المحتوى المقدم من Everyday Church. يتم تحميل جميع محتويات البودكاست بما في ذلك الحلقات والرسومات وأوصاف البودكاست وتقديمها مباشرة بواسطة Everyday Church أو شريك منصة البودكاست الخاص بهم. إذا كنت تعتقد أن شخصًا ما يستخدم عملك المحمي بحقوق الطبع والنشر دون إذنك، فيمكنك اتباع العملية الموضحة هنا https://ar.player.fm/legal.
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Threshold is a Peabody Award-winning documentary podcast about our place in the natural world. Each season, we take listeners on a journey into the heart of a complex environmental story, asking how we got here and where we might be headed. In our latest season, Hark, we hand the mic over to our planet-mates and investigate what it means to truly listen to nonhuman voices—and the cost if we don't. With mounting social and ecological crises, what happens when we tune into the life all around us? Threshold is nonprofit, listener-supported, and independently produced.
المحتوى المقدم من Everyday Church. يتم تحميل جميع محتويات البودكاست بما في ذلك الحلقات والرسومات وأوصاف البودكاست وتقديمها مباشرة بواسطة Everyday Church أو شريك منصة البودكاست الخاص بهم. إذا كنت تعتقد أن شخصًا ما يستخدم عملك المحمي بحقوق الطبع والنشر دون إذنك، فيمكنك اتباع العملية الموضحة هنا https://ar.player.fm/legal.
Pep talks, podcasts and books about prayer will only get us so far. What do we do when the motivation to hit the snooze button is stronger than the urge to meet with our Heavenly Father? Elizabeth shares how we can use the Lord’s Prayer as a source of inspiration for our daily prayers.
المحتوى المقدم من Everyday Church. يتم تحميل جميع محتويات البودكاست بما في ذلك الحلقات والرسومات وأوصاف البودكاست وتقديمها مباشرة بواسطة Everyday Church أو شريك منصة البودكاست الخاص بهم. إذا كنت تعتقد أن شخصًا ما يستخدم عملك المحمي بحقوق الطبع والنشر دون إذنك، فيمكنك اتباع العملية الموضحة هنا https://ar.player.fm/legal.
Pep talks, podcasts and books about prayer will only get us so far. What do we do when the motivation to hit the snooze button is stronger than the urge to meet with our Heavenly Father? Elizabeth shares how we can use the Lord’s Prayer as a source of inspiration for our daily prayers.
We live in two kingdoms – the Kingdom of God and the dominion of darkness ruled by Satan whom Jesus has defeated on the cross. We are engaged in a war as the army of God. We are advancing God’s Kingdom and taking territory. Don’t be fearful, the devil is powerful but nothing against the power of God. The devil can’t read our minds but can listen to what we say about ourselves, God, and others. He sows division. Deception by its nature is hard to spot.…
Generosity reveals God's character. He is a generous God, doing more than we could ask or imagine (Ephesians 2). For God so loved the world that He GAVE. When we choose to be generous, we cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit as He transforms us from one degree of Glory into another. As believers, we know that the Holy Spirit is constantly at work within us, transforming us into the likeness of Christ. When we choose to be generous, we are keeping in step with the Holy Spirit in His work. We might say we want to be more like Jesus - being generous accelerates that process.…
If you throw a stone into water, you see ripples starting at the centre of where the stone hits the water. That is how the Kingdom life works. Kingdom life starts with you and affects the way you think, talk, do, and live. Just imagine how this world would look if everywhere there is darkness, it is replaced with light, love, and righteousness. Don’t we all want to see that?…
Understand some wonderful, foundational truths about what it means to be a Christian: In Christ, you are a new creation (our dirty clothes exchanged for his clean clothes), you are a child of God (you have a new birth certificate). You are no longer under law (like a spirit level), but grace, and that grace can help you live victoriously (trophy). Grasp these truths, get them deep into your thinking – it may take some effort – and they will totally transform your life.…
Foundations are important. If we are going to build we need to pay a lot of attention to them. It is always tempting to rush on but you will regret it. This is the same with the Christian life. Some key principles are in place at the start. Been a Christian for a while? Sometimes a bit of underpinning is timely. In the Book of Acts, Peter’s answer is foundational for all of us. Just like a chair needs four legs, he identifies 4 things that need to be in place: 1. Repentance – I need saving. 2. Faith in Jesus – Jesus can save me. 3. Baptism in Water – Jesus is my Lord. 4. Receiving the Holy Spirit – I need his power.…
Fasting on the day of atonement reminded the people of their dependence on God. We need to remind ourselves of that dependence. Our need for food means that when we fast, we do get hungry. That hunger reminds us of how dependent we are on God. When we are well fed, we can feel very powerful and independent. Hunger quickly reveals we are not as together as we think we are and we are quickly reminded of my desperate need of grace. Fasting deals a death blow to arrogance and pride and throws us back on God’s faithfulness.…
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Joy is not happiness – we will say in this season “Happy Christmas” but we are aware that for many around us, it is not a happy season. But it is a season of Joy. True Joy resides not in our circumstances but in God. In the birth of Jesus, the Joy of the Lord breaks into our world, for the Joy set before him Christ endured the cross (Hebrews 12), in the return of Christ Joy will break out as all fear, pain, and grief is ended. It is joy in the Lord which enables praise and worship amid the realities of life. Our praise is not dependent on our circumstances but on the character and faithfulness of our God.…
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
We live in a violent and war-torn world, from the breakdown of peace in the family to international conflicts, we need more peace in our lives. Biblical peace, shalom, relates to the presence of God, more than the absence of conflict. Jesus is described as the Prince of Peace and encourages us to be peacemakers. But what does that look like practically?…
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
Count down the days to Christmas with us and during this Advent take time to wait on God and make space for him to speak into our daily lives as image bearers and Kingdom bringers.
We are called to be hope bringers – living our lives on a foundation of hope and actively bringing hope to those around us through our presence in their lives, thus modelling the incarnation, and bringing the Kingdom to bear in our world through signs and wonders and social action - both of which are hope breaking into the here and now of our world.…
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Darren Parker and Simon Elliott as they discuss Mission In A Digital World as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Gavin Calver, CEO at the Evangelical Alliance, as he unpacks The Bigger Picture as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Simon as he unpacks Reaching The Next Generation as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Emma as she unpacks Overcoming Barriers To Evangelism as part of our City On A Hill series.
