Tapton Church Blog

Leader:  Kinder Kalsi  – Church army

Readings :  Colossians 2  6-20  Luke 11                                                                                                           Why are we here   what are we expecting to take away with us ???                                                     Kinder told us a little about himself.    He was born in London in a Seikh family buat moved to Sheffield where he met his wife   In London he had to conform to many different rules but in Sheffield it was a different life  he had to learn many new things –  he found God and was baptized as a christian.  His work in the Church Army takes him into various parts of the community.   He asks  “Why is Christ important?”  We are on a journey through life,  we have to learn as we go along    We were shown a video of the work of the Church Army formed by Thomas  Carlile to help the underprivilaged and this work has expanded but is still carried on.     What do you do for Christ ? God loves everyone   do you?

An enjoyable evening shared with our friends from Hillsborough Tabernacle at the home of our shared minister Rev Suzanne Nockels.

A great big thank you to Suzanne, Keith, Joe and Issac for putting on a fabulous feast of Sicilian food.

Led by Rev Suzanne Nockels

Readings: Ecclesiastes 2: 1-11

Suzanne suggested a number of reasons peas are grown in pods, amongst them: – protection, growth and security.

She continued by considering how nuts, pregnancy and letters in an envelope all contain hidden content.

Colossians: 3:2-5

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

We are joined to Christ in an intimate way and we join him in his crucifixion and Resurrection.

Do we like to be hidden? Surely we;d rather be noticed, to be seen and not to lose our identity.  In Christ we may be hidden but can find ourselves.

Luke 12: 13-21

Does the Parable of the rich fool relate to a greedy farmer? No, but if not about greed what is it about?

Jesus is not embarrassed by wealth and at this time the crowd would have Deuteronomy 30 in their minds = to be abundantly fruitful (children, land and property)

This article is about I, I, I a monologue about himself to himself, answering his own questions. He cannot see beyond his own fields and appears immune to the joys of others. The man has no neighbour and has no need for God. Jesus called him a fool because of his inward views.

Where the heart lies is where the treasure is. Doing as I want is not a road to satisfaction. Ultimate satisfaction in God cannot be forced.

Suzanne set two challenges:

When making decisions we should talk to other people and not only like minded people, widen our conversations.

In financial matters pray to God. Set us free and bring joy in the things of God.

Leader :  Julia Hodgson  (Hamden View Church)                                                                                                   Julia spoke of her connections to Tapon through the West Branch,  the Whit sings, and knowing various members of the congregation.                                                                                                                      Her talk was based on a set of Russian dolls    Reading : John 1   1-5  “In the beginning”   It is good to be able to set your heart on something and to achieve it.   Nice to receive surprises and gifts.     Jesus is the greatest gift anyone could have    I we accept Him we will be content, we will not have envy  and we will have concerns for others.   Our aim is to make someone happy and brighten their day.   The Russian dolls     tell us who we are                   1.    The largest one  reminds  us of our relationship with God   God the Father who created the world.    2.  The next size doll   reminds us of Christ Jesus  who is next to God and who did marvellous things in his 30 years of ministry.     3. The next one is the Holy Spirit who came down to the disciples to enable them to spread the word   and the smallest doll 4  is human beings,  formed by God  we are in Him and He is in us.

Leader : Dr. Walter Reggans

Readings :  Kings 17 v7       Mark 2 v 1-12

Question – on a normal day how many conversations do you have?     An average person has              about 7,500 in three years.   Jesus’s ministry lasted for 3 years  how many conversations do you think Jesus had in that period?  At times there were so many he was overwhelmed by them.

The reading in Mark is headed  “Jesus heals a paralysed man”  to give the reader an idea what the passage is about    was this heading the real reason for this passage?         Jesus was back home where everyone knew him and when word got round he was there they flocked to see him   so many that the house was full to overflowing.  Four men brought their paralysed friend to see Jesus and because there was no room inside they made a hole in the roof and lowered his stretcher type bed  down.       Jesus looked at the man and said “son your sins are forgiven”  this caused worry for some of the lookers on  “only God is allowed to forgive sins.”  but they did not know who Jesus was    He said I will prove to you that I do have authority to cast out sin     How would you know if your sins were forgiven ?    The man knew and believed   he got up and walked.     The point of this passage is Jesus’s authority to heal    and forgive sins.   This is one of the conversations Jesus had  that proved his authority that he WAS the son of God.

Led by Rev Suzanne Nockels

Reading: Colossians 1:13-14 & Luke 10:25-37

Theme Sea Sunday

Sea Sunday is usually second Sunday in July and a day set aside by some Christian churches to remember and pray for seafarers and their families. Suzanne referred to the life and work of people who risk their lives staffing lifeboats, in particular the cost and risk associated with rescuing people in peril.

When Jesus Christ came to rescue us he paid a high price with his life on the cross.

One famous rescue story is the parable of the Good Samaritan told by Jesus. It is about a traveller who is stripped of clothing, beaten, and left half dead.  Jesus picked out this particular road the traveller was on because it was renowned for being dangerous.

It would not surprise people that the traveller was attacked and as we quite often do today, locals would pass judgement by saying it serves him right for attempting the journey alone.

