Reverend Ben Cooper's Podcast
Reverend Ben Coopers podcast, offers an inviting space for listeners to explore Christianity and spiritual growth with wisdom, humor, and a deep commitment to biblical truth. Through Rev. Ben's engaging conversations with guests, the podcast not only explores the timeless wisdom of the Bible but also tackles the pressing issues of life, faith, and hope in a way that is accessible, thought-provoking, and enriching. Whether you’re seeking spiritual nourishment, answers to life’s big questions, or simply a place to reflect on your faith, the Rev Ben podcast is a valuable resource on your journey.
In each episode, Rev. Ben guides listeners through profound theological reflections, personal stories, and practical insights drawn from the Bible and the broader Christian tradition.
Reverend Ben Cooper's Podcast
Thomas: When Faith Demands Evidence (#1067 - Elim)
From Doubt to Declaration — Finding Peace in Jesus
Have you ever felt like secondhand faith just isn't enough?
Like Thomas, you long not just to hear about Jesus—you want to experience Him for yourself.
In this soul-stirring episode, we dive into the story of "Doubting Thomas" in John 20, uncovering powerful truths about our own spiritual hunger. Thomas’s honest cry—"Unless I see the nail marks in His hands… I will not believe"—isn’t just skepticism; it reveals a raw, authentic longing that many believers feel today.
The peace we desperately seek will not come through financial stability, social approval, or religious routine. The world offers countless versions of "peace," yet millions remain restless. Why? Because true peace only comes through surrender to Jesus Christ—a peace that passes understanding and stands firm when everything else shakes.
We explore how surrender is not weakness, but the courageous path to real freedom. Like clay in the Potter’s hand, we are shaped not by force, but by love when we yield to God’s perfect work. When Thomas finally encountered the risen Jesus, his response wasn’t casual—it was explosive:
"My Lord and my God!"
Your greatest doubts can lead to your greatest declarations of faith.
This message speaks directly to anyone feeling spiritually tired, caught in storms of uncertainty, or yearning for something real beyond borrowed testimonies. You don't have to live on secondhand faith. You are invited into a firsthand encounter with the living God.
As we reflect on the story of Thomas, we also share how surrender unlocks the peace that the world cannot give—and how even the fiercest doubts can lead to the most powerful moments of belief.
🎧 Tune in now to embrace the peace, boldness, and authenticity Jesus offers.
It’s time to place your finger where the nails were. It’s time to believe, not because someone else told you, but because you’ve encountered Him yourself.
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https://www.pastorbencooper.co.uk/
https://www.rbchristianradio.net/
Broadcasting across.
Speaker 2:Welcome to Reverend Ben Cooper's podcast. We are a radio and podcast ministry based here within the UK. Your support is vital through prayer and through sowing a seed of faith. We are so thankful to have so many people around the globe downloading and listening to our podcasts. Thank you, as you partner with us as we reach the world for Jesus Christ. Please send us an email through our contact form on pastorbencoopercouk. Also, you can find our latest books on Amazon under hashtag one, hashtag two and hashtag three under Christian Straight Talk hard-hitting, real-life conversations taken from our podcasts.
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Speaker 3:Good evening wherever you are across this world.
Speaker 3:May God bless you and strengthen you in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. We're going to jump straight in. We're going to jump into the Gospel of John. We're in John, chapter 20, and we're going to go to verse 24. I believe this is a really interesting subject that many, many people are looking for, and the word is peace. We're looking for peace in our lives, I really believe, with everything that's going on across the world, everything that's happening, you know, in certain areas of life and certain people and certain situations at work, school life, you know, ministry, church, especially in the world. You know peace is such an important part of our lives and if you look at this scripture that we're in and we want to welcome everybody, wherever you are tonight across the world, you know peace is such an important part of our lives and if you look at this scripture that we're in and we want to welcome everybody, wherever you are tonight across the world, for those that are on the social networks, for those that are following us online, for those that are on rb, christian radio, wherever you are at this moment in time, we just want to say thank you very much from the very bottom of our heart.
Speaker 3:Tonight the podcasts are accelerating. Everything's moving in the right direction. So may God bless you and strengthen you. But just coming back to where we started, and we want you to break bread with us tonight, to take it a cup and we just want to lay out there across this table tonight. You know, I find this is really, really important and I think this is really important that we seek God like never before. We are living in really interesting times. We're living in really interesting times. We're living in really powerful times. We're living in times when we're waiting for the second coming of Christ. The world is being prepared. There are a lot of things happening in life, out of life church, unchurch, you know, all types of areas of life. So much is happening at this moment in time and I really believe that there are so many people that are looking for the word peace. And as we go to the scripture, I just want to just try and put this thought and this message in our heart.