At the beginning of the book of Revelation, right at the end of the Bible, John (Jesus' disciple who wrote the gospel of John) gives us a picture of Jesus. He gives us a picture of Jesus that is both accurate and awe-inspiring.
This sermon message by Dave Holden is from our New Ground Service. New Ground is a family of churches led by Dave Holden and the New Ground core team. We believe that God has called us to play our part in His great mission to see many churches planted across the world and to see communities transformed by the love of Jesus. Find out more here: https://newgroundchurches.org/…
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Simon as he unpacks the Digging The Soil as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Erich as he unpacks the Empowering Of The Spirit as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Simon as he unpacks the Sacrifice Of The Son as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Tim as he unpacks the Father Heart Of God as part of our City On A Hill series.
God has a mission and he wants us to join in. Come with us as we look at God's heart for his Kingdom mission and allow him to transform us in the process. Join Simon as he introduces the City On A Hill series.
Pep talks, podcasts and books about prayer will only get us so far. What do we do when the motivation to hit the snooze button is stronger than the urge to meet with our Heavenly Father? Elizabeth shares how we can use the Lord’s Prayer as a source of inspiration for our daily prayers.
Vision matters. It shapes our lives. Our view of the future ultimately shapes our present. In the mundane and the life changing our vision shapes us for good and for bad.
What… comes…next? One of the biggest and most prominent questions that humanity has grappled with since its beginning. Heaven and Hell, or reincarnation, or resurrection, or becoming one with the universe, or nothing at all. Everyone has their own idea of what the afterlife entails. And that’s because it’s the one life experience that affects us all, everybody dies. But simultaneously its all the one life experience that we can never definitively prove one way or the other. But what does the Bible say? And is it the same as what we think the Bible says? That’s what we are going to look at.…
Death is the one great constant of human existence. Eventually, it comes for us all and has been the enduring obsession of human thought through every age. We are desperately aware of our own mortality. We do all we can to prolong our fragile lives. The story of humanity is a story of getting what you can, while you can, at the expense of the other. A story, if you like, of raging against the dying of the light.…
If you ever had concerns about Spiritual Gifts like speaking in tongues, then you are not the only one. The Corinthians also struggled with how it should be used. This is due to their background (unchurched) and experiences with Pagan worship services (enthusiastic in nature). Paul reassures them and us that nobody speaking in the Spirit is disrespecting God. The reality is that no one can say Jesus Christ is Lord without help from the Spirit. This is a reminder that anyone who genuinely has faith in Jesus, has the Holy Spirit in them, so no one is excluded, as we all have valuable gifts given to us for the benefit of the church.…
The reason these verses in 1 Corinthians 13 strike such a chord in our hearts is because love has been made known. The reverberating effects of love – expressed most powerfully through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ - wash like wave after wave after wave upon the shores of our lives. A love that is so, so desperately needed. In a fickle world, where love can so easily be distorted or devalued, his is the love that never fails. There is absolutely no way, in which the love of Christ has, or ever will, fail us. In any way. God is the author of love and therefore He is the one who gets to describe how it is to be displayed.…
The Communion is where we remember that Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice for us. His body was broken and his blood was shed so that we can have eternal life, that we can be reunited with God the Father. Because of what Jesus did we celebrate and we have Purpose, Meaning in Life. Because of this the offer stands for us all to receive forgiveness of all our sins, healing from all our shame, we are being made new. And we are being made one, because of what Jesus has done, we are all, yes all part of one family and there is now no separation, segregation, difference whatsoever.…
In scripture, the perfect understanding of submission and authority is found in Jesus. To display how men and women should handle authority and submission Paul points to the relationship between Men and Christ and between Jesus and the Father. In both cases, submission and authority are based on love and the choice to honour the other so that they might be lifted up.…
For some of us the topic of baptism may be completely foreign. You may have come across baptism to some degree in your experience, but really you feel it’s never had any relevance to you and your life. Maybe church is a new thing for you. If that’s you, we want to help explain what we mean by baptism and help you see how it could be relevant for you.…
The challenge for us today - in whatever we do, are we glorifying God? In whatever we say are we glorifying God? In how we host people, in how we build up and support our fellow Christians, are we glorifying God? In how we talk to people who don’t know Jesus, are we glorifying God? That’s the question that we all need to meditate on as we consider all our challenges, big and small.…
We celebrate the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on those first disciples, ten days after the risen Jesus ascended to heaven, as described in Acts 2. However, we are going to look at an event that happened 1,500 years beforehand, in Numbers 11. My hope is that as we look at Numbers 11 it increases both our thirst and our faith for receiving more of the Holy Spirit and his gifts. And that we ask the Holy Spirit to fill us every day; on Monday morning, before a business meeting, in conversation with an unbeliever, before Life Group, before going to a party. God has always wanted a Spirit-filled People. It’s been his plan, purpose, and priority from the very beginning. Your life, your church, and his world need you to be continually Spirit-filled. And thanks to Pentecost, you can be.…
We’re carrying on in our journey through Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, and we’re going to look at the last part of Chapter 9, and the beginning part of Chapter 10. And we could subtitle this section of Paul’s letter “you need spiritual discipline”. Paul is still in discussion about whether it is OK to eat food sacrificed to idols here. But the imagery He uses in these verses show us that he is actually broadening out his discussion to encompass the theme of spiritual discipline as a whole.…
Paul learned to be all things to all people - for the sake of the gospel. He thought about what would bring him close to people. He identified the barriers – and deliberately broke them down even if that meant surrendering precious rights. Let’s ask ourselves the same questions. - What brings me close? - Which of my rights have become barriers?…
Paul continues, sticking to the theme of knowing, or knowledge. Something that seems to have been a bit of an obsession to the Corinthians, with the word 'knowledge' mentioned more in this letter than in any other book in the New Testament. He's bringing this comment in here as to ask, what is more important - to know it all, or to be known and recognised by God. And who is the person who is known by God? The one who understands it all, the one with all the knowledge about the mysteries and will of God? No, those things are important, we are to seek to grow in knowledge - but more important than knowledge, as Paul will make it so clear once we reach chapter 13, is love.…
We will look at Paul's teaching on and affirmation of singleness. Then we will look at how we build communities of faith that honour both singleness and marriage. And finally, we will reflect on how Paul’s teaching challenges the spirit of our age, both in Corinth in the first century and in our world in the 21st century.…
Paul has recalibrated the Corinthians understanding on the importance and the place of sex in a believer’s life. He has done this by reinforcing the biblical foundations of sex as a covenant act within the biblical covenant of marriage. He has reminded them that the covenant of sex is rooted in creation and points towards the greater covenant between Christ and his church. In the previous chapters he has brought this teaching to counteract sexual promiscuity, now he is seeking to correct a misunderstanding about abstinence and celibacy within marriage. The first foundation Paul lays for his teaching is one of identity.…
