not Christians, death separates them from God in His redeeming, sin-bearing love, and separates them unto the judgement of hell forever. When we die we do not cease to exist. We ‘pass on’ to another existence.

Now the good news in this situation is that we can know before we die where it is we are going to. The Gospel of Christ tells us that we can be sure of our destiny after death. That we are going to die is a fact; it’s God’s appointment (Heb.9:27). The big thing is where we are going to when we die. It is the Gospel alone that gives us this knowledge.

The Gospel tells us some astounding things. It tells us God has provided a way for hell-deserving sinners (for that is what we truly are) to be with Christ forever. It tells us that the big thing that will keep us out of heaven is our sins, and that God has found a way whereby our sins can be removed. We can leave this life with all its pain and suffering and uncertainties and go to be with Him forever. The apostle John wrote, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness,” (1 John.1:9).

When Christ died on Calvary, God “laid on Him the iniquity of us all,” (Isa.53:6). That means that your sins were carried away by Christ in His death. The price of your forgiveness has been paid in full and God’s holiness has been fully satisfied. He can now look on the sin-bearing Christ and pardon you.

How is this pardon received? By putting your trust in Christ alone. Turn from your sins, and trust Christ to save you. Receive the mercy He freely offers in the Gospel, and rest upon Him alone for salvation.

He has promised “never to leave you nor forsake you.”  He will be your help in time of trouble. You have Someone on Whom you can cast all your burdens, and He will bear you up. And He’s waiting to be merciful to you when you call out to Him.

‘Bad news’ reminds us that we are going to die. It also paves the way for the ‘Good News’ to bring us light and hope and new life. It is there for the asking. Seek it now and go on seeking until you get it.

Quenching the Spirit.

When you have experienced much of God’s goodness in the valley experiences of life, the big thing is that you do not want to do anything that would “quench the Spirit” (1 Thes.5:19) and drive Him away from us. We have enjoyed so much of God these past nine months in particular that we cannot bear to think that through our carelessness He would leave us. That is the burden of Margaret’s prayer in recent days. She knows just how easy it is to grow cold when the back is no longer up against the proverbial wall, and how easy it is to let spiritual disciplines slip back into ‘normal’ mode.

Thankfully we are aware of this possibility, and being fore-warned is to be fore-armed. Even in this matter, God has been very good to us. Her godly mother, now with Christ, used to warn about the “grey hairs” (Hos.7:9) appearing and “the little foxes” that come in to raid the crop, and all without us knowing it (Song of Solomon 2:15).

How subtle is Satan and how crafty his working. We remember, of course, that God is sovereign in his dealing with His children, and that in His approaches to them, He draws near when they need Him, and then, for His own reasons, withdraws a bit, and all without them having done anything. I am reminded of Rev David Morgan, one of the preachers in eighteenth and nineteenth century Wales, and who was a very ordinary preacher. He tells of how he went to bed one night as David Morgan and rose the next day like a lion, and had a spectacular preaching ministry for about two years. Then he went to bed as a lion one night and woke up as David Morgan, and resumed a most unspectacular ministry for the rest of his life. This demonstrates the sovereignty of the Spirit in these matters.

That said, it is very possible for us, as believers, to “quench the Spirit” in one way or another, which very thing, by God’s grace, we do not want to do. These times have been too precious and special for us to do that, at least, knowingly. We all need to be very careful about letting those little sins slip in and we find ourselves starting to walk at a distance from Christ, losing the desire for His presence, having a poor appetite for the Bible and prayer, and turning away from God-given opportunities for witness to others, whether Christian of not.

Being aware of this possibility can prove a great defence against it happening.

Failing To Witness!

A friend sent this to me which I thought I’d like to share with you.  It is devastating in its impact, and very disturbing.  The challenge this brings to Christians is powerful and ought to stir us to become active witnesses to Christ and His great salvation.  The unsaved writer is standing in the judgement hall and is pointing the finger of blame at you for not sharing with him the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Read it slowly and let the words seep into your soul.

