Pickering, Saturday 5th July 2009

Another fine day and great opportunity to speak of the amazing grace of God.

Table Set And Ready

WERE YOU IN TOWN?

Take A Look At These Pictures And If You See Yourself Write a Comment and Let Us Know. 

 

Looking up Market Place

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking Across Market Place

 

 

 

 

Park Street and Locomotive.

The Morning Began Quiet and Then Came A Rush Of People Ready To Talk.

Edith spoke of her childhood church attendance, but for all she’d learnt, she’d no idea whether her sin might be forgiven. What has religion done for this country of ours? Experience is showing that it has created a delusion, blinding minds and destroying any sense of need to seek and find forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 5 describes it like this:-

“always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. “

Daisy told us she was an agnostic, we quickly explained the foolishness of such a a position, and exhorted her to make finding out the truth her priority. Though she gladly took literature and Dwayna’s new cd, the lack of urgency was obvious.

Acts chapter 24 verse 25 Describes such a scene:-

Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.”

Our most dramatic and prolonged discussion was with a young man who called himself James. His response to everything we said was the same: “Its only ink and paper, anybody could have written the Bible, I could have written it”. Add to his assertions that nobody knew whether God existed, that we were wasting our lives and should go and do something useful, and you get the picture of a young man bound up in a bubble of his own making and proud of it.

 

Talking with James.

 

 A proud and haughty man —”Scoffer” is his name;

He acts with arrogant pride.

2nd Peter Chapter 3 and verse 3 says:-

“knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days,

walking according to their own lusts”.

LETS BE CLEAR THAT CHRISTIANITY HAS NOTHING TO FEAR FROM HONEST INVESTIGATION. THAT IT INVITES THE SERIOUS MINDED TO EXAMINE ITS CLAIMS. THAT ITS TRUTHS ARE CONFIRMED AS HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

2nd Peter chapter 1 verse 16 says:-

For we did not follow cunningly devised fables

when we made known to you

the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,

but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.

1st Corinthians 15 is a record of the Apostle Paul’s Words:-

3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.
6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.
7 After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.

This book is not of human origin. Long had I despised it; long had I deemed it a class-book for the credulous and ignorant; until, having investigated the Gospel of Christ, with an ardent desire to ascertain its truth or falsity, its pages proffered to my inquiries the simplest knowledge of man and nature, and the simplest, and at the same time the most exalted system of moral ethics. Faith, hope and charity were enkindled in my bosom; and every advancing step strengthened me in the conviction that the morals of this book are as infinitely superior to human morals as its oracles are superior to human opinions.—M. L. BAUTIN.

 

 

Proverbs chapter 21 verse 24 says:-

Pickering 27th June 2009

The weather was threatening but we managed to get some fruitful opportunities to pass on the goodnews of ‘sins forgiven by a great and gracious God‘.

We read these verses from Acts 17:16,17 before going:

Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the MARKETPLACE daily with those who happened to be there.

Its surely not hard to imagine the Apostle’s feelings and response might be in Pickering MARKET PLACE, nor in the many similar public places of our generation.

His instruction to Timothy about preaching in 2 Timothy 4:2 stands unchanged:

Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.

GOOD NEWS INDEED!

There Were Plenty People About but not so many stopped to talk.

Were you in Town? If you can see yourself in any of the pictures please write a comment and let us know.

Market Place

Park Street

The Ropery

Nick can be seen below talking with two JW’s. They could only ‘hope that their sins were forgiven’, explaining that they needed to wait till the judgement day to find out. No hope at all! May God deliver us from religions of ‘good works’ in the freedom of redeeming grace.

Nick and JWs.

Maybe their Bibles also have these verses missing :

Ac 13:38 “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins.

Ps 32:1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered.

Jer 31:34 “No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

Joh 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

Eph 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.

I had an interesting conversation with ‘James’, a local lad who had a surprising knowledge of the Bible, but no relationship with the author.

William speaking with James

Perhaps I can write for a minute about this very dangerous position!

Its a great privilege to have someone teach you the Word of God. Many thank God for faithful parents or Church workers who persistently explained and taught them the Words of Life.

Its also a solemn responsibility to know the Word’s God has had recorded, they are not designed to just educate or amuse, they are ‘the words of eternal life‘  [John 6:68].

Ro 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

God the Holy Spirit is pleased to use them to convince people of their need of forgiveness, that Jesus Christ is the only Saviour and then to give life to those who are ‘dead in trespass and sin‘. [Ephesians 2:1,5]. Only now do you understand the Good News, and enjoy ‘knowing God‘ [John 17:3].

