Episodes
Monday Nov 26, 2012
The ruler of the kings of the earth - Revelation 1:4-9
Monday Nov 26, 2012
Monday Nov 26, 2012
Imagine, if you will, being a Christian in the Roman empire in the late first century AD. Emperor Domitian is persecuting Christians. People you know have been imprisoned or killed for their refusal to offer incense to the Emperor as a god and to say the words 'Ceasar is Lord.' Into your church community comes a scroll, a letter from John the Elder in Ephesus. You listen with eager expectation to the subversive message of hope, which encourages you to stay faithful to Jesus, and overturns the way the world seems to be...for Jesus is the firstborn from the dead, the ruler of the kings of the earth... This sermon explores Revelation 1:4-9 and its message for the early church and for us.
This sermon was preached at Sunday Night at St John’s, Southgate, on November 25, 2012.
It is designed to be used with:
- the bible study found at this link
- the Prezi zooming visuals found at this link.
Enjoy!
Saturday Nov 24, 2012
The end of the world as we know it - Mark 13 and the return of Jesus for judgment
Saturday Nov 24, 2012
Saturday Nov 24, 2012
Humans have always been fascinated by the end of the world - witness the spate of recent disaster movies including '2012'. Jesus' disciples were also intrigued about it in Mark 13 - but it's so easy to get it wrong! The good news for us is that Jesus has 'ascended to the right hand of the Father' - and the Saviour is the one who will return to judge. Not as an intrusion into the human realm, but as the consummation of his work as the 'lamb who was slain since the beginning of the world.' This sermon delves into the end of the world, the return of Jesus for judgment, and why that is good news for us - based on Mark 13 and the Apostles' Creed. It was preached at the Sunday Night at St John's service on 18th November, 2012. It's designed to be used with the Prezi zooming visuals found at this link. Enjoy!
Tuesday Nov 13, 2012
Three Generous Widows, a Corrupt Religion and a Generous God (Mark 12:38-44)
Tuesday Nov 13, 2012
Tuesday Nov 13, 2012
In Mark 12, Jesus commands a widow for giving all she has to the Temple treasury...or does he? We have often heard this verse used as an exhortation to 'generous or sacrificial giving' - either willfully or unknowingly ignoring the context in which Jesus is critiquing a corrupt religious system which can leave a widow in such a position! This sermon re-examines the well known story in Mark 12:38-44, looking at Jesus' own self-sacrificial giving and God's generosity, and asks what our communities might look like if they took Jesus' critique of exploitative religion seriously.
This sermon was preached at Sunday Night at St John’s, Southgate, on 11th November 2012.
It is designed to be used with:
- the bible study found at this link
- the Prezi zooming visuals found at this link.
Enjoy!
Monday Nov 05, 2012
The Lord our God, the Lord is one - Deuteronomy 6
Monday Nov 05, 2012
Monday Nov 05, 2012
Shema Yisrael... The great confession of faith in one God found in Deuteronomy 6 is not a philosophical statement about the nature of God, but a call to covenant loyalty - to bring ALL aspects of life to integration under the one true God. This covenant relationship with the one true God is life-shaping, integrating and liberating for the people of God. As Christians, we stand in continuity with this confession, seen through the lens of Jesus as God's self-revelation. Our covenant relationship with the one true God as shown in Jesus is life-shaping, integrating and liberating, uniting all of life under the one confession, 'Jesus is Lord.'
This sermon was preached at Sunday Night at St John’s, Southgate, on Sunday 4th November 2012.
It is designed to be used with:
- the bible study found at this link (coming soon)
- the Prezi zooming visuals found at this link.
Enjoy!