MY FRIEND

My friend, I stand in the judgment now,
And feel that you're to blame somehow.
On earth, I walked with you day by day,
And never did you point the way.

You knew the Lord in truth and glory,
But never did you tell me the story.
My knowledge then was very dim,
You could have led the way to Him.

Though we lived together on the earth,
You never told me of the second birth,
And now I stand here, condemned,
Because you failed to mention Him.

You taught me many things, that's true;
I called you "friend" and trusted you,
But now I learn, when it's too late --
You could have saved me from this fate.

We walked and talked by dawn and night,
And yet, you showed me not His light.
You let me live and love and die,
You knew I'd never live on high.

Yes, I called you "friend" in life,
And trusted you through joy and strife,
And yet on coming to the end --
I cannot call you now "my friend".

                                                 Author: unknown

What do you make of that, then?  How many have we let down by remaining silent?  Silent witnesses to the Gospel!  What a contradiction in terms.  Perhaps we are to become much more vocal in our witnessing if we are not to be in the position of the person addressed in the poem.

More About Marriage.

The third installment on Marriage Minutes is now available.  I think the evidence against re-defining marriage is overwhelming.  Do you know what is happening in other countries where same-sex marriage has been legalised?  What this short video to find out more.

Additional information may be found by clicking here. Decision day is not far away, so Christians are called upon to pray earnestly that God might defeat this corruption before it becomes law.

Faith - in Hospital

Recently, I had to undergo minor day surgery, and my surgery was first on the list for that day, so I was taken early.  Everything well very well, and was brought home by my son, David, in the afternoon.

Your prayers for today have been answered.  What made it even more delightful for me was that I had two men with the initials J.C. with me, the most important being Jesus Christ; the other was John Calvin.  It was simply amazing how conscious I was of the Lord’s presence right from getting up this morning, and I just wanted above all else to be in His gracious company.  Fellowship with the Lord was so sweet and encouraging, and Calvin brought His truth to me in a most practical way.  I felt so relaxed and joyful as I sat awaiting to be called to the Theatre suite.

A patient beside me was very fearful about his operation, which was not as serious as mine and his was done by local anaesthetic.  His wife told me of his worries and concerns, and while waiting in the ward, he was so quiet, subdued, thoughtful.  After his surgery, he was telling smutty jokes to a nurse.  Isn’t it amazing how shallow an impact the prospect of eternity has on some poor souls!  As soon as they perceived pressing danger is past, they revert to their godless way of life.

Want To Know Satan?

If you really want to know Satan, then there's one thing I would suggest you do - become a true Christian.  I'm saying, "Make a profession of faith," but, become a true Christian.

Unbelievers do not worry too much about the devil, and some, perhaps most, deny that he exists.  They belong to him in any case; he trains them, manipulates them, promises them a good time, tells them to do whatever they want, and deceives them into thinking that it is not he who is suggesting these things.

But once you become a Christian, you will get to know far more about the devil than you ever thought possible.  You'll be able to identify his activities, while non-Christians cannot.  You'll trace his workings, hear him suggesting things for you to do, see his craftiness and subtlety, and feel his oppressiveness.

If you decide not to become a Christian, then you will know none of this.  He does not bother those who are in his care and under his control.  But once you are delivered from his kingdom of darkness, he'll be on your case more often than you'd care to think.

How do you become a Christian?  First, you need to admit that you're not a Christian and that you want to become one.  Second, you need to confess your sins and your sin.  Third, you must beg for mercy from the Lord.  Fourth, you must ask for God's forgiveness and pardon.  Fifth, you receive Christ as your Saviour and Lord.  Sixth, you confess Christ before others.  And seventh, you find our a biblical church and become involved in its work and witness.

Do you want to know Satan?  Then become a true Christian - NOW!

People Need The Word.

