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Glen Park Gospel Church >> Archive >> Editorial >> 2022
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.
The World of Fire
A new year is a time to consider the idea of newness in Bible terms. Read the newspaper. Listen to the radio. Consider that which the TV newscasts are telling you. This world is tired at best. Men of science are telling us to limit our use of carbon gas. All the world really needs is a new one! And that is just what the Bible promises. A new world. Do you have a Bible handy? Check these out in their context:
Isaiah 34:4 All the host of heaven shall rot away, and the skies roll up like a scroll. All their host shall fall, as leaves fall from the vine, like leaves falling from the fig tree.
Isaiah 65:17 For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.
Isaiah 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the LORD, so shall your offspring and your name remain.
2 Peter 3:10 The day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
2 Peter 3:12 The heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn!
These fears and assurances have been around for a long time:
"Remembering in the fates a time when fire
Should to the battlements of heaven aspire,
And all his blazing world above should burn,
And all the inferior globe to cinders turn."
John Dryden 1631-1700
Hebrews 12:26-28 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens" . . . and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
As we said at the beginning. Check out these verses in their context in your own Bible. What the Bible tells us is for real. These events will come about in God's time.
2 Peter 3:14 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.
Do these thoughts trouble me? What should I do? What can I do? I can confess my needy heart before God, I can turn to His Son, Jesus who died for me, and thank Him for His forgiveness and a life that will never end. I can make the year 2022 the year of confession and a new beginning.
We invite you to contact us. There is no cost, no obligation. We all have been there too, and understand.
Thought for the Month:
He hung a lantern in the sky -
The way to show;
Then slipped below
Into a stable shed, that so
The simple and the wise
Might see, and know
That God has not His dwelling
in the skies!
R.E.Cleeve.
A servant of God in a quandary!
My predicament is overwhelming. It is greater than me. My resources are depleted. Time is against me. My mind is numb. There is nothing I have, but God!
Being a member of a family who firmly believe in and follow Jesus who was crucified but raised again, many of us have found ourselves in straits where there was no one else and nothing else but Divine intervention that could save the situation.
One, a pilot of light aircraft flying in Papua - New Guinea made a dash to a village to bring a very ill patient to hospital. Having loaded the aircraft for the return journey, cloud cover began to form, so he radio called his base for local information. "Come on in. It is clear." Arriving at the destination there was by then nothing but heavy cloud below.
It was time for another call, but this time to the Lord who is ultimate control of all things. Just then a rift formed in the cloud layer below, and immediately beneath it lay the home airfield - and safety.
Have you ever been in Jehoshaphat's predicament? "O our God . . . we are powerless. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you." 2 Chronicles 20:12. Strangely, this is a good place to be, for then we are thrown back upon almighty God.
Jehoshaphat was a great king, the second of Judah's good and godly kings, but like all men, he failed in his responsibility to the Lord in some respects.
He removed idolatry from the land, and educated the people in the ways of the Lord by admonition and example. If you were living at that time, you would want to live in Judah. An example of this greatness is found in 2 Chronicles 17:9-13.
But on one occasion Jehoshaphat failed in his solid commitment to the Lord. He allied himself to his godless neighbour; Israel's king Ahab. He accompanied him in a battle to recover Ramoth in Gilead which had been captured by the Syrians. The venture failed and Ahab was killed. See 2 Chronicles 18. The Lord's servant Jehu reproved him for this action, 2 Chronicles 19:2&3, whereupon he repented and renewed his mission of restoring Judah to the place of worthiness before God.
Jehoshaphat escaped alive, but empty handed. News of the defeat told his distant enemies, Moabites, Ammonites and Meunites that he was vulnerable and that news emboldened them to march in force against him to end his domination and to collect for themselves the legendary wealth of Solomon stored in Jerusalem. "What a fool I am. I could lose everything!"
Jehoshaphat was afraid, and set his face to seek His God for the enemy had the size and power to crush Jehoshaphat and all Judah. So Jehoshaphat turned to the Lord and cried to Him. He told the Lord all about His problem. Did not the Lord - the God of all the kingdoms of the earth know what was going on. Of course He did! Review 2 Chronicles 20:1-24. Be bold to trust God in prevailing prayer.
