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Glen Park Gospel Church >> Archive >> Editorial >> 2004
Each month the Glen Park Gospel Church produce a one page newsletter called the Green Leaf. It's available from the chapel each Sunday. Some months include a topical article or report. We thought you might appreciate reading those previously published.
Secrets of Jesus
As you go through the gospels, take note of the things Jesus loved to do, the things He did repeatedly. They are lessons about how He coped with life. If we practise them, we will learn to live better lives. Here is an example:
Matthew 14:13
When Jesus heard about it, he
departed going by ship into a desert place alone.
Matthew 14:23
And when he had sent the multitudes
away, he went up onto a mountain apart to pray: and when evening
came, he was there alone.
Mark 1:35
And in the morning, rising up a great
while before day, he went out, and went into a solitary place,
and there prayed.
Matthew 17:1
And after six days Jesus took Peter,
James, and John his brother, and brought them up into an high
mountain apart,
Mark 3:7 -
But Jesus withdrew himself with
his disciples to the sea . . .
Mark 9:30&31
They left there, and passed
through Galilee; and he was not willing that any man should know
because he taught his disciples . . .
Luke 4:42
And when it was day, he left and went
into a desert place . . .
Luke 6:12
And it happened in those days, that
he went out onto a mountain to pray, and continued all night in
prayer to God.
Luke 5:16
And he withdrew himself into the wilderness,
and prayed.
Luke 9:10
. . . He took them (His disciples),
and went aside privately into a desert place belonging to the
city called Bethsaida.
Luke 22:41
And he was withdrawn from them about
a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
John 6:15
When Jesus therefore saw that they
would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed
again into a mountain by himself alone.
John 7:53 - 8:1
And every man went unto his
own house. Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
John 1:39&40
Therefore they sought again
to take him: but he escaped out of their hand, and went away again
beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and
he dwelt there.
John 12:36
These things said Jesus, and departed,
and he hid himself from them.
Complete these sentences:
Three things that
Jesus often did were . . . . .
He did this when
. . . . .
This year I will . . . . .
Why Does God Let Such Things Happen?
If God is a God of love, why does He not do something to stop war, and crime, and oppression which results in such terrible suffering and famine and disease and death? Why does He let such greed and selfishness and injustice to go on and on?
First it is our doing, not God's!
We, mankind, are the ones who have done these things. God has
given us three constraints to our behaviour, but we have broken,
overridden and ignored each one of them
He has given us His word, His book. It contains among other things the principles of right living; good governance, good morals, good behaviour, good family, work and community relationships, healthy living, and right management principles.
He has given us each a conscience. Each of us know in our own heart when we are doing the wrong thing. We are troubled, unable to live with our selves when we do wrong.
He has given us an example. There was one man sent by God who lived a life which was perfect in every way. This man was God's chosen one, Jesus Christ. No other man or woman is like Him. He was available to all and went about doing only good. He was always in full control of Himself. He even managed the temper and hatred of others. He cared about his family, His friends, the general public and even His enemies. He was selfless in every way. He is our example, our pattern.
With such constraints as these you would think that we would be able to manage our lives; but we have deliberately broken, overridden or ignored each one of them. We have the right to choose the right, the good, the desirable. But we have chosen to go our own way even though we know to do so is to selfishly choose the way of suffering, misery, dislocation and death. This selfishness is called sin. It is the sins of men that cause these miseries. Sin is never the way of God.
Second, God Has done something!
He has sent His Son into this world to be the saviour of the world.
He has come to save us from our horrible mess, this mess called
sin. He did this by dying on the Cross. It was there that God
laid on Him the sin of us all. Mankind has shown in every age
that it is incapable of choosing and doing what is right. We make
a mess of it every time. Jesus died to take away our guilt, but
He can only do that when we receive the kindness of God in sending
His Son. Unless we do, we go on in our sin.