World Population: More than 6,000,000,000 (6 billion). 

Number of people who speak a language but do not have Scripture: at least 380 million; 

250 million don’t have the Scriptures or a translation programme, 

130 million don’t have the Scriptures but do have a programme in progress. 

Population of individual language groups needing translation: varies greatly, from less than 100 to more than 10 million.

These figures, taken from Wycliffe Bible Translators, are staggering.  There is still much work yet to be undertaken by God's people.

Are you one of them?

Neil Diamond is LOST!

I like listening to Neil Diamond's songs and have done so for many years.  His songs seem to strike a note that describes where modern man is at spiritually.  In his song, "I am, I said," he writes, “And I am lost, and I can't even say why Leavin' me lonely still,” and in so doing depicts in clear terms what people really feel and experience.  Confessing that "I am lost" is a start, but only a start.  Not knowing why he is lost is another honest confession.  The feeling and reality of constant loneliness is an expression of the isolation that many feel today.

What is the answer?  Well, the only answer to lostness is salvation.  This salvation is to be found only in Christ.

Not knowing why a sinner is lost is explained only in the Gospel - man is lost because he is wandering about the world, stumbling and fumbling through life without a purpose.  This is his situation because of his rebellion against a loving and holy God.  This is why he is 'lost,' and needs to be 'found.'

Loneliness is answered only through fellowship with like-minded Christian people.  But it's only when the first two realities are resolved will the third become a reality.  The order is important.  Don't expect the feeling of loneliness to go if you are still lost and don't know why.

Neil, if you ever want to have your personal situation sorted out, then you need to come to Christ in repentance and faith.  There is hope for you if you trust the only Saviour of the whole world.

God Is No Man’s Debtor

God is no man’s debtor, and He richly rewards those who diligently seek him.  It is a blessed thing just to be in His presence in prayer, to look on His Face and to behold His glory.  It is the greatest sweetness to meet with Christ on earth; what must it be like to be with Him in heaven forever?  To experience the sweetness of our Saviour is not to be missed, and the Lord sometimes has to bring His children into uninvited situations where they experience that spiritual sweetness in their own hearts.  Just to know Christ, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings is the nearest thing to heaven on earth.  To know that deep, deep contentment with all that God has brought in our lives is far above rubies.  An old Puritan preacher wrote a book entitled, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment; and it is a rare jewel.  But to taste something of it is something to be coveted above wealth. 

And that’s what Christ has done for us.  And He can do the same for you, if you ask Him.  But let me add this caveat: Be careful what you ask God for, for you might just get it.

Because He Lives

The words of a beautiful Gospel hymn have been with me for the past days: “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow; because He lives, all fear is gone.”  

What a wonderful truth is the truth of the literal, physical, resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He is alive and is alive forevermore.  His resurrection means that death and the grave have lost their power and sting.  That greatest miracle the world has ever witnessed means that death, for the believer, is the means of entry into God’s nearer presence.  It is a move from this old sinful world and into God’s pure heaven.  There, all pain and suffering and tears are gone; all darkness expelled and all that offends our Saviour obliterated.  It is where God lives and reigns.  And that calls for a good reformed ‘Hallelujah’!

Our Never-failing Friend

The amazing thing is that people are wondering why **** is still so joyful and enjoys so much peace as she does. We know why – God in Christ lives in her heart and His life is overflowing through her.  The circumstances would depress anyone, so the reason for her joy and peace lies elsewhere.  How wonderful it is to face the unknown and uncertain future confident that God has already been there and He will take her by the hand and led her on.

God is good – I never tire of saying this.  He is our never-failing Friend, the One Who promised through His Son that He would “never leave us nor forsake us.” With Him, we can take it one day at a time, and leave everything in His loving hands.  It is truly amazing what He can do in and for those who have surrendered their lives to Him.

Now is not the time to ease up in your prayers.  There is still “more land to be taken,” and by God’s grace we will come through triumphantly.

