faith mattersfaith mattersIssue 2important spiritual matters for you

The title of our publication is like adouble-edged sword, i.e., it cuts twoways.

In one sense it makes a claim – ‘FaithMatters’. This is because what youbelieve does matter. It is nonsense tosuggest that we can all believe whatwe want and it won’t make anydifference in the end. For instance, if Icould choose to believe that everyaircraft flying out of New York JFKAirport is destined for the FalklandIslands it wouldn’t change the factthat despite there being two airportson the Falkland Islands there are noflights go directly from New York JFKAirport. All the genuineness in theworld or enthusiasm for what I believewill not change the facts. This is whywe want you to read our free leaflet.It talks about the truth, and as theLord Jesus said:

‘the truth will set you free’

‘Faith Matters’ could also be aquestion. So if you have a questioningmind then read on. Does it matterwhy we exist – yes? Does it matter

who Jesus was? Absolutely, especiallyas He claimed to come from God andstated that He came ‘that we mighthave life’. If you miss this you misseverything.

It is also a title describing theinformation that is contained in thispublication. It is about matters of faith.Please read some of the followingarticles. They are varied, interestingand informative. The people whowrite are from different places and dodifferent jobs but they all havepersonal experience of God and HisSon, Jesus Christ. Their main desire isnot to mislead you but to share withyou what they have come to enjoy –peace with God, forgiveness, a clearconscience, purpose in life and theprospect of heaven at the end of thislife.

COVER STORY

2 The reason why!4 Super injunctions

6 Rescued9 Labels... what does it say on the tag?

inside this issue...

This copy of faithmatters comes to you with the compliments of:

We hope you have enjoyed reading it and that you will follow up thesuggestion made in the articles that you should read the Bible for yourself.We are not asking that you join a church, nor become ‘religious’ or turn over anew leaf, but that you find the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour andFriend. He can forgive your sins and assure you of peace in your life and aplace in heaven.

If you do not have a Bible or New Testament of your ownthen do purchase one. They are available quite cheaply inmost bookshops like Waterstones or W. H. Smith, and in different versions to suit your reading taste.

Contact us through our website www.faithmatters.org.ukwhere you can access a digital version of this magazine,order a New Testament and other helpful booklets, readthe Bible, and of course email us. Distributors can orderthe next issue there as well.

Look out for the next issue of faithmatters in early -2013, DV.

What think ye of Christ?

“Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is tobe on God's side, for God is always right.”

Abraham Lincoln

QUICK QUOTE

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As a matter of fact...

Stephen Baker Huyton

THE REASON WHY!

faith matters

May I share with you the factualaccount of my conversion to Christover 60 years ago. I would like to puton record how, as a young RoyalMarine Commando fighting in thejungles of Malaya, I turned - in thelanguage of the Holy Bible - fromdarkness to light, and from the powerof Satan unto God! That kind oflanguage may seem strange tomodern ears, but for all that, itaccurately describes the moment ofinner spiritual enlightenment which Iexperienced when I turned to Godthrough faith in His living Son, JesusChrist. At that moment I knewbeyond all doubt I received theforgiveness of sins and assurance ofeverlasting life through faith alone inthe promise of a sin-pardoning God.

As you continue reading this briefpaper I want to ask you a personalquestion. Have you ever had a serious,inner-heart experience with God,that changed your life and gave youan assurance that all the wrong-doings and shameful deeds of yourlife had been forgiven, and you were

washed and cleansed forever in God’ssight? What a question! But that’sexactly what happened to me.

Many times in the combat situationswe were living through in our junglewarfare my life had been endangered– and many times I could have beenkilled – some were, but we werespared. In those days we all lived withthe possibility of death and it madean impression on our young hearts.But isn’t it true even now as you readthese words, that death, and thejudgement that lies beyond death, isonly a breath away, just as the Biblewarns us,

‘Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowestnot what a day may bring

forth.’

