Freedom through Jesus Christ? Is that really possible or is it an empty statement?

Freedom from what, from who? Freedom from the past, the present or even fear of the future? Freedom from circumstances, situations or outcomes? What kind of freedom and for how long?

The Saviour of the world is known as the Jesus of history and the Christ of experience. His name means ‘anointed Saviour’ or ‘chosen rescuer’. Only Jesus Christ can truly set us free to be the men & women, young people and children he designed us to be.

The kind of freedom we are designed for is encapsulated in the statement: ‘Love God and do what you like’. If we truly love God, we will find out what pleases him and do that. This kind of freedom is scary because we are so used to having rules determine our lives. If we genuinely ‘love our brother & sister’ we will be careful of our behaviour, our words and our actions, aware of the damage we can cause to others.

If we can’t live without rules, Jesus taught 2 universal rules: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind; and love your neighbour (others) as yourself’ (Matt 22:37). He said that all the teaching of the Law & the Prophets (the OT) is summed up here. It’s the same as ‘do unto others what you would have them do unto you…’ or ‘husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church…’

We can find amazing freedom in this life when we love, care, give, help and protect others; we change this world through acts of random kindness, one at a time.

God is on your side and he loves you very much.

Do join us for this important teaching series,

God bless you,

Rob Pearson

Pastor, Lakeside Community Church Perton

Pretty well anything of lasting value in this life comes down to relationships at some point. 

Did you know you were designed for good, meaningful and lasting relationships by God? In fact, relationships were created by God and existed in the Godhead before anything began.

The Father, Son and Spirit are involved in an ongoing relationship of immense love, respect and cooperation for our benefit. What the Godhead possesses is shared with us. We are invited into the most fulfilling and eternal relationship with God, through Christ.

It is this right relationship with God that clears the way for every other relationship to succeed. If we love God, we will want to do all we can to deepen our relationship with him through worship, honour & respect for his desires. ‘We love because he first loved us’ (1 John 4:19). While it is hard to ‘try to please God’, it is completely possible to please Him and live in freedom, rest and trust as a result. If our ‘vertical’ relationship with God is right, our ‘horizontal’ relationships with others will fall into place.

The scriptures teach into relationships between husbands & wives, parents & children, employers & employees and between citizens and government. The NT is full of helpful advice on how to treat ‘one another’ or ‘each other’.

If you take a survey in your shopping precinct, your neighbourhood or at work, on what are the greatest problems facing our society today, lack of respect will probably come high on the list. Somewhere along the way we have lost the point and the value of relationships. The good news is that the kind of relationships we dream about can actually happen because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on our behalf. He died to reconcile us to God and to reconcile us to one another. To reconcile is to repair and renew, to renovate and re-establish. Damaged relationships can be revived to the delight of all.

When the Holy Spirit begins to operate in our heart and soul, we will feel the call of God and also be aware of human relationships that are wrong and need to be put right. Repentance is the gateway to restoration, we apologise in order to repair & renew a relationship of value. It could be with your boss, your spouse, your neighbour or your child.

Please join us for this teaching theme of immense value in our relationship-starved world of today.

God bless you,

Rob Pearson, Pastor

Perseverance is the life choice of the farmer, the long-distance runner, the patient mother or father, the builder, the gardner and all who see the goal in the distance and work toward it.

Perseverance is the opposite of the quick fix and ‘get it now’ mentality. People who persevere know that the goal, the end result and the outcome is worth it and are prepared to pay the cost along the way. Perseverance highlights the true value of the goal being pursued.

We gratefully acknowledge that perseverance begins with God – he has persevered with us in presenting the gospel to us, the good news of Jesus Christ, enough times to enable us to believe and receive his gift of salvation. God is for us and not against us. How amazing for him to persevere in this way, knowing what is best for us and patiently allowing our rejection until we finally accept Christ. In the same way, parents persevere with their children because they see the big picture and know all the hard work is worth it.

Perseverance is one of the responses to God in our Christian lives. Heb 12: 1 encourages us: ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.’

Perseverance is character building and handled well becomes an admirable character quality. If you succeed after a long struggle, people will notice and remember you for it. Good character formed through the trials of life and faith will be evident to all.

Join us for our teaching theme on perseverance to discover this for yourself.

God bless,

Rob Pearson, Pastor

Easter (the death and resurrection of Christ) is one of 3 major festivals annually celebrated by the Christian church, along with Christmas (the birth of Christ) and Pentecost (the coming of the Holy Spirit). The week leading up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday is called Holy Week - many people will have fasted or given up something (such as chocolate) during the 40-day period of Lent.

Easter is a celebration of New Life occurring at a time when we see new growth on plants & trees, new born lambs in fields and spring flowers. The days are as long as the nights and brighter weather is on the way – the UK has basked in spring sunshine this year.