Those who know about God but have never come to know Him are in a dangerous position, and I would plead with any to immediately flee to God for salvation. The very things you know from the Bible will accuse you before God on the Judgement day, you should have believed but have refused and there is no other way of Salvation. The Good News is that God is incredibly patient, and no matter how long you’ve dragged your feet, you may know forgiveness today:

Heb 3:15 “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

Joh 6:37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.

The Locomotive was in town on Schedule, if you can tell us which class it is write in the comment box.

Sir Nigel?

Pickering, 20th June 2009

We found a gap in the rain showers and managed to get out today for just about an hour.

Table set and ready for use.

It turned out to be so busy today there wasn’t an opportunity to take my picture, but Nick and Vanessa were happy to be involved.

Ready to talk about the Good News.

They spoke at length with one couple who knew about Christianity as a religion but lacked any understanding of the joy and peace that belongs to those who are trusting Jesus Christ to save them. They also spoke at length with a man about the true and offensive nature of sin.

Explaining the good news.

WERE YOU IN TOWN TODAY?

THE LOCOMOTIVE WAS!

NYMR

COMMENT IF YOU CAN SEE YOURSELF BELOW.

The Ropery

Market Place

Park Street

I spoke with three people in particular, there was the older man who blushed as he said that asking whether ‘his sins were forgiven‘ was too personal a subject for conversation. O that all would understand that on the judgement day God’s ‘books will be opened’ and all unforgiven sin revealed!

I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.

Revelation chapter 20 verse 12

Then there was the young lady with her two children who listened to all I had to say but said very little herself, she went to ‘church’ ocassionally but knew nothing of her need of forgiveness, the heart of the Good News.

Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren,

that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins.

Acts chapter 13 verse 38.

Last but not least was the woman from North Wales who knew her need but thought that she needed ‘more faith‘. She was labouring under the delusion that she needed to believe more, and I had the privilege of explaining that forgiveness is based on the object of our faith, Jesus Christ, not the quantity or quality of our faith. The following three verses show that faith is God’s gift and the faith He gives saves.

For by grace you have been saved through faith,

and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

not of works, lest anyone should boast.

For we are His workmanship,

created in Christ Jesus for good works,

which God prepared beforehand

that we should walk in them.

Ephesians chapter 2 verses 8 to 10.

This article from Living Waters explains saving faith, its written by Kirk Cameron

“Our Saviour speaks thus, Your faith has saved you, because He knows that it will be understood that faith is only the connecting link with Himself—that He really works the salvation, but that the faith of the Believer is the means of obtaining it.” Charles Spurgeon

I used to be confused about how I was “saved.” Was I saved by a belief I mustered up within my own heart, or was I saved by something God did in the purpose of His own heart? Spurgeon shed more light on this crucial subject of who does the saving, when he said, “…even our repentance needs to be repented of.” The point is that no earthly faith, repentance, good works, or belief that I have ever mustered from what exists in my own natural heart has ever saved me. The Bible is clear: My faith doesn’t save me, Jesus does (Ephesians 2:8-9). A believer’s faith in Jesus is a gift from God. My faith is the connecting channel through which God saved me by His own love and grace. So if you ever wonder if “your faith has saved you,” you may find this question helpful: “Is my trust in my own ability to hold on to Jesus, or is my trust in Jesus’ ability to hold on to me?” If you have received that humble, repentant faith that causes you to love God and trust in Jesus and Lord and Savior, then I would be very confident in echoing Jesus’ words, “Your faith has saved you.” ~ Kirk Cameron

Pickering Market Place – Saturday 6th June 2009

The rain has stopped and although its much cooler than of late we were able to spend an hour passing on the Glorious Gospel of God. The Town was much quieter, but there are still plenty of people to speak with.

Almost empty streets, were you in town?

Have a look and see:

One older man said that he no longer believed in God, and no matter how I tried to tease this out he just stuck by his mantra.

Surely one tragic effect of the  religious confusion of our day. He claimed to have some knowledge of religion but it has left him without hope or direction.

Their is only One who gives hope and men must come to know Him if they are to discover the purpose and meaning of life.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

John chapter 14 and verse 6.

“Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Acts chapter 4 verse 12

The young couple in the picture above stopped to talk when they turned the corner. To my great surprise they had never heard that they were sinners nor that Jesus Christ is the Saviour of sinners. The more I spoke the clearer it became that here we had two of the products of our secular education system. Where do you start to explain the Goodnews to people like this?

It would take forever to cover every detail, but we tried and sent them off home with a bundle of information to consider. Perhaps the apostle Paul’s example is a good guide:

1 Corinthians chapter 15:

3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.
6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.
7 After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.
8 Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.

Christianity is no fairy tale, but firmly rooted in history. There is more documentary evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ than there is for that of Julius Caesar. People’s lives were transformed by meeting Him after his resurrection and, as they say, the rest is history.

Acts 4:33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.