As we celebrate Easter, we’re going to look at the most important promise ever made, one that changed the course of history, and a promise that we celebrate coming to pass at Easter. It’s the promise of the resurrection – when Jesus, the Son of God, died on a cross, and then rose from the dead three days later. Just as he said.…
We can see the issue for the Corinthians, and we can work through Paul’s arguments. But what about us? We live in a sex obsessed world. We all have our own sexual history both in terms of how we think and how we behave. How do we process this teaching without simply being paralysed by guilt and or shame? How do we apply this truth personally and corporately?…
The use of the past tense in this passage is hopeful as well as humbling. Paul is not setting them or us up for a fall. We do not have to give in to our flesh. We can move on from our petty intolerances. Because we have been washed, sanctified, and justified. God has done a work in us, is doing a work in us, and will finish the work he is doing in us on that day of days when Christ returns. We are not helpless or hopeless - which is what guilt tells us. We have hope in the one who promises to help.…
Your heart really matters to God. In a world full of distractions, we are called to guard our hearts and keep Jesus at the centre. Come with us as we discover the importance of God's grace, church community, and staying close to the Good Shepherd.
If we’re going to take collective responsibility for the holiness of the church, then we need to be sincere about our own discipleship, which will mean regularly dying to self. And we need a high bar on what we mean by Christian community, sharing lives and discipling one another, which will mean having difficult conversations with one another from time to time.…
Be patient with everyone. You are going to meet people in church or in Life Group who are going to rub you the wrong way. It’s just going to happen. But when we remember we are all made in the image of God, and if we remember what Paul said at the beginning of the letter to the Corinthians that none of us can boast that we are better than anyone else, then we can learn to have grace with one another.…
Paul is sarcastic about the Corinthian’s boasting which is rooted in pride – regarding one person as better than another in race, class, roles in the church, wisdom/eloquence, factions re leaders, and gifts of the Spirit. Paul followed the lead of Jesus, the God who came in low, fully God, fully man, – a picture of the ‘suffering servant’ who came low to serve, to die on the cross…
Paul starts of chapter 3, by DISCIPLING the Church to see with some clarity and conviction where they might be getting stuck. Where immature theology and worldly values ARE hindering them from a life of spiritual GROWTH. BUT… he ends the chapter by giving them a vision of how God sees them / of how God has positioned them / of what GOD has in store for them.…
The why question for the Corinthians revealed the problem of pride. Paul addresses their pride by reminding them that the gospel is the great leveller. Christians have no reason to boast because our salvation is all down to God. There’s no basis for feeling either superior or inferior to other believers. The challenge with pride is that its presence can be very subtle.…
Lots of people want Jesus without the cross. Limit him to being just a good moral teacher or a misunderstood martyr. But the cross is the whole point – the reason he came. His weakest moment – is his most powerful act! The cross is the deepest of mysteries – and the simplest of truths. What it achieves is within the grasp of a child or the most impaired of minds – and yet its full depths are beyond the sharpest of intellects and the most powerful of angels. It can be understood in a moment, but we’ll spend eternity exploring its wonders.…
There is disunity in the church and Paul will have none of it. In a world that is increasingly divided, polarised, antagonistic, self righteous and self centred it is vital for Paul that the church is unified. The church is meant to speak a better story to the world around it. Not that there will always be agreement on all issues, but rather that disagreements do not breed dissent, disruption and disintegration. Paul will pick up some of the details of their disunity in chapter three, but at this point, he begins to unpack the WHY behind the WHAT.…
We want to get into Corinthians because it is a book about mission. It is written by a man on mission, the church is the fruit of that mission and they are a people on mission. They have been blown off course. The success of the gospel in drawing people from every area of life is potentially their downfall. In their desire to be accessible and relevant to their city, they are in danger of becoming indistinguishable from their city. Paul is calling them back to the uniqueness, purity, unity, and power of the gospel not so they can become even more proud, but so they become even more missionally effective.…
Have you ever heard the saying it is better to give than receive? That sounds like the kind of sage advice you might see on an inspirational Instagram post, doesn’t it? Would it surprise you to know that it is actually from the Bible? The apostle Paul, in Acts chapter 20, said to his friends “remember the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Over the last couple of weeks we have looked at the gifts of Gold and Frankincense already, and today I want to focus on the gift of Myrrh. And I’m just going to come right out and say that Myrrh is a strange present to give to a toddler. It’s a sticky, fragrant, resin substance that’s extracted from a particular tree.…
These wise men bring gifts that would have made sense to them. These were valuable items, and they were bringing gifts for a King. But, as we are hinted at in Isaiah 60, these gifts were also part of God’s plan for revealing the true identity of this child. Offerings of thanksgiving and praise: o Gold – sovereignty and Kingship o Frankincense – this child is worthy of worship o Myrrh – death and sacrifice…
Even though Jesus at this point, is a small child, and born into humble origins, the son of a carpenter, he is in fact a King. The one and only King. King over all the earth. He’s not sitting in the palace with Herod, but nevertheless, he is a King. But what kind of King is he? We’re going to look at a few Kings in this passage to learn more about what kind of King Jesus is, and why we should do as the wise men do and bow down and worship him.…
God has the power to establish us by his grace. Paul’s message in his letter to the Romans: the gospel is the power of God for salvation for anyone who has faith in Jesus. As JI Packer said: ‘God saves sinners’. This transforms the way we live through the Holy Spirit. He is able to establish us, to make firm. We cannot save ourselves. Tim Keller: ‘The gospel is not done by us but done for us’ Jesus has lifted us out of the slimy pit: (Psalm 40:2 – ‘He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock; and gave me a firm place to stand’) – he has established us, made us firm in the salvation he has given us.…
So, should women stay silent? When we read this passage in a modern western context this is the question that tends to leap out of the text. Some of you may well have grown up in, or been part of a church that has limited the role of women in the church based on passages like this. Some would argue that it is clear – women should remain silent – that is what the verse says and, therefore, we simply apply what it simply says! However, we know that we should seek to understand any verse within the context of the original language and the overall context of the passage. So let us do that here...…
These verses succinctly define the purpose of prophesy as edifying those it’s spoken to. A hallmark of Holy Spirit inspired prophecy is that it builds people up, by strengthening, encouraging, or comforting them. This is in contrast to tongues, which is for self-edification. There are two dangers regarding the prophetic gifts that we ignore at our peril...…
Paul’s main point in these 25 verses is to stop the Corinthians from filling their church meetings with publicly given tongues that are not then interpreted, but rather to encourage them to eagerly desire the intelligible gifts of the Spirit, such as prophecy, so that everyone can understand what’s being said. Therefore, he argues, a publicly given tongue should be interpreted, so that everyone can understand the essence of what was said, whether by someone else or the tongue giver themselves, if no one else interprets it.…
Love gifts from the Holy Spirit that we are to eagerly desire! To operate in an atmosphere of love… "follow the way of love and eagerly desire". They are Gifts for a purpose. To build up the church (1 Corinthians 14:12) and empower the church to fulfil its commission.