While taking a specialist militarycourse in Singapore I was given agospel booklet called ‘The ReasonWhy’. I read it sometime later afterseeing a film ‘Samson and Delilah’ inwhich Samson, God’s champion, was

By Michael Browne, Bath enabled by his own strength tomiraculously destroy a heathen templeafter calling upon God for divine help.God used this incident in the biblicalhistory of Israel to powerfully convinceme of the reality of His existence. IfGod existed as the holy Creator of ouruniverse, then I must be responsible to

Him for my life which was unholy andsinful! I came under powerful convictionof sin as a result and wanteddesperately to find out how I couldmake peace with God. In a word, whatI must do to escape the inevitablejudgement of a Holy Creator God?What must I do to be saved?

I then read the booklet ‘The ReasonWhy’ and for the first time ever Iunderstood the ‘reason why’ the LordJesus Christ, God’s Son, needed to dieupon the cross. Most importantly, what

that death meant for me as a sinfulyoung man. I read that God hated sinbut loved the sinner - and loved him sodeeply He gave His only begotten Son,Jesus Christ, to the brutal death of thecross so that anyone, no matter howguilty and sinful, who believed mightnot suffer eternal judgement but ratherbe granted eternal life. That while Jesushung upon the cross, God was judgingHim as standing in the place of guiltymen, and that His death would beaccepted as the sinner’s all-sufficientsacrifice. The assurance that Godaccepted Jesus’ sacrifice, and salvationwas now obtainable for all whobelieved, was given in the resurrectionof the Lord Jesus on the third day afterHis death.

This truth in essence is what I believedall those years ago, and through faith inthe promise that ‘whoever believes inHim (Jesus Christ) should not perish,but have everlasting life’ (John ch3:16) I was wonderfully converted. My wholelife was changed, and ever since thatmoment of faith or trust I have hadpeace with God. I know I am saved -but what about YOU?

‘for the first time ever Iunderstood the ‘reason why’the Lord Jesus Christ, God’sSon, needed to die upon

the cross.’

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faith matters

A developing area of law in theUnited Kingdom involves what areknown as ‘super injunctions’. ASunday paper might get hold of astory which includes salacious detailsof the private life of a famous person.That person might just be involved inthings that he or she does not wantanybody else to know about. Thesecret details must not be published.The private facts must be kept private,whatever the cost price. And the costis high.

Well paid lawyers are instructed.Application at short notice is made toa High Court judge. The intention ofthe applicant is that the court willissue an injunction against thenewspaper to prevent his or hersecrets being splashed across thefront page. In some cases the termsof the injunction are so stringent thatno one is even allowed to report that

an injunction is in existence! The pressare not happy.

Sometimes this backfires spectacularly,as in the recent case of the famousManchester United and Walesfootballer, Ryan Giggs. After it waswidely reported on Twitter that hehad sought and obtained aninjunction, the proceedings eventuallyfailed to achieve the desired end.

The famous literary detective HerculePoirot worked on the principle thateverybody has something to hide. Weall know how true this is. And noteven the most super of superinjunctions will hide the secretforever. The Bible speaks about theday when

‘God shall judge the secrets of menby Jesus Christ according to my

gospel’

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To think that we can live as we like andthere be no consequences is to liveunder a serious illusion. ‘All things arenaked and opened unto the eyes ofHim with whom we have to do’. ‘Everyone of us shall give account of himselfto God’. One day the Lord Jesus Christspoke about the fact that ‘there isnothing covered, that shall not berevealed; neither hid, that shall not beknown’. ‘Therefore’, He said,‘whatsoever ye have spoken in darknessshall be heard in the light; and thatwhich ye have spoken in the ear inclosets shall be proclaimed upon thehousetops’.

The Creator is the Judge and we are allaccountable to Him. The day is set inthe calendar of God for the last courtsitting ever. There will be no ‘not guilty’pleas, no lies told, no injustice done.There will, in fact, be no defencepleadings at all, as every person in thecourt will have brought again beforethem the sins of their life. The books ofpeople’s works will be opened and outof those books every single person willbe judged and punished.

And yet, the Christian gospel is allabout the love of God so actingtowards all people that the wholerecord of their sin and failure may becleared from those books of God. Ofthose who have acknowledged the factthat they are sinners, and have receivedthe Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour, and

acknowledged Him as Lord, God says,‘Their sins and iniquities will Iremember no more’. This does notmean that God ignores their sins, orconveniently forgets about them, butthat He deliberately and judicially putsthem away from His memory. Their sinswill never again come up before God.

How can this be? Can God really be ajust God and yet clear the guilty oftheir guilt before Him? The gloriousanswer is, ‘Yes, He can’. And He will.

The message of the Christian gospel istotally different from any otherreligious message. Those others focuson the need for a person to earn ormerit the forgiveness of sins and peacewith God but the gospel offerssalvation as a gift, to be received byfaith. The message centres on the crossof our Lord Jesus Christ. There, thesinless, holy Son of God offeredHimself to God as the great sacrificefor sin and sinners, bearing the sins ofothers, enduring divine wrath againstsin instead of sinners and satisfyingevery claim of the righteous Judge ofall. His resurrection from the dead andpresent exaltation in heaven shows thatwhat He accomplished at the cross hasbeen accepted for ever by God as theone ground upon which sinners can besaved.

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SUPER INJUNCTIONS

‘Believe on the LordJesus Christ, and thoushalt be saved.’ Acts 16:31

Ian Jackson, Eastbourne

faith matters

Communication with the surfacewas completely cut off, so theonly option the men had was tosit and wait. Above groundrescuers desperately tried toaccess the men through variousshafts but with no success. Theysoon realised the seriousness ofthe situation - 33 men weretrapped deep underground withno contact with the surface. Therescuers brought in a specialpercussion drill to attempt toreach the men.

The President of Chile cut shortan official trip to visit the mine,where a small temporary village,‘Camp Hope’, had been set up.The situation soon came to theattention of the media and theplight of the miners wasbroadcast worldwide.

After 17 days the drill brokethrough. When it was pulled outthe rescuers found a noteattached to the end of the drill -‘Estamos bien en el refugio, los33’ (‘We are well in the shelter,the 33’). The words became themotto of the miner’s survival andrescue effort and appeared onnews stories, t-shirts, websitesand banners worldwide.

The miners’ supplies were sentdown the hole in a specialshuttle. Food, drink, clothes -everything that was needed forsurvival. Many big organisationscame to their aid, Apple sentiPods, Sony gave PSPs andOakley provided sunglasses.Amongst the miners was JoséHenriquez, a christian preacher. He realised the truth of God’s

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On 5 August 2010 thirty-three men set out for a normalday’s work, but little did they know that it would be a daythat would change their lives forever, and that they’d bethe subject of worldwide attention for the next threemonths.

The men were miners who worked at the San José goldand copper mine, 28 miles north of Copiapó in NorthernChile, South America. At about midday the men startedtheir decent into the mine via a series of access rampsuntil they reached their rest area 700m (2300 ft)underground. At 2pm a huge rock fall completely blockedthe access shaft and produced a thick dust cloud whichtravelled through the mine temporarily blinding the men.

RESCUED!After more than two months underground!

Andrew Barnes

faith matters

Andrew Dutton

I remember a conversationwith someone a number ofyears ago; he attended churchservices and regularly sent hischildren to Sunday school andmay well have consideredhimself a ‘Christian’. Theconversation was all aboutwhat it means to be a ‘bornagain Christian.’ It seemed thathe associated the term or tag‘born again’ with a specificgroup of Christians, perhaps ofa more extreme persuasion. Irecall him concluding ‘I knownothing of that…’ Iunderstood that he felt un-comfortable with the label‘born again’ in his ownexperience.

The Great Isaiah scroll from Qumran caves

nineLabe

ls

What does it say on the tag?

word, the Bible, where it says ‘Manshall not live by bread alone, but byevery word that comes from themouth of God.’ Their physicalneeds were met with the supplies,but he knew the men’s spiritualneeds were equally important. Heordered 33 Bibles to be sent downthe hole, one for each man.

By candlelight, the miners readfrom their Bibles. Theyread about thegreatest rescuemission ever, whenJesus Christ, God’sSon, came down fromheaven to earth inorder to rescue andsave us. They read of aGod who loves themand cares for them,and wants them totrust in Him. Many ofthe miners realisedthat as well as beingtrapped underground,they were trapped bytheir sins and JoséHenriquez reportsthat many believed onthe Lord Jesus Christwhilst underground,meaning their sinswere forgiven andthey were promised aplace in heaven.

For 69 days the miners read fromtheir Bibles and prayed together.Meanwhile, the rescuers aboveground were drilling a much largerhole, through which the men couldbe lifted. Eventually the minerswere brought to the surface,watched live on TV by millionsaround the globe. If you saw theevents, you may have noticed thatmost of the men were wearingbeige t-shirts, with the words‘Gracias Señor!’ – ‘Thank you Lord!’printed on the front. They weretruly thankful to God for preservingthem for so long. Many of the menfell on their knees when theyreached the surface, their handstogether, prayerfully thanking Godfor their safe return to the surface.

José Henriquez is now a travellingpreacher and in 2011 he came tothe UK to tell of his experiencesunderground with his fellowminers. He said this - ‘God gave meand my fellow miners a real hopeand He wants to give that to youtoo.’The rescue capsule used

bring the men to the surface

BORN AGAIN?

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faith matters

But as the conversation between theLord Jesus and Nicodemusdeveloped, matters were to becomemore personal. You ‘must be bornagain,’ the Lord Jesus said. This wasaddressed directly to Nicodemus.There wasn’t anything theoretical oreducational about the conversationnow; there was a direct challengefrom the lips of the Lord Jesus Christfor Nicodemus himself. I wonder ifNicodemus thought about hisposition, success, and knowledge?Or, was he beginning to understandthat for all he had, he lacked the reallife that God offers? Was hebeginning to see that he did need tobe washed - not physically, butspiritually? Was he starting to realisethat he needed something that onlyGod gives? Nicodemus, you “must beborn again.”

Nicodemus clearly obeyed thecommand of the Lord Jesus since hefollowed Him as a disciple. It wasjust a few years later thatNicodemus, along with a friend,approached the cross on which theLord Jesus had been crucified. They

carefully took down the Lord’s bodyfor burial in a tomb. PerhapsNicodemus then thought of theprice that the Lord Jesus paid on thecross for sin, so that he (Nicodemus)could be cleansed from his own sinand have the life ‘from above.’

As I think back to the man Imentioned at the beginning, whowas confused about the label ‘bornagain Christian,’ I wonder if he hadwhat Nicodemus got – forgivenessand cleansing of his sin as hebelieved in the Lord Jesus; new lifefrom above, from God, that lastsforever, that takes all those whohave it one day into heaven; peaceand a relationship with God.

Perhaps labels given to people arenot important. But it is importantthat each one of us receives thecleansing and the new life that Godoffers. It comes through being sorryto God for sin and believing in theLord Jesus, God’s Son, who died topay the price sin deserved.

Are you ‘born again?’

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I suppose that my memory of thisconversation shows exactly howthe biblical label ‘born again’ isoften misunderstood. The Bibledoesn’t teach of a superior groupof Christians that are ‘born again’or an extreme sect. Rather, theLord Jesus Christ used the term todescribe thewonderful experienceof being right with God andhaving life ‘from above.’

In the Bible, John chapter 3describes a person namedNicodemus. He was a man ofwealth, responsibility, authorityand knowledge. He also followedthe Jewish Law and would havelived a disciplined life. But for allhis success, he knew that the LordJesus was different to other men.Nicodemus wanted to meet Himand speak with Him. I like topicture the scene in my mind. Itwas night time when Nicodemuscame to the Lord Jesus. ‘No mancan do these miracles that Thoudoest, except God be with him’

Nicodemus stated. How correctNicodemus was! But Nicodemusneeded to learn more…

the Lord Jesus explained. Iimagine Nicodemus must have hada look of bewilderment on hisface. He just could not understand.‘How can a man be born when heis old? Can he enter the secondtime into his mother’s womb andbe born?’ Nicodemus questioned.The Lord went on to explain toNicodemus that He wasn’tspeaking about natural birth, butspiritual birth. This was somethingdifferent to what Nicodemus hadfirst imagined. It involvedcleansing; it involved receiving lifefrom above. After all, birth is thestart of life and the Lord Jesusexplained that new birth wasreceiving life ‘from above’; lifefrom God.

‘Except a man be bornagain he cannot see theKingdom of God’