Speaker 3:So, wherever you are across the world, and as we just study the word, we're in the Gospel of John, chapter 20. And it's about good old doubting Thomas, and sometimes I think Thomas has been given a bit of a raw deal with that name there, doubting Thomas. I think Thomas is just being literally raw and real. And I think Thomas is just being literally raw and real. And I think Thomas is just coming straight out of that barrel of truth, you know, and when you read this text, when you really dive into it and you have a good look at what's going on, it's quite interesting the way that he is with those believers around him and everything that's happening in his life. So let's start off.
Speaker 3:We're in John, chapter 20, verse 24, and it says now thomas, called didymus, one of the 12, was not with the disciples when jesus came. So the other disciples told him we have seen the lord. But he said to them unless I see the marks in his hand and put my fingers where the nails were and put my hand inside into his side, I will not believe. A week later, the disciples were in the house again and thomas was with them, though the doors were locked. Jesus came and stood amongst them and said peace, be with you. When, uh, he said this to them thomas, put your finger here, uh, see my hands, reach out and put your hand into my side, stop doub doubting and believe. Thomas said to him my Lord and my God. Then Jesus told him because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen me yet and believed.
Speaker 3:You know, this is a really interesting scripture. We've got so much to get from this, but I really believe with all my heart that there are so many of us, you know, in church, out of church, you know following God and everything that goes along with what we're doing and what we're understanding in life. I really believe that there are many, many of us that are really craving, really looking for peace, really looking for hope. The Bible tells us very, very clearly that perfect love drives out all fear. So the love of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, the word of God, does drive out fear. So the love of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, the word of God, does drive out fear. But we've got to be extremely careful because we're living in a world that's completely anti-Christ, that is not for God in any way, shape or form. So when you analyze the word peace, when you really look at that, you know, do we get peace through finances? Do we get peace through work? Do we get peace through individuals? Do we get peace through materialism? Where do we find peace? Do you get peace in church?
Speaker 3:I find it's very, very difficult to get peace in church and through religion because that's almost impossible, because church and religion is extremely loud and even materialistic ways, even though we're Bible-believing believers. People have got to have mortgages, we've got to pay rents, we've got to have vehicles, we've got to have this and we've got to have that. So there is a certain area of our life where we are literally caught in what we call a rat race of life and it's really important that we seek Christ. You know money won't bring peace. You know fame doesn't bring peace. The social networks don't bring peace. You know certain areas of family life doesn't bring peace, peace, certain areas of family life doesn't bring peace Work, education, schooling, ministry, church life.
Speaker 3:What actually brings peace? The Bible says seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and everything else shall be added unto thee. Seeking Christ is the ultimate fruit of the word of God. As I mentioned earlier, the Bible says perfect love drives out all fear. Perfect love, the love of God, the love of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the love of the Word. You know, do you really? This is a question I'm asking myself Do I really love God? Yes, I do love God. Do I get frustrated? Yes, I get frustrated, you know. Are you looking for that place of rest in your spirit, your mind, your heart? Are you looking for that place of rest in your spirit, your mind, your heart? Are you looking for that place just to bring? Are you looking for this place just to go straight into this place of peace? You know, the world is in turmoil. The world is looking for this almost magic button. It's trying everything, this place of escapism. It's trying so many things just trying to look into this place of peace.
Speaker 3:The only place that we get peace is through the word of God. And even then, even then, the devil comes in and tries to attack us. Even then the devil comes in and tries to take away, you know, that foundation that we have. You know the devil loves to try and destroy people's lives by robbing us of peace, by taking away that area of life. Because if he takes away peace, if he takes away that area, if he wrestles us down with fear and doubt and worrying, and this thought and that thought, and the ifs and buts and possiblities and the maybes. If he can grab all that sort of stuff, he's taking that peace out of us. You know peace is everything. You know peace. The Bible says peace, the peace of God surpasses all understanding. It goes beyond knowledge, it goes beyond the thoughts, it goes beyond the realms of life. Peace is priceless.
Speaker 3:So when you look at Thomas in this situation, I find it really, really interesting that, as you follow this scripture, for it says now Thomas called Did didymus, one of the 12 was not with the disciples when jesus came. So thomas was out, he was missing in action. You know, the other disciples were there and and everything was going off. Then suddenly they see christ. Christ steps into the arena of their life. And it says so the other disciples told him we have seen the lord. You know this is so true to church in certain ways, when you think about this we have seen the Lord, we've been at church today. You didn't make church today. Church last week was amazing. You know God was really in the house.
