The Church of God in Buxton

13/05/2022

17/02/2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5OZtjw689c

A video ministry message from Andy Tugwell, of the Church of God in Swindon, titled, "Gathering Together To Worship."

27/11/2021

“God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:10b-11)

I have been recently been thinking about my school days - some 40 years ago now. When my friends and I misbehaved, the teachers handed out what they considered to be suitable punishment. We were reluctant to accept this at the time, but we now realise that it was designed to help us improve our behaviour. Our parents also disciplined us, when they thought we needed it, in the hope that we would learn the error of our ways. Punishment handed out by school teachers or parents may not have been perfect, but we can see the reason for it.

The verses (above) in Hebrews remind us that God, who is perfect in his dealings with his household, wants to keep them occupied with himself, ‘sharing in his holiness.’ The word ‘holy’ means ‘set apart’. Christians are called to be holy, set apart for God; we have been saved to serve him. We sometimes forget that and may need some gentle discipline, for the purpose of producing a harvest of righteousness and peace - these are the fruits of holiness. Living a fruitful life for God brings glory to his name.

So, the Bible compares God’s discipline to that of a loving, earthly father, who disciplines his children in order to help them grow into strong, wise adults. God loves his children dearly and shows them his love by disciplining and lovingly guiding them through life’s trials. It’s not because he’s cruel; it’s because he loves them and wants the very best for their lives.

God continues to shape his children so that they increasingly resemble him, their heavenly Father – sharing in his holiness.

10/11/2021

20/09/2021

I was recently in Halifax to visit one of our churches there, and I was surprised to see a 15-foot-high replica of a gibbet erected on what was the site of the original at the corner of Bedford Street North and Gibbet Street. The original Halifax Gibbet was an early guillotine, or decapitating machine, and it was in use for about 400 years, from the first recorded ex*****on in 1286 until 1650, when public opinion considered decapitation too severe a punishment for petty theft. Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, finally banned its use in 1650 and the Gibbet was dismantled.

The Gibbet’s original blade, which decapitated at least 100, if not more, unfortunate persons, has been preserved and can be seen at Bankfield Museum, Halifax. The town of Halifax was notable in two ways; it used a guillotine-like machine that appears to be unique in England long before the French Revolution, and it continued to decapitate petty criminals until the mid-17th century.

Halifax’s reputation for strict law enforcement was noted by the poet John Taylor in his Beggar’s Litany – “From Hell, Hull, and Halifax, Good Lord, deliver us!”
Hell, because that’s God’s judgement on those who do not turn to Him in repentance; Hull, because that was where criminals and others were “press-ganged” into the Navy or taken into exile; and Halifax, which used the fearsome Gibbet.

The Gibbet law stated that if a person due to be executed on the Gibbet was able to withdraw his head as the blade fell and escape across Hebble Brook (a small stream nearby) then he could be freed.
In 1617 John Lacey famously escaped ex*****on by running beyond the boundary. He became known as the running man and the “Running Man” public house in Pellon Lane was named after him. Unfortunately for Mr. Lacey, the people of Halifax had long memories and, when he returned seven years later, he was immediately arrested and taken to the Gibbet where this time he did not escape!

It’s interesting to learn how judgement and law enforcement were carried out in our country’s history and it’s also noteworthy to make a comparison with the bible, which tells of God’s judgement and the way of escape.

The bible asks, “how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.” (Hebrews 2:3)

This ‘salvation’ is our way of escape from God’s ultimate judgement. By believing and putting our trust in Jesus Christ and His death on the cross for us, we are saved from God’s judgement and given His righteousness:

“This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference … for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith.” (Romans 3:22-25)

“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12)