Bethesda Shalom

Bible Prophecy (Pt.9) The Bible speaks of a final period of time which shall see a rapid succession of cataclysmic events that shall bring to a close this age and usher in the millennium reign of Jesus Christ. This final period of time shall be seven years in length; the last three and a half of which shall be characterised by a time of intense suffering and tribulation likened to no other period of time in history. As far as the Bible relates to these times prophetically, Israel is at the very centre and heart of this tribulation period. Daniel spoke about a figure that shall make a covenant of peace with the Jewish people for a period of seven years but mid-way into this shall break his covenant and turn to persecute them, putting an end to sacrifices. This by default necessitates a Jewish presence in their ancient homeland and a rebuilding of a third temple which the Apostle Paul identifies as the place in which the man of sin shall be revealed, sitting in this temple showing himself to be God.  The Jewish

Revelation 3:14-22 One author dubbed this Church as “the Church of which there was nothing good to say”. Christ had the right to find His people burning in their love, devotion and service to Him, yet when He came He found a people that were neither hot nor cold. What was the crime of the Laodiceans? The sin of being lukewarm!! Oh dear brethren, this chilling reality is that this describes MOST professing believers in the West!! Moderate Christianity, which by definition is a lukewarm Christianity has become the accepted norm in the majority of Western Churches, yet our Lord said on account of this, He was about to vomit His Church out of His mouth!! This sermon is a sobering warning to guard our hearts against indifference in the matters of Christ. Laodicea, like the Western Church was incredibly wealthy and what many thought to be their blessing proved to be their undoing!! When a people become rich, indifference and apathy sets in. To this end we must guard our hearts so as not to allow our outward prosper

Bible Prophecy (Pt.8) Matthew Chapter 24 is known as the Olivet Discourse and is key to understanding the run-down of events in the last days prior to the return of Jesus Christ. Jesus in seeking to prepare His disciples and those coming after them for the days that lay ahead in the intervening period from His ascending into heaven until His coming back again, spoke of wars, rumours of wars, famines, pestilences and earthquakes along with persecutions, offences, betrayal and hatred. All these He said would be signs accompanying the countdown to the end when He would make His sudden and long awaited return. Without a doubt, all these signs are clearly evident and point to the soon return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yet, there is one thing that Jesus spoke of prophetically, this one thing He warned against more than any other, namely this…be on guard against spiritual deception!! In this teaching we illustrate the amazing fulfillment of Jesus’ prophetic warnings in the very days we are living in. By utilising a n

Revelation 3:7-13 Twenty-eight miles south-east of Sardis lay the city of Philadelphia;  so named after Attalus Philadelphus, the king of Pergamos who founded it in the second century BC.  Its name means “brotherly love and is a fitting name for a Church that would later be born in that city!  Its natural geography served well to illustrate the robustness of this Church in bearing up under trial.  Subject to frequent earthquakes, being laid waste by one just less than a century before this epistle was written, this hardy city bounced back with a greater vibrancy than before!  If there was one name that best describes the Church in Philadelphia it would be the word “faithful”.  As a Church, they had remained faithful during trial and persecution and had persevered despite having little strength and had not denied Christ’s name.  For this they were praised by the Saviour! This sermon is an exhortation to Christians to bear up under trial and to do so keeping their eyes steadfast on the One who reveals Himself a

Revelation 3:1-6 Sardis was a great city of the ancient world, a very wealthy and prosperous city.   Into this city came the Gospel and the Church at Sardis was born!!  The fame of their conversion and the fruits thereof were sounded out near and far, and overtime Sardis had amassed a reputation for being a Church that was alive!!  Sadly, overtime the testimony of this Church had become nothing more than a label; still having repute before men, the spiritual condition of this Church was a far cry from what it was in their former days, our Lord tells us that they were now dead!  This sermon is a serious challenge to flee from sin and a solemn warning against hypocrisy!!  The Lord is seeking one thing from the backslider, namely that he might return to Him in true brokenness and repentance.  The hour is late and urgent is the day that we are living in.  Dear Brethren, it’s no time for religious hypocrisy, we must at all costs seek to keep our garments unsoiled from this world and walk before our God with a clea

