Sermons
Being Community in the Face of COVID-19 | SERMON – 29Mar2020
We are living in extraordinary times. Our life circumstances are new and challenging. Who would have thought that within less than three months of 2020 the entire world has changed? Yet while the coronavirus pandemic is significant, and death is associated with it, it is not something that we should panic about. The global numbers contracting the virus are significant. In Australia the numbers are rapidly rising. However, most people will only display mild… Read more
Faith as our Certainty
There seem to be two common approaches to faith in the world today. The first asserts faith is to believe in something you do not know or understand. The second is that faith is an individual and deeply personal matter. In our secular world, where science has become the popular religion, there is this assumption… Read more
The missing inch or the extra mile?
A few years ago Matt Corby’s local Subway restaurant in Perth was caught short…literally. Matt measured the sandwich he bought, advertised as a “foot-long,” and found it stopped at 11 inches. After Matt posted a photo of the sandwich next to a tape measure on Subway’s Facebook page, his photo went viral. The Facebook page… Read more
Focussed trust as hope for the world
Have you ever noticed the predictions for the world’s future seem to be all negative? We’re told over-population will consume all the world’s resources, leaving it a harsh and barren planet. Or Global warming will make the planet uninhabitable as the oceans rise and the various doomsday scenarios are played out with changing weather patterns…. Read more
The Enthusiasm to Speak
Have you ever found yourself somewhere where you now you weren’t meant to be? Last year I was in Christchurch and my wife and I were looking for somewhere to eat. The tour guide we saw earlier that day told us how they had reopened the cinema complex in the city centre, so we thought… Read more
The Confidence to Speak
Recently my wife and I visited the Yandina Ginger factory in QLD. While we were there, we took the opportunity to experience their bee presentation. From the moment the beekeeper arrived to collect us her enthusiasm for her topic was captivating. She was engaging, friendly, humorous, and passionate. As the presentation began her knowledge about… Read more
Being An Australian Christian
When you think of Australia, what comes to mind? A vast, tough, rugged land of drought and flooding plains, where mateship, fair play, looking after the underdog, equality and egalitarianism still permeate the nations soul. Where people look after one another, share the burden of the land, while not taking it too seriously, finding humour… Read more
Love experienced in Christ
We live in a time when everything is treated as a commodity. If you have the right money or resources, you can purchase anything, even love. We peddle love just like we peddle any material good. We are asked to fall in love with cars, holidays, houses, food, and wealth, because when we own these… Read more
Joy discovered in Christ
Its not hard to see the chaos of the world in which we live. You really don’t have to look to hard to find it. Riots in beachside suburbs. Domestic violence shattering families. Anger, rage, and aggressive behaviour rampaging on our roads. People looking tired, frustrated, annoyed, and burdened as the join the masses all… Read more
Peace anchored in Christ
We yearn for peace in a world where peace seems to be an elusive dream for too many. We are told the individual is the most important person, and that success, productivity, and achievement, are essentials to self-actualisation. Amid this, however, we see others as a threat, as someone who diminishes our capacity to be… Read more
Hope anchored in Christ
Hope is such a difficult thing to grasp in a world that seems to throw challenge after challenge, pain upon pain, struggle within struggle. As we prepare for Christmas this year, there are people around us who will not make it. They will give up in despair, lives will end, relationships will shatter, tears will… Read more
Stick with Jesus
Mark 13 is traditionally known as the “little apocalypse”. It deals succinctly with the more detailed and graphic elements of Revelation. In this chapter, Jesus deals with the practical and ethical actions associated with His return and the end times. The specific section in consideration today warns the disciples about four great spiritual temptations. The… Read more
Centenary of Armistice (WW1) – 11 November 2018 – The Way of Peace
The first world war was said to be the war that ends all wars. How sad that such a bold statement was not true. The first world war was the first time in human history such large numbers were placed on the battlefield. It was also the first time that the technology of the industrial… Read more
The Good News We Need To Hear From Jesus
We live in a world of wonder and incredible medical breakthroughs. The common diseases that would have devastated communities, have immunisations and cures that stop such heartbreak. Medical science can replace most body parts and prolong life. Cancer rates, while on the increase, has seen a decrease in mortality rates. 100 years ago, you were… Read more
Freedom is a gift not a right
We live in a country that claims freedom. It claims that people are free to live as they wish, to work where they want, to enjoy life as they choose to, to relate to whoever we like, to marry who we want, to experience life as we desire. But is it true. We have rules,… Read more
Blessed to be a Blessing – Praying Blessing into Others
Over the past six weeks we have explore what it looks like to be a blessing to others. We have reminded ourselves that God is amazing, his grace unconditional, his love beyond measure, despite the state we seem to be in. With such an amazing God who comes to us, he sends us out to… Read more
Blessed to be a Blessing – Sent to be a Blessing
In Australian rules football, there are 3 people allowed on the actual playing field. The players, the umpires, and the runners. Runners have a very specific, yet difficult task. They must negotiate their way around the game so as not to intrude or disrupt the play, while conveying exact messages from the coach to the… Read more
Blessed to be a blessing – Learning about Jesus and others
It is said that if you give a person a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach him how to fish, you feed him for a lifetime. It’s one thing to teach, it is an entirely different thing to have an attitude that wants to learn. We spend our school years learning… Read more
Blessed to be a blessing – Blessing others through service
One of the earliest lessons I ever learnt about leadership was the importance of looking after those entrusted to your care. In my military background, this was most clearly demonstrated by ensuring that the people you lead were fed before you ate. To this day, that same habit instilled in my youth still manifests in… Read more
Blessed to be a blessing – a missional lifestyle
We are blessed to be a blessing – we are called to a missional lifestyle. Have you ever wondered why people grow fruit trees, plant vege gardens, or sow grain? It may seem obvious, but have you thought through the realities this. Fruit trees produce fruit, verge gardens produce veges, and crops produce grain. If… Read more