He becomes the Saviour of the world by becoming the Saviour of each one of us individually. You cannot change all the world, but you can let God take away your sin and your guilt and change your own world. He makes you this promise, ‘He or she who comes to me I will in no wise cast out'. He always accepts every one who comes to Him for His cleansing, no matter how bad things might be. When He does this, He gives you a new heart; he changes you from the inside out.
Third, He is doing something!
He is doing something in this world. God did not forsake this
world when He gave men the right to choose, even though He knew
that our selfishness and greed always inflicts pain and hardship
on others. He has set a limit on the nations. He removes rulers
and ordains others. He is redeeming from this mess, a people for
His name.
He is doing something in the lives of those who have received Him. There are those who have stopped being part of the problem to become part of His answer. Those individuals whom He has redeemed He is now making more like His pattern man, Jesus. These people are found in every part of the world telling others of the wonderful plan of God to change sinful, selfish lives; and also the principles of right living; in the family, on the farm, the office, in hospitals, jails and institutions.
When you come to God and accept what His Son has done for you He not only takes away your guilt, but gives you in Himself the power to change. Former things are gone, a new power for right living has come.
Fourth, He will do something.
It is obvious to all, this world is getting worse, more dangerous,
more fearful. The way of man is not working and God is doing something
about it. It is God's plan to send back His Son, Jesus. Two thousand
years ago Jesus came to earth in humility and was born in a stable,
going on to die a felon's death. But God raised Him from the dead
and gave Him the place of honour as the Saviour. When He comes
back He will come as King of all kings. As high King He will deal
with wrong, bring the nations into line, restore the earth and
the conditions under which we live. He will also call before the
bar of His justice every man to give answer for their own sin.
Fifth, you can do something.
Today, terrible a day though it may be, this is the day of God's
grace. He is waiting in mercy for men and women to turn to Him.
He is waiting for as many as will to accept His offer of pardon,
forgive-ness and cleansing from their own sin. He is waiting,
dear reader, for you! He will not wait for ever but today His
offer is open to you.
If you would like more information about these things, or if
you feel in the need of assistance, simply call one of the numbers
in this leaflet and mention this article. We welcome your enquiry.
Lonely in Isolation
"O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me."
Isaiah 44:21
In the book Ageing with Grace there is the story of a nun who
knew that she had begun to suffer Alzheimer's Disease. She was
aware of the nature of the disease and the course that it would
take. In time she became anxious and one of the case workers came
to sit with her and as they talked she told him that her great
worry was there would come a time when she would no longer have
the mental ability to abide in the Lord. ‘What will happen
when I forget my Lord?' she asked. He searched for an answer.
When the case worker returned, she was all smiles. He asked about
the change and she told him the reason. She said, ‘I was
worried about what would happen when I forgot my Lord, but then
I realised, He will never forget me.'
How easy it is to feel alone. One of the problems of living a
long life is that we lose all our friends. We alone are left to
face the problems of life and death. When Prince Albert died the
Queen cried in the agony of her grief, ‘There will be no
one now to call me Victoria.' One of the problems of loneliness
is that all the negative things are magnified. Difficulties become
insurmountable problems, worries become anxiety and fears become
terrors.
It is not only the elderly who face isolation. Illness, separation,
faith, conscience, commitment, leadership, and even selfishness
or bad behaviour can launch us on a journey of isolation even
though we may be surrounded by many people; people who are there
but do not share our values or our problems and with whom we have
no closeness.
Who has not laid awake alone at night, kept from sleep seeking
an answer to something that will in the daylight hours solve itself!
Not all problems solve themselves.
Do we know Jesus as our Saviour? One of the blessings of living
as a Christian is our abiding in Christ and He in us. He cannot;
he will not let us go. Listen to what Samuel told his people when
they were faced with an uncertain future, ‘The Lord will
not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath
pleased the Lord to make you his people.' 1 Samuel 12:22. Has
He not redeemed us to Himself by Christ Jesus? Did He not pay
all that He might take us to Himself? Does He not value the trophies
of His own grace? No, God cannot forget! We are His children and
we delight to call Him ‘our Father.'