Speaker 3:And have you ever been sitting in the line of people where you find everybody else is really shouting the name of Jesus and really seeking him and looking for all that sort of stuff, and that they're speaking in tongues and they're worshiping and they're crying and all that. And you're just in the middle of the church and and you're saying, lord, where are you? You feel like you've been left out. You know and thomas is a really interesting character, uh that the the writer, the, the gospel writer, john is writing about and and he's questioning. He says listen, I don't want this, listen, I don't want this secondhand knowledge. I don't want this knowledge that is coming on the back end of what you've had. I need Jesus for myself. And I really believe the hit points in our lives where we've got to say I need Jesus for myself, I need Christ for myself, I need the Messiah, I need the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, I need this saviour of the world. I need Jesus to really speak into my life. Tonight I really need the living word, I need this word of hope, I need this gospel of truth, I need the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. I need the Holy Ghost in my life like never before. Does anybody feel like that tonight, that they're in this position?
Speaker 3:They're in this situation in life when you're really seeking their father's hand, when you're really looking for God and you're really calling out on the greatest name in heaven and earth, and sometimes it goes quiet, sometimes it just seems to disappear off the peg. You know, nothing seems to be happening, if anything. Things seem to be getting worse, things that are getting really tiring and really exhausting, things just seem to be really awkward and don't seem to be right and and don't seem to be right and you can't seem to get into the rhythm of life. And there are things coming this way, things from that way, errors here, there and everywhere, and you're just trying to work out your salvation with fear and trembling and everything you try in life. You're just longing for peace, you're longing for this time of rest, you're longing for a place to be still, you're longing for these areas.
Speaker 3:You know, is there anybody out there that just feels like Thomas? Is there anybody out there that just feels this way in time, that you're just looking and you're hungry to find this place of just complete rest, a place where you can rest in Christ, a place where you can rest in the Word, a place where you can rest in Jesus, a place where you can just sit in and under the umbrella of God. You know, if you turn to Psalm 91, you know that's a beautiful psalm that will bring you peace and that will give you some form of protection, as in your thought pattern and in your life. But when you look at the word peace, it is something. There is something. It is a word that can be so far off the peg. It is a word that can be so far removed from life and from culture and from relationships and from home life and from workspace and from education and ministry and church.
Speaker 3:You know, peace is the word that we're all longing for in our lives. We just crave this peace, we crave this place to rest, we crave this place to, and we look for it in materialism, we look for it in work, we look for it in business, we look for it in church and ministry, we look for it to keep busy. If I can keep busy, keep myself active, you know, sometimes we have to deal with certain things in our lives and we have to bring them to the cross of calvary and sometimes it can be brutal, sometimes it can be so difficult to deal with stuff that is in our face that we're we're finding it really uncertain. You know uncertain territory. You know, we've not sailed this way before. We run in uncharted waters, we, we don't feel comfortable, something isn't right.
Speaker 3:I'm just trying to seek god, but but I've got the foxes at this side, I've got the foxes at that side. I've got the little dogs nipping at my ankles, at my feet, and I'm just trying to find this way forward. I'm just trying to find this place of hope. I'm just trying to find this place where I can just rest in Jesus. I can just find this place of hope. Do you need hope tonight? Hope and peace, they run parallel together.
Speaker 3:You know, when you look at the scriptures, you know about hope and you look at peace. You look at the love of God and the love of Christ. You know the Bible says seek ye first, the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and everything else shall be added. You know, seek the kingdom, seek his righteousness, seek the love of God, seek the power of the Holy Spirit, seek the Father's face. You know, seek in the word. It takes everything. It takes everything we got to get into the scripture. It takes everything we got to get into the word. It takes everything we've got.
Speaker 3:You know, the distractions of life, the distractions of life are just trying to distract us. What are they trying to distract us from? They're trying to distract us from the power of the word of God because the world wants to keep us away from the word. If the world and then the enemy and society and culture can keep us away and keep us busy and active with thoughts, with worries, with fears, with the possibilities and the maybes, if we can keep ourselves active like that, what certainly happens is that we take our eyes off of Jesus. And the Bible is extremely clear.
Speaker 3:You know, in Hebrews, chapter 12, keep your eyes, keep your eyes on Jesus, the author, the perfecter of your faith. Keep focused on Jesus Whatever you do. Keep your eyes on Jesus Whatever you do. Seek Jesus Whatever you do. You know, keep the word of prayer going. Keep the word of hope rising. You, jesus, whatever you do, you know, keep the word of prayer going. Keep the word of hope rising. You know, never give up. You know God is with each and every one of you, wherever you are across the world. We pray for such an out point of your spirit over your lives that the glory of God and the favor of God and the anointing of God and the power of the Holy Spirit will strengthen you and carry you in the name of Jesus. So, wherever you are at this moment in time, we want to encourage you to be brothers and sisters of the word. We want to encourage you to be them vessels, them vessels that carry the word. We want to encourage you to be them wineskins that carry that new word. You know, wherever you are today, may the power of God and the love of the Holy Spirit be resting over you, sitting within you and around you. May the power of God just be love of the Holy Spirit be resting over you, sitting within you and around you. May the power of God just be upon you and through you in every area of your life, and we pray that you will find peace.
