It’s been a while since we posted and you may have been wondering what’s going on. Well, we had a social for Valentines Day on 12^th February, followed by our half term break on the 19^th.

So, we reconvened this week for the final talk in the relationship series. We kicked off with a time of catching up and sharing Tests and Testimonies, which was as always such an encouraging and precious time

This led to a time of worship and praise to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. At the end of worship there was a prophetic word encouraging Hope Central to share their faith with others: “They should not hide the light that shines in them or forget to be salt bring flavour to those they meet, that just as a light switch is switched on an off or salt is added  to food numerous times a day, a week or a year, it is their continual gentle sharing of the good news of Jesus in the everyday that is and will advance His Kingdom”. Thank you, Jesus.

We then moved on to the final talk in our relationship series “Let’s Talk about Sex”. Where we unpacked the following:

Original Design Gen 2:18 The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him. Gen 2:22-24 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.”

That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh

Jesus on Sex Where in the Bible does Jesus actually say that sex outside of marriage is wrong?

Interestingly, Jesus doesn’t talk much about sex before marriage. The reason for this is that first-century Jews got married shortly after puberty. Consequently, sex before marriage simply wasn’t a major issue. In our sex-saturated culture it’s hard to imagine 12 and 13-year-olds still acting like children.

However, adultery – sex outside of marriage – was definitely an issue. The flip side of parents marrying off their children young, often to relative strangers, was that not all first-century marriages were happy. They were as predisposed as we are to look for sex with other people’s husbands and wives. Perhaps the most obvious passage to unpack is Jesus’ words in Mathew 19:1-12 

We discovered after only looked at four short verses from one portion of Jesus’ teaching the following: 

1. Jesus is clear that sex is reserved for lifelong marriage between one man and one woman 
2. That God created it to be incredible fun so that we would make love often and enjoy it. 
3. That it is a form of worship reflecting the three in one trinity.  
4. That Jesus is Lord of what we do in our bedroom  

If you are not living this way, then sex should not be a reason for you to reject Jesus but for you to accept him. Our culture is full of good reasons for bad sex, but Jesus promises that if we follow the Maker’s instructions then sex gets better. He also promises you forgiveness as he did the adulterous woman in John 8 “I do not condemn you; now leave your life of sin.”  
  


If you are not yet married but are trying to live Jesus’ way, then you should be encouraged. Jesus promises you that God greatly prizes your decision to remain celibate until you marry, and that he will bless you as a result. 

What happened at the Fall Genesis 3:16 Gods punishes both Adam and Eve but what is said to Eve has a profound effect on the female species when it comes to sex from then on…

 16 To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labour you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”

When a woman has sex, she is somehow supernaturally bound to the man and her desire for him can lead her into bondage but if she has more than one sexual partner they become layers

It is different for men as their punishment was that they would have to work hard

“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”

BUT and yes, there is a but when a man has multiple sexual encounters, He isn’t bound to the women but he does become one with her. So, each time there is a supernatural joining of the souls which also adds layers.

So, if say a man who has had six sexual partners sleeps with a woman who has also had six sexual partners, they added together supernaturally so, now they have both had twelve sexual partners…     

Testimony Time Sex within the boundaries that God set for us is a beautiful thing, however when sex is experienced outside of these boundaries it is extremely harmful and ultimately a sin. In Romans [6:23] the apostle Paul tells us that the wages of sin are death. This is not meant just on a physical level but also on a spiritual level.  

If you are struggling with sexual sin, I would like to encourage you and remind you that greater is He that is within you then he that is within the world. God is faithful and when we repent of our sins, He is quick to remove our sins from us and place them as far as the east is from the west.

There is nothing that can separate you from God’s love. You are his beloved and He loves you because He loves you because He loves you.

God Cares Deeply God cares who we sleep with because he cares deeply about the people who are doing the sleeping. He cares because sex was his idea, not ours. He cares because misusing sex can cause profound hurt and damage. He cares because he regards us as worthy of his care. And, in fact, that care is not only seen in telling us how we should use sex, but also in how he makes forgiveness and healing available to us when we mess this up.

Thank you Taste & See for your continuing prayer support please continue to do so it is vital

Thank you, Jesus, for another great night at Hope Central, You will build Your church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it…

Our Mission (Isaiah 61)

To proclaim good news to the poor. 

To bind up the broken hearted,

To proclaim freedom for the captives and release them from darkness, 

To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour,

To comfort all who mourn,  

To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. 

Our declarations – This is the generation of those that seek him, that seek your face, O God of Jacob (Psalm 24v6)

A generation with clean hands and a pure heart

A generation baptised with fire

A generation who pursues and loves Jesus

A generation with a simple but powerful faith

A revival generation 

Can you hear those dry bones rattling as God rebuilds his temple in us and through us….