Then there is the matter of His promise. At night when the hospital
ward is dark and we are uncertain about what tomorrow will bring;
when we are standing alone and are being called for our witness
to Christ; when we are holding to our principles and the hostility
of our associates burns like the antarctic wind, did He not say,
‘I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee'? Remember that
He has pledged Himself. He is never nearer than when He seems
furthest away.
It could be that someone reading this is longing to have the assurance
of this kind of relationship but it seems so elusive, as though
it were built on nothing. Know this that it is founded upon Himself,
upon His nature, upon His word. Our part is to trust, to rest
in His presence whatever the outcome. Resting is not easy when
uncertainty is all around; when watchfulness and caution seem
called for, when decisions have to be made and the outcome might
be worse, but inaction is unthinkable. Jesus was asleep in the
boat in the midst of the storm. ‘Master, Carest thou not
that we perish?' ‘O ye of little faith!'
"The foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal,
The Lord knoweth them that are his."
2 Timothy 2:19
Children of the King
by F. B. Meyer
"As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king." Judges 8:18
It was a magnificent tribute to the royal bearing of this illustrious family. All the children had the stamp of kingliness on them, which had impressed even these barbaric princes. Would that a similar confession could be extorted from those who behold the members of the royal house of Jesus!
The children of a king! It is within the reach of any who aspire to it. By the second birth we become the children of God, joint heirs with Christ, and the Spirit witnesses to our sonship, teaching us to cry, Abba Father. As children of the great king we should bear the sign of the high lineage in our bearing and walk.
The royalty of demeanour. There is an aristocratic bearing in the scions of noble houses among men. The head is lifted high, the mein is proud, the manner distant and reserved. But in the family of God, meekness and lowliness, humility and contriteness, are marks of family likeness. We walk as Jesus walked, of whom the Baptist said,'Behold the Lamb of God!'
Royalty of dress. The king is marked by brilliant orders glittering on the breast. Purple and ermine become those who date their descent from kings. But the emblem of our family is the cross; our colour is scarlet; our insignia is the towel and basin that speak of lowly service.
Royalty of occupation. The earthly king does nothing servile. He is waited on with lowly obeisance. But they who are of the same family as Jesus are found performing the lowliest acts of service, in gaols, hospitals, and slums. In this they follow closely on the steps of Him who went about doing good.
Taken from Great Verses Through the Bible By F. B. Meyer. Copyright © by Marshall Morgan & Scott Ltd. 1966. Used by permission of Zondervan.
MADD Australia, MAD Idea?
In the coming months you will begin to hear about a new (to us) organisation called Mothers against Drink Driving.
In California in 1980 a seventeen year old girl was killed by a hit and run drunk driver. Tragic as the incident was, it became the catalyst for a movement of protest at and resistance to the consumption of alcohol by drivers and the carnage that they thoughtlessly cause. Mothers Against Drink Driving was born.
This organisation has grown from strength to strength nationwide, fuelled by its own need and the grief and anger of the victims and their families MADD has become the largest citizen action group in its category in the US. It has, it seems, been singularly successful. Since its inception deaths by alcohol related road carnage in the US have fallen a reported 37%*. The report says,
The concept has spread to other countries, and now is starting up in Australia; not because it is being exported, but because it is being imported. MADD Australia is being sponsored by Coalition on Alcohol and Drug Education Incorporated of Melbourne. An Australian Government paper reports, ‘Alcohol use is also a major cause of drug- or alcohol-related deaths in Australia. In 1998, around 2,000 deaths among persons aged 0-64 years were attributable to the use of alcohol, accounting for 28% of all drug- or alcohol-related deaths in this age group.'** It is estimated that 30% of all car accidents are alcohol related.
MADD is a community based organisation with Christian principles. It will seek to be effective in intervention, education, family support in crisis and if necessary in the ongoing litigation. The work is initially being promoted by Leanne Campbell of Coalition on Alcohol and Drug Education Incorporated (COADE). Leanne has an understanding of the affect of alcohol at a community grass roots level.