Thought for the Month:
"Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world."
Desmond Tutu, (African Bishop recently passed into his heavenly reward.)
Position Vacant for a -
Flibbertigibbet
to join the worship and life of the church.
A situation exists whereby we would welcome an application for a Flibbertigibbet to join the community of God's people at the Glen Park Church.
We use the term in the best of connections as an outgoing, friendly, talkative person who is able to use their inclination in the best interests of needy others.
Flibbertigibbets have a long history, going back all the way to 16th Century English literature. William Shakespeare picked up the concept in his King Lear; and then Sir Walter Scott in Kenilworth seeing a flibbertigibbet as an impish child. Victor Hugo then extended this profile into one of his main characters.
Slowly the character concept has evolved and reformed until the nuns in the Rogers and Hammerstein's, still favourite movie and in 1959 it's Broadway musical version, 'Sound of Music', describe their willow-the-wisp Sister Maria as a flibbertigibbet. Maria was portrayed as a lighthearted, light of foot bundle of energy who could keep a tune and inspire others.
Flibbertigibbets are the life of the party. They are folk who naturally attract others to them. They are the people-people of society, but hard to pin down. And a little oily. It is part of their personality trait, and a natural spiritual gift.
Turn your computer or Tablet to "Wikipedia - Flibbertigibbet" for the full story.
At the other end of the personality spectrum are the taciturn. The Oxford Dictionary defines them as "those who are reserved or uncommunicative in speech; saying little." The taciturn may be hard to get to know; straight faced and very straight in their dealing with others. They keep the rules, wait their turn but often excuse others who are not so rigid as part of their obligation to society. At Glen Park we welcome them too.
As a matter of fact we welcome those who are neither a Flibbertigibbet nor the Taciturn, but somewhere in between. As you read the New Testament stories of the life of Jesus or of Paul or of Luke, Peter and even poor John Mark you will see all these various colours and shades of humanity portrayed before you.
We often have difficulty seeing how others fit in to the pattern of things that we expect, as Peter said of Paul - "There are some things 'in his letters' that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures." Peter went on to say "take Paul's words carefully - it's easy to read him the wrong way."
So if you have found it hard to fit in we welcome your interest. We meet on Sundays at 10:30am. Come and share in the interest and worship of the day. We have no denominational bias as we are simply Christians who worship God and thankfully trust in the atoning death of His Son. There is room at the foot of the cross for all, and we welcome you too.
Thought for the Month:
"The best part of a good person's life: their little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love."
William Wordsworth
The Sign of the Incarceration of Jonah
The Bible says that a great fish swallowed Jonah (See Chapter 1 verse 17). Can you believe it? Many people have a real problem with it. It sticks in their craw. They have a problem when it comes to the book of Jonah. They do not know Jonah's God. If they did, their problem would vanish. In that verse, quoted above, there are two miracles. Here is what it says:
And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah live. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish alive three days and three nights.
Jonah 1:17 (ESV, Emphasised contextual words added.)
But Jesus, the world's greatest ever preacher had no problem with it at all. Not only did he recognise the event as miraculous, but said that it was a sign, a significant event that foretold and verified His death and resurrection as heaven sent miracles. He went on further:
For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
Matthew 12:40 (ESV)
What was greater than Jonah’s miracle?
Jesus said that what happened to Jonah in that he spent three days and nights hidden from human view inside a huge fish and he survived the ordeal. The fish spewed him up onto dry ground, at the feet of the very man he was supposed to meet, the king of Nineveh.
Jonah was forced into telling him about God's prophetic outcome due to their sin entrenched behaviour, a punishment that God had stored up for that city. They believed him and on the spot repented of their sins. So dramatic were the events enacted before their eyes.
Jesus left a message for all who have followed on. The three days and nights that Jonah spent entombed in the fish are a demonstration of the three days and nights Jesus spent buried in the rock tomb between his crucifixion and resurrection. They were a sign for the people living then and have been a sign for devout people up to today.
This Easter as you hear about the experience of Jesus, remember also the experience of Jonah. And then look around, and then look within.
Thought for the Month:
"If you must speak your mind, then mind how you speak.
God is a substitute for everything, but nothing is a substitute for God."
