Ongoing Faithfulness

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Update From Your Pastors

Hey Welling Church Family!

I am sure you have heard by now that our national lockdown will continue for the month of May and will hopefully begin to let up in phases over the summer. We are praying that it maybe possible to start getting back to some form of normalcy this summer.  

Having said that, we have no idea how long this season is going to last. While it is in our hearts to meet together in one location, we are planning on continuing to follow the guidelines given by the government into the foreseeable future. When these guidelines are eventually eased, we will begin meeting together again possibly toward the end of the summer.

As we look to the future, it is good to be reminded that the mission of Welling Church hasn’t and will not change. In fact, we believe that this season will sharpen our vision and focus as we step into the future to fulfil the mandate of giving glory to God through making disciples. We are a church that makes disciples.

Thank you for supporting one another during this time.

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Prayer Points

  1. Praise to God for the birth of Joshua Richard Parsons. Alice, Martin, and baby Joshua are all home and doing well.

  2. Andrea’s Grandmother (lives in America) who went to hospital Sunday after being found unconscious.

  3. Armand’s sister Nadia, who is due to give birth this week.

Ministry Opportunity

We are so excited for Martin and Alice having their baby Joshua this past week and as a church, we want to be a blessing to them. We had planned before the lockdown to offer a meal train for them, but with the current circumstances that are happening, it would not be wise to do so. Instead, we want to get their family a Tesco voucher so they can buy the food they need and maybe even some ready meals.

You can be a part of this by donating a meal or two to help out the Parsons. Would you consider contributing £10 or £20 or more to be a blessing to them? Please do so by 31 May, so we can be a blessing sooner rather than later.

Donate to them via the church at:
Welling Church (HSBC)
Sort Code: 40-19-04
Account Number: 02171236
Memo: Baby Parson

Weekly Devotional

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The Fruit of the Spirit: FAITHFULNESS

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22, 23

The seventh attribute of the fruit of the Spirit is Faithfulness. God the Father has not only saved us, but He has also called us to be faithful to the task He has given. God gives us the opportunity to serve Him and to make use of all the gifts He has granted. We are to be faithful to share the Gospel with the world around us. This is the mark of faithfulness we will examine in this lesson. Let’s take a look at the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25 which will give us an example of what a faithful servant of God resembles. 

1. God Gives Us An Opportunity (Matt. 25:14-17)

“14 ‘For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property.”

Paul tells us in Ephesians, “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:8, 9). Yes, we cannot earn our salvation by doing good works, however we are created to accomplish the work of God. Paul goes on to say, “10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). What are we to be doing? We are to be faithfully fruitful. Simply put, we are to be increasing in our knowledge of God and making Him known. When we share the free gift of the Gospel to the lost world we are doing God’s work. God has specifically saved us and left on this earth to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. He has given us the greatest opportunity to serve Him. Are we answering the call or wasting the opportunity?

2. The Triumph of Responding to Opportunity (Matt. 25:18-23)

“21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’”

One day every Christian will stand before the judgment seat of God and give an account of our lives concerning issues of conscience. Paul writes, “12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God” (Rom. 14:12). God gives us tremendous opportunity and responsibility to share the Gospel while we live on this earth. When our life is examined by God, will He be able to say “Well done, good and faithful servant.” What a joy it will be to hear God say this to us. God has graciously included us in the process of bringing people to Christ. We do not save people, but we have been called to proclaim (Matt. 28: 18-20; Rom. 10:14-17). God is still in the business of saving lost souls and we should choose to participate in that process. Do not simply be a spectator. Responding to the opportunity that God has placed before us, will not only be a triumph in our lives, but also serve as proof of our faithfulness in Christ. 

3. The Tragedy of Wasted Opportunity (Matt. 25:24-30)

“28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”

No matter how competent you feel for the task, you have a responsibility to share the Gospel with the people with whom you daily come in contact. A deeper issue might need to be addressed if your life is continuously characterised by wasting these opportunities. If your life does not bare fruit, then there could be a problem at the foundation. Meaning, you might not truly have a relationship with Christ. One of the most heartbreaking passages in Scripture is found in Matthew 7,  21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’ (Matt. 7:21-23). This passage describes a person who did works for the Lord, but never truly knew Him. It mirrors the servant in our text who did not produce “fruit” from the talents his master gave him. Not only is it tragic for a child of God to not live up to their full potential in Him, but it is even more so when people do no recognise their fruitlessness is a sign that they do not know Christ at all. God has lovingly given us the attribute of faithfulness as a gauge to measure our relationship with Him. 

Questions to Consider

  1. Do I understand the gift that God has given to me? 

  2. Am I being faithful with the opportunities God has given me? 

  3. Am I living a life that is unfaithful and without spiritual fruit? How can I make corrections?