COADE is active in other fields. One of these is the promotion of the interactive computer based program concerning the dangers of drug and alcohol use ‘The Great Brain Robbery' to secondary schools in Victoria. This program fits nicely into the current Government push to tackle the drug problem in Australian schools, providing staff and parents with an appealing and effective teaching resource. The program originates from New Zealand and during July COADE will invest $3,000 in bringing its author to Australia to introduce his work to staff, parents and students. A home version of the program is available for purchase.
Also COADE is active in supporting concerned residents in Melbourne's dry areas, municipalities where the sale of alcohol is prohibited. Recently the AMF Ten Pin Bowl at Box Hill wanted a liquor licence and initiated a Poll to challenge the ban. It was defeated by voting residents voting 3.51 to 1 against. Currently polls are being conducted in Balwyn and Canterbury.
Street Vans owned by COADE are staffed by associated volunteer organisations. One is currently working in the Springvale, Noble Park and Clayton areas distributing blankets, food, tea, coffee, Milo, soup and referral services to homeless people and families. People at risk due to substance use abuse, couples living in cars, squatters, in unpowered houses, victims of violence and lonely people of all ages. The van recently has begun a new route in St. Kilda amongst the male prostitutes, many of whom are addicted to drugs, alcohol and other substances.
The Glen Park Gospel Church is a member and supporter of Coalition on Alcohol and Drug Education Incorporated and promotes its work wherever possible.
* An Activist Approach to DUI Prevention, John
Moulden and Anne Russell, published on the Internet.
**
Alcohol and other Drug Use in Australia, Australian Institute
of Health and Welfare, published on the Internet.
Ageless Answers to Perpetual Problems
In every age Christian men and women have struggled with the same questions which confront us today. These problems may be couched in up-beat language, but under their contemporary dress they are the same old questions. There is really nothing very new for under all our tizzy sophistication lies the same old human nature with it's ‘I wants' or ‘I needs'.
Men and women of God have met and answered these questions by drawing on the timeless word of God. And many of them have passed their experience, failures as well as successes, on to us in the form of books.
You can access some of these by going to the book-store at the front of the Church and borrowing a volume which seems to answer your needs. To whet your appetite, here is a look at some of them:
My Answer
by Billy Graham
Billy answers some questions such as, When Trouble Enters Your
Home, After the Children are Grown, Solving Problems on the Job,
How to be Happy Most of the Time, The Best Way to Resist Temptation,
Antidote for Lonliness and Failure, How to Cure a Bad Habit, Bad
Luck; Bad Health; Bad Morals, Friends, Relatives and Neighbours,
When You Face the Sunset Years, What About Death and Beyond, Matters
Difficult to Understand, The End of the World. There are others.
The Deep Things of God by Norman P Grubb
Norman Grubb spent much of his life searching for the ‘secret'
mysteries of the Spirit. He wrote five slim volumes containing
the result of that search. His work is enlightening to all who
have ever wanted to know about the deeper life.
The chapters include: The Origin of Evil, What Really Happens at Regeneration, What Really is the New Man, The Problem of Duality- Good and Evil, Self Consciousness and Christ Consciousness, The Marriage of Law and Grace, The Believer and Romans Seven, False Condemnation, The Dialectical Principle of All Life, Imperfection Points to Perfection, How to Turn Evil Into Good. Need is the Evidence of Supply.
Children of the Living God by Sinclair B Ferguson
Jesus taught His disciples to call God ‘Our Father', and
to live as members of His family. Although simple enough for every
Christian to understand this is also so profound that its implication
takes a lifetime to explore fully.
What do these metaphors actually mean and how do they interrelate? The Children of God, New Birth, Adopted Children, The Family Traits, Family Life, The Spirit of Adoption, Family Freedom, Fatherly Discipline, The Final Destination. Sinclair deals with these topics, one to a chapter.
For those who like their diet of lighter food, here are some biographies and stories which incorporate the questions of commitment as dealt with in the lives of their heroes. Many people are inspired by books such as these.