Revelation 2:18-29 Despite the many hard things that our Lord had to say to His Church in Thyatira, it is often overlooked that He had some of the best things to say also to some within this Church who were shining examples. He commended them for their charity, service, faith, patience and works. In fact not only had this Church begun well, but they were praised that their last works were more than their first!! Yet, despite this, our Lord reserved some of His harshest words to those within the Church at Thyatira who had tolerated the false prophetess Jezebel, who was seducing God’s children, causing them to commit fornication and to eat things sacrificed to idols. This sermon is a strong and passionate plea on two counts. Firstly an exhortation to practical Christianity and holiness and secondly a warning to flea sexual immorality!! Christianity Today in a 2000 survey found that 45% of Christians admitted to having done something sexually inappropriate while married, with 23% committing adultery!! Literally,

Bible Prophecy (Pt.7) On May 14 1948, in a single day, a nation was born as Israel declared its national independence. For some 1900 years the Jews have wondered the world over having no national homeland, suffering in every place they have sought to lay their head. AD 70 witnessed the tragedy of the destruction of the Jewish Temple and the beginning of the diaspora as Jews were exiled en-mass to every corner of the world. At the end of the 19th century due to growing widespread anti-Semitism in Europe Jews began leaving Eastern Europe and a small minority headed for Israel with the dream of returning to their ancient homeland. The twentieth century would see the greatest calamity ever perpetrated against the Jews as some 6 million were systematically exterminated being shot or gassed by Nazi Germany. Yet, defying all possible odds with European Jewry tinkering on the edge of annihilation, millions of Jews have since poured into their Biblical homeland of Israel from more than 100 different countries worldwid

Revelation 2:12-17 This sermon is the third part in a series looking at the letters to the seven Churches of Revelation.  Pergamos was a city distinguished as being one of the chief centres of religious worship, its landscape littered with shrines and altars to the false gods and goddesses of the Greek/Roman world.  In the words of Jesus Christ, the seat of Satan himself!!  As a Church under intense persecution from the dragon Satan, it was bearing up faithfully under severe trial and holding fast the name of Jesus Christ.  However, that said, whilst our Lord praised them for their faithfulness, He rebuked those within Pergamos for allowing and holding to the doctrine of Balaam who cast a stumbling block before God’s people to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit fornication. This sermon is a warning and a challenge to the body of Christ to be on guard against false teachers, who secretly bring in false and damnable heresies, even denying the Lord Himself.  How will the body of Christ discern such fa

Bible Prophecy (Pt.6) When one mentions the name Christianity, automatically one is prone to think of a Western religion with predominantly Western followers.  Images of stain glass windows, church spires and other medieval religious paraphernalia spring at once to mind.  What would you say if I was to tell you that Christianity did not have its inception in the West but in the Middle East in Jerusalem, Israel?  How was it then, that I, a Gentile (a non-Jew) and millions upon millions like me, came to find faith in a Jewish Messiah who during His lifetime upon this earth did not step foot outside the immediate vicinity of Israel’s borders, a tiny strip of land around the size of Wales?  In order to answer this question, we must turn once again to Bible prophecy! In this sixth part of our teaching on Bible prophecy we shall explore a number of fascinating questions.  Firstly, what did the prophets have to say about the blessing that would be conferred upon the Gentile nations; secondly, by what means did this

Revelation 2:8-11 This sermon is the second part in a series looking at the letters to the seven Churches of Asia Minor. The Church in Smyrna was a Church under fire! They were already in the midst of tribulation and were patiently bearing up under trial, suffering persecution and poverty. Our Lord’s words to this Church were words of encouragement, having no bad thing to say. He forewarned His Church in Smyrna that there was yet to face them a greater trial than that which they were already enduring and exhorted them to remain faithful unto death, that after they have suffered, they might receive a crown that shall not be taken away!! This sermon is a warning and a challenge to the body of Christ in the West. Are you prepared for the coming wave of persecution? Already we see the storm gathering momentum. The homosexual agenda is being driven at a thundering pace and in the name of “tolerance” and on the back of Islamic terrorism, the stage is being set for the widespread persecution of Christian believers d

Revelation 2:1-7 This sermon marks the first part in a series looking at the letters to the seven Churches of Asia Minor. These seven epistles comprise less than 1% of the New Testament and yet are some of the most powerful words in the New Testament. We need not wait for the coming of the Lord Jesus to see how we fair; we have the Lord’s verdict already!! These seven epistles are applicable to the universal Church of Jesus Christ worldwide in every generation and it is imperative that we judge ourselves according to the words spoken to these Churches. The Church in Ephesus had both a commendation and a rebuke from our Lord. Commended for their standing fast in the truth of God’s Word and contending against false teachers and self-professing Apostles; yet rebuked for their lack of love for Christ and His Church!! This sermon is an exhortation for believers to contend earnestly for the truth and purity of doctrine and a warning to not allow the love of Christ in our hearts to wax cold!! How are you faring in t

Bible Prophecy (Pt.5) In this second teaching part on Messianic prophecies fulfilled, we continue to explore the staggering prophecies concerning the person, life and ministry of the Messiah contained within the Holy Scriptures. His suffering and betrayal; His rejection and ridicule; His death and resurrection, were all foretold by the prophets, written hundreds of years before Christ’s advent…His royal lineage, His place of birth, His birth to a virgin, His royal entry into Jerusalem riding on an ass… so the list goes on!! Each of these prophecies are unique and precise in nature; each require a unique individual to fulfil not one, but multitudes of these descriptive prophecies. The end conclusion of the matter is simple…If Jesus Christ of Nazareth is not the Messiah, then no-one is, for He alone has fulfilled the Messianic predictions at His first coming and is set to fulfil the remainder when He comes again to rule and to reign upon the throne of David and to usher in His Kingdom of peace. In this teaching

Matthew 12:18-21 There along the lush green banks of the river Jordan, hugging its meandering paths lie scores of reeds; their long slender stems and firm brush-like heads project above the water’s surface, swaying to and fro in the wind.  These delicate plants, so prone to bruising, oftentimes lay bent over, its heavy head drooping, the shattered stems no longer able to support the weight.  There are many such bruised reeds both inside and outside the Church.  In the natural, a bruised reed was good for nothing and spelt its end!    In this sermon hope is brought to the listener in the person of the Servant of Isaiah, Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  He it is the prophet foretold, would come for the brokenhearted, to give them beauty for ashes and the oil of joy for the mourning.  He it is, the good Shepherd of the sheep, binding up the broken, strengthening the sick and carrying the lame on His shoulders!!  Be encouraged dear Saint...A bruised reed shall He not break!!

Bible Prophecy (Pt.4) Perhaps one of the most powerful and fascinating themes of Bible prophecy are the prophecies surrounding Israel’s Messiah. These prophecies are not isolated verses in pockets of places, but rather are interwoven throughout the books of the Old Testament from Genesis to Revelation, having their exact fulfillment in the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. These prophecies spell out where Messiah would be born, who He would be born to, what He would do and accomplish during His unique ministry, His betrayal, death, burial, resurrection and ascension; factors that are totally outside the capacity to self-fabricate! One of the greatest objections and barriers to Jews believing that Jesus Christ is their Messiah is the notion that if He has indeed come, then why are Jews the world over still suffering? Why haven’t all wars ceased? As we shall see in this teaching, according to the Scriptures, Messiah must come twice to earth, the first to suffer and the second to reign!! In this teaching we ex

John 3:8 There exists a tragedy in our day…men are trying to do by natural means, that which only God can do by supernatural means! In today’s Christianity, numbers mean everything…Church buildings the size of large warehouses need to filled and thus the world’s methods of psychology and advertisement has come wholesale into the Church! Yet, Jesus said in speaking of the Holy Spirit, “…when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment” (Jn. 16:8). This sermon is an exhortation and an encouragement to believers to hold fast to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for it is the God ordained means by which the Holy Spirit convicts men of sin and brings them to salvation. In a day where it seems that those who hold fast to truth are the losers, we must not lose heart!! Indeed the Spirit of God is still at work in saving men in our day; the wind blows where it so chooses and in like manner the Spirit of God is moving here and there in the saving of souls. We must remain close to Jesus

Bible Prophecy (Pt.3) Enter the first century AD, Israel is dwelling again back in the land that God had promised to them nearly fifteen hundred years previously. Very soon after their return from captivity the second Temple was rebuilt; the cities that Nebuchadnezzar laid waste were once again inhabited including the capital city of Jerusalem. Upon their return however, Israel ceased to be a kingdom with a ruling monarchy and by the time of the first century A.D. were a significantly weakened nation governed by Roman rule. It was into this setting that Israel’s Messiah Jesus Christ was born. Towards the close of His life and ministry, Jesus made a series of chilling prophecies regarding the future state of His people Israel adding to and confirming the curses already gone before in Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26. When Christ was preparing to go to the cross, His disciples came to Him enquiring about the Temple. The response that Jesus gave was prophetic in nature and would serve to shape the next 1900 years

Bible Prophecy (Pt.2) When we hear the phrase, “Israel, the birth of a nation”; our minds quite naturally are cast back to just over 65 years ago to 1948, when the Jewish people against all possible odds, miraculously defied the systematic state sponsored genocide of Hitler to wipe them off the face the earth and became a united nation again back in the land of Israel after some nearly 2000 years of exile.  However, the real birth of that nation began not in the 20th century AD, but rather some 4000 years ago in the 21nd century BC, when God called a heathen man by the name of Abraham out from his homeland in Babylon to journey to a new land that God was yet to reveal to him; that from him a nation from him might be born! Perhaps one of the most fascinating themes relating to Bible prophecy is where it concerns this tiny nation; a strip of land around the same area size of Wales!!  Yet, Israel’s past, present and future is miraculously contained within the pages of the Holy Bible!!  In this teaching we seek t

Bible Prophecy (Pt.1) Without question, one of the foremost claims to the Bible being the Inspired Word of God is prophecy.  A staggering 27% of the whole Bible is prophetic in nature!   “People are named before birth; kingdoms are outlined before their historical existence; battles are described before occurring, and personal destinies are delineated before the persons themselves are born…” -Bernard M. Ramm, Protestant Christian Evidences God goes down on record; it is written and if it does not come to pass then the Bible is relegated to being a false book and we certainly have no confidence putting our faith in it.  In this first part of a teaching series looking at Bible prophecy, we introduce this fascinating subject and take a look at a prophecy given some 2700 years ago by a Hebrew prophet called Isaiah relating to a nation by the name of Israel and a heathen King by the name of Cyrus.  What you will discover and are about to hear will literally take your breath away and is only one of the many hundred

Matthew 18:21:35 Paul Williams is a Pastor at Temple Baptist Church, Wolverhampton.  He delivers a very sobering and informative sermon looking at the consequences of failing to forgive others when offended.  He asks three fundamental and heart searching questions:  Why should we forgive; what are the consequences if we don't forgive; and how we should forgive?  I trust that this sermon will both instruct and challenge you in this most crucial area of forgiveness.  The bottom line is this…if our horizontal relationship is out of shape, so will be our vertical one also!!

Proverbs 24:30-34 There is not a day that goes by that we are not required to take our place on the battlefield!  The flesh, the world and the devil are our avowed enemies, bent on our destruction!!  All around, I see the multitudes of casualties scattered across the mountains, strewn across the hills.  An urgent and pressing call sounds forth in this sermon, exhorting the Church of Jesus Christ to fight!!  Oh! How so many are tiring, turning aside to take their ease, a little sleep, a little slumber; tiring in the fight.  Dear soul, this is no time to be idle, no time to be passive; no longer is it acceptable to say everything will be okay!!  We are in a war!! Fight we must; battle we shall…to your station soldier of Christ and take your place in the battle for victory!!