This is not only a practical story but a spiritual one showing the downward journey in our spiritual lives.

Do we judge others and how would we be judged on the way we live our lives by others? We don’t always know the reasons behind decisions taken by others. We don’t know why this traveller chose to be on this dangerous road at this time, but it resulted in him being assaulted and robbed.

We don’t need our errors highlighting by others we need love and understanding. The Samaritan came to the aid of the traveller and Jesus comes to our aid in times of need.

God judges, being a good neighbour is our role.

Led by Rev. Suzanne Nockels

Readings 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 & Luke 10:1-12 & 14-16

Having returned from Glastonbury Music Festival in Somerset, Suzanne explained how she had spent her time in the Iona Community ‘space’ in company with Tapton Church Secretary Darryl Lomas. The Iona Community is a dispersed Christian ecumenical community working for peace and social justice, rebuilding of community and the renewal of worship who are provided with a space at the Festival each year.

During their time there, they mingled and chatted with about 250 people from all walks of life.  This was not just about religion but touched on amongst other things; relationships, abuse and grief amongst party goers.

Having informed us of what little she had taken to the Festival, Suzanne asked if we pack light to go on our travels or prepare for all eventualities? In the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy it states all you need is a towel.  Jesus in Luke sends his disciples out with nothing. WHY?

1. They have to rely on others for everything. In fact Jesus commands they accept hospitality and by doing so it offers an opportunity to receive.  In addition being empty handed meant they were not posing a threat to the communities they visited.  Jesus had harsh words for communities who rejected his disciples. The real sin of Sodom in Genesis is not about same-sex acts but mob rule and refusing hospitality to strangers and the needy within their midst.  When we host someone, do we expect to offer them a gift or are we open to receiving a gift from them?
2. Jesus instructs the disciples to offer greetings to those they meet; ‘Peace to this house’ and ‘The Kingdom of God has come near’ whilst  not making any  judgements. In our pessimistic world we are called to shout out ‘joy’ and highlight the good things provided for us by God. We should share our faith and the awareness of God’s presence.  Disciples went out in pairs and we are not alone, church can provide a comfort, share burdens and comfort others.  We may be accepted or rejected as was Jesus Christ.

How do we build opportunities around these statements?

Led by Mr Keith Nockels

Readings: 1 Kings 19:15-21,  2 Kings 2:1-15,  Luke 9:51-62

Keith opened the service with a quiz to identify a character in the bible who turned out to be Elijah.

Clues: Didn’t die, appears in the Koran, fed by Ravens, present at the transfiguration, God spoke to him

He followed this by asking who or what we might follow?  eg a map/football/advice/Jesus

Keith summarised the story of Elijah and his relationship with Elisha and the many references to Elijah in both the Old and New Testament.

He considered if Elisha, out ploughing, had time to inform his family of his calling

When we receive the call:

• Do we need to change?
• Do we need to give up other things?
• Do we need to put things off and not rush into something?

Jesus in Luke 9:62 appears to refer to not looking back stating our focus should be on the Kingdom of God.

Elijah passed the mantel of his work onto Elisha and we must recognise we cannot always finish what we start and we should be prepared to pass on the work for someone else to finish or just continue.

Who do you follow, when do you follow them and what does it mean?

Follow Jesus.

Leaders : Rev.Bill and Mrs Betty Bentham  (from Scunthorpe)                                                                                   Betty’s talk :  at this time of year many students are worried about examinations and results and parents are worried s to how they will get on    so we think of them all.  She told us a true story  of a class of 92 students in Canada  who were told, muc to their dismay,  that the school had decided that in future no religion or the name of God would be mentioned.     At their graduation day there were a lot of speeches and then it was time for the head boy to speak   he started and then all 91 of the students sneezed at the same time  –  “God bless you all” he said.

Reading :Mark1  v29  Jesus had been preaching in the synagogue and was tired so he went home with Simon  – when they got there Simons Mother in law was ill  – Jesus healed her  and word soon spread round the village and any turned up at the house wanting to see Jesus  so he left the house to be on his own – but his disciples found him and told him there were a lot of people wanting to see him but he said he wanted to move on.          There are many dramatic events in the bible    all need to be interpreted.   In the old testament some dramatic events are :   Creation  and there are more than one version of this.  Abraham going to sacrifice his son Isaac but was stopped by God.    Joshua stormed Jericho.  All these and others  need interpretation    Its not what happens its how you interpret it.    The Church must be prepared for when Jesus comes again.

Leader :  Suzanne Nockels   Psalm  68   “God is father to the fatherless and defender of the vulnerable”

COPYING  How would you copy a picture   – photocopier?  carbon paper? tracing paper ? pantagraph? take a photo of it?     Copying  people   woukd you copy someone you admire   or be an individual and stay as you are ?   If you are copying someone it has to be worthwhile.    The Disciples lived with Jesus   he was their role model     Perhaps there is someone you know who has copied Jesus   Are you worth copying?

Readings :   Proverbs 8 1-11 22-35    Romans 5 1-5        What is wise ?   what do we associate with   wisdom ?  Families have sayings shar are passed down through generations  and there are many sayings regarding wisdom in the bible      If we have a deep and profound awe of God it will put everything in perspective.

All  the men were given a Fathers Day bag