Uncle Cam
by James and Marti Hefley
This is the story of Cameron Townsend founder of Wycliffe Bible
Translators and the Summer Institute of Linguistics. This ministry
began in the market gardens of Mexico and has spread to all the
countries of the world.
Thomas Coke
by Stanley Sowton
Thomas Coke is little known today as a Christian leader. Born
at Brecon in Wales he studied at Oxford for his MA and was ordained
a deacon in the Anglican Church before returning to Brecon to
became mayor. He became vicar of Petherton, Wales, where he was
soundly converted and then never ceased to proclaim the grace
of God. He became assistant to the aged John Wesley. As a Methodist
leader Thomas Coke undertook missionary work in the West Indies
and America before setting sail for India and the work he began
continued for many years in the Far East. Read the full story.
It is only 95 pages.
When Breaks the Dawn by Janette Oke
With her easy style and undeterred devotion to her Lord Janette
Oake tells us the story of a Mountie and his wife in the wilds
of Canada. You will be charmed by this writers grasp of simple
truths and deeper understanding.
Bible Study Fellowship at Glen Park
On Tuesday evenings, the second and fourth of every month a happy group of people meet in one-another's home to study the Word of God. After the study hour there is time for fellowship over a cuppa.
The approach is similar to that used by the prophet Isaiah:
"For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
line upon line, line upon line,
here a little, there a little." Isaiah 28:10
Tragically they didn't listen, but this depends on the heart of the hearer. Isaiah's method does work when God's people open their heart to the word faithfully taught over time. It is amazing how much can be covered by consistently and systematically examining the message of God, the Bible. The studies are arranged into topical series and are expository. Each study is complete in itself, but part of the series.
We also send out copies of our notes most months with Green Leaf to friends. From this, several other folk have used the notes in one way or another with their own group. You too are welcome to borrow and copy from our notes if it is a help in your ministry.
But how can you get a copy?
We regularly place the notes on our web site. More than five people take a copy of one or other study page every day. You can access them at any time and use them for your devotional life or incorporate them into your own work.
Go to www.glenparkgospel.org.au/study and help yourself.
80 Years Young
"Remember the days of old;
consider
the generations long past.
Ask your father and
he will tell you,
your elders, and they will explain
to you."
Deuteronomy 32:7 (NIV)
The Bible does not have much to say about an eightieth anniversary. Moses was reluctantly called into service when he was eighty (Exodus 7:7) and Brazillai asked to be excused from His duties to King David because he ‘was a very old man, eighty years of age' who couldn't taste, hear or decide what was right. ‘Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king?' he asked. (2 Samuel 19:35 NIV).
Glen Park Gospel Church is 80. It was only this year that our last member, Emma Hutchinson, who was here when the building was dedicated left us for the fairer land. In those years more than three generations have come and gone. The people who are here now are not the people who were here then. Certainly there have been some changes, but there are some things which have not changed.
The name has changed, but the mission has not. Out the front are two signs. One says Glen Park Gospel Mission. That is the old name. Glen Park was the area name before it was changed to Eltham North. The other sign says Glen Park Gospel Church. The name is different, but the mission of the Church is still the Gospel. That cannot change for the Gospel does not change and God does not change.
The unchanging gospel is the good news that God through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ is still in the business of changing guilty, sinful, hell bound men and women, boys and girls. Do you see yourself like that? If so we can share with you the unchanging Gospel which can transform you into a child of the Great King.
The words ahead of this article are from the Song of Moses in which he urged his people to remember the old days, and ask the old people for their instruction because they were in danger of slipping away God's word and ways. It happens ever so easily, ever so quietly and the cares and pleasures of life come in to take us away from what we were taught in our youth. Some reading this page today may have sat in our hall and responded in joy to the message of salvation, but life's relentless demands have robbed the joy, sapped the confidence and undermined the resolve. Does 2004 find you bitter or empty or joyless, without hope or purpose like Brazillai; only ‘an added burden to my Lord the King' or like Moses faithfully serving?
