Sermons – Salt Church Wollongong: Recent Episodes
Salt Church Wollongong
What happens when God gives us what we want, even when what we want isn’t what we really need? In 1 Samuel 9-11, we meet Israel’s new king (who's a bit of a dud!) and discover what happens when God graciously works through our flawed hopes and expectations.Sermon SummaryIn 1 Samuel 9-11, Israel gets the king they asked for. Saul looks like the ideal worldly king - he is wealthy, handsome and unusually tall. But beneath the impressive appearance, Saul is an unlikely and inadequate leader. He is hesitant, spiritually naive and even hides when he is publicly chosen as king. Yet God graciously equips Saul with what he lacks, giving him his Spirit and transforming him into the leader Israel needs.When the Ammonites threaten God's people, God uses Saul to bring a great victory. But Saul recognises that the victory did not come from his height, strength or ability. As he says, "the Lord has rescued Israel."The story points to a deeper problem we all face. Like Israel, we can look to worldly things to save us - money, financial security, career success, achievement, travel or an impