South Featherstone Gospel Hall

  “Even the Winds and Waves Obey Him” – Matthew 8:23-27 Dear Friends, in Matthew chapter 8 we see a wonderful demonstration of the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. After a busy day of teaching and healing, Jesus and His disciples get into a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. What should have been a routine journey quickly turns into a life-threatening crisis. “And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep.” (Matthew 8:24 ESV) The disciples, many of whom were experienced fishermen, were terrified. The storm was so violent that even they believed they were going to perish. In their panic they woke Jesus with the desperate cry: “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” (v.25) Jesus’ response is both gentle and powerful. First, He rebukes the disciples: “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” (v.26) Then He rises and rebukes the wind and the sea: “Peace! Be still!” (Mark 4:39 – parallel account) Immediately the w...

  “When Chains Fall Off” – Acts 12:1-11 Dear Friends, Acts chapter 12 opens with a dark and frightening time for the early church. King Herod Agrippa, seeking to please the Jewish leaders, began a fresh wave of persecution. He killed James the brother of John with the sword — the first of the apostles to be martyred. Seeing that this pleased the people, he went further and arrested Peter during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, intending to bring him out for public execution after Passover. The situation looked hopeless. Peter was chained between two soldiers, with guards at the door, and the whole church was under threat. Yet Luke tells us something beautiful: “So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.” (Acts 12:5 ESV) While Peter slept between two guards, bound with two chains, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared. A bright light shone in the cell, the angel struck Peter on the side, and said, “Get up quickly.” The chains fell off his ...

  Psalm 103 is one we turn to regularly, not only in our public worship, but also in our private meditations on God’s Word. It contains many thoughts of blessing to our souls. Quite early on in the psalm we have some essential characteristics of God defined. They are essential in many ways but primarily because they spell out crucial statements on God’s dealings with His people, and by that, I mean each one of us. The first of these characteristics is, “The Lord is merciful”. We often concentrate, quite rightly, on the love of God. Love can be expressed in many ways, and we are eternally thankful to God for His love to us. But each of us may experience God’s love in widely differing ways. But mercy can only be expressed in one way, forgiving an offence against someone when a just punishment would be expected. We can perhaps all look back to when God was merciful to us in forgiving all our sin because we realised that the punishment had been borne by Jesus on the cross. We would hav...

  When Jesus spoke to His Disciples in the Upper Room and initiated the Remembrance Feast we celebrate every Sunday, at the time they could have had little idea about what it would mean. He had spoken to them many times and told them He would die. But they had no idea what that would entail. Peter even criticised the Lord and said it wouldn’t happen if he had anything to do with it. Yet Jesus had full knowledge of the death He would die all the time He conducted His ministry on earth and as He is the Son of God with all the attributes of God, He knew He was the only one who could fulfil the Plan of Salvation and He also knew what failing to go through with that Plan would mean, eternal death for the whole of mankind. From the Upper Room they went out to the Garden of Gethsemane, but Judas Iscariot also knew that this was the likely place Jesus would go to and Jesus was arrested and ultimately went to the cross. As the Disciples witnessed the agonising death of Jesus, perhaps some o...

  “Shibboleth: When Pride Divides God’s People” – Judges 12:1-7 Dear Friends, the book of Judges is a rollercoaster of human failure and divine mercy. Time and again we see Israel falling into idolatry, crying out to God in distress, and then being delivered by a judge raised up by the Lord. Yet even in the moments of victory, the ugly reality of sin often surfaces among God’s own people. Judges 12:1-7 is one of the saddest and most cautionary passages in the book. Just after Jephthah’s remarkable victory over the Ammonites (Judges 11), where God used him mightily despite his flawed background, we would expect celebration and unity. Instead, we see bitter jealousy and civil strife break out almost immediately. The men of Ephraim, a powerful and influential tribe, came to Jephthah in great anger. They accused him of not calling them to join the battle against the Ammonites and threatened to burn his house down with him inside it (v.1). Jephthah responded with remarkable restraint, r...

  The Apostle Peter was one of the first disciples Jesus called. All the evidence we have in the Bible, which is more than for many Disciples, is that he was an extrovert character, his heart was very much worn on his sleeve but after Pentecost, he became the leader of the Apostles that remained in Jerusalem. But his preaching after Pentecost is an absolute classic of a gospel message and his epistles show a maturity that only came from adversity and faithfulness to the Lord. I want to think about some words he spoke to Jesus whilst Jesus was on earth after some of Jesus’ followers had left Him, because Jesus had warned them of trials to come. Jesus asked the question to those that remained, “Will you also leave me?” and Peter immediately comes back with an eternal truth, “To whom shall we go, You have the words of eternal life!” What a glorious truth! Those words should ring in our ears and be etched on our hearts, not just for salvation but for the whole of our life experience, ...

  “Cast Your Burden on the Lord” – Psalm 55 Dear Friends, Psalm 55 is one of the most raw and honest laments in the Book of Psalms. David pours out his heart to God in a time of deep distress, not primarily from external enemies, but from the painful betrayal of a close friend. The psalm moves through intense emotion — fear, anguish, anger, and finally trust — giving us a powerful example of how to bring our deepest hurts to the Lord. David begins with urgent prayer: “Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!” (Psalm 55:1 ESV) He describes his overwhelming trouble: his heart is in anguish, terrors of death have fallen upon him, and fear and trembling have overwhelmed him (vv.4-5). He even wishes he could fly away like a dove and find rest in the wilderness (v.6-8). The deepest wound comes from betrayal by someone he once walked with in sweet fellowship: “For it is not an enemy who taunts me — then I could bear it… but it is you, a man, my equal, my...

There are words in the King James Version of the Bible, that we no longer use in our 21st Century everyday life. In newer versions they either get changed to what are now more common words or the whole phrase/sentence is rewritten in a different style. One of those words is ‘whomsoever’, which we would perhaps replace with ‘whoever’. As an old person who was brought up on the KJV, I like whomsoever as it has a quaint ring to it. However, it doesn’t really matter, as it is what follows that is more important and one verse that is so important that has the word in it, is found in Romans 10 13, “Whomsoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved”. What a promise is this! If it was a promise made by man it would have little value, but Paul was inspired by God when he wrote it, so because it is God’s promise, it is totally reliable. When we call upon someone, it is generally because we trust them to do something for us and in general, that person is the only one who can help, an...

  What Paul Really Says in 1 Corinthians 7 I recently listened to a very thoughtful and balanced discussion from the "Logos - What in the Word?" podcast, hosted by Kirk E. Miller with guest Dr. Danielle Treweek. Dr. Treweek has done significant academic and pastoral work on the theology of singleness, including her books The Meaning of Singleness (2023) and Single Ever After (2025). Their conversation on 1 Corinthians 7 is one of the most helpful treatments I’ve come across on this often-misunderstood chapter. Setting the Scene in Corinth Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 7 in the context of a church living in a morally challenging, pagan city. He had just addressed serious issues of sexual immorality in chapters 5 and 6, concluding with the powerful reminder: “You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV). Chapter 7 continues this theme by addressing questions the Corinthians had sent to Paul about marriage, singlene...

  Heart-Broken Confession and Costly Obedience – Ezra 10:1-17 Dear Friends, t he return from Babylonian exile was a time of great hope and restoration for God’s people. The temple had been rebuilt, and the people were back in the land. Yet in Ezra chapter 9 we discover a serious spiritual crisis: many of the returned exiles, including leaders and priests, had married foreign wives from the surrounding pagan nations. This was a direct violation of God’s clear commands in the Law (Deuteronomy 7:3-4 and Exodus 34:12-16), which warned that such unions would lead the people away from exclusive worship of the Lord. Ezra’s response was one of deep grief and intercession. Chapter 10 opens with an incredibly moving scene: “While Ezra prayed and made confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him out of Israel, for the people wept bitterly.” (Ezra 10:1 ESV) Ezra’s public, heartfelt brokenness over the si...

  I’m sure I’m not alone when I explain some of my behaviour, which relates to jobs I don’t like doing but which have to be done – I tend to leave them to the last minute and then try to get through them as fast as possible. This attitude is based on the premise that, despite not wanting to do the job, I will feel better once I have done it. That doesn’t always happen because in my haste to complete it, I sometimes know I haven’t done a good job! We have a God who is perfect in all His works. We may not always understand why things don’t happen as we would want or things happen that we don’t want to happen, but that really is not our concern. God works in His time and in His way and this is where our faith should come into play. There is a verse in the Bible which says, “Faithful is He that calls you, who will also do it”. God is the ultimate in faithfulness, and we should also follow His example. We should firstly be faithful to Him. Don’t stop praying for people to be saved, keep...

  Which is the most down to earth book in the Bible which gives practical spiritual advice? Well, I would be hard-pressed to find one more direct than the book of James. James was the ‘brother’ of Jesus, in the respect that Mary was his mother. but Joseph was his father. Maybe he followed his father’s profession as a carpenter, which is a very practical trade. As part of our established stock of sayings that we might quote, e.g., ‘too many cooks spoil the broth’, we have adopted one that James originally wrote. Our version is, ‘Actions speak louder than words’. James wrote almost the same thought about our spiritual life when he said, “Be doers of the Word, not just hearers!” We can listen to many speakers who give excellent spiritual teaching; we can spend hours reading the Bible but never put either of the lessons we learn into practice. So the true benefit to our spiritual growth is nil!. We need to approach both reading and listening with our spiritual eyes opened by the Holy S...

“The Sun of Righteousness Will Rise” – Malachi 4 Dear Friends, as we come to the very last chapter of the Old Testament, the prophet Malachi delivers a powerful and sobering message that looks both to the immediate future and far into the distance — to the day of the Lord. The chapter opens with a stark warning: “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.” (Malachi 4:1 ESV) This is a clear description of coming judgment on those who live in rebellion against God. But immediately after this solemn note, the tone changes dramatically for those who fear the Lord: “But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.” (Malachi 4:2 ESV) This beautiful prophecy points directly to the coming of the Lord Jesus Chri...

  “Living Sacrifices” – Romans 12:1-8 Dear Friends, after eleven chapters of deep theology about God’s grace, justification, and His sovereign plan, Paul now turns to practical Christian living. He begins with one of the most important verses in the New Testament: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” (Romans 12:1 ESV) This is the heart of the Christian life. Under the Old Testament, sacrifices were dead offerings. But because of God’s great mercy, Paul urges us to offer ourselves as living sacrifices — fully alive, fully surrendered, and fully devoted to God. He continues with a strong warning: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind…” (Romans 12:2 ESV) True worship is not just singing songs — it is a changed life that flows from a renewed mind. Paul then reminds us that we are part of one body in Christ, wi...

   Finishing off the final thought Paul writes about the new spiritual condition of a believer, Paul says, “…… You have been justified”. The High Priest qualified for his position, fundamentally, because he was from the tribe of Levi. That was his earthly qualification. All the ‘qualifications’ and justifications for the high priest’s service and access to God were essentially all earthy based and depended on earthly bases, the washing was done by the hand, the clothes were sewn together by hand and now the main justification for being the High Priest came from an earthly heritage. There was little or nothing that was spiritually based or which demanded an internal change of heart. Paul had turned his preaching from speaking mainly to the Jews to speaking primarily to Gentiles. When they believed the Gospel, they had no Jewish heritage to fall back on. So in contrast to what were the earthly markers of priesthood in the Old Testament, Paul recognises that all our ‘qualificatio...

  I would like to continue my thoughts on the verse in 1 Corinthians 6 where Paul looks back at what happened under Old Testament, particularly as far as our position as ‘priests’ under the New Economy is concerned. Last week we considered that as ‘priests’ we have been washed by the blood of our Saviour. Today, we will consider the next element of Paul’s comparison. The clothing of the High Priest under the Mosaic Law was well defined and it had to be clean and spotless when performing service for God. It was elaborate and decorative in places which gave the High Priest the appearance of being worthy to serve a righteous and holy God. And, it was only worn after the ritual washing or the body of the High Priest. Perhaps the common people whom the High Priest represented would be in awe of the magnificence of his outfit and say, surely he is worthy to meet God. But we have to recognise that this was external, what was going on in the High Priest’s mind and heart was known only to G...

  “God’s Victory Through Weakness” – Judges 7 Dear Friends, By the time we reach Judges 7, Gideon had already taken his first steps of obedience and the Spirit of the Lord had come upon him. A huge Midianite army, described as numerous as locusts, had gathered in the valley. Gideon had managed to assemble 32,000 men, but God said this was still too many. The reason was clear: “The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’” (Judges 7:2 ESV) God reduced the army in two stages. First, those who were afraid were sent home — 22,000 left, leaving 10,000. Then, at the water, God told Gideon to keep only those who lapped water like a dog. Just 300 men remained. That night, God gave Gideon further encouragement through the dream of a Midianite soldier. Then came the extraordinary battle plan: the 300 men were divided into three companies. Each carried a trumpet, an empty jar, and a torc...

  Back in the Old Testament, when God set up the Tabernacle and defined the tribe of Levi as the priestly tribe, acting as the representatives of the whole of the Children of Israel to God, a ‘go-between.’ The rest of the 11 tribes had to use the priests, as they were not allowed to approach God directly. There was a tremendous amount of symbolism attached to the priestly role and particularly the High Priest. To approach God they had to be physically clean and their clothing also spotless, so there was a lot of hand and body washing that had to go on before and during service to God. In I Corinthians 6, Paul is comparing what had gone on spiritually for each believer to be able to approach God, and he uses the symbolism of the Old Testament worship to explain what happened at the moment of salvation. And the first thing he says about our spiritual state after coming to Jesus is that “We were washed”. But instead of us washing ourselves with water to enable us to approach a holy, p...

  How could we practically define ‘grace’? I suppose a demonstration of grace, at least in one old-fashioned way, was when the Lord of the Manor did something good but unexpected for his workers or tenants. Grace can be demonstrated also by accepting praise from someone without getting big-headed or making a lot of it. We define grace these days, at least spiritually, as unmerited favour from God towards us. That was demonstrated so clearly and unequivocally when God sent His Son, Jesus, into this world to die upon a cross to pay the bill for our sins, a bill that we could never pay. The opening words in John’s Gospel conclude, “We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”. It was the character and work of Jesus that caused Paul to write in Romans, “But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound”. If it had been left to us, grace would never have abounded over sin, rather, the opposite would be true. But it needed the grace of o...

  “Called to Tear Down Before Building Up” – Judges 6:25-end Dear Friends, after the Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and declared him a “mighty man of valour” (v.12), one might expect God to immediately send him into battle against the oppressive Midianites. Instead, the Lord gave Gideon a very different and personal first assignment. That same night God commanded him: “Take your father’s bull, and the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it. And build an altar to the Lord your God…” (Judges 6:25-26 ESV) This was a costly and dangerous command. The altar of Baal and the Asherah pole represented the idolatry that had taken root even in Gideon’s own family and community. Gideon obeyed — but he did so at night, taking ten servants with him because he was afraid of his family and the men of the town. When the people discovered the destroyed altar the next morning, they were furious and demanded ...

  Led by Brian Preston, Elder @SFGH Church God’s Order in Creation: Reasons for Roles in the Church – 1 Timothy 2:13-15 Good evening, friends — after navigating some stormy waters last week on the roles of men and women in public worship, we turned to the closing verses of 1 Timothy chapter 2. Brian led us carefully through Paul’s rationale, explaining why he gave the instructions we looked at previously. It was a thoughtful, honest, and Scripture-grounded discussion that touched on creation order, complementarian roles, societal changes, and the heart of God’s design for His church. Brian began by noting that Paul is now giving the reasons for what he has just said. Having addressed prayer, modest dress, and order in worship, Paul reaches back to the beginning — to creation itself — to explain the foundation for these instructions. The passage reads: “For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. Yet she will ...

  “Learning to Pray as Jesus Taught” – Matthew 6:7-15 Dear Friends, in Matthew 6 the Lord Jesus gives clear teaching on prayer. He warns against the empty, repetitive prayers of the Gentiles who “think that they will be heard for their many words” (v.7). Prayer is not about impressive language or quantity of words — it is about genuine communion with our Heavenly Father. Jesus then gives us the perfect model — what we call The Lord’s Prayer: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” (Matthew 6:9-13 ESV) This short prayer covers everything essential: the glory of God, the coming of His kingdom, our daily needs, forgiveness, and protection from sin. Jesus emphasises that our willingness to forgive others is directly connected to receiving God’s forgiveness (...

  Thankfulness is something we all need to display as Christians, not just to God but to one another. It’s important to thank people for whatever favour or service they might do for us. Thanking people smooths and cements relationships. As far as our relationship with God is concerned, we should never cease to give thanks that He cared enough for us that He was prepared to save us. It is impossible for us to comprehend God’s revulsion against sin, but we are forever grateful that He loves mankind and specifically each one of us. We cannot plumb the depths of the simple statement in the Bible, which talks about Jesus and His redeeming work, “He who knew no sin, was made sin for us”. Jesus, being God, would likewise have the same revulsion towards sin as His Father, yet His love for us was greater and He was prepared to bear that awfulness for 3 hours on the cross. Satan was hoping that Jesus would ‘crack’ when enduring the physical, mental and spiritual pain of that ordeal and that ...

  “Opposition to God’s Work” – Ezra 4:1-5 Dear Friends, after the joyful return from exile and the laying of the foundation of the temple, the people of Judah faced a new and subtle challenge. In Ezra chapter 4 we read how the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were rebuilding the temple to the Lord. They came with what appeared to be a reasonable offer: “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do…” (Ezra 4:2 ESV) But Zerubbabel and the leaders saw through the offer. These people were not genuine worshippers of the Lord alone — they had mixed the worship of God with the worship of idols. The Jewish leaders wisely refused their help, choosing to remain separate and obedient to God’s commands. The response was immediate and hostile. The adversaries discouraged the people, frightened them, and hired counsellors to frustrate their plans throughout the reign of Cyrus and beyond. This short passage shows us an important spiritual reality: God’s work wi...