Psalm 119:12 — “Blessed art thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes.” When we think of what it means to be a disciple, we often think of following, obeying and trusting. While discipleship does involve these things, what we must not forgot, is that to be a disciple is to be one who learns. Indeed,…
Isaiah 1:21 — “How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.” The prophet Isaiah lamented the moral and spiritual condition of the city of Jerusalem. God’s people had been unfaithful to Him in a grievous way. Those at the top had used their…
Daniel 2:1-24, Acts 2:1-19 — In this sermon we consider the impossible situation that Daniel and his three companions found themselves in. Their lives were threatened through no fault of their own and there was, from a human perspective, no way out. How Daniel responded reminds us of how the first Christians in Jerusalem responded…
Romans 12:21 — “Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Because we live in a fallen world we experience evil on an almost daily basis. People do wrong to us, sometimes unintentionally and sometimes deliberately. Sometimes the evil that’s out there in the world really drags us down. So how do we…
John 1:35-51 — “And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.” Instead of arguing with Nathanael about the identity of Jesus, Philip invited him to meet Jesus for himself. When Nathanael did meet Jesus, he discovered that Philip was right — Jesus was…
Romans 8:18 — “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” The way we look at things has a significant impact on the way we think about them and even on how we feel. Our problems can seem…
Psalm 24 — “This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face…” For the last four decades the evangelical church has been greatly influenced by the “seeker-sensitive” approach to worship and ministry. In this Psalm, David sets forth something very different. The onus is squarely upon the seeker and not upon the…
Psalm 46 — “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear…” This familiar Psalm is an expression of confidence in God. It represents not just what the Psalmist believed, but also how he felt. He felt these things about God to be true and therefore He…
Matthew 16:18 — “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church…” During this season of lockdown and disruption, we might be concerned about our church. What is going to happen to us? Are we going to come out weaker and seemingly less effective? Will additional restrictions make it even more difficult to…
II Timothy 1:7 —“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” For many of us, the hardest part of living through the coronavirus pandemic has been the mental and emotional strain it has produced. All of our physical needs are being met…