Why Do We Celebrate Christmas at HBC?

Morecambe and Wise brought laughter and “sunshine” in their smiles to many a Christmas night with their joyful shows. At Headcorn Baptist Church, we celebrate Christmas because we believe that God brought us His own Son-shine—Jesus Christ. Out of His great love, God sent his only Son Jesus as our Saviour so that all people could be reconciled to Him. That’s all of us folks, you and me.

Just as the angels brought “good news of great joy” and smiles to the shepherd's faces in that Bethlehem stable on that first Christmas night, over 2,000 years ago, we also smile and rejoice in the same light and hope Jesus brings today.

This Advent and leading up to Christmas, we’ll explore the theme “Have You Seen the Angels?” at our Sunday services (10:30am in December), with a Christingle Service on Sunday 21st December at 6pm with refreshments afterwards and a Family Service on Christmas Day with chocolate at 10:30am. Please join with us, a warm welcome awaits you.

Also, please keep a close eye out for our knitted angels of kindness appearing around the village—a small gift from us to share God’s love, brighten your Christmas and maybe bring a smile to your face. 

With warmest wishes for the Christmas season and a peaceful start to the New Year. 

Pastor Robert and the church family

What is communion and why do we observe it?

Remember, remember the 5th of November or so the nursery rhyme, "The Gunpower Plot" begins. 

November is now upon us. The clocks have gone back, and it is getting darker earlier. The loud whizzes, bangs and colourful flashes of rockets and fireworks will soon begin to light up the blackness of the night sky to commemorate when Guy Fawkes tried to blow up King James and the Houses of Parliament. 

Then in complete contrast, on Remembrance Sunday on or around 11th November, we will unite together as a community around the war memorial in Headcorn High Street to silently remember all those people who have been injured or have given their lives in wars past and present to bring us the relative freedom we enjoy today. November then is all about remembering.

The communion meal instituted by Jesus at the Last supper is a sacrament that we observe on the 3rd Sunday of each month. The bread and wine we share are symbols of remembrance – the bread represents Jesus’ broken body and the wine his poured-out blood during his crucifixion on Good Friday. In sharing the meal together we remember Jesus with grateful thanks for the ultimate sacrifice that He made dying for us on the cross and then being raised again for the forgiveness of our sins, which also paid the price for our freedom.

As a local Baptist church of Jesus Christ, we are a covenant people and communion is a way of recommitting ourselves to His Holy service. We also have the comfort and reassurance of a wonderful saviour who is at work in our lives and hearts through the Holy Spirit; changing us and moulding us into the people he wants us to be. 

We share an open table, and visitors are welcome to share the meal with us. 

Best wishes Pastor Robert and the church family

Is our church perfect?

C H Spurgeon, the famous Victorian preacher, minister and theologian, once said this about finding the perfect church: 

If I had never joined a church till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all; and the moment I did join it, if I had found one, I should have spoiled it, for it would not have been a perfect church after I had become a member of it. Still, imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us.

I love our church (that is the people) and the way in which they love and support one another and show a loving and warm welcome to visitors at our Sunday morning worship services at 10:30am; and at other times of community fellowship during the week (e.g. Meeting Point coffee mornings 10:30am-12pm on Tues, Arty Crafts 2pm–3:30pm on Weds, and Prayer and Bible Study 10am-12pm on Thurs.). Our desire and mission is to make the love of Jesus known to you, our neighbours, through our words and actions.

But maybe our welcome banner over the front door of the chapel should include the words: “not for perfect people.” That’s because being Christians does not mean we are perfect. We are still fallible human beings like everyone else and not immune from making mistakes. While all of us mess up (sin) sometimes and fall short of the required standard of the Kingdom of God, we always try to do our best to live as Jesus wants us to do: to love one another and to love our neighbour.

Our focus is on Jesus’ loving example, as we seek to do God’s will in Headcorn. So, I guess I’m with Spurgeon, while our church isn’t perfect, it is the dearest place on earth to us. So why not give us a try? A warm and loving welcome awaits you not only on a Sundays but also during the week. 

Best wishes, 

Pastor Robert and the church family.