Christ our hope in life and death As we approach Easter, our thoughts turn to the Cross where Jesus died. It is still such a powerful image even in our society today, displayed on many of the churches where Christians gather and for some, as a personal reminder in the form of a chain worn around the neck. As those who regularly read and listen to God’s word spoken from the pulpit, whatever the passage we are studying or listening to – it points to the cross. It points to the necessity of Jesus dying there, to take upon himself the multitude of our sins. From the very first chapters of Genesis through to the final verses in the book of Revelation we are directed to the one who would go to the cross to die a sinners death.

Yet in Jesus Christ we have one who was without sin and who was able to defeat death in glorious resurrection which we celebrate on Easter Sunday and every day thereafter!. Not only that, but also the promise that He will come again to judge the living and the dead. Our bibles end with that verse in Revelation 22:20b ‘Yes I am coming soon’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. It is always a time of great sadness when we hear of the death of someone in our family, our church fellowship or a close friend. It is we who remain here who are left to grieve and mourn their passing whilst we can say for those who have put their trust in Jesus they are now with Him. The bible expresses it beautifully in 1 Thessalonians 4:14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

So as we look towards Easter, it is a powerful reminder that we mark not only the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus, we also can look forward to that seal of eternal life with Him that he graciously grants to those who have fallen asleep in Him. There is an old hymn that opens with this verse; What joys will crown that happy hour When in the air the Lord we meet And triumph o’er infernal power With Satan bruised beneath our feet. (J Swain) I pray that as you come to worship this Eastertime, you will be able to give thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ not only for sins forgiven but for death defeated and the promise of eternal life.

Stuart
Elder

May 2026

Have you had an opportune moment crop up lately? What do I mean? Well, the dictionary definition for ‘opportune’ is ‘a moment especially convenient or appropriate for a particular action or event’. Thus, a positive opportunity, a useful, helpful moment to do or say something worth-while. And surely, it’s not wrong to be looking for opportunities.

I think the apostle Paul was always doing that—and he often urged the believers in the churches he wrote to, to do the same, e.g.

To the church in Galatia – Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10) – a focus to look for opportunities to help other believers in the church, but not just them -’to all people’, that’s outsiders/un- believers too. A bit of a challenge, perhaps to us?

Then to the church in Ephesus, after exhorting them to Live as children of light … and find out what pleases the Lord., Paul adds – Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.(Eph 5:8-10, 15-17) – surely here is expressed the urgency to make the most of every opportunity to live closely to and for the Lord, because we live in evil days, and if they were evil then, how much more is that true for us today! Remember opportunities can be lost if we forget how the Lord wants His children to live – carefully and with an understanding of His will.

Thirdly, Paul urges the Christians in Colosse to -Be wise in the way you act towards outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone (Col 4:5-6). This challenges me as to how ready, willing and desirous am I to reach outsiders, i.e. unbelievers, for Jesus Christ? Some Bible translations use the term ‘redeeming the time’ where the NIV and others use that expression of making the most of opportunities. Re-deeming the time means to buy back, or to buy up the time, because time is short both for us, and even more so for those ‘outsiders’ – thus the need to seek to use every opportunity to reach them before it’s too late.

I’m reading at the moment a helpful book by Paul Williams, who ministers at St Helen’s Bishopsgate, entitled ‘Intentional’ ‘Evangelism that takes people to Jesus’. It’s very honest in facing the fact that many of us are fearful of talking to others about Jesus, and seeks to help us to work through overcoming such fears. He goes on to suggest how we can be prepared to take the opportunities God gives us – obviously prayer being vital in the first place. It’s a book worth reading.

I would say that, along with prayer, we first need to be taking those opportunities that Apostle Paul spoke of to the Galatians – looking for ways to do good to other believers alongside outsiders (Sandra & I are finding opportunity for that with our needy next door neighbour); That encourages us to live lives that are godly, as the Ephesians were encouraged to do (ask yourself, would others be encouraged to live for the Lord through my life?). And from the words given to the Colossians, we too can be wise and have courage to take the opportunities the Lord gives us to take people to Jesus.

Steve

Elder

February 2026

Here we are then in January 2026. It has been a time when many celebrations have been held to welcome in the New Year, fire works, parties, musical performances
and some thing almost hallowed about counting down the seconds from 11:59 & 50 seconds on the 31st December 2025 to midnight and the start of 1st January 2026.

It can be hailed as a time of new opportunities and certainly is a time when many will look forward in anticipation to what will happen during the New Year. Sadly, the turning of the year is often a time when great tragedy strikes, and following the massacre at Bondi Beach in Sydney, there followed this tragic fire in the Swiss resort of Crans -Montana. We mourn this brutal loss of lives yet can’t help but wonder how many of these victims were unsaved and heading prematurely into a lost eternity.

