What’s your only comfort in life and death? That I am not my own but belong, body and soul, in life and death, to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ. These words from the Heidelberg Catechism are a beautiful expression of trust in the sufficiency of Jesus to look after us both now and forever. While
‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ In his book, The Hard Sayings of Jesus’ F.F. Bruce calls this phrase ‘the hardest of all the hard statements’. The problem is not with the words, they are simple. But what do they mean? What do we understand of the experience of Jesus and the
“Sticks and stones can break my bones but words cannot hurt me.” As children some of us knew these words as the best defense against bullying taunts from the mean kids. The truth, however, is that they simply are not true. Words have immense power. They can hurt. This Sunday, as we pick up a
I am thirsty!It’s such a simple and short statement. We say it often. It’s a common condition of the human body. As we read the suffering of Jesus we become acutely aware that this suffering was very real and very physical. What he suffered is in many ways unimaginable, especially since it was so undeserved.
As Jesus hung on the cross we are listening in on a conversation between three dying men. It is amazing to see how one those hung beside Jesus changes. He has watched the way Jesus conducted himself on the cross and was convicted of his own sin and guilt. He understands who Jesus is and
Wikipedia defines friendship as follows: “friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between two or more people” or “friendship is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an association.” While both these definitions can be said to be true, we may wonder if there is more to friendship than simply ‘mutual affection’ or an ‘interpersonal
“What shall I wear?” is a question many people ask nearly every morning. What are my plans for the day and how should I dress for those things, whether that is work or rest, meetings or sport. The usual wrestle is weighing up fashion versus form, or style versus substance. But when Christians ask this
Most of us have heard the saying “cleanliness is next to godliness“. It may remind many of us of our disgruntled parents who said it over our untidy bedrooms as children or having heard it as the justification for the Saturday morning cleaning spree in the Christian household. Is it true though? Is being clean
What do experts tell us makes for a healthy lifestyle today? Rest, good nutrition and exercise to name a few. The Bible also talks about the importance of all these things, making a connection between our faith and our physical and mental health. We believe that God wants us to be healthy and that part
Today we begin a sermon series in the book of Romans. Many people consider Romans to be Paul’s most profound, detailed explanation of the Christian faith. This morning we will look at Paul’s introduction in 1:1-7. Opening his letter, Paul talks about his credibility, his message, and his mission. All of this is intertwined in
Read More +In these verses Paul finishes exposing our great problem as humans and the various ways it shows up. In chapter one we saw people in open rebellion, at the beginning of chapter 2 Paul exposed the self righteous, this week he looks at people who appear to be following God, but are still living in
Read More +This morning Israel will bring us a message from Genesis 3. Chapter 3 tells the story of that paradise lost; the result of the first willful human sin. The consequences: immediate shame and lifelong separation from their home with God. Come listen to Israel as he deals with the question ‘Where Are You?’
Read More +Over the last two weeks we have seen the mystery, as we examined the Trinity, and the majesty of God as creator. In doing that, one can be left with the impression that God is distant and unapproachable. So different from us that any real relationship is impossible. That is not what we find in
Read More +In Romans last week we were reminded that the gospel is God’s power to bring salvation to all people. As we speak it to other, God will transform lives. Not only will people change their destination (hell to heaven), but God will change the way they live. The question is, why is that such good
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