There is a deep meaning to this period of the year. The first Good Friday occurred on the same day as the Jewish Festival of Passover, Jesus died on the cross at the same time as the Passover lambs were sacrificed to allow the forgiveness of sins. Passover remembered the people of Israel being released from slavery & bondage into a new relationship with God – the cross of Christ does even more.

Why is this so significant for us? At the heart of the Good Friday – Easter Sunday story is the desire of God to have a relationship with us through Jesus Christ the Messiah.

We can view the Old Testament as preparation of the world for Jesus Christ and find laws and regulations for how people could approach a holy God. But Rom 5:6-8 tells us that God made preparation for a new way to enter a relationship with him: ’at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us’.  Heb 10:19-23 adds: ’Therefore, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water’.

The curtain referred to above reflects the curtain of OT Temple protecting the entrance to the most Holy Place, no one was able to enter except the High Priest and then only once a year. For unlimited access to God to take place, a tearing was required. On that first Easter it was the way to God’s own heart being opened through the sacrifice of his Son on the cross for you & me. Jesus was ‘made sin for us’ 2 Cor 5:21: ’God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God’ so that we could be completetly free. A divine exchange took place. Long ago, our sins were poured into Jesus Christ as he hung on the cross, not held by Roman nails, but by his eternal love for you & me. The suffering of Jesus was so intense that the Father looked away: Jesus cried out ‘my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ (Matt 27:46). The result is that God exchanged our failings for his own perfect love, he takes our sins and we gain his perfection & holiness, all we need do is to believe.

When Jesus died, the curtain in the Jerusalem temple was torn in half, from the top to the bottom. The curtain was 60 feet high, 30 feet wide and four inches thick! Only God could have done this because the veil was too high for human hands to reach, and too thick to tear - as it was torn from top to bottom.

So if God loves you this much and longs for a relationship with you in this life that will last for eternity, are you ready to take a step of faith towards him through believing in the risen Messiah Jesus Christ? There is a prayer you can make your own on the ‘Know God’ tab at the top of the homepage under ‘how far away are you?’

God bless you,

Rob Pearson, Pastor

Dear Friends,

The 40 day period of Lent leads up to Easter. It is an annual period of reflection which parallels Jesus’ 40 day fast in the wilderness in preparation for his ministry. Lent, from the old English ‘to lengthen’ takes place in spring when days begin to get longer. Christians use this period to allow God to examine themselves. Through fasting and prayer, we tackle unseen attitudes and appetites to improve our inner spiritual condition. 

Psalms of Ascent: Psalms 120 -134 are the Psalms or (songs) of ascent that OT believers would sing, pray and recite as they ascended the hill upon which Jerusalem is built; each step getting closer to the presence of God. NT believers through Christ can now worship anywhere in the world and use these Psalms to ‘create pilgrimage’ to meet with God in a new way.

The desire for God: Ps 120 I call on the Lord in my distress and he answers me. Ps 121 I lift my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. The LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Ps 124 If the Lord had not been on our side, the raging waters would have swept us away. Our help is in the name of the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. Ps 125 Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but will endure forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people both now and forevermore. Ps 130 Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord, hear my voice. If you kept a record of sins, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared. I wait for the LORD, and in his word I put my hope, for with the LORD is unfailing love.

Approaching God: Ps 122 I rejoiced with those who said to me, Let us go to the house of the LORD. Our feet are standing in your gates, O Jerusalem. That is where the tribes of the LORD go up to praise the name of the LORD. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May those who love you be secure. Ps 123 I lift up my eyes to you whose throne is in heaven.  Our eyes look to the LORD our God, till he shows us his mercy.

Fulfilment in God’s presence: Ps 133 How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on Aaron’s beard, down upon the collar of his robes. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore. Ps 134 Praise the LORD, all you servants of the LORD who minister by night in the house of the LORD. May the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.

Rest in God’s presence: Ps 131 My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me.  But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the LORD both now and forevermore.

Results of resting in God: Ps 126 When the Lord brought back the captives, we were like men who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.

Dear Friends,

We are following someone who exercised his ministry over a 3 1/2 year period in a relatively small region, 2000 years ago. He travelled everywhere on foot, occasionally by donkey. Jesus had 1 PR person: John the Baptist. He had 12 disciples called from all walks of life who often learnt by getting it wrong before getting it right. He had no TV channel, travelling stage or PA system to talk to crowds. The biggest recorded crowd he ever addressed was 5000 men + women & children (Matt 14:21).

The Beatitudes and Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5:1- 7:29) provide the keys to lasting peace, prosperity and security for any community, city or nation willing to follow his teaching. 

He died in obscurity with all his followers deserting him at his point of need. Yet the central detail of the Christian faith is that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead and is alive not only today but forever! Christian people believe that when Jesus died on the cross, he took upon himself the sin of the world so that ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’ (Rom 10:13). God allows an incredible transfer to take place – our transgressions are exchanged for God’s righteousness, Jesus takes our worst and gives us his best! Our part is to recognise the love of God in this and accept his offer of forgiveness and grace while we have the opportunity to choose Christ Jesus.