From Harry Ironside's Bible
The Sign in the Sky
I was outside, hanging socks on the line when an aeroplane flew by heading to Tullamarine. I thought of the people in it. For some their holiday trip was over, for others it was just beginning. For others, it is not for holidays at all, but just another day of work.
As I looked just a little further I saw a short vapour trail appear. A moment or two later there was another that bisected the former. Then shortly after two more, parallel to one another. It spelled, '+ =', plus equals. Plus equals what?
Mathematics is not my best subject.
The next symbol to appear was an heart ♥. Now the message had become clear to me, and it shouted aloud After all this was the central day of Easter, the day between when we remember that Jesus had died and the day we celebrate that he rose from the dead. † = ♥ The message does not just tell us that these events happened but the reason they happened. The cross is a demonstration of the love of God for sinful people, sinners such as I.
The apostle Paul put it this way, "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." And that more than anything else we cram into these three days is this first and basic message of Easter. I thought so!
It set me to thinking, here I was looking at a sign in the sky There are many places in the Bible that speak of signs in the sky, both in the Old and New Testament and this one popped up before my eyes. Did you see it too?
There is the sign of the sky itself: Matthew 16:3. Jesus chided the leaders of his day for being able to predict the weather from the sky, " 'It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening, this morning' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky," He said, "but", you are unable to interpret Scripture, "you cannot interpret the signs of the times." The deeper meaning of politics and population trends had passed them by. Can you, Reader, tell the deeper meaning of the events of the day in which we are living? What does the Bible say about the present growling of the Russian Bear? This is one example. What does it tell us about the political balance of the Middle East? And there are others, many more.
Thought for the Month:
"I WOULD RATHER STAND WITH GOD AND BE JUDGED BY THE WORLD THAN STAND WITH THE WORLD AND BE JUDGED BY GOD."
Seen on a tough looking man's T-shirt
Do You Recognise the Voice of God?
At home we have in our archives, "Yesterday’s Voices", a recording on vinyl of numerous old Christian preachers in action, men and women who were ministering in the earlier years of last century, some one hundred years or more ago. It includes fifteen people such as Billy Sunday, Catherine Booth, Harry Ironsides, Gipsy Smith, Peter Marshall - fifteen of the many servants of the Lord who are all either unheard-of, or forgotten, by today's Christians. It is interesting to hear the sound of their voices and note their different preaching styles, but all that is simply nostalgia. We all have their books on our shelves, but do we ever open them?
More importantly, do we recognise the sound of the voice of God when He speaks to us? Many of us are unaware that God speaks to men and women who make a point of listening. God most often speaks quietly and directly to the heart.
The child Samuel when under the care of his mentor Eli did not know the style or the 'sound' of the voice of God when God called him. He had not been taught. He had no experience. It also took Eli some time to recognise it because Eli himself was not used to listening for God to speak to him.
Do you say to yourself - "I am not in the habit of listening for the voice of God. Will God speak to me?"
It is right to be cautious. But be honest too.
Most often God speaks to our spirit and we feel it in our heart. I recognise the sound of the voices of the people nearest to me - why should I not recognise the sound of the voice of my God? Conviction is not all about gross sin. Certainly our heart convicts us when we do wrong, unless we are hardened. But conviction can also set in when we are slow to obey. It is God's whip edge of action.
One reason may be that we have grown dull in Christian things over time. We no longer regularly read the word of God expecting Him to speak to us anew from the page. That is a learned art. The writer to the Hebrews in chapter five complains that the first readers of that letter had become dull of hearing v11 so that they even needed to go back to the very first lessons and begin their spiritual journey over again. If we are not listening, how can we obey?
John's Test for Genuineness
Here is the test that the Bible has to give us confidence. 1 John 3:24-4:3.
:24 Whoever keeps His commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.
:1 ...Test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. :2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, :3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus, is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.
Thought for the Month:
"Nobody cares about how much you know until they can see how much you care."