we will unpack today, that if the love of God isn’t the underpinning of these gifts, then we are in danger of misusing or even abusing them, as appeared to be the case in the church in Corinth. As with all things that God entrusts to His people, if we are going to handle them well, the actual gift is not of primary importance, but the character of the one receiving it is.…
As we will keep reminding ourselves when talking about Spiritual Gifts – they are gifts to give away for the blessing of others. Is the giver also blessed in the giving – often yes. But gifts and ministries exist for the good of the community, not the aggrandisement of the one ministering. I am not a big fan of the word “ministries” but in scripture, the root of this word is the word servant and the verb to serve. It serves us well to remember that when Jesus teaches his Apostles on leadership he equates greatness in the Kingdom with servanthood not position. We must guard ourselves against seeking a platform and or putting someone on a pedestal.…
I've been asked to share my story with you today. And I am happy to do that, not because it is my story and I want people to know me - no, but because it is God's story in my life, and I love talking about God. And my prayer is also that while you're listening to me telling God's story in my life, God will encourage you about His story in your life. What He is doing, what He has been doing and what He will do. As I was praying together with Erich, my husband in preparation for this talk, he had the impression that God was saying; I see you. And my prayer is that as you hear me share a little bit of God in my life, you will know that the God who saw me, the God who sees me, is the God who sees you.…
Are you eagerly desiring God to do something in your life? Embracing spiritual gifts, learning about them, asking God for them, and being active in the way you’re practising them - is where purpose and faith flourish. It’s how the Church is equipped and built up. And most importantly, it’s one of the key ways that the glory of Jesus shines through our lives.…
A healthy church is a church that experiences the full array of spiritual gifts. A church where everyone has something, and no one has everything. Where no gift is universal, and no gift is missing. When someone brings a spiritual gift, rather than thinking, “I wish I had that gift”, ask the Holy Spirit, “What complementary gift do you want me to grow in?”…
We can say church is about many things: social action, community life, music, evangelistic outreach, emotional health, freedom. right living. They are all important, but we mustn’t make them idols. They are secondary, they are the consequence, not the cause. The focus and purpose of our gatherings above everything else is to encounter God to experience his presence amongst us – the fulfilment of the ancient Exodus promise – they will be my people and I will dwell amongst them. Everything flows from the presence of God amongst his people when they gather. That is what we eagerly desire above everything else.…
How do our vision and values and Jesus’ instruction to “seek first the Kingdom of God” work out in the busyness of life. One of the reasons that we get distracted from a Kingdom vision and onto the stuff of life, is because the stuff of life keeps coming at us. How do we hold on to the truth that Jesus reminded us of last week? We have to be intentional.…
Our vision shapes how we live. How we spend our: Time, Talent, and Treasure. We recognise that we can be so easily distracted and deterred from our identity and Kingdom calling by the stuff of life. We looked at Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount in which he seeks to recalibrate us around our eternal identity as children of the living God. It is that identity which enables us to prioritise our relational purposes in God.…
So we come to the final message in our tour of Colossians. We have: o Fixed our eyes on Jesus. o Unpacked biblical leadership. o Combatted the flesh. o Reminded ourselves that every area of life matters to God. Today we look at Prayer. We are going to look at prayer, because as we read through Colossians, there are multiple references to prayer. Using these verses as our source material we are going to ask ourselves some questions about prayer. What is prayer? How does Paul encourage us to pray?…
Viewing these verses from our modern culture, it would be easy to miss the point. A modern reader can be distracted by concepts of submission in marriage based on gender and the concept of slavery. These are huge subjects and we do not have time to unpack them fully here. However, when approaching both subjects we must remember that biblical submission never gives licence for abuse or oppression – indeed Jesus’ submission to the will of the Father and to human authority in his incarnation point to a foundation of humility that is sorely missing in our modern world.…
As we said in the first message of this series, Paul’s primary tactic in leading people out of, or away from the edge, of heresy is to fix their eyes on to the person and the work of Christ. This is exactly what he is doing here. When Paul says, “Therefore, do not let anyone judge you…” the inference is clear. They are being judged, and they are allowing themselves to be judged. It would appear that faithful followers of Christ are becoming unsure of their security and identity in Christ because they are not behaving in certain ways.…
We continue our series on Colossians. Last time we looked at the fact that Paul writes his letter to the Colossians because he wants to draw them back to the centrality of Christ. In the midst of a complicated world, Paul reminds them of the uniqueness of Christ and the fullness of the gospel. If we try and add anything to the gospel, we have departed from the gospel. Today we are going to look at the second theme we are drawing out of this amazing letter - Leadership.…
Although Paul is writing because his wider ministry is limited by imprisonment, he is not writing aimlessly. He writes with purpose. He has heard good reports about the faith of the believers in Colossae and he is broadly encouraged, but he also has some concerns about teaching they might be receiving and the impact it is having on the outworking of their faith. Hence, Paul speaks first to theology and then to practice. There does not seem to be the level of concern Paul has in other situations.…
The Exodus story points to the bigger story. It reveals patterns of redemption. A redemption pattern perfectly fulfilled in Jesus. But, the Exodus story and the metanarrative it points towards is not finished. This story is our story. The work of Christ is finished, but we are not yet finished.