Speaker 3:But when you look at this great text that we're in, when you look at the Gospel of John, chapter 20, when you read about Thomas, he was doubting. He was doubting. I've got to see this. I've got to see Christ for myself. I've got to see the Savior. I've got to find this King for myself. I've got to have an encounter with Jesus. I just can't have secondhand knowledge. I just can't have all this secondhand stuff. I've got to find Jesus, I've got to get myself into a position where I seek his face I don't want to know any more about.
Speaker 3:Are you tired about hearing about revivals? You know, when you take that analogy and you look at that situation, revivals we're so good at reading and talking about what was great, revivals of old, and great things happened and, and pastors and leaders and ministries, what was? I want to know. What is now? You know? I want to find this god that is of now. You know when, when they ran down to the tomb, when they ran down to that tomb and and the said he's not here, he has risen. You know we serve a risen God. We serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Jesus Christ has risen. Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God. You know the God that we serve, the God of Isaac, jacob and Abraham, the God of Israel, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, this triune Godhead that is with you. The power of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, the living Word of God, the active Word of God, the power of the Word of God is with you wherever you are, and we pray that you will feel the fire of God and the love of the Holy Spirit and I pray that God will lead you into gospel truths, that Jesus will lead you to the Word.
Speaker 3:It's great having church. Church is great All the stuff that goes along with church and everything on the parameters of that and around the wheels and the mechanisms of church. But it's not the church that I need, it is Jesus Christ. I need Jesus Christ in my life like never before. I need the Father's arms, I need the Father's love. I need the Father to wrap us up. We need the Father to speak to us. How does the Father speak to us? He speaks through the Word. He has spoken through the 66 books. He has spoken through the Gospels. He has spoken through the epistles. He has spoken through Revelation. He has spoken through the prophetic books. He's spoken through Psalms. He's spoken through the Old Testament. He he's spoken through Psalms. He's spoken through the Old Testament. He speaks through every book. You know the word of God is power and life.
Speaker 3:If you are feeling down, if you are feeling worried, if you are feeling tired, if you are feeling weary and exhausted, I want to encourage you tonight to get in the scripture, to rest in the living word of God and feel the power of God and just feel that loving arms of Christ, you know. Do you need them? Arms of Christ around you tonight? Have you had a bad day, a bad week, a bad month, a bad year, a bad area of life? Are you going through worries and fears? Do you feel like Thomas at this moment in time? Unless I see the evidence, unless I see the now marks, unless I can touch, unless I can physically see this through perception, unless, if I cannot see, if I cannot touch, I will not believe. You know, this takes great courage. This takes courage when you think about that.
Speaker 3:Jesus, please, will you show up? I really need you, lord, because my faith is tired, my bones are tired, my thoughts are tired. Lord, I need the word of God, father, I need you to show up, lord. Will you show up in my life, lord, will you reveal yourself to me? Will you just reveal the living word to me tonight, lord, I need you to show up, lord, because everybody else, just like the story of doubting Thomas, just like Thomas called Didymus, just like Thomas. I need you to show up, jesus. I need you, dear God, to show up on my watch. I need you to reveal yourself. I need you, dear God, to speak to me. Do you need Jesus tonight? I need Jesus. I need the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. Do you need the Word of God tonight? I need the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. Do you need the Word of God tonight?
Speaker 3:The Bible says Seek ye first, the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and everything else shall be added unto thee. Seek the Father's face, seek the Holy Spirit, seek the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Seeking Jesus is the way forward In every area of life. There is a scripture that applies to our lives. There is scripture that is applicable to every situation. There are scriptures that are for you tonight. There is a word that is for you tonight.
Speaker 3:Maybe you feel just a little bit like Thomas. Maybe you feel a bit lost in society. Maybe you just feel a bit lost in life. Maybe you just feel a bit lost in yourself and everything is breaking out, everything seems to be odd, nothing seems to sit right. You know, I believe God is chiseling and God is calling and God is shaping and God is bringing, bringing you, bringing me, bringing all of us to a place of complete surrender. You know the power of surrender. Surrender is a real big, really big, interesting word.
Speaker 3:When you think about surrender, when you think about the power of surrender, when surrender comes in the arena, it means I give everything over, I hand everything over to Jesus. I've got to give everything to Christ, I give everything to him in a world that is completely tangible and touchable and everything is visual and everything is around me. I see everything. It's here, there, it's everywhere. When you look at life and life itself, when you really gauge everything, you know the cups here, the phones here, the iPads are here, the laptops, the mics, the books, everything goes on. It's here. I see it and I don't need to say that I believe it because my eyes tell me it's here.
Speaker 3:But, just like Thomas, he said I've got to see. Are you in this position in your life tonight where you're saying to yourself I've got to see Jesus, I've got to see this Jesus, I need to see Jesus. Are you in a position in your life where you've got to see Jesus? I've got to find this Christ, I've got to find the face of God. I've got to get into the Word. I've got to get this Word in my spirit. I've got to get these scriptures in my heart. I've got to get into Jesus. I've got to get in the Word. I've got to get in there, no matter what else. Everything else will fade away. You know the grass comes and goes. The Bible says the flowers fade. You know, the grass withers away, but the word of God stands forever.