Applying the Gospel to the Church

Why do ministers only apply the message of the Bible - if they even do that today - to outsiders and to unbelievers, but not to the church as church?  Why is the church excused from the application of the Gospel?  Does the Gospel have no message for the church?

That seems to be the case.  Presumably the reason why this is not done is because it is the church that pays a minister his salary and you don't want to lose that.  In any case, to do that would be to show yourself as not being 'a good churchman,' or a faithful and loyal "firm's man."  Churches have no place for any but "firm's men," so to risk your future ministry by applying the Gospel to everything the church does is to invite termination of your ministry.  Hence the silence from virtually every pulpit.

What has the Gospel to say to the church today?  Well, it asks if the Gospel is being preached faithfully and passionately in her and what effect the Gospel is having in the church?  It inquires whether those who hold office in the church are Gospel men?  Do church officers believe the Gospel and have they personally trusted the Gospel for their salvation?  Do church members actually believe the Gospel or is their profession simply 'from the lips out'?  Are there recognisable outward signs that their profession of faith in Christ is genuine?  Does the life of church members demonstrate that love for Christ and the Gospel are uppermost in their lives?  What has the Gospel to say about these situations?

Does the Gospel have anything to say about the shocking way churches treat their ministers?  Are there any guidelines in Scripture as to how this to be done?  Or is this merely an ecclesiastical legal matter?  Does the Gospel have anything to say about how Gospel ministers are ejected from their congregations on the whims of a few disgruntled professing Church elders who reject the Gospel and who are supported by inexperienced Presbyters?

What about church involvement in unbiblical ecumenism?  Has the Gospel a view point on this kind of thing? Is it right today for believers and unbelievers to be joined together, but not for Paul's in his day?

These are issues that are glaringly absent from many church sermons and actions.  The only explanation I can give is that many ministers are "firm's men" who will protect their establishment bodies come what may.  There are no Luthers or Calvins left in the church today.  Therefore the church is asleep, sleep-walking into perdition.

The Cross When Dying

When cancer enters a family and loved-one, it has a wonderful way of concentrating the mind on eternal matters – a bit like hanging.  Cancer is closely associated with death in the minds of many, and in many cases this is what follows cancer.  Thankfully, today, God in His love and providence has given men wisdom and skill to deal with many cancer types, and do so successfully.

The ugly thought of the possibility of death seems to hang over you throughout this process of living, so it is important that we realise some facts about this “last enemy” that shall be “destroyed” (1 Cor.15:26).  Death is the ugly reality of life that was not part of God’s original creation.  It entered by one man’s sin – Adam (Rom.5:12-21).  Now, one out of one dies – not an impressive or encouraging statistic. Everyone dies when they reach the end of their lives – but we do not know when that will be - one of life’s certainties. But death is an appointment we all have to keep (Heb.9:27).  “As in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive” (1 Cor.15:22).

The Christian has only one prayer when it comes to departing this world and going to be with Christ forever – which is far better. Allow Henry Francis Lyte explain in the words of his lovely and widely appreciated hymn:

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.
Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

Or, in the words of the apostle Paul “an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:11).  Have you ever prayed for that?  Is that your desire – to enter heaven abundantly?  Christians, by God’s grace alone, are going to enter heaven where Christ lives and reigns; but how do you want to enter it?  Do you want the Saviour of the world’s Cross held before your closing eyes?  Why this?  Because in the Cross of Christ alone is life – real, eternal and everlasting.  

This should be the prayer of everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord.  Why do we not do that?  Because this sinful world has such a hold on us that we just do not want to leave it.  And on top of that, we are not really sure whether there be any life with Christ after death!  Doubts invade our thinking, so we hold on to this life with much too tight a grip.  Our assurance of God’s grace takes a back seat when we think about this world and ponder the next.

Life - God's Precious Gift.