God is giving Moses a blueprint for handling the Holy. You see, the presence of a holy God cannot be handled by sinful people and God is giving a pattern of how to handle the holy and how to be able to come into his presence as simple people. He is making a way, and this is the plan that is being unfolded to Moses. He writes it down in Exodus and we're going to look at that today and so the point of the Exodus that escape from Egypt is not just for Israel to find deliverance from serving the old master, it is for Israel to find delight in serving the new one. So that's what we're going to look at today. God makes a plan and a process for the people to serve and to worship.…
Around the Tabernacle at the centre of the camps were arrayed the 12 tribes of Israel. The Tabernacle was always set up right at the centre of the camp. It would have been the focal point of their communal life. The centre of their worship. To come and worship at the Tabernacle would have been a deliberate gathering together of God’s people near to his presence to praise. As followers of Jesus, this is what we’re called to do as well. To deliberately and intentionally prioritising gathering with other believers to praise and worship God. This means setting aside time in our diaries.…
Today we pick up the Exodus story in chapter 35, where Moses calls for a Special Offering to enable them to build the Tabernacle; a big, posh tent that God had instructed them to make. This turns out to be the most remarkable outpouring of generosity recorded in the Bible. You know it’s been a successful Special Offering when you’re told to stop giving as they have more than enough! That’s what happened.…
It is hard to trust God. It is hard to relate to a God who is invisible. Idolatry is not the answer – worship is the answer. Those of you who have been following the Exodus reading plan we put together for this walk through Exodus will know why Moses was taking so much time up the mountain. God knows us – God knows that we need tangible ways to connect with him. God’s original plan was that we would walk with him in the cool of the evening. God would restore this relationship through the incarnation. In this part of the restoration story God does it through the tabernacle. Whilst the people are complaining impatiently about God’s absence, God is revealing to Moses the plan for the Tabernacle – a physical representation of God’s presence in the midst of his people. In our season God encourages us to worship him in Spirit and in Truth. Worship is the antidote to idolatry. Worshipping full of the Holy Spirit. Worshipping from a foundation in the Word.…
Moses knew that the presence of God was the vital thing that set the Israelites apart. He says to God ‘What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth.’ The presence of God is vital in our lives, it is what defines who we are and sets us apart. We often use the language at Everyday Church that we are image bearers and kingdom bringers - bringing the kingdom and bearing the image of God wherever we go. And we can only do this through the presence of God in us and changing us! The presence of God is vital for mission, showing others that we are different and showing them who God is. Note how God gave his presence to Moses, ahead of his task to go through the wilderness to the Promised Land. God then pours out his presence through the Holy Spirit on Jesus, before he heads into the wilderness and for the ministry that lay ahead of him. Jesus then promises his presence to the disciples in Matthew 28, when he tells them to go and make disciples, and says for I will be with you!…
The why we do things is very important, they create a foundation to build on. God is calling us to be part of his family/part of his story. You are loved and cherished, he describes you as a treasured possession. He is calling you to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Priests are set apart by God to do his work and lead by example (no matter their age).…
When our days are filled with His presence, our hearts see transformation; our homes and families see transformation; and our communities see transformation. What could possibly be more exciting and purpose-giving in this life? That’s why Jesus was absolutely right when He said to the disciples in John 16: I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. Daily, being filled with the Holy Spirit – your Help - will always be part of God’s best plan for me and you. We always need Him far more than we could possibly realise. But by the grace of God, He’s always closer than we could possibly realise.…
The Sabbath is not about rule keeping, or point scoring. It's about a gift. Life in all its fullness. Observing the Sabbath forces us into a rhythm where being is more important than doing. Everyone is in a hurry; If it needs doing – do it now. If you want it – have it now! But God is never in a hurry! He is relentless – all his purposes come to pass, But he is never hasty. We need to watch the pace of church life: I’ve heard church leaders use the scale of the need as an excuse for hurry – “if we are going to see this many saved we need to reach this target by etc”…
God hasn’t changed. If he will provide what his people need then he will provide for his people now. God looks on at your situation and he will provide exactly what you need. Life at the moment is particularly hard, what are you lacking? Does it feel impossible? Do you trust God? It can be hard to trust that God is providing and will provide. Does he know the intricate details of your situation? Yes, he does. Have you told him about them? Have you cried out to him? Are you continuing to do so? Or are you grumbling? Do you trust him to provide? He will, he is a good God and a faithful God. We’ve seen him do the impossible countless times through this journey in Exodus and he will do the impossible again. Does your situation feel impossible? He can do it.…
God leads the Israelites into the Desert. They begin to grumble. They complain about Moses and Aaron. Their complaint is astonishing. They wished that they would have died by God’s hand in Egypt. They’ve endured slavery, oppression and infanticide and been set free. But they wished they were still in Egypt sitting around pots of meat? Are we like the Israelites or like Moses? Moses at Marah cried out to the Lord. The Israelites grumbled and blamed Moses. Do you cry out to God in moments of challenge? Are you asking him for the things you need? You have the wonderful opportunity of inviting God into your wins and losses, into your excitement and challenges. God wants a relationship with us and part of that relationship is trust.…
The story of the Israelites is the story of many people going on tour together. Of a group being formed into a people, and eventually a nation, with a clear sense of identity and purpose. Their journey was filled with ups and downs, and would take a little longer than most group tours take! The Old Testament reveals to us that their journey would ultimately take 40 years wandering in the desert before reaching their destination. But it was a journey that forged a nation, wholly committed to serving God, and ultimately was the fulfilment of a promise from God, to His people. And today, we’re going to look at the start of that journey, the start of the tour!…
In January and February this year, we spent 6 weeks looking at our Vision and Values. We spent 6 weeks looking at 7 words: Son – Father – Spirit – Grace – Community – Kingdom – Love. Of course, the Vision and Values of a church, indeed of any community, cannot be limited to 7 words and take far more than 6 weeks to discuss, digest and develop. Culture – which is the fruit of an organisation's vision and values – takes years to establish and is a moveable feast – it evolves. However, one of the ways we build a culture is to keep reminding and refreshing our awareness of these core words. It has been said that you should be able to articulate a vision in 30 minutes, 3 minutes and 30 seconds. Well, here’s a 9 minute summary of ours.…
The truth that transforms- sets Christians apart is that Jesus not only died – but HE ROSE AGAIN! It changes everything. When Jesus was crucified his followers fled. It seemed like everything had gone wrong. They were afraid the same thing would happen to them. Yet a few weeks later same disciples burst out of hiding onto the streets of Jerusalem very place Jesus had been killed – bravest sermon ever!…
Why is the Passover so significant? In what ways is this 10th plague so important? It is uniquely important in its historical effect. It works! The people are released from slavery. It is important in its theology – what it reminds the people about their God. God is sovereign over their history. God declares beforehand that this will be the final plague – that after this the people will be released. God promises that it will work this time. It is important because it is all down to God.…
Sometimes we can be so trapped in our own self-importance - our own framework for seeing the world around us – hindered by our own limits of experience - that the grace and mercy of the Almighty, all-knowing God is actually repellent to some.