Tony Rinaudo, in his book ‘The Forest Underground’
In the shadow of the Rock
To desert travellers a massive Rock affords much needed protection from the burning heat of the sun by the shadow it casts. The traveller can shade and rest. Also, one traveller writes, "Journeying one night in the wilderness of South Africa, the haunt of ravenous beasts, we came to the shadow of a great rock, having found no other place of safety. With our backs to the rock and building a fire at our feet, we found rest and refreshing for the next day's journey." As travellers in this weary world when our strength fails and we feel we cannot go further, how refreshing it is to lean back upon He who is our Rock. This schedule is to encourage you to pray about everything, always. (One at a time of course.)
Thought for the Month:
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace."
Jimi Hendrix
Remembering June Ashley
On Thursday afternoon we received a telephone call from Andrew Meager, June Ashley's son, to say that his mother had died that morning. We have known June for many years now, from the time when I was pastor at the Eltham Christian Church.
June and her family began to attend, and shortly after, the Deacons decided that we should hold small group studies in the homes of newly attending adherents to introduce non Christian folk to the Saviour, deepen the spiritual life, and encourage participation in the study of God's word. I was allocated the home of Alan and June. Were they happy and willing to join in? Yes they were.
We were given a study guide to follow by the deacons. I was study leader and June was the hostess. But it only had some ten sessions and we soon came to an end. They wanted to continue, so we selected a Bible book and started in. It all went on year after year, Bible book after Bible book. Some way along that road I had the joy to hear Alan make his acceptance of the Saviour.
In time, widowed, June remarried, to George Ashley. George was an old soldier from the second world war and a deeply spiritual man and a joy to hear him tell the stories of his service. He was a real blessing to June. Just what she needed. It was good that God gave them some years together.
Living in a care home at the end, June contracted Covid and was taken to hospital, where unfortunately she was not equal to the demand of this experience and in the morning of Thursday 27th of this month she passed into the immediate presence of the Lord whom she knew. It is a privilege to have known her.
By Chris Trinham
Thought for the Month:
"Sowing seeds of peace is like sowing beans. You don't know why it works, you just know it does. Seeds are planted, and the top soils of hurt are shoved away. Never underestimate the power of a seed."
Max Lucado
Remembering Rae Parsons
Remembering our beloved friend and Sister in the Lord, Rae Parsons, who, on Thursday 4th August, passed into the immediate presence of the Lord she loved and served. Attendance at her funeral service and tributes given by family members showed us how much she was loved and respected by her family, church members and friends.
I first met Rae when I started attending Glen Park Gospel Church regularly early in the 1970's. At that stage Mal did not attend the services with her. Her sister Gail and her husband were members there. She was an inspiration to us all in her deep faith and trust in God and her devout prayer life. When Mal finally decided to join us at church services she was over whelmed with joy at how God had answered her prayer. Rae along with her husband were hospitable and welcomed all who came to their home particularly after they moved to their new home in Diamond Creek. Their home was opened for week night church meetings in turn with others. Rae was a skilled artist and her paintings were displayed on the walls of their home in a way that I believed were an expression of her faith in the wonder of God's great creation.
Rae was a humble servant of God and loved to talk to others about her faith. In the late 90's, she decided to join the team who taught Christian religious education at Eltham East Primary school and she taught classes allotted to her for as longas she was able. She was generous with her time and enjoyed being involved with charity work when the opportunity came her way. She and her husband faithfully supported the Reeve family in their venture in taking into their home, homeless young people, many who had been in trouble with the law and were suffering from drug addiction.
Rae loved her family with an unconditional love. When any of her family were going through hard times she supported them, prayed for them and loved them in every practical way she knew. Rae was an example of faith in practice for all of us at church. She was humble, caring, friendly to all and a shining witness to unbelievers. Rae was a treasured friend and I thank God for every remembrance of her.
By Joan Smith
Thought for the Month:
"The very first step to becoming a follower of Christ is the humble admission that we need Him. Nothing keeps us out of the Kingdom of God more surely than our pride and self-sufficiency."
John Stott
Whoever you are
You are welcome
In your father's home.
An English history story comes of a child who was stolen from the large home of a noble family, and sold to a passing chimney sweep. The frantic, distressed family did all they could to recover him, but they had no idea where he was.
Years passed and when the child was old enough to work, he was articled to his adoptive father as an apprenticed sweep. He began by climbing up into the chimney stack to places where the brushes could not reach.
