96 104 Don't stand still - go forward

Just as people are still arriving, we thought we'd have a little sing-song to start the service off. And the song we're going to sing is Jesus is the Name We Honour, which I haven't a clue what number it is, which is 2-1-3 in the supplement. I think we'll stay seated.

Jesus is the name we honour. Jesus is the name we praise. We will glorify.

We will glorify. We will give thee honor and praise. I thought it'd be a good idea to actually, just to break the ice a little bit, if you'd like to turn around to the person next to you and smile at them on your left and on the person on your right and give an especially big grin to the person behind you.

And if you haven't had the flu, if you'd like to turn around to the person in front of you and say, I haven't had the flu. Well, it's good to be in God's house and it's good to praise his name. And we're going to sing a couple of songs straight through.

Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest. Going straight through into We Want to See Jesus Lifted High. He's obviously coming on the overhead projector.

We'll sing him through a couple of times. Shall we stand? Lord, we lift up your name with our hearts full of praise. We exult in the Lord our God, Hosanna in the highest.

Glory to the King of kings. Glory, glory, glory to the King of kings. Lord, we lift up your name with our hearts full of praise.

We exult in the Lord our God. Glory to the King of kings. Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest.

Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest. Lord, we lift up your name with our hearts full of praise. We exult in the Lord our God, Hosanna in the highest.

Glory to the King of kings. Glory, glory, glory to the King of kings. Lord, we lift up your name with our hearts full of praise.

We exult in the Lord our God. Glory to the King of kings. Lord, we lift up your name with our hearts full of praise.

We exult in the Lord our God. Glory to the King of kings. We exult in the Lord our God.

Glory, glory, glory to the King of kings. Dave Miller, if you'd just wander down here. Dave's been coming to the tab for a long time.

And his actual ancestry at the tab, pedigree, goes back a couple of generations. And when I first came here, about the same time as Noah came out of the ark, Dave's dad was our organist. And I still remember him.

He was quite a small man, wasn't he? And you could sometimes, from my height here, hardly see him on that organ. But he played the organ for some years, didn't he? Yes, ever since he was 16. So you were brought up then in a Christian family? Yes, most definitely.

And did you come here to Sunday school? Yes. Now, I know there's a sense in which we need to be corrected by our hymn when it says, Lord for ourselves in living power, remake us. Self on the cross and Christ upon the throne.

Past put behind us for the future takers. Lord of our lives to live for Christ alone. There is a sense in which we do put the past, and we don't glory in the past.

And yet it can help people, David, as you will readily agree, sometimes just to look back and see what the Lord saved us from so that it will help others who are groping their way towards faith. Now, though you were brought up in a Christian home, things didn't go too easily for you spiritually. Am I right in recalling that? That is quite true, yes.

Can you enlarge a little bit? Yes. I came to this church, as Tony has said, as a young lad. And at the age of 16, I made a commitment to the Lord.

I was baptized. And then came National Service. I had had a fairly strict upbringing.

And when I went away to do my National Service, I joined the Royal Navy. And I suddenly found freedom which I hadn't experienced before. And you cut ties with your father, if memory again serves me right.

That is correct. I served my two years in National Service, and I was demobbed. I came back home to Worthing.

And my employment that I had before I joined up was no longer available in Worthing. But the company I was working for at the time offered me a position in London, which I took. And I went up to London, and I stayed with my dad's sister, my aunt.

And I used to come home at weekends. And then gradually it got to every other weekend. And then it got once a month.

And eventually, through family pressures, I suddenly decided that enough was enough, and I disappeared. And nobody knew where I was. So in one sense, without pushing this, simply to make a point, but you are an example of the sort of character our Lord was referring to in the famous parable of the prodigal son, aren't you? I mean, he went off into the, well not to London, but into an equivalent place.

Went off into a far place, yes. This is very, very true. But, you know, the thing that I can emphasize most, really, are the everlasting arms of love.

They're there. They were with me, although I didn't recognize it at the time. And then eventually, through circumstances which I can only look back at and say the Lord was behind it, I was maneuvered into a position where common sense said to me, you know, you must go home.

How long had you been estranged from your parents, by any chance? At that time, probably about five years. So here's your dad. Was he the organist at the time? Yes, yes.

Now perhaps we should break here, because one of the most moving books I've got amongst my hundreds of books in my library is written by a man called John White, and it's entitled Parents in Pain. And there must be many parents here who are in pain about their children or their adult children. So your dad was constantly playing the organ here, your mum attending here, and for five years, did you say, they had no contact at all? None whatsoever.