For the Christian believer we are reminded from God’s word in Lamentations 3:22-23 that; the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases: his mercies never come to an end: they are new every morning ; great is your faithfulness (ESV)

Every new day of the year ahead that we are given is a gift from God, and his mercies to us are renewed afresh each day of our lives. We can look forward to each new day knowing that we are fully reliant on Him throughout all our circumstances. So, as we look ahead to this New Year, let’s always be looking to Him to see what He has in store for us. Of course, we make our plans and hope for many things in our lives and for those of our family and friends, we seek the best for them – which
of course is that they may live with that same hope, knowing the Lord Jesus and sharing in His mercies afresh each day.

As a church we trust that in the providence of the Lord, Calix and Bea and the family will be enabled to move to Madeira during 2026 to serve Him there. Significant preparations will be required in advance of that move and this will have an equally significant impact on the life of the church as we consider a plan for succession. This will be a time of change for us all and calls for much prayer from every church member. Perhaps, in the spirit of a New Years resolution I could urge each church member to spend more time in congregational prayer as we look to the Lord for his guidance throughout the coming year. We know he hears our prayers and delights in answering them so let’s ensure we do not be come weary in gathering together as the writer to the Hebrews wrote in 10:25 25 (let us) not giving (give) up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging (encourage) one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Stuart
Elder

January 2026

The Lord has visited His people“ And the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshipped.” (Exodus 4:31, ESV)

Moses and Aaron had “tidings of comfort and joy” for their fellow Israelites:

“During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel – and God knew.”(Exodus 2:23–25, ESV)

“And God knew.” Isn’t this soul-cuttingly comforting? No wonder that, believing these words, the Israelites worshipped.

“But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10–11, NASB 95)

Do you have this “great joy” of the people of God? Please don’t give the expected answer automatically. I know we are supposed to say yes, but I ask genuinely. Do you have this joy? Or is it overcast in you because of the hardness of life? If you read on in Exodus, you know that after delivering the news of salvation to the Israelites, Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh demanding the release of the people – and Pharaoh responded by making their burden heavier. When the Israelite foremen met Moses and Aaron after this, they said:

“May the LORD look upon you and judge

you, for you have made us odious in

Pharaoh’s sight and in the sight of his

servants, to put a sword in their hand to

kill us.”” (Exodus 5:21, NASB 95)

Moses was crushed (v23), and when the Lord picked him up and sent him back to them to repeat the message of their salvation, they did not believe him “on account of their weakness of spirit and hard slavery.” (Exodus 6:9, LSB)

What a descriptive phrase for discouragement: “weakness of spirit”! Sometimes the soul is too weakened by its burdens to be able to take in the news that could lift that burden. If that is you, my Friend, I pray that the Lord will strengthen you to look to Him this Christmas. For once again the news comes:

“the LORD had visited the people of Israel” — He has come to save His people from their sins, and give them that believe new life in His name; if Christ is your Saviour, God is with you (Matthew 1:21–23).

May He lift your soul.

Calix

December 2025

Anguish:  extreme pain, distress, or anxiety Question? Do you know the Lord Jesus as your Saviour and Lord? If the answer is a sure Yes, may I ask, do you feel any anguish at all about someone dear to you who has turned away from God to go their own way, and shows no sign of repenting?

I was struck by something that the speaker at GBM day recently said. (I was watching online). In the course of his message, Ray Evans referred to how the apostle Paul, writing to the Roman church, moves from the joy and glory of Christians being ‘more than conquerors’ through Christ, in Romans ch 8, to sharing his ’great sorrow and unending anguish’ for his people – the people of Israel – because they mostly had rejected the good news of salvation in Jesus, their promised Messiah. It was a matter of ongoing anxiety for him.

Chapter 9 of Romans is deeply into the sovereignty of God and His choosing of His elect people before creation, and notes that ’not all who are descended from Israel are Israel’.

Yet Paul still agonises for his lost people and states clearly in chapter 10:1, ’my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.’ Now we should, of course, pray for the people of Israel today, that the Holy Spirit might yet work in their hearts to enlighten them.

But what about us? Quite a number of us in the Fellowship at Rehoboth have dear ones – family members, children, grandchildren, maybe close relatives who seem far from the Lord, or who at least show little concern. How do we view them? Has our spiritual burden for them waned as they’ve drifted away from what they were taught when young, perhaps in Sunday School. Are we inclined to reason, well that’s just how they are?

Paul had unceasing anguish in his heart for his people. Do we, do I, have that sort of anguish every day? Are they not heading for a lost eternity – our own dear ones? How much do we care? Can we share their names for prayer, so that the burden is not something we privately have to cope with? Paul knew what it was to be burdened for the needs of others, and actually asks the believers in the Galatian church to ‘Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ’. Gal 6:2

Do you have a burden for which, maybe you feel responsible somehow? Why not share it with another believer for prayer, and, indeed, pray together.
David the psalmist of Israel, was able to give thanks in Psalm 68: 19. He wrote: Praise be to the Lord, to God our Saviour, who daily bears our burdens.