Speaker 3:The word of God is the foundation that we need to build on. You know, within the context of church. You know we are highly biblically illiterate within the UK, which is really, really interesting. You know, even pastors and leaders are not of the word. They're not in the word, they're not preaching the word. In many, many areas of life. We've got this woke gospel message, which isn't even a gospel message, but you know what I'm saying. We've got this weak presence of preaching from pulpits. What we need is the fire and the power of the word of God and you know we've got these pockets of this unusual teaching from denomination to denomination. What we need is power through the word. What we need is the latter day reign. What we need is the word of God. You know we need the word. Every one of us needs a word, whether whatever religion context we're in, from the Church of England to the Pentecostal movements, from there to the evangelical, to Catholicism, to every movement under the sun.
Speaker 3:You know, we are nothing without Jesus. We can't worship foreign gods, we can't worship human beings. We've got to worship the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. There is nothing like following Jesus, there is nothing like being a disciple of the Most High. You know, following Christ is the greatest and most beautiful thing that you'll ever do in your life. Not following a human being, not following humanity, not following the crowd, but following Jesus, being a Jesus follower, being someone that follows Yahweh, jehovah Jireh, jehovah Nissi, jehovah Shalom. You know, following Christ, you know following Christ is so powerful.
Speaker 3:But just like Thomas, just like Thomas of Didymus, you know, come to this point in your life, in your church, walk in your faith, walk in your walk as a human being and say Jesus, my life, my life needs a reflection of you. Today, lord, you've got to show up because everything, lord, I've got the doors locked down, I've got the windows bolted down, lord, everything is bolted down, lord, and I need you to show up in my life. And what I love about this text, when you think and then you read about this. It says unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my fingers where the nails were and put my hands in his side. I will not believe. That is so open, that is so authentic, that is so true, that is so powerful that Thomas is saying I've got to see this king. I think sometimes in our lives we've reached points where we've got to be open with the church and the audience around us and the people in our lives. And we points where we've got to be open with the church and the audience around us and the people in our lives and we say I've got to see the king.
Speaker 3:I can't go anymore on secondhand revival knowledge. I can't go anymore on secondhand stuff. I need to see the king for myself. I need this jesus in my life. I cannot go on the back end of what you've seen in your experiences. I respect you for that.
Speaker 3:But I need Jesus for myself. I need the King to show up. I need the Word to be revealed to me. I need this power of God in my life. I need this Word. I need the Saviour, I need the Redeemer. I need the coming King. I need the Holy Spirit. I need this God of Israel. I need the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit.
Speaker 3:I need the word in my life because everything else seems to be falling, everything else around me seems to be decreasing, everything around me seems to be fragile, everything around me feels like broken glass. Everything around me, lord, just feels like I'm building on sand. And when the rain came down, you know what it's like, according to the word, when we build on sand, when we build on this stuff that is not strong enough to withstand the storms of life. The rain came, the winds blew, you know the river, when the river and the torrent, you know when the rain punches up, when the rain comes down, when the flood starts to hit sand, you know the flood is so strong, it destroys the sand, it takes it out.
Speaker 3:But if I build on the rock, I believe that we've got to get back to basics. I believe that we've got to get back to scripture. We've got to get back to sound doctrine. We've got to get back to sound doctrine. I really believe with all my heart across the world, that we are. We are lacking, especially in the uk, in the uk sound doctrine.
Speaker 3:You know the doctrine of grace, the power of the word of god, and wherever you are across the world, I pray that that you will hear sound teaching, that you will know that your redeemer lives, and, and wherever you go to church and whatever church you're in and wherever you are, I pray that the word is preached with authority and power and strength, that you feel the love of Jesus through the word. And when you go to church, you feel the very presence of the word being spoke. You feel the very presence of God. You know the word is power. The word is freeing. You will know the truth and the truth will set you free. There is power. The word is is freeing. You will know the truth and the truth will set you free. There is power in the gospel of christ. There is power in surrender.
Speaker 3:But we are so frightened I won't say we may be a majority, maybe there are people around us that we are frightened of surrender. When we surrender, what does surrender mean? We literally put our hands up and we say that's it. I'm completely there, I'm completely at the door, I've completely reached this place. I've completely got to this stage in my life. Lord, I surrender, lord, I've run out of bullets, I can't defend myself, I can't fight anymore. You know the white flag goes up when we surrender. You know, that's it.
