Sid Bridges explores Deuteronomy 6:4-16 after being asked to speak on the passage 15 years previously when first coming to St James as the Youth Minister. The story of the Children of Israel briefly is mapped and the question asked, “What happened in Massah?” When God seems absent how do we respond? When we doubt […]
Allen sets the context for Jesus’ parable(s) of the wedding banquet exploring the meaning of the parable and asking questions from the congregation (some of these are hard to hear but Allen’s replies make clear their questions. He draws us to understand that all are invited bad and good, that the wedding dress of ‘righteousness’ […]
Tim Wetherfield continues in ‘All that Jesus said and did’ from Matthew. In speaking of God’s love in sending his Son he also makes the connection between the religious leaders and calls us to pray for our leaders in the nation.
Peter speaks about the integrity of the text and the significance of Jesus words and actions when seen in the context of the Old Testament’s prophetic expectations. The effect of slicing the text into paragraphs and verses with interpolated paragraph headings often distracts from the bigger story. Here faith and doubt are juxtaposed in a […]
The readings before this talk were Romans 3:9-12, 17-26 and Matthew 22:34-40. Lis uses a personal example of how she experienced undeserved grace in a number of ways last week. Key to our restoration (salvation) is an acknowledgement of our personal sin and of the unmerited grace that God offers us in Jesus.
Peter Cunliffe develops the subject of discipleship and draws on Deuteronomy 4:4-9 and Mark 10:13-16 to explore what it means to have responsibility for the whole church in nurturing faith in one another, especially thinking about our roles in the faith development of children and young people. As adults in the church we face the […]
Allen begins with ‘pictures’ of how we see the Father and the Son, and the difficulty of ‘picturing’ the Spirit. Ezekiel 37 is the text for his speaking about. the Spirit under the headings: Resurrection, Renewal, Restoration. From Romans 8 he speaks of a theology of justification.
Allen begins with ‘pictures’ of how we see the Father and the Son, and the difficulty of imagining the Spirit. Ezekiel 37 is the text for his speaking about. the Spirit under the headings: Resurrection, Renewal, Restoration. From Romans 8 he speaks of a theology of justification.
Lorna speaks about John the Baptist. The Bible passage were Isaiah 35:1-10 and Matthew 17:10-13
As we talk about prayer over the coming Sundays let’s be clear we are looking to the Bible as the source of our encouragement to engage with the Lord God, YHWH, the God and father of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Prayer is engaging God in relationship with him, a relationship that has been brought about by Jesus. It is personal, an expression of that relationship with God who has become our Father – having adopted us as his dearly beloved children. Effective prayer is linked directly to our inheritance –the kingdom of God that is pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay, an inheritance that is given for everyone. Through prayer we are recognising the reality of God’s kingdom, gaining confidence, standing tall in our new identity as chosen and beloved of God.