Had you sort of thrown over your faith during those years? At the time, I thought I had, but I don't think so. There was, as I say, there was something that was drawing me back all the time. And eventually, the Lord maneuvered me into a position where I wasn't exactly, I wasn't hard up, but it just made common sense to stop what I was doing and come home.

Did you just come home and sort of pitch up on the doorstep, ring the bell, and you know, your dad comes in, wow, Dave's home. Was it like that? It wasn't quite like that. Unfortunately, my father wasn't on the phone, so it was a little bit difficult.

So in those days, there was such things as telegrams, and I sent a telegram on a Wednesday to say I'd be coming down on Saturday. And I did, and I arrived on the scene and wondering what sort of reception I was going to get. I knocked on the door, and my father opened the door with tears rolling down his face, and he just threw his arms around me.

Just like that? Just like that. How wonderful. And you took up relationship with him again.

What about getting straight with the Lord? Well, that, of course, I had to do immediately. And in those days, Eric Land was still here. And for those of you that can remember Eric Land, he wasn't an easy man to talk to, but I went and saw him and recommitted myself in his presence.

And he said to me, go forward, lad. Go forward. To which I did.

One of the reasons why I've asked you to particularly take part this evening, David, is because when I was giving my little review, following Stephen's review of the sort of year nationally, I made reference to the fact that at the tab there, we have successes and we have failures. I would like people who only come here occasionally to know this. We are not a successful church.

The only thing that binds us together is the fact that we do fail. And we recognize that. But in God's grace, he meets us at the point of our need, and he does cleanse us from our sin, and he gives us a new start.

And this is what happened for you. After that, everything went swimmingly. No further problems whatsoever.

If that was true. If only, the Queen was saying that. You're quoting her.

If only. Yes, if only. One thing did go very swimmingly for me was that, of course, I met my wife.

Yeah. And she's been a gem for you, hasn't she? And she's been a gem. Yes.

Yes, she really has. And we were married. I have two children.

Karen, who is now married and is Karen-free. And a son, Ian, who unfortunately does not attend church anymore. But I know in my heart of hearts that at some time, when he was in the youth group, he did make a commitment.

And I am hanging on to that, knowing that one day he will come back in the fold. David, I've known you for many years now. And Anne, I've always been grateful to the Lord for the strength of your marriage and the way that you've hung together in the difficult times as well as in the more easy times.

And this is my first recall. Maybe it happened before. It's my first recall, at least in recent years, that you've come forward and given your testimony.

And we're grateful because it fits in. Ian, what would you wish for yourself and for the tab in this oncoming year? Well, in this next year, I would like a closer walk with the Lord. And for the tab itself, I mean, it's celebrating its 100th anniversary.

It's a year of greater opportunity, I think, than normal. And I just pray that we shall see many people coming to the Savior in 1997. Well, thanks very much, David.

And thanks for your fellowship. And God bless you. Thank you for joining us this evening.

When you've been a pastor for as long as I have in a particular church, you can remember a time when youngsters who are now quite mature actually were not. I mean, they just were not. Not that they were not mature.

They just weren't. You know, they weren't around. I still recall, because it was the first marriage that I ever attended here, that of Bob and Margaret Mortimer.

The marriage resulted eventually in two children, Alison and Claire, Claire being the younger. Now to give my voice a break, I'm going to ask my good friend, Tony Ford, if he'd take over and just interview Claire, because she too comes, obviously, from a Christian background, but her experience has been a little different. Claire, we've heard about David and his rebellious phase.

I believe your Christian antecedents go not only to your parents' generation, but one before that. That's right. Have you been through a time of rebellion as well? Well, I wouldn't say I've turned my back on God, because being brought up in a Christian family, I've always believed in God.

And so at home, it's been really quite easy for me to be a Christian, and there's been no direct challenge to that. Going to university, I think, is the first time when I felt really challenged, and that was a time when I had to really think through what I believed. And although in the first year I had a few difficulties, I never actually turned my back on God, and now I feel stronger for the experience.

What kind of difficulties? Well, it's the first time you have to think through why you actually believe it. I mean, I've always gone to church, and I've always wanted to go to church, but at university I had to make that choice for myself that I wanted to go to church. So I had to think through, why did I want to do that? Is it just routine, or is it something that I really believe in? And I decided I really did believe in it.

You really did believe it. I think that's an experience many of us have had leaving home. You take with you your parents' faith, and it either becomes nothing, or it becomes your own faith.

That's right. What's one of the key things that you do believe now, then? That's a big question. Just one.

Well, in Christianity, I believe that Jesus died for me, and that he's my saviour, and that he's got a plan for my life. That has been quite a security to me over at university, while thinking about the future. Right, okay.