Speaker 3:We put our hands up and so often we need we don't actually, and so often we don't put our hands up and say, lord, I surrender everything I've got. Lord, I surrender myself. Lord, I want you to take my heart, I want you to take my mind, I want you to take my thoughts, I want you to take everything about me. Lord, I want you to shape me, I want you to put me on the potter's wheel. You know, I think that's a great place to be is to be upon the potter's wheel, to be shaped, to be molded by the hand of God, to be in the master's hands, to feel the master at work, to feel the love of God, to feel the goodness of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, just to feel the riches of his grace, to feel the understanding that God is with me. God is moulding me. You know, wouldn't that be great to know that you are being moulded by the master's hands, by the hands of the father, by the hands of Jesus, by the hands of the creator, by the hands of the king of kings and the Lord of lords? Wouldn't that be beautiful to know that these hands have you in every situation? You know.
Speaker 3:So when you look at Thomas, you know he's got that rural name out there. You know Doubting Thomas. But Thomas, known as Didymus, one of the 12. So you can be one of the 12. You can be a disciple and still doubt. You can be a disciple and still operate, sometimes in a bit of disbelief. You can still be a disciple and still be a bit unsure about all this stuff going on.
Speaker 3:The scripture tells us that he was one of the 12. He was one that was chosen by Jesus. He was one that was in the face of Jesus. But when the face of adversity comes and unfamiliar territory shows up on your doorstep, when that actually happens, it turns everything upside down. Jesus, are you around? We're coming to the table right now. So, wherever you are across the world, will you break bread with us? Will you take it a cup? We're going to just have a prayer and the prayer is going to lead us to the word, to the scripture. We're already in that, obviously, but we're going to take time now and we're just going to listen to this prayer and we're going to break bread and take it a cup. In the name of Jesus, amen.
Speaker 1:I invite you to say the Lord's Prayer with me, our Father, who art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us of our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Speaker 3:Amen. Thank you, jesus, thank you, lord. You know that's a powerful prayer, isn't it? The Lord's Prayer? Wherever you, jesus, thank you Lord. You know that's a powerful prayer, isn't it? The Lord's Prayer? Wherever you are across the world, as you join us on radio, as you join us on socials, as you join us on livestream in the world of podcasts, wherever you are at this moment in time, we pray that the fire of God, the fire of God, will rest over you, that the power of the Holy Spirit is with you. And as we break bread, will you, will you join us tonight? Will you join us in that place where we're going to take the bread and we're going to take it a wine, we will you join us tonight as we gather around the word, as, as we come to the table, as we rest. You know we're going to break this bread now, and remembering that this is not a religious exercise, this is a command, this has been given through the book of of exodus. It's really important that that I understand, as a bible believing believer, that this has been given to me. This has been given to me by, by god, through the word, through the power of the scripture. So let's break bread together tonight. You know we've got, we've got 15, we've got 14 minutes in the name of jesus. So let's just take our time. You know, and I pray if, if, if you, maybe.
Speaker 3:I feel sometimes just a little bit like Thomas, that I'm unsure, that I'm not quite certain, and you're tired of church and you're tired of everyone else in the parameters of life and around you saying I've seen Jesus, I've seen Jesus, thomas, I've seen Jesus. Do you know? Jesus was here, thomas? Do you know that he met with us? The Bible says a week later they was gathered and Thomas was with them. The doors were locked. Jesus came and stood amongst them and said peace, be with you. He said to Thomas place your finger here. You know God knows you need peace.
Speaker 3:I believe, in these moments of this service, as you cry out to God and you call on the greatest name, that the Holy Spirit will lead you. The Holy Spirit will bring peace to you tonight, that the fire of God will rest in your innermost being. Father, will you bless this bread tonight, as we break this bread, as it is symbolic to the body of Christ? And Father, I thank you for this bread as we break bread together tonight. Lord and Father, thank you that this bread symbolizes your body that was broken at the cross of Calvary. Lord, will you make a way in life where it seems to be so difficult? Will you make a way, lord, where things are so complicated? Lord, will you make a way, lord, lord, but I take this bread, lord, and I thank you for this bread because it symbolizes your body that was broken for me. So, father, thank you for this In Jesus' name. Amen.
Speaker 3:The Bible says in the same way after supper, he took the cup saying this cup is a new covenant. Do this in remembrance, you know, as we hold this cup, remembering this cup is the cup of redemption. This cup is the cup of hope, this cup is the cup of new beginnings, you know, and as we stand at the cross of Calvary tonight, should we ask Jesus to say, or should we ask Jesus to come into our lives and say Jesus, I want you to take my life tonight, lord, I want to be completely, solely relying on you. I need you in my life like never before, god, I really need you in my life, god, I really need you in my heart, my mind, body and soul. Lord, I really need you, jesus, like never before. Father, I need your fire over me, lord, I need your presence in my innermost being, in the skin that I'm walking in. Lord, will you cleanse me from the crown of my head to the sole of my feet, lord, lord, as I come to the cross, father, I thank you for the empty cross, the empty grave. The crib is empty, the cross is empty, the grave is empty, but the throne is where Jesus Christ is tonight and he's seated at the right hand of the Father, interceding for all the saints. So tonight, lord, so tonight, lord, will you cleanse us from the crown of our head to the soul of our feet, in Jesus' name, amen.