At Jesus’ death there were around 120 believers (Ac 1:15). This increased by 3000 on the day of Pentecost (Ac 2:41). As the good news was spread by Spirit-filled believers the numbers grew daily (Ac 2:47), quickly increasing to 5000 (Ac 4:4). By the end of the 1st century, the gospel (good news) had spread around much of the known world. If you use an internet search, you will find statistics indicating today an extimated 2.1 billion followers of Jesus Christ, representing 33% of the current world population.

This month we look at Jesus teaching truth, preaching good news, healing the sick, welcoming the lost and warning the hard-hearted. Join us as we pursue our theme of ‘Following the Master’ by walking with us in the footsteps of Jesus.

God bless you,

Rob Pearson, Pastor

Dear Friends,

Our annual theme allows us to focus for the 1st 4 months of 2011 on spending time with the Master: Jesus Christ.

Our theme for this month is ‘Follow me’.

We believe that when Jesus spoke these words, he meant just that; we are to follow him, learn from him, copy the things he did and literally go on to greater things (John 14:12).

The Great Commission (Matt 28:17) starts locally (‘Jerusalem’) and expands to ‘the ends of the earth’. From the foundation of this church in 1980 we have seen it develop an international involvement in other countries of the world.

Make a choice to be with us over these Sunday mornings and learn with us the excitement and challenge of how to ‘Follow the Master.’

God bless you,

Rob Pearson, Pastor

Dear Friends,

The iconic words that Jesus spoke 2 millennia ago still reverberate within the human soul. They call us into a deeper relationship with God and provide access to the resources we need to function as Christian people in this needy world.

Often Jesus would take his disciples away on retreat for rest & recuperation in preparation for the task ahead (Mark 6:31)

So, we commence this year with exactly this: coming to Jesus Christ before going out to serve him in the world. These themes culminate in a title Jesus was never recorded as saying: ‘come unto me all you who believe there is more than this’. We believe this phrase is implied in Jesus’ teaching and ministry, constantly encouraging the disciples (and us) on to greater things (John 14:12).

God bless you,

Rob Pearson, Pastor

Dear Friends,

Christmas greetings from all at Lakeside Community Church Perton.

Our Christmas services are designed with YOU in mind!

Sunday 5th December Christmas reflective service: helps you to enjoy the season we are in by quietly reflecting on what happened nearly 2000 years ago and why? (10.30am)

Sunday 12th December Children’s & Youth service: allows our young people to express their version of Christmas - not to be missed! (10.30am)

Saturday 18th December: sees both Perton churches singing carols in Anders Square from 11.00am onwards with mince pies and mulled wine also included for all who stop and join in!

Sunday 19th December Community Carols: is a joint service with The Church At Perton in the Civic Centre. This is a very popular event and we advise you to arrive early for a seat. (6.30pm)

Friday 24th December: we meet at the Civic Centre at 6.30pm to go Carol singing around Perton

The 25th December Christmas Day service: remains always popular and is a fitting way to celebrate and remember the one event that changed the world forever, the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. (10.30am)

This teaching theme naturally follows the spiritual preparation of Godliness and Perseverance. The whole of the Old Testament looks forward with expectation to the fulfillment of God’s promises through the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, the coming of the Holy Spirit, the birth of the Church 2000 years ago and the second coming of Christ to end this age. You now live in the last days which began at Pentecost: the age of the Spirit, the age of the Church where God is pouring out his Spirit on all people everywhere. Powers of the age to come are breaking into this present age and there is an increase in miracles, signs & wonders as the global church expands during this end times harvest of precious souls. God has promised this through the prophet Isaiah: ‘I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground - I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring and my blessing on your descendants’ (Is 44:3).

Peter recognises the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy and quotes this on the day of Pentecost: ‘In the last days God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants both men and women I will pour out my Spirit and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ (Ac 2: 17-18).

When Jesus said ‘follow me’ he intended for you to develop the type of relationship with God that he had, for your life to be transformed by the Holy Spirit to reflect qualities of purity & holiness and for you to learn to minister to others with the same love and power in which he ministered. (quoting John Coles from ’Learning to Heal’). Paul urges you to ‘eagerly desire spiritual gifts’ and cites prophecy as a good place to start (1 Cor 14:1).  Believing he has chosen you to be equipped with his love and power to gather in this end times harvest honours God who has provided everything you need for this task. The gifts of the Holy Spirit poured out on the Spirit-filled Church are a sign to those who look on and will enable many men, women, young people and children to believe and enter God’s Kingdom and family, thereby escaping God’s coming wrath.

Join us as we journey into hightened expectation and greater experience of God who pours out his Spirit on us for spiritual empowerment, therby fulfilling his promise of the ages.

God bless you,

Rob Pearson, Pastor