What are you studying? I'm studying law. Why did you choose that? Well, I did law A-level. First of all, my dad's a senior probation officer, and he always used to come home with stories about the law.

So I was first of all interested in the criminal element, I suppose. Sounds awful. But doing law A-level, I discovered that criminal law is just a small part of the law, and I was just really interested in it.

So I decided to take it at university. Are law students tough nuts compared with the rest of the hoi polloi like me? I was studying physics, and we were all a bit daft. I think every student always thinks that their course is the hardest.

But, I mean, I think all students are the same, really. I guess they've got quite a reputation for being able to argue and that sort of thing, because that's what a lot of people want to go and do. Is that one of the hard things about being a Christian, being a Christian law student? I don't think so, not really.

I think a lot of people ask me the question, well, what would you do if you were asked to represent someone, and you know that they're guilty. And that's something I've had to think about. But it's not really my job as a lawyer, when I will be a lawyer, to decide who's guilty.

That's the job of the court. So I wouldn't have a problem. Obviously, you wouldn't represent someone if you knew they were guilty, but it's not your job to decide.

It's the job of the court, and everyone's got a right to be represented. How would you find out if the person was guilty? They would actually say, I'm guilty. Well, I suppose they'd tell you they're not guilty, and then you'd go to court.

Obviously, if they said, I am guilty, then you wouldn't represent me. Right. It's not a thing you do too often.

The big, long list of lawyers refuse to represent you. It wouldn't look very good, would it? But law is like cooking, isn't it? Excuse the analogy. It's a very broad thing.

You can be cooking bread, or you can be cooking croissant. What particular aspect of the law would interest you? Well, I've had quite a big year this year, because I've had interviews. I want to be a trainee solicitor.

So I've had loads of interviews throughout September, which was really nerve-wracking. And I got a job in the end with a commercial firm in Birmingham. So I'm going to practice commercial law primarily.

Right. So you'll actually be dressing up in wigs and things and speaking in court? Well, that could come into it, but I'm sure it won't at first, no. Okay.

Now, looking forward, what are some of the challenges, you think, some of the interesting things for 1997 for you? Well, obviously I'm facing my finals this year, so that's going to be a challenge. But it's been really good throughout my time at university to know that God's there and he can help me and strengthen me when I'm feeling really stressed. So that will be comforting.

And also I'll be going to law school this year, so it will be a change of scene. So they're the two big things that will be happening this year. Right.

Do you think God helps people through their exams? Yeah, obviously you have to do the work. It's a shame you can't just snap your fingers and it all happens. But doing the work, I know that God's there and that he'll honour what I've done, and that because he's got a plan for my life, whatever I do in exams will be for the best.

So that's really comforting to know. And also I think it gives me a bit of security that other people don't necessarily have around exams. So hopefully that might show to other people a bit.

Is there one lesson you've learned in 1996 that you could take into 1997 and maybe share with us? I think at university it's quite difficult to feel secure all the time. I've been quite dependent on what people have thought about me and wanting to be popular all the time. And that's quite a big thing to people at university.

But I've really learned that security can be found in God alone. And that if I've got my foundation in God, then that's the best place to be. It doesn't always show, and I let God down a lot, but if I know that God's my foundation rather than people and what they think of me, then that gives me a lot of security to take into the next year.

Can't you see Claire just in a few years' time with a white wig and a black gown? Come and lead the worship here when you're so adorned. It would give a sort of legal aspect to the grace that we bask in also here at the tab. Now earlier on in that satirical to some degree but also honest look at the national news, we were thinking about our country and about our world.

Evangelicals are not zombies. We don't sort of cop out of our responsibilities in society. There are some ugly things that happen as well as some wonderful things.

And it's right, it's our meat and bounden duty, to quote the language of the prayer book, to bring before the Lord the rulers of our land and those who have tremendous influence in our world. We're going to sing a couple of songs in which we're going to be thinking prayerfully about the state of our world and our nation. Geoff will take a break in the middle of one of the songs, give an opportunity for two or three of you to commit our nation to the Lord and then we'll take on that song again at the end.

Let's stand and sing Lord I lift your name on high. I lift your name on high Lord I love to sing your praises I'm so glad you're in my life I'm so glad you came to save us You came from heaven to earth to show the way From the earth to the clouds I dare to claim From the clouds to the grave, from the grave to the sky Lord I lift your name on high I love to sing your praises I'm so glad you're in my life I'm so glad you came to save us You came from heaven to earth to show the way From the earth to the clouds I dare to claim From the clouds to the grave, from the grave to the sky Lord I lift your name on high You came from heaven to earth to show the way From the earth to the clouds I dare to claim From the clouds to the grave, from the grave to the sky The sight of them were marauding and somewhat fierce tribes, and in front of them this insurmountable problem of a sea. And there were three pieces of advice which were offered.