God sent the plagues and brought his people out of Egypt that they may worship him. We are saved to worship, saved to serve. Open your heart to the expulsive power of a greater affection, the love of Christ.
Moses is one of the great leaders in scripture. A hero of the nation of Israel. Still honoured in the time of Jesus. The writer to the Hebrews uses the greatness of Moses to reveal the even greater majesty of Jesus. But Moses is not perfect. Moses receives an incredible call from God to lead the people out of slavery and into the promised land – by way of worship and covenant.…
The promise of God’s presence explains Moses’ follow-up question: “Well then, who are you?” Moses might have been convinced that God was on his side, but he would need to convince the Israelites too, and anticipated a tricky conversation turning up after 40 years trying to explain what the non-burning, talking bush had said to him. So far all he could say was this is what our Dad’s God said. The Israelites had known God by various titles, but Moses wanted something deeper, more personal, he wanted to know the meaning of God’s name. This time, God gave him a straight answer ...…
We see from these themes that Exodus can be accessed many levels. A personal level. Our walk with God is a mix of relationship and task. We have mountain top times and spend time in the valley. We can be lost in worship, love and praise one day and tripped up by our idols the next! We cry out to God personally and need to know he is our God, who hears us as an individual and reaches into our lives. We can access it on a corporate or national level. This is Israel’s story – the narrative to which they will keep returning and referring.…
We read in Matthew 6 and Luke 11, the disciples coming to Jesus, saying; Jesus, tell us how to pray. It wasn't that they didn't pray already. In the Jewish culture at that time they would pray at least three times a day. They had specific prayers to pray for specific occasions. They knew how to recite prayers, prayer was a part of their daily life. But there was something in Jesus prayer life, in his communication with his Father, that made them say; we want to learn to pray the way you pray Jesus. And as a response to their request, Jesus taught them what we call 'the Lord's prayer'. One of the most known paragraphs in the whole bible. A prayer that is prayed throughout the world and has been prayed continually for the last 2000 years. It's estimated that on one day, Easter Sunday, about 2 billion people around the world pray this prayer.…
We come to the end of our series. What a journey. Fixing our eyes on God. Planting our roots in grace. Committing ourselves to one another as a covenant people. Pursuing the Kingdom as Jesus builds his church. But how do we cope with our imperfections? It is great to have Kingdom vision, but what about the nitty gritty, the cold light of day when the church family let us down, when leaders get it wrong, when our hopes for glorious spirit filled community come up against the realities of local church? Well as every pop song ever written will tell us, all you need is love!…
We work out our faith in tension. The tension of discipleship and Kingdom. The tension of the Now and Not yet of that Kingdom. But our vision – why we are here is always the Kingdom. Our discipleship is an apprenticeship to Jesus in the works of the Kingdom. We work out our vision in faith. Certain that there will come a day when the Kingdom is fully revealed in Christs return. Believing that Jesus is faithful to his promise that the Kingdom of God is at hand – is present in the here and now – and we can seek that Kingdom and find it in every area of our lives.…
We live in a self-centred, self-obsessed, consumer driven world. It is so easy for our world culture to shape our church culture. Church leadership can focus on felt needs, marketing tactics, seeker sensitive sermons, amazing Kid’s and Youth work, off the chart welcome and worship bands, engaging and entertaining sermons and of course quality coffee. There is nothing wrong with seeking to do things well. To be the very best we can with the resources and gifts at our disposal is an act of worship. Seeking excellence does glorify God and honour people. But the danger is that we start to treat God and the church as a product we are trying to sell to a set of consumers called our friends. The church is not a product. The church is a covenant community formed by God through the blood of Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit.…
How do we connect with God? How is it possible for us to have relationship with the creator of the universe? The short answer, and indeed the complete answer, is this – by the grace of God. Paul’s letters in the New Testament are full of the grace of God and we find one of his most succinct descriptions of grace in his letter to the Ephesians. We are going to unpack it by asking, and hopefully answering 6 questions ...…
In the parable of the Prodigal Son, Jesus explains that God is seeking relationship with us. It is not just that God is offering relationship to those who look for him. God is actively looking for relationship with us – with you and me. What is more, God is looking for real relationship – not just contractual relationship. The Father goes out to look for the son who is lost in his unrighteousness and he goes out to look for the son who is lost in his self-righteousness. The Father wants real relationship.…
Without vision the people perish, what you see is what you get, people who aim at nothing usually hit it, if the eyes are good then the heart will be good but if the eyes are bad…. There are numerous sayings, biblical and unbiblical that seek to remind us of the importance of vision. Vision lifts our heads, it inspires, it reminds us of the “why” behind the “what”. It is vision that sets the boundaries and engenders daily discipline, whether that is starting the 10,000-hour journey to excellence or saving the world for Jesus, in short – Vision Matters. Good vision provides the why and the who behind the what. Vision answers the key question – Who am I and why am I here?…
We do not know a lot about shepherds. Traditionally viewed as social outcasts – and this may have been the case. What is clear is that they were not religious leaders. Another reminder that God is looking to break into ordinary lives. People who travelled from area to area – so strategically good people to share the news with, if you wanted it shared.…
There is something hard wired within each of us for connection. And at Christmas, we celebrate when God came to be with us so that we could be with him. "they will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God with us’)". We all need God’s rescue. We all need His presence. Just like Joseph, we’re called to believe and obey. So, I want to encourage you this Christmas time. Invite God into your Christmas.…