Truly life is a precious gift of God; He gave us the life we have, and He can take it back again whenever He wants.  It is His gift to us, not something we got or did for ourselves.  

But as long as He sustains our life, He expects us to live for Him.  Indeed, because He gave it to us as a free gift, He wants us to give it back to Him again, if for no other reason than for safe-keeping in a wicked world.  We are to "offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God, which is our reasonable worship" (Heb.12:1).

Remember, He's worth it!

Christian Marriage Under Political Attack

Despite promises by government ministers at Westminster and also by the Justice Minister, David Ford, MLA, in Stormont, Northern Ireland (Mr Ford, a ruling elder in 2nd Donegore Presbyterian Church, Northern Ireland) voted in support of same-sex marriages in the recent Stormont debate on the question), that churches would be protected by legislation if they did not want to perform such 'marriages,' there will be no protection whatever, if David Cameron gets his way.  Mr Cameron has today (Fri. 7th Dec. 2012) backed a huge policy change to introduce same-sex marriages in churches.

The media is reporting that the Government will confirm its intention to force through the redefinition of marriage.

Introducing same-sex weddings in churches and other religious premises is a radical departure from the consultation proposals.  More than that, it is a radical departure from the traditional understanding of marriage as held by virtually all churches and religious bodies throughout history.  Government Ministers promised that religious believers could not be forced to hold homosexual weddings because it would not even be possible to register them in churches or other religious premises.  Mr Ford also confirmed that churches would be protected by legislation.

But now that promise has been broken.  It is not that Mr Cameron & Co have had a change of mind; I believe that it was always their intention to proceed along this road and that this 'announcement' is but the making public what was already covert in their proposals.  Christians, Jews, Muslims and others will be exposed to the legal nightmare of equality and human rights laws, as well as the intrusion of the European courts.  Ministers We have no confidence in so-called ‘safeguards’ Ministers will offer.

This could well have the effect of destroying the Christian church and religion altogether.  It is another attack of the liberal establishment of church and state to rid the eartyh of these people called Christians, and of other faith groups that hold to a similar understanding of marriage.

But this is going to come up against an irresistible force - the power of Almighty God.  His Son , Jesus Christ, has said that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church that He is building on earth.  Mr Cameron & Co has decided to take on the Lord God of hosts, and we'll what becomes of that.  He and they are standing on most precarious ground.  His wrath is upon them.  They are hanging over the pit of hell and it is only the mercy of God that prevents them falling to their eternal loss and misery.

C4M has taken legal advice from leading human rights lawyer, Aidan O’Neill QC, who has made it clear that the only completely safe course for churches will be to stop hosting weddings altogether, a massive change to Britain’s social landscape.  This attack on marriage is therefore an attack on the Christian church.  It is a way of squeezing the churches to such an extent that to perform marriages as understood and practices by Christian Churches will be for them to act in an illegal manner.  The QC has also shown that, quite apart from the issue of buildings, individual people from any background who believe in traditional marriage face damage to their careers or even dismissal from their jobs, especially teachers, chaplains, foster carers and others in the public sector.

It is clear that this is also an attempt to drive as many Christians out of the workplace as possible.  It is persecution by another name and means.  It is a form of ethnic cleansing of believers from the workplaces and churches of our country.

The Bill to redefine marriage will be published in the New Year. We understand there were behind-the-scenes attempts to publish a wafer-thin Bill next week to avoid proper scrutiny of the details by Parliament. Thankfully that seems to have been prevented by internal arguments.

When any government has to do its work behind closed doors because it knows how unacceptable its proposed policy change is, then that is further evidence of Satanic inspiration behind this move.

We are monitoring developments hour-by-hour and will bring you further news as it emerges.

Please be assured that C4M will do all it can to stop these massively unpopular plans.  Christians and all others who are concerted about these nefarious developments must be alert and aware of what is being done by our government.

If you are planning a wedding, why not have a look at this website for ideas about how to organise it.