Speaker 3:There is power in the blood of Jesus. The blood of Jesus cleanses all. The blood of Jesus. The power of the word, the power of God is with you tonight, and we've got 11 minutes. We just got 11 minutes left tonight and we want to encourage you to be brothers and sisters of the scripture. We want to encourage you to be brothers and sisters of the word. We want to encourage you to literally throw yourself into the scripture, literally put everything you've got into the text, everything you've got. We want you to put everything that you've got into the Bible To lay everything out across the table. We want you to put everything on that, on the word.
Speaker 3:There is nothing finer than just trusting in god, trusting in the word, trusting in the messiah like never before, just laying everything at his footstool, laying everything at the cross, just just immersing yourself in the scripture, even when it doesn't make sense, even when it doesn't seem to line up and your life doesn't line up and nothing lines up and there are blurred lines and there are foggy days and there are days of doubt and there are days of fear, days of uncertainty, there are days of of a mixed bag of emotions. You know we live our lives by emotions, but the bible says the just shall live by faith. He doesn't tell us to live by emotions, because emotions will take us everywhere, emotions will fire us all over the place. But faith, faith, the just shall live by faith. When I live by faith, I live in the word. I trust jesus for the word that this word is going to bring freedom. This word is going to bring hope. That this word is going to bring freedom. This word is going to bring hope. That this word is going to set me free.
Speaker 3:So, as we come to a close, you know, in around about nine minutes. Alex is just going to say a prayer, but we're just going to take a moment now and we pray for you. We pray for each and every one of us here tonight, us two in the studio, and we pray for everybody online, wherever you are across the world. If you're listening on radio on the other side of the, wherever you are on radio, may God bless you. Wherever you are on the social networks with us tonight. May the Holy Spirit, you know, may God bless you too. And for those in the world of podcasts, may the power of God you know, the power of God you know, as you listen to these podcasts back. May God strengthen you. May God strengthen you in the name of Jesus, amen.
Speaker 4:Let us pray. Lord Jesus, tonight I bring you my doubts and my questions, just like Thomas did. Thank you for loving me even when my faith felt weak. Help me to trust you you deeper, to believe, even when I cannot see. Reveal yourself to me In the first way. Tonight I declare, just like Thomas my Lord and my love Strengthen my heart, fill me with peace, lead me to faith, lead me to the cross, amen. Amen.
Speaker 3:Father. We come to you tonight, lord, and we pray for such an outpouring of your Spirit. Lord, we pray for such an outpouring of your Spirit, in the name of Jesus, that you will strengthen us in all things, father, that you will strengthen us in all things, everything that's going on, will you keep us strong, will you keep us focused on the Word? Lord, focus that our vision, our vision, our eyes, our focus, lord, is on Jesus. So, lord, we pray tonight for the love of God and the richness of the word, the richness of the Holy Ghost, the richness of Scripture. We come to you, lord, we come to the cross and we bow at the cross tonight, lord, and we surrender. You know that word surrender is a real big, heavy word to humanity. You know surrendering in certain areas of life. You know it's almost like you failed because you've given. But there's nothing more greater, there's nothing more beautiful, there's nothing more powerful, I should say, than surrendering to jesus. It's not giving in, it's handing over, it's just saying yes, lord. Yes, will you take me, lord? Yes, lord, I surrender. Yes, lord, I'm yours. Yes, lord, I give you my heart. Interestingly enough to know that god has our heart, but he wants to hear. So, wherever you you are tonight, I pray whatever you face in the circle of life, whatever you see in the areas of life, I pray that the presence and the fire of God and everything, everything in your life, will just lead you to the cross, lead us to the cross, and when we get to the cross, the word of God will open up. The word of God will open at the cross of Calvary. Word of god, we've just got a few minutes, literally a few minutes. You know we're knocking on the door of like six minutes and, uh, wherever you are after the camera goes off, you know that the music will continue. The the word will, you know, be on on later on tomorrow.
Speaker 3:You can listen back, listen to all this stuff. In the world of podcasting it's pretty simple to find. You just go to Reverend Ben Cooper's podcast and you can download everything. You can listen to us and all the stuff that goes along with that, all the different platforms that we're on. We just pray tonight that you'll feel the love of God and the spirit of God will strengthen you, that the Holy Spirit will lead you, that the fire of God will strengthen you, that the holy spirit will lead you, that the fire of god will stir you. You know that there is a, there is a calling on your life that you will fulfill. The calling that you will fulfill this, this, this, this burning hunger that you got, that you will fulfill this. You know, alex is just going to say something as we come to the close of the service, but let the fire of God lead you, be led by Jesus Christ.