The message today has not changed. God still loves and saves sin guilty people. There is time still to bow your head and in the quietness of your own heart make your commitment to God. He has not changed.
A Time To Remember
An anniversary is a time to remember as well as a time to celebrate or perhaps mourn. It is a milestone, a marker from a notable event. At Glen park we are remembering not only that the work began eighty years ago, but some of the thousands of things that have happened along the way.
What do we remember most? Good times; good friends; good advice; good expectations? For some of us the years have fulfilled their promise, but for others of us there has been disappointment, a sense of loss, maybe even cynicism or bitterness?
We are reminded of the verse found in Psalm 77;
And I said, This is my infirmity: but I will remember the years
of the right hand of the most High. (v10AV)
Whatever your experience has been, let us remember that our fondest memories are founded in and centred around the good teaching and knowledge of God that we received at Glen Park where the emphasis has always been upon the gospel, the word of God.
At this anniversary let us again turn our hearts to that simple acceptance of God which we knew in those days. This is what the psalmist did for we go on to read;
I will remember the deeds of the LORD?
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
I will meditate on all your works
and consider all your mighty deeds. (v11&12NIV)
We see Asaph the psalmist making a resolve and also addressing a prayer to God. For him his people who were smarting under the oppression of the Chaldeans, knew that what had fallen to their lot was indeed God's hand of chastisement because of their wilfulness and waywardness. They had not only forgotten God, but deliberately turned from Him to the gods and sins of the world.
Those of us who can identify with Asaph have gone through a similar experience. How long was our night of restless care, the anguish of longing and fevered resolve? Notice verse two and three;
When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at night I stretched out untiring hands
and my soul refused to be comforted.
I remembered you, O God, and I groaned;
I mused, and my spirit grew faint. (v2&3NIV)
And also;
I thought about the former days, the years of long ago;
I remembered my songs in the night. (v5&6NIV)
We, like Asaph, may be comforted in the knowledge that the God who delivered from oppression once can and will deliver His people again but only as they turn to Him in repentance and confession. It is not God, but our own sins that trouble our hearts.
Let us remember then the grace and goodness of God who promises, If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9AV) It is His word, His promise.
This anniversary is a time for remembering and renewing old friendships. It can also be a time for remembering the goodness and grace of God and renewing our friendship with Him. Friends we leave behind, but our God will go with us.
Make this anniversary a time to remember!
Christmas at Glen Park
In our country this is the season of Christmas, the celebration of the advent of God's anointed.
At Glen Park Gospel Church we teach that Jesus is God come in the flesh. This man is the third person of the Godhead. It was He who died upon the cross and the Bible tells us that God had a purpose in all this. It was necessary for a holy God to deal with the unholiness of our rebellion, called sin. It was for our sin that He died that we may be reconciled to God. Our unholiness, our sin is cancelled out because of what God did for us in Jesus. That is why we celebrate Christmas.
In recent years state and local government organizations in Victoria and others have striven to removed the Christ from Christmas in an effort not to ‘offend' non-Christian people. See for example Andrew Bolt's article in the Sunday Sun, 21-11-04.
This attitude is not new. The apostle John dealt with it in a more virulent form in the 1st Century after Christ, but he put the issue into true perspective and we ought to recognize this spirit for what it is in its source and nature:
"Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist."
2 John 1:7(NIV)
How can such people be identified for they are to all intents nice, friendly folk; but talk to them of Jesus, God's Son who came into this world to save sinners and their eyes flash, their lips curl, their voice rises and hostility tries to cut the ground from beneath your feet. They attack you because they are attacking Jesus. They try to crucify the Son of God afresh and put Him to an open shame. God will bring them to account in His time.
However as for we who love the Lord, this season is ours, let us celebrate Christ who at Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago became man in a tiny baby. This Christmas time we will give thanks that through Him God in love has dealt with the penalty and punishment of our sin, and whosoever will may come freely, take and give thanks. That in reality is how it all begins. So simple. That is the good news, the gospel.
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