The Messiah's Secret - Haslingden Christians Together Meeting 
Friday 22^nd May 2015

David asked if he could opened the meeting singing Graham Kendrick's hymn 'Such love' David sang unaccompanied, he sang it beautifully. (David sings tenor in Haslingden Choir) 

“Such love, pure as the whitest snow, such love weeps for the shame I know; such love, paying the debt I owe; O Jesus such love.

Such love, stilling my restlessness; such love, filling my emptiness, such love showing me holiness; O Jesus, such love.

Such love, springs from eternity, such love, streaming through history; such love, fountain of life to me; O Jesus, such love.

Mission Praise 619 Graham Kendrick Make Way Music/Thankyou Music.

Lectionary reading:1 John 4: 7-12

^“Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God, and he who loves is born of God and knows God.  He who does not love does not know God; for God is love.  In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins.  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No man has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” 

God is love, his Spirit is love.

When John wrote his letter he wrote of God’s love not being a commodity, a token of God’s affection, but his all consuming love that we receive through faith in Jesus.

God’s ultimate love shown to us by sending Jesus his Son to lay down his life, to pay the cost for our sin, and so we receive the love of God, his Spirit is love. 

In preparation for today I remembered this true story                                                           

“In the eleventh century, King Henry 111 of Bavaria grew tired of court life and the pressures of being a monarch. He made an application to Prior Richard to join a local monastery. “Your Majesty,” said Prior Richard, “Do you understand that the pledge here is one of obedience? That will be hard because you have been a King.” “I understand,” said Henry, “The rest of my life I will be obedient to you, as Christ leads you.” Prior Richard said, “Then will I tell you what to do, go back to your throne and serve faithfully in the place where God has called you to.”  Extract from "A Barrel of Fun" by J John & Mark Stibbe Monarch  Books.

The King sought to release himself from the pressure he was under by joining the monastery. Cutting himself off from the demands that his office required.

But what he was looking for we don’t find in a place, as I found out on Monday of this week God has spoken to me in a very direct way through this story. I suggest we find the answer not in a place like the King going to the monastery or us going on a retreat, we find it within ourselves.

Whatever the pressures or concerns are: illness, financial or family problems, for me it was on 17^th May last Saturday night/ Sunday morning at approx 2.00pm I was woken up by a spiritual attack upon my head, my head was being vigorously shaken with some force, I was frightened and horror struck, I tried to cry out but I couldn’t. My husband was woken up by what was going on.

My spirit wasn’t affected, but it took me two days to recover. This story of the King and the Prior’s word, brought me into finding my recovery and it lay within myself. Every Christian has had a God experienced.

The Lord has taught me to draw strength from an experience of God on 11^th March 1981 that is 34 years ago.

It was on a Wednesday, earlier on that day I had taken my mum to relaxation classes and later I made two skirts for my girls. At 8.30 pm I was sat by the fire studying Isaiah 59. In verse 16 it read that that there was no intercessor for Israel and 21 stood out. “As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord; My Spirit that is upon thee, and the words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth.” I remember seeing these words in verse 21 light up with a golden glow, shekina glory.  At 10.00pm I started praying confessing the sins of our church and I remember I started with the two commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, strength and to love one another.   

In a moment I was spiritual in the presence of God feeling his pain, which spiritual really hurt and tears gushed out like I’ve never experience before or since. God the Father was hurt because we were not coming to him with our needs.  

I also experienced the love of God in the place where God was, it was completely made up of love, the substance of it was love. Our atmosphere the substance of it is air, but in that place it was love, pure, holy love.  It happened so quickly and was over in a moment.                                                                                                

At the time Christ Church Walmersley the building had several outbreaks of dry rot and it was going to cost a lot of money to repair it, we were seriously considering closing the church and using the church hall for our services.

At the crucial meeting of whether we would close the building or repair it, on that very day our treasurer received a cheque a legacy for £5,000 from William Street (Bury and Masco Felt Manufacturers). The Parochial Church Council decided to restore the church building.

I am amazed that by looking again at that experience and not focusing on God’s pain, as I always have done, but instead focusing on the experience of God’s loving presence, as a result all the pressure of the attack has been taken from me and I am surrounded in his love and at peace.

I give thanks because through preparing to come here today and asking for the Holy Spirit’s guidance in what word to bring, I have learnt a valuable lesson and it’s all part of drawing on our faith in times of need, and drawing on those times when we have experienced something of God through his abiding presence.

David shared with us, the occasion when Jesus spoke to him, calling him to 'come to him' and afterwards when he was prayed for he was filled with the Holy Spirit.