To Know Christ. To Serve Christ. To Proclaim Christ.

REFLECTION: Romans 4:13-25 “Justified by Grace through Faith” Have you ever had a major falling out with someone you loved and trusted? It can be very difficult to manage. The trust that was once there seems to have gone out the window. Nasty things are said. Regrettable things are done. A distance is formed between you. How can you overcome this distance? Who should make the first move? Sometimes attempts at reconciliation are just squashed because the hurt is too great. The

REFLECTION: Matthew 28:16-20 “In the name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit” On this Trinity Sunday we have a look at the great commission given by Jesus for the disciples to make disciples of all nations and to baptise them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We are reminded that our God comes to us in three persons who all work together in a perfect unity. We are also reminded that we as disciples of Jesus, also share in this

REFLECTION: Acts 2:1-21 “The coming of the Holy Spirit” Pentecost Sunday is one of the most important celebrations of our church calendar. It is a celebration of the birth of the church, as God’s Holy Spirit was poured out over the believers gathered in Jerusalem during the Pentecost celebration. But is the Holy Spirit’s coming that important? Would it matter to us if the Holy Spirit hadn’t come? Wouldn’t we still be saved? Is there anything that the Spirit brings that we rea

REFLECTION: 1 Peter 5 “Instructions on Shepherding” Whose fault is it when things go terribly wrong in the church? Is it due to a lack of good leadership from the pastor? It could be. Is it due to a high level of disobedience and rebelliousness in the congregation? It could be. Peter addresses the Elders and shepherds of the church regarding the great responsibility they have and the charge they have received from the chief shepherd. And he also addresses the younger members

REFLECTION: 1 Peter 3:8-22 “Our Christian Witness” When people are wondering whether Jesus could be their saviour or their help, they look firstly at us to see what a difference following Jesus makes in our lives. People will judge Christian faith based on the lifestyle, actions and behaviours that we exhibit. Our everyday decisions in life might be what might bring someone to follow Jesus, or to turn them away. Peter urges his readers to be faithful in their witness as th

REFLECTION: 1 Peter 2:11-25 “Living as God’s people in the World” What does it mean in our daily living to live as God’s holy people in the world? It means turning from some things that we shouldn‘t do that dishonour God. It means learning submission and obedience to Christ our King. It will often involve being misunderstood and persecuted and we may suffer for following Christ. But it also means living with the living hope of Salvation, knowing that Christ himself bore our s

REFLECTION: 1 Peter 2:1-10 “Living as God’s Own People” Following Christ is like a new beginning, a re-birth, a starting again from scratch. What we were before is all changed. We are a new creation in Christ! Once we were in darkness, now we walk in the light of God. Once we were distant from God. Now we are his people. God has called us into his family and this require a big change in us. As He himself is holy, so he calls us also to be holy. This is what we saw last week i

REFLECTION: 1 Peter 1:13-25 ‘Be Holy, because I am Holy’ Today’s reading continues our readings through 1 Peter. Last week we learned that we have a ‘living hope’, which is truly great news. This hope is so wonderful that ‘even angels long to look into it’. But this week, we see that Peter wrote a big ‘Therefore!’ in his letter. Though the great hope that he writes about is given to us freely and lovingly through Jesus Christ, it is not without consequences. Peter seems to b

REFLECTION: PETER 1:1-12 “A LIVING HOPE” What is your hope in life based on? Some people are just hopeful about humanity. They believe in in the inherent goodness and ability of humanity. We might call this humanism. It is a hope based on human nature. Others have a lot of confidence or hope in their own personal ability to get out of any problem. We might call this human pride. Peter reminds the Christians spread across the empire in his first letter that we have a living ho

REFLECTION: Matthew 28:1-10 “Earth Shaking News” Every once in a while, something happens that is truly newsworthy and impacts the lives of everyone. At the moment, it would be the War in Iran and the ensuing fuel crisis that has prices rising at an alarming rate. The greatest news ever announced happened at the first Easter with the resurrection of Jesus. It is impossible to exaggerate just how important Jesus’ resurrection was and is. His resurrection signals the end of the