We’ve each got a unique part to play in God’s story, even if it’s a less prominent one than Mary’s. God has graced us with a unique blend of circumstances, relationships, talents, and opportunities that he wants to use for the advance of his kingdom. As with Mary, the precise parameters of God’s grace are down to Him. Mary was chosen by God’s grace – there was nothing she did to earn or deserve that privilege – and it’s the same for us! However, there’s something else about Mary that is particularly noteworthy, and that is her faith.…
• We come to the end of our journey through John’s gospel • A journey we started back in January • 35 sermons through 2022 • What a journey has been • This is the journey we have been on – and we end where we started – In Galilee, on a beach with fishermen
Jesus prays for the three threats to the disciples, but before they can get caught up in themselves, he prays that they would know the love of God. This phrase could be heard in one of two ways – given the context I wonder if Jesus means it both ways. Firstly, would the disciples know the love of God in the same way that Jesus knows the love of God? Throughout the gospels, we see the intimacy between the father and his son.…
Working our way through the gospel of John which is different from the other gospels. John, the beloved disciple, is making known to us the ‘Word made flesh’ as Jesus, and Jesus is making known to us the Father. Jesus refers to God as ‘Abba’ again and again in John’s gospel, In Aramaic/Hebrew, it is like saying papa/daddy. The Old Testament rarely refers to God as Father and then only in the context of the nation of Israel or the anointed King which in turn was pointing to the Anointed One/Messiah who was to come.…
This sermon message by Dave Holden is from our New Ground Sunday service. New Ground is a family of churches led by Dave Holden and the New Ground core team. We believe that God has called us to play our part in His great mission to see many churches planted across the world and to see communities transformed by the love of Jesus. Find out more here: https://newgroundchurches.org/…
This week, as we step into John 15, we find another I am statement from Jesus – the final one actually: "I am the Vine" (John 15:1,5). You might hear that and shrug and think little of it. But as we dig into it a little deeper over the next 20mins or so, I’m hoping that it unlocks something in your heart today.…
We are diving into the middle of a speech here, Jesus is just a few days away from the cross and there’s a lot on his heart to share with his disciples before this happens. Last week we so beautifully unpacked the words leading up to where we’re today – where we jump into this speech just at the moment when Jesus comes with the first of several mind-blowing promises.…
Are there any barriers in your life preventing you from experiencing Jesus to the full right now? I remember praying out loud Jesus I put down football nothing comes before you. My inner self was screaming out what are you doing? Do you even know what you're giving up? My answer was and still is yes. I surrender any part of my life that hinders my pursuit of God. How about you?…
What does Jesus mean when He says one of you is going to betray me? Well, because we know how the story ends, we know that Judas gives up Jesus' location to the Pharisees and the Romans in exchange for money. In doing so he unwittingly starts in motion God’s plan for Jesus to be executed and die for all humankind, thus satisfying God’s judgement and restoring our relationship with Him. The disciples however didn’t have the hindsight that we now live in.…
While there’s lots of fascinating detail and dialogue in this passage, we mustn’t miss the main point. Jesus’ first lesson to his disciples on the evening of the Last Supper was a simple one. They were called to serve one another. To help us fulfil this calling, we’re going to take a closer look at both the actions and motivations of serving one another, as Jesus modelled and instructed in this passage.…
Perspective/vision is everything when it comes to farming and when it comes to discipleship. If all you see is what’s in your hand, then farming is not for you and discipleship is not for you. There are easier ways to live and it's not our job to judge you. God bless you. But if you can see how temporary this world and its comforts are. Then maybe you are ready to let that seed fall into the ground - Let it die. It’s a struggle – I don’t want to do it – but glorify your name. And see what God will do….…
A challenging passage. Where do I miss Jesus in my life because I get caught up in other things? When the pressure is on, do I run to Jesus, or do I invest in idols? Idol = a gift from God that I have made into a god! But also a hugely encouraging passage. God wants to speak through us! Jesus makes a way for us through the cross. God does not challenge our idols because he is insecure, but because he knows that they are made of straw. Put your trust in the God who laid his life down for you!…
We are most fulfilled, most at peace, most centred, most secure in our identity when we remember that we are children of the Kingdom first. God calls us to his Kingdom vision because it is in his presence and when we are about his work that we are most fulfilled
Jesus calls in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” And he does!! Just like Lazarus… should we respond to Jesus’ invitation, we start a new life with stumbling small steps out from the cold and the dark of the tomb of our old lives, to the freshness, and warmth and light of our new lives, having received grace from God.…
In this message, we are coming to the end of one section, one season of Jesus’ ministry. The events we look at today are the final events in Jesus’ ministry in Jerusalem. At the end of our passage, we will see Jesus head for the countryside. He will return to Jerusalem for the final week of his ministry.…
In this sermon message, we are going to look into the first 18 verses of chapter 10 in the book of John continuing our series. Where Jesus chooses to call himself the true shepherd, and that sums up so much: a close and personal relationship between himself and his followers, the certain security that we can have in him, the dependency on his guidance, his companionship, his profound care for us and most of all his sacrificial love.…
Jesus knows that until he has gone through the cross people cannot truly understand who he is and the God he reveals. It is only through his death on the cross that the curse of sin is dealt with. It is only through the resurrection that true freedom from sin is made available. It is the cross which makes foolish human wisdom. It is the ultimate self-sacrifice of God that reveals the futility of religious activity.…
How was it possible for Jesus not to sin? - Tempted as we are – Hebrews 4:15 Answer - Because there was no room! Jesus was following Father so closely (John 5) – there was no room for sin! When Jesus exposes your sin – don’t run from his presence – fall at his feet!