For this very reason Christians seek to  tell the world of Christ’s perfect life,  substituionary death and verified  resurrection. Wouldn’t you be doing  exactly the same thing?

In 1 Corinthians chapter 9 verse 19 the apostle Paul says:

For though I am free from all men,

I have made myself a servant to all,

that I might win the more.

So you see our reason for standing on draughty streets and asking passers by: -

“Have you HEARD the Goodnews”

Unfortunately I was unable to take a picture of the locomotive this week because I was speaking to the young couple mentioned above at the time of its appearance.

30th May 2009 Pickering Market Place.

Another fine day, glorious weather and therefore a great opportunity to speak about the good news of sin forgiven through faith in Jesus Christ who most certainly died and rose again from the dead!

SOMEONE HAS COME BACK FROM THE DEAD,

THERE SHOULD NO LONGER BE ANY DOUBT

THAT LIFE CONTINUES BEYOND THE GRAVE!

In obedience to His command we would have our little part of the world know, that they might prepare themselves for the day they will meet Him.

Literature Table

Many people pass through Pickering, visitors and locals,  too few wanted to stop and talk today, the frequent, “no thanks, I’m ok” revealing the tragic delusion that is being used to blind their minds.

Were You In Town ? Take a look at these pictures and get in touch if you were.

Before you can appreciate the Good News you need to hear and understand how God sees you.

These words are found in the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Church in Rome. Chapter 3 [quoting from: Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3; Ecclesiates 7:20]

10 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.“

People mistakenly measure themselves against other people, and conclude they are all as good as one another. They are right – not good!

God’s standard is being ignored by a generation that has deluded itself into thinking there is no God, imagining that if they say it often and loudly enough it will be true.

Ps 14:1 The fool has said in his heart,

“There is no God.”

Its a real privilege to meet believers from other places, do stop and talk, we love  to hear of the Lord’s work elsewhere. Here are a couple of Christians who were happy to do just that:

Acts 10 says this about Jesus Christ:

38 Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins;

39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.

[All Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version of the Bible]

FINALLY the Steam Locomotive made its appearance too, its amazing who and what you can see and hear in Pickering.

Saturday 23rd May 2009 Bank Holiday Weekend.

The weather is fine today so we grasped the opportunity to pass on the good news that Jesus Christ died for sinners and that those who believe on Him are completely forgiven.

Busy Market Place, are you in the picture?

Check out our pictures, these snapshots are taken during the morning and you might just appear in one of them. Do write and tell us if you are.

The Steam Locomotive and the North Yorks Moors Railway are among the main attractions in the town, we just get used to its appearance as it changes track.

We are in town to inform the many who pass by of the amazing truth that Jesus Christ died and rose again so that the record of their sin might be blotted out. One of the great joys of doing this is meeting other believers, do stop and share your faith with us, its a great encouragement.

Why is it that when you take the Lord’s command to ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel’ people from the established church can’t understand what you are doing. We spoke to two ladies today who were clearly faithful members of their ‘parish’ churches but didn’t know the Gospel and had the impression that a welcome into heaven depended on church attendance and their own good works? Too many people have been duped by religion, they have enough to make them religious but know nothing of the joy and peace of being in Christ.

I spoke with one young lady who was hanging around to smoke a cigarette, its hard to believe people still do that. I was able to speak with her about the danger of ignoring the warning on the cigarette packet, and then of ignoring the the spiritual health warning God gives.

‘The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is everlasting life’ [Romans 6:23]

Who in their right mind would choose death, yet many do, but I fear its because they insanely imagine ‘it will never happen to me’ or at least not for a while yet. Tragically no one is in their right mind until Jesus Christ delievers them from their delusions, I do hope and pray you have believed and enjoy eternal life now. If you are unsure get in touch and we’ll do what we can to help you come to the place of resting in the gracious love of God.

We do meet old friends at time and Sonia [who is Brazillian and married to a local man] and her son were only too happy to stop and talk.

Saturday 9th May 2009, Pickering Market Place.

Another fine day and opportunity to talk with people about the marvellous grace of God.

Pickering is a busy little place all summer due to the steam railway that runs from the town over the North Yorkshire Moors.

The Locomotive conveniently put in an appearance while we were out today.

Steam Locomotive in the centre of town.

Close up.

Goathland or Aidensfield.

The day began for us with a young lady who introduced herself as a ‘JW’, our conversation soon brought to light the sad truth that these people don’t have a Biblical understanding of the forgiveness of sin, and subsequently are unable to speak with any assurance about the day they will meet God.

We were able to share the freedom that is enjoyed by believers from verses like:

Romans chapter 8 and verse 1: There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Nick beside the Table.