REFLECTION: Matthew 26:36-46 “Your will be done” As we come to the end of lent and enter into Holy Week, how have we fared in our struggle to live holy and Godly lives? Jesus was tempted those 40 days in the desert, and yet his greatest temptation would come in the Garden of Gethsemane. Would he go God’s way to the cross, or would he go the way of the flesh and seek the easy way out and go his own way. In today’s reading we get insight into the struggle, and also some clues o

REFLECTION: Jesus the resurrection and the Life Death is a sad and difficult part of life. In today’s gospel reading we see Jesus reveal his glory, power and compassion when he himself is confronted with the death of a close friend HYMNS TIS 28 God is our strength and refuge. Jesus, strong and kind. TIS 233 I will sing the wondrous story TIS 569 Guide me, O thou great redeemer MAUNDAY THURSDAY DINNER ON 2ND APRIL We will be celebrating Maundy Thursday with our LAMB DINNER, at

REFLECTION: This week we move to John chapter 9 and the healing of the blind man. There are other miracles that Jesus did, recorded in previous chapters such as the feeding of 5000+ people, the only miracle recorded in all four gospels. However, this healing in chapter 9 is truly remarkable and has much to teach us. There are two kinds of blindness on display in account that we will explore. Hymns TIS 134 Praise my soul the King of Heaven MP 1214 O Lord you lead me TIS 584 Ju

REFLECTION: This week we move to the 4th chapter of the Gospel of John, where we find the moving account of Jesus meeting with the woman drawing water at the well at Sychar in Samaria. There are a number of curious things about this encounter that we will explore. However, none of these layers of understanding should distract us from the very human drama that unfolds in these verses. Again, shall see a transformation take place in the life of someone who encountered Jesus, Ia

REFLECTION: Over the next three Sundays of Lent the gospel readings focus on the Gospel of John. They are three encounters with Jesus that are both extremely poignant, and pertinent to our understanding of Jesus and the gospel. They are John 3 Jesus and Nicodemus the Pharisee, this week, John 4 The woman at the well, and then John 9 The blind man. Try real hard not to miss a Sunday as you will be greatly rewarded by visiting these passages with me. Hymns TIS 526 Lord Jesus Ch

REFLECTION: Matthew 4:1-11 “The Temptation of Jesus” The devil worked out long ago that the way to turn us away from God is not by a full-frontal attack, but by tempting us with the things that our hearts secretly desire. He doesn’t come to us as a devil with horns and a pitchfork but as an angel of light bearing gifts and promises of great fortune. Temptation is one of the enemy’s preferred weapons of attack. He attacks us at our weakest points hoping to make us fall & someh

REFLECTTION: Matthew 17:1-9 “The Transfiguration” Do you understand the transfiguration? If you think you do, you have probably only begun to scratch the surface, because as many times as I look at it, the more I realise that I don’t fully understand it and the more mysterious it gets. In the transfiguration, we see the past, the present and the future blurring together with Jesus, now in a glorified future form, talking with Moses who died 1500 years earlier, and with Elijah

REFLECTION: Matthew 5:13-20 “Salt & Light” What does it mean to be in the world but not of the world? Jesus tells his disciples in John 17 that though they are in the world, they do not belong to the world. Paul tells us in Romans 12 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds” Romans 12:2. How do we live faithfully for God in a corrupted world so that we are not shaped by it or conformed to it? Are we to live separately from the peopl

REFLECTION: Matthew 5:1-12 “Blessed are you” Who are the happiest or most blessed people in the world today? Popular opinion would probably come up with a list that sounds something like this: - Blessed are the rich, because they have all they need and more. - Blessed are the beautiful people, because good looks go a long way. In today’s reading from the Sermon on the Mount, we see a different set of values. Those who are blessed in God’s sight include the poor in spirit, the

REFLECTION: Matthew 4:12-25 “The Kingdom of God has come near” Jesus’ preaching focussed on the phrase: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” What does it mean that the kingdom of God has come near? And, what is a kingdom and what does it look like? A kingdom is essentially a realm where a king or a queen reigns. In the coming of Jesus, the kingdom of God has drawn near to us because its king has come amongst us and has used his kingdom power in signs and wonders