When we read a passage like John 7:32-52 we might need to reverse a little to get to grips with what is going on. It seems that the claims that the crowd are making about Jesus have the religious leaders (the Pharisees) concerned. Over the last few chapters of John we’ve seen tensions rising as Jesus has healed a number of people and this has angered the Pharisees.…
This message helps us to understand that the Holy Spirit releases natural and supernatural gifting. Spiritual gifts are one of the outward signs that people have been filled with the Holy Spirit. Gifts may reveal the presence of the Holy Spirit in a moment. Fruit of the Spirit reveal presence of the Holy Spirit in a person. Remember – the Holy Spirit is a person of the Trinity – the very character of Christ – the presence of Jesus in the room. When the incarnate Jesus was in the room we would see the power of God released in and through others – spiritual gifts. But, we would also see people being transformed by, and into the character of God – Spiritual Fruit.…
Jesus knew there would be moments when his true identity would be revealed, but he also knew this was not the time. He knew he was working according to the plan of the Father, a plan that had been set out from the start. Jesus knew who he was and he knew his purpose. He was so secure in his identity that He wasn't interested in, or had no need for pleasing or winning the crowd for the sake of winning the crowd, no he was only interested in doing the will of his Father.…
So the background to our verses today follows on from 3 miracles from Jesus. The first is the feeding of the 5,000, this story of incredible provision and faith. The second is Jesus walking on water towards the boat where the disciples are, and the third is the instant boat journey to the other side of Lake Galilee! What we discover is that Jesus’ ministry is now in full swing, and people are chasing Him for more.…
These are famous verses, famous in the sense that the event they describe have been historically very well known. The feeding of the 5,000. This is the only miracle, with the exception of the resurrection of Jesus, that is recorded in all four gospels. John is recording certain events in Jesus’ life and ministry and he is seeking to reveal to us: o Who Jesus is. o Who we are called to be in Christ. o What difference that makes to our day to day life. We are going to work through these verses and see how they might speak to us in one or all of these areas.…
In this passage we not only see Jesus reaffirming His identity, but also, we see a reaffirmation of our new identity in Jesus. If we believe in Jesus, we are united with Him in a profound way. We are now one with Him as He is one with God the Father.
In this passage we understand more of the passionate prayer from a parent whose child is dying. Then healing is released, even with man’s limited understanding, this is grace. It is comforting to know that we can approach prayer in the same way, passionately and honestly.
God created us with and for vision and reminds us of our vision throughout scripture. Throughout the narrative of the Bible God calls people, calls leaders, calls individuals, calls groups. God knows that if we don’t keep being reminded of our vision – the WHY – we quickly focus to intently on the WHAT.…
John 20 is an amazing chapter with an incredible event. The whole of history pivots on this day. I want to encourage you to read and re-read this chapter. Two things to remember: 1 - Just like Mary and Thomas – Jesus calls you by name. 2 - All of this happened that you might have LIFE in his name.
Palm Sunday is a preparation week for celebrating Easter. Will you prepare yourself this week for the celebrations to come? Will you recognise the king? Will you recognise his purpose? Will you worship him? Allow your expectations to be shaped by Jesus. Join Andy Tuck as he helps us understand the context and importance of John 12:1-19.…
Just like the Samaritan woman – God’s heart is to change our perceptions and alter our words; effect our next steps, bringing a message of hope and new life to those around us. Join Adam Bream as he helps us understand the context and importance of John 4:31-45.
Who are the Samaritans and what can we learn from the woman by the well? Join Sean Hammond as he helps us understand the context and importance of John 4:1-30.
What does Baptism symbolise and what about Baptism in water and Spirit? Join Emeka Maddy as he helps us understand the context and importance of John 3:22-36.
At first glance this passage can seem a bit of a curiosity. After 4 chapters of excitement, healing, generosity and mass salvation we find ourselves in a church meeting where two members are struck down by God for lying to God and the church. It is a reminder that Luke is not giving us a rose-coloured-spectacle view of the Early Church. He does not shy away from what must have been a very difficult moment! Luke clearly wants his readers to know that God has a high value in honesty, integrity and authenticity.…
The first act of the Church after being filled with the Spirit was to proclaim the Gospel and to offer the promise of the Holy Spirit to all who were listening. It is exciting that we are starting to regather together again in person on a Sunday, but we mustn’t miss the excitement of the Early Church that their act of gathering was in order to scatter out and to invite people in.…
When God fills us with the Holy Spirit, he equips us with spiritual gifts. Two of these spiritual gifts particularly enable us to speak to him and about him by the power of his Spirit. These are the two gifts that are specifically mentioned in the verses in Acts that we are focusing on this week – the gift of tongues and the gift of prophecy.…
This Week’s BIG IDEA: After what happens in Chapter 3, you would think that the human race would be wiped out, but God is merciful and chooses to let them start again. Unfortunately, what happens next is much worse! This week invites people to recognize that we can’t pull ourselves up out of our sin – but that Jesus’ sacrifice does for us what we could never do!…
Luke 6:12-26 We are here to make 3D followers of Jesus because Jesus was quintessentially 3D. This passage is one of the greatest in the gospels at emphasising the ‘Three Greats’ of following Jesus.
Jesus made an active decision during his time on earth to operate by the power of the Holy Spirit so that we could copy him. He was fully God but he chose not to draw on his divinity. He worked his miracles by the same power that he has made available for us today.
يقوم برنامج مشغل أف أم بمسح الويب للحصول على بودكاست عالية الجودة لتستمتع بها الآن. إنه أفضل تطبيق بودكاست ويعمل على أجهزة اندرويد والأيفون والويب. قم بالتسجيل لمزامنة الاشتراكات عبر الأجهزة.