One day he was assigned to work in the home from which he had been taken whilst too young to remember. After sweeping the chimney of the master bedroom and feeling worn from the day's work he lay on the bed cover and fell asleep.
When the mistress of the house entered her room and saw the filthy black creature asleep on her counterpaine, she was horrified. She called the butler for help. The activity that ensued woke the child. Suddenly some expression in the small dirty face was familiar and stirred the memories of her mind. Instantly memories flooded her heart. She was confident. This was her child - she knew it. To his consternation she grasped him to her heart. All the negatives were forgotten. Her child was lost, but now has been found. A hundred prayers were, in an instant, answered.
The story reminds us of a verse from Luke 15*. Does it stir an emotion in your heart too? Selected
*Luke 15:24 "For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to celebrate." From the parable of the prodigal son.
Thought for the Month:
You will find this message at the door of the Avening Church, UK.
"We beseech Thee O Lord, to send your blessing on this Church. Here may the faithful find salvation, the careless be awakened; here may the doubting find faith and the anxious be encouraged. Here may the tempted find help, the sorrowful find comfort, may the strong be renewed, and the young inspired through the presence of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen."
Be Assured That Summer is Coming
"From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near."
Matthew 24:32 (ESV)
"From the fig tree learn its lesson:" Not only a fig tree which was part of the Eastern setting, but almost all fruiting trees. They teach us a lesson that Jesus taught His disciples. Summer is near. When the twigs soften and form into bud we know that the seasons are changing. It is true in the natural world and in the spiritual world. We have seen it happen again this year. It is a part of natural things, year upon year.
When the chill nights and frigid mornings persist we might be forgiven for assuming that summer will never come. He has passed us by. But be assured that He is near. We will not be forgotten. It is well nigh, but waiting is over. The incessant rain is ended and the longing of our hearts is met in the promise of a perpetual summer of His presence.
He is always near to those who love him, and learn to realise the perpetual summer of His presence. Shortly the doors will be opened wide to those who love Him. The millennial summer of this world will break yet again, and His bride will hear His call.
It bodes us well to respond, for the seasons come and go and opportunity does not last us long. Heed then the mournful song of Jeremiah: "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." Before it becomes a reality we need to make the most of our opportunity.
Thought for the Month:
"I have held many things in my hands and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's Hands, that I still possess."
Martin Luther
Great is the Mystery of godliness
John 1:1-14. . . . As speech reveals the hidden thoughts of men, so does the Lord Jesus utter the unseen God. God spoke and it was done. His words preceded the act of creation, but Christ was the Word or utterance of God. He who created time preceded time, and that which is before time is eternal and divine. Christ is the organ or medium by which God goes forth in creation, providence and redemption. The life of God was stored in the human nature of Jesus, when the Word became flesh, that it might more readily pass into us. True life is always light, as the minute infusoria of the ocean are phosphorescent. When we receive Christ's life, we shine. Men are still sent from God, as John was, to bear witness to Jesus; but there is also a witness to Him in the breast of man. We call it conscience, or the inner light. The blinded world knew Him not.
Indeed, John 1:1-41 is a parable of mankind's condition, believing and receiving are the same thing. Let Christ in, and you have instantly the right to call yourself a child of God, ". . . in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith." Galatians 3:26. Only God can impart to us the germ of that life, which we share with the Son Himself,
James 1:18 tells us, "Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures."
Luke 2:1 - 14. . . . The manger bed and its precious occupant are among the most cherished memories of our childhood; but as we come there in later life, the wonder ever grows. "Great is the mystery of godliness; God was manifest in the flesh," 1 Timothy 3:16.
What company we meet there! Shepherds with their naive wonder; angels from the realms of glory; wise men with their gifts; aged saints like Simeon and Anna, Surely the desire of all nations is here! Let us ask that the Lord of glory will condescend to be born in the mean stable of our heart, transforming it into a palace!
Notice how, to bring Mary to Bethlehem, the Master of all emperors sets on foot the machinery of providence and history. What can He not do for us and His Church!
From:'Through the Bible Day by Day'
by F. B. Meyer 1914 Published in the Public Domain.
Thought for the Month:
"None of us including me, ever do great things. But we can do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful."
Mother Teresa (1910-1997)
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