The leaflet in Nick’s hand asks: Are you good enough to go to heaven. We find it a very useful discussion starter, so many people say I hope so, or I think I am, that there are many opportunities to ask about the basis of their hope and then to point out that no one actually is good enough until they come to saving faith in Jesus Christ.

Passages like Romans chapter 3 make this very clear:

10 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.”

Thankfully we can also share the GOODNEWS that Jesus Christ died as a substitute for such people, and that those who come to God through Him do find and know ‘peace with God’. A ‘peace’ which is the result of being made ‘good enough’ to go to heaven!

Romans chapter 5 and the first two verses inform any reader of  this great truth:

1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

William beside the table.

One lady from Peterlee was drawn to the table as I handed her a ‘Goodnews’ leaflet and ask if she’d ever heard it.

She proceeded to explain that she’d been exploring spiritual things at home. She spoke of reading about angels etc., a very common theme today. I was able to steer her away from such enquires to considering the very real person of the Lord Jesus Christ, His work and His words as the only way to knowing God. She went away with a number of our booklets and our email address to contact us again.

These words from Hebrews chapter 1 make plain Jesus Christ’s superiority over all angels:

1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,
2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;
3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

Nick had a long conversation with a lady who had lost three family members in 2 years.

Nick talking.

Gently encouraging her to talk, he was able to point her to Jesus Christ as the only Saviour, the only source of confidence and hope for the future.

Words, such as those in John’s Gospel chapter 14 make this very plain:

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Finally, an older man spoke with both of us as we asked whether his sins were forgiven. He said they were not, we pressed him about the urgency of turning to God through Jesus Christ, only to be told that as you get older it becomes harder!

The words of Hebrews chapter 3 remind all who hear them of the importance of turning to God immediately.

15 “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

Reminding me of a quotation from an evangelist called Duncan Matheson:

“Don’t put off until tomorrow what God commands today,

for man’s tomorrow and God’s today never meet“!

All Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version [NKJV] of the Bible published by Thomas Nelson.

2nd May 2009, Pickering Outreach

Another fine day and the town is full of visitors. They come mainly for the Steam Engines and Trains, but it usually means they have time to spare and are ready to talk.

Table Set Out, ready for use.

There were plenty of people to talk with today, first of all were two holiday makers from Northern Ireland.

Fellow believers.

Its a great encouragement to meet those who know the Lord Jesus as their Saviour. To praise His great name for His love and forgiveness.

Sharing Goodnews.

Many of those who take the leaflets confess they’ve never heard the goodnews, which gives ample opportunity to enlighten them of God’s work to reconcile the world to Himself through the death of His one and only Son.

Sometimes people talk at length about their own religious views, often holding fast to the mistaken idea that if you are just ‘good enough’ then God will make allowances for any short comings. They need to read God’s Book to learn that the Living God expects perfection and knows that no one is perfect! The goodnews is best understood against this background, God sent His perfect Son to die in the place of sinners that they might be declared not guilty and be made perfect!

A quieter moment.  A momentary pause.

25th April 09 – Market Place, Pickering.

Another fine day and opportunity to present the goodnews of God’s love for sinners as demonstrated in the sacrifice of His Son.

Table loaded and ready for use.

Town was quiet today, although there were significant surges of people passing through to board the train.

Nick, Ready and Waiting.

William, Ready and Waiting.

We did have some useful conversations though. One couple told us they were considering moving to the area  and that as believers, they wanted to know about the Church.

Then Nick gently spoke with a man who had tragically lost his son. He was enabled to speak of the God who gave His only Son.

Too many people refused the literature by saying ‘No thanks, I’m ok’, if only they knew the truth, they’d be glad to hear of the ‘Goodnews.’

Table and Banner.

Saturday 18th April, Pickering Market Place.

The first of our weekly ventures back into the market place of life for 2009.

We’ve clearly got something to straighten out next time, but had opportunity to speak with local people and hand out leaflets. ‘Have you heard the good news’ we ask, ‘what good news’ many reply, ‘the good news that God sent His Son to die for sinners’. Some say they already know the ‘good news’ so we ask them to tell us what it is! Still others say they have no need of the ‘good news’ as they are ok as they are, to which we reply, you’ve clearly not heard the ‘good news’ yet.

One such lady is talking with Nick below, she said she had the ‘good news’, then went on to say she was a Franciscan, a follower of St Francis. As you might imagine, Nick was able to speak about Christ and her need to be born again.

Nick speaking with a lady francisan!

Many were in too much of a hurry to stop, but some did, and we were able to share the glorious ‘good news’ of God free salvation in Christ.

John spoke at length of his Roman Catholic upbringing and the terror instilled by nuns, we spoke of the amazing grace of God and sent him home with leaflets to read. He’s a local character, God willing we’ll talk again.

William, ready and waiting.

Selecting leaflets to take home.

The table, book rack and banner again.