Speaker 4:Each time we've gone onto radio, all our figures have gone up, even on Buzzsprout as well. Amen, Alex.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:And every time any podcast ever record is live, it goes at the same time the next day on the radio. Now, there you go.
Speaker 3:So everything gets caught up the next day on the radio. Now there you go. So everything, cat, gets caught up the next day. You know you can just scroll through. You know an endless library of services that we've done, an endless library of bible studies, podcasts. You know sermonizing. You know prayer times this, this hour, that hour, coffee, prayer. You know so much sort of stuff is just it's just out there.
Speaker 3:But we pray that, wherever you are tonight, that the love of god and the holy spirit will really lead you. We've spoken about faith. We've spoken about hope, we've spoken about across the calvary and everything that goes along with that. We just got a few minutes. Let's just stay in prayer. Wherever you are across the world, let's just stay in this prayerful position. You know, maybe you're commuting, maybe you're at home, maybe you feel really upset, maybe you feel down, maybe you're having a mountain experience where you're really feeling. You know that God is with me today, that I'm really feeling that there is significant change in my life today, that the power of God is just, is with you. Maybe you're having that pinnacle, that moment, you know, and we thank God for those moments.
Speaker 3:And wherever we are, let's just remind ourselves that we don't live. We do not live our lives by emotions, but we live our lives by faith. We live our lives by the word, we live our lives by scripture. We live our lives by hope. We live our lives because our Redeemer lives and because he lives, we can face tomorrow. Let's just pray, as I said a moment ago, father, in the name of Jesus, we pray for every one of us, whether, lord, god, we're on radio, whether we're on socials, whether we're on live stream in the world of podcasts, audio voice visualization, whatever that may be.
Speaker 3:We pray, father, for such an outpouring of your Spirit. We pray, father, that you will just pour out your Spirit over us tonight, every one of us, lord, that we are craving. We are craving, we're hungry for peace. We need peace in our lives, lord. We need that word, that word of hope, that word of faith. We need the cross, the cross of Calvary. As we look at the cross, father, we thank you that the cross is empty, that the crib is empty, the grave is empty and you're seated at the right hand of the Father, interceding for all the saints.
Speaker 3:As you intercede for us, father, as you stretch out from heaven and as you look upon this earth, father, as you are in control of every situation, help us to surrender our thoughts tonight, lord. Our mind is racing. Our thoughts, father God, are tiring us out. Our bodies might be weary because of this thought pattern. These thoughts are just tearing us to pieces, lord, help our mind tonight, lord. Father, we pray that the grace of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, that grace will abound. So tonight, lord, let your love, your mercy, just descend on us tonight. Just descend on us tonight, lord, and let faith, lord, just be wrapped around us. Let faith just wrap itself around us tonight, lord, please, god, please, god, draw us closer, bring us, father, into the Father's arms, help us in all things. Stretch down tonight over us, lord and Father, as we come to this close, as we rest in the Father's arms.
Speaker 3:We thank you for the word. The word is power, the word is life, the word is hope, the word is yes and amen. Lord, in this minute and a half, father, we pray that, wherever we are across the world, that we will feel the love of Jesus. The love of Jesus, lord, that you will take away the doubts. That you will take away the doubts, that you will take away those Thomas moments of insecurity. And, father, you will replace that. You will replace that, lord, with yes, lord, it's okay. Thank you, father. You're guiding me, lord, you're strengthening me, lord, you're with me. Lord, your word is inside of me. Your word is sharper than a double-edged sword and, father, I thank you that your word is truth, your word is hope. Your word is sharper than a double-edged sword.
Speaker 3:So tonight, lord, as we click out, as the cameras disappear, we pray, lord, for every human being that is listening to us, listening to you tonight, lord, should I say that they will find rest, that they will find peace, that they will know that their redeemer, for every human being that is listening to us, listening to you tonight, lord, should I say that they will find rest, that they will find peace, that they will know that their Redeemer lives and because he lives, we can face tomorrow. Holy Spirit, take us to the place, the place where we can call home, the place that we can call the resting place. Take us, lord, where our hearts will find peace. Our hearts will just be laid down. So, thank you for joining us tonight, wherever you are across the world, as we close this service. May God bless you and strengthen you in the name of the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit, the.
Speaker 2:Lord is with you. God bless you from the crown of your head to the sole of your feet, in Jesus' name amen. Your questions and thoughts are important. You can send us a text or an email and we will get back to you. So, wherever you are around the world, thank you for listening to our podcasts and radio ministry. For more information about our ministry, please find us on pastorbencoopercouk. Please support us with prayer. Also, you can sow a financial seed into this ministry. You can also leave us a legacy to support and continue the work of this radio ministry. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and share it with others who might benefit. Until next time, stay blessed.