The first was offered by the laity. What does the word laity mean? Well, the reader's digest said that the word clergy and the word laity can be distinguished in this fashion. The clergy are paid to be good, whereas the laity are good for nothing.

Think it through actually, it's not hurtful, it's quite clever. The laos, the people of God, the non-ordained people, they were saying to Moses, let's go back. And you know whenever you're standing at the threshold and the future is uncertain and it seems to have tremendous problem, then what you knew in the past is much more comfortable.

And the laity said, go back. Well you can't go back in time. You can't go back to this past year.

You can't go back to the past decade. You have to take things as they are at the moment. And to go back to Egypt, well, what would it have meant for those Hebrews? It would have meant slavery once more.

It would have meant difficulty again. And so Moses gets up and he contradicts the laity and as the leader he says, don't go back, stand still. And there are times when it's good just to stop and to consider where you're at.

What has God done? What has He done for these Hebrews? Well, at least He released them from the slavery of Egypt to some extent. The danger wasn't past, it was there. They could see the clouds of the horses, the dust that had been caused by the horses of Pharaoh's army as Pharaoh was pursuing them.

But nonetheless they did have on record, they did have as a testimony that they had seen God move just recently. And Moses says, stand still. Let's consider what God has done.

There are times when we have to be still and quiet. Evangelicals are not very good at that. We sometimes have to go to our Catholic friends to teach us how to be mystical to some degree, to stop and consider the greatness and the grandeur of God.

But they couldn't stand still for very long because obviously the horses and the Egyptian army would have caught up to them. And so God intervened and He said to the people, it's not what you are requesting you ought to do, you laity, go back. Neither you, leader Moses, with great respect, other people to do what you are saying, stand still.

The Lord says, go forward. The laity, go back. The leader, stand still.

The Lord, go forward. And they went forward. Somebody put their toe in the sea and it started to peel back.

And the scripture doesn't say that they could see all the way through to the other end of the track down which they were going to pass. The indication is that the sea gradually unfurled as they went one step after another step after another step. They walked by faith through the Red Sea.

And so it is for you. As you move into this new year, you've got to get your toe wet. You've got to go forward.

And you've got to go forward in faith, believing what? That the God of the past is also the God of the present. And the mess and the debris of Egypt and all the things that you did there that perhaps were not quite pleasing to Him, nonetheless He can forgive you all your past mistakes and take you on into the year of the Lord's favor. And when they got across the Red Sea, Miriam, you remember, picked up a timbrel, a tambourine.

And there was more than just a shiver of emotion that went through the camp. There was a sense of the presence of the Lord as they thanked God for their great delivery. And God took them on into Sinai and made them into a nation and gave them His Decalogue, His law.

God had great things for these people in the year that was yet to come in Hebrew history as God has great things for you, for me. What's the last word from God for Worthingtab congregation in 1996? It's not go back. It's not stand still.

It is go forward and let's prove and let's see the glory of God even in a greater way than we have known it heretofore. God sent His Son into this world to take upon Himself your sin and my sin so that we could be pure before Him. And it's that message of redemption we are called to transmit in this neighborhood, to this nation, to this world, in the year to come.

Brothers and sisters, let's take this year for the Lord. Let's claim it as being the year of Lord's favor. Anno Domini, a year for the Master.

Let's go to our final hymn. It's an old hymn, 705, and it speaks of the grace of God and the way that God's hand has controlled His church and directed His people down the years. And that's what we want of Him during the oncoming twelve months.

Thy hand, O God, has guided Thy flock from age to age. Thy mercy will not fail us. We don't know whether the Tories will be in later on next year.

We don't know whether it will be the labor government. But we're not putting our confidence in John Major nor in Tony Blair. Our confidence is in the Lord.

Thy mercy will not fail us nor leave Thy work undone. With Thy right hand to help us, the victory shall be won. 705.

Thy mercy will not fail us. We don't know whether the Tories will be in later on next year. From the second book of the Bible, written by a man of God, written by a great man who led the Israelites out of Egypt after 430 years of oppression.

And now I'm going to read from Exodus 14, verses 10 to 18. As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and there were the Egyptians marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord.

They said to Moses, Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us out to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, Leave us alone, let us serve the Egyptians. It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert. And he replied, Moses answered the people, Do not be afraid.

Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring to you today. The Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you.

You need only to be still. Then the Lord said to Moses, Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.