He didn’t pen that just because it sounded good. He surely wrote from his experience of the Lord’s gracious help with the many burdens he’d experienced. May we take the anxiety, anguish even, for our lost loved ones to our Lord Jesus, the Burden Bearer, as we share together prayerfully.

Steve

Elder

November 2025

We have just celebrated harvest time at our recent Harvest festival and lunch and brought our gifts to be distributed to the Brighton and Hove city Mission. It was a weekend of much blessing and thankfulness as we considered God’s faithful-ness in caring for his people over many years since the time of the Exodus, when Moses led the people through the desert away from a life of slavery under Pharaoh and on to Canaan the land which God had promised them.

The Lord had promised his people many blessings if they were to remain obedient to Him, saying that He would establish them as his holy people, the heavens would be opened and the store-houses of his bounty opened up for them. They would prosper and enjoy a good harvest from the land and from their livestock. A promise that many farmers would value today – yet there is a caveat, a great ‘however’. If you do not obey the Lord your God then it will be a very different outcome. Rather than knowing the Lord’s blessing you will suffer the Lord’s curses on your land, your livestock, your safety and security, in fact in every area of your lives. (You can read a full list of these in Deuteronomy 28:15-68).

Remaining obedient and living holy lives is the desire of each one who turns to follow the Lord Jesus, yet like the people of old, we too can so easily forget the Lord’s blessings in our lives. We can overlook so much that we take for granted both in the material benefits we enjoy but more so in the spiritual blessings of our salvation which came at that great cost of Jesus dying on the cross at Calvary to make that sacrifice which takes away the sins and the curse upon all who would commit their lives to following Him.

Harvest time reminds us of the seeds which we are called to sow in people’s hearts and trust that in the Lord’s goodness they will bear fruit. Jesus reminds us in the parable of the Sower (Matthew 13: 3-9) that simply sowing the seed does not always bring about a good crop. The soil that has been prepared, the care of the newly emerging shoots and the right environmental conditions are all necessary for the seed to bear good fruit. This is all through the grace of the Lord, but each one of us in the church fellowship can play our part in the way we encourage and care for those who may be seeking to know Jesus – as well as those who are not – feeling they can live their lives under this curse, for that is what they are doing.

Take a moment, and reflect with thanksgiving for those in your former life who sowed the seeds that brought you to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, and give thanks above all for the One who calls you to stay obediently by His side. Consider also the many opportunities we have to sow those same seeds in the lives of those around us and let us give glory to our Lord and Saviour – for our salvation comes through His grace alone!

If you fully obey the Lord your God and care-fully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 28 1-2)

Stuart

Elder

October 2026

June has been another busy month in the life of the church, with fine weather for our Awayday at Dalesdown and the following day for our Church BBQ. We enjoyed great teaching and a challenge from David Skull for us to consider the topic of “The Soul winning Church’.

We started by turning to that passage in Matthew 28 verses 16-20 which are known as The Great Commission, a call from Jesus for his disciples to go out into the world and call people to follow him so that they too may be his disciples. When we read of the disciples in the Bible it is easy to assume that they were gifted in a special way to fulfil this commission more than we could ever be. Yet I like the way David Skull described this as ‘an encouragement for failed disciples.’

Yes, it is true that the disciples often fell short of following Jesus as Jesus himself had told them on the Mount of Olives’ You will all fall away on account of me’ (Matt 26:31). Nevertheless, Jesus promised them that he would bless them with his authority and with the power of the Holy Spirit to go and make disciples of all people.

We, too have that calling if we are to be faithful followers of Jesus and, whatever gifts we have been blessed with in this life, we are called to be disciples, ones who seek to spread the gospel to the many non-believers around us. They may be strangers, friends or family, all make up the harvest field and the workers are few when compared to the size of the task before us.

Jesus said to his disciples ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Matthew 9:37-38)

I remember the first church awayday that I attended back in the mid-to-late 90’s I think it was, where our good friend Trevor Dickerson encouraged us each to list down our gifts and talents and then consider the ways in which we could use them within the church to serve our Lord. This impressed upon me the need to not just be a church attender waiting to receive from the Lord, but to be one who serves Him in whatever way he calls me. This may be very different for each one of us, but in a church, there are many different needs to be addressed and many different opportunities to serve.

As we consider that great harvest field around us perhaps each one of us can consider what the Lord would have me do each day in this great commission. Our church has enjoyed a very settled period in recent years, but we know that there will be times of change in front of us as some may have to lay down particular responsibilities within the church. Perhaps the Lord is calling you to step forward and serve him in a new way?
Remember Jesus promises that we do not go alone for he says ‘And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.‘ (Matt 28 20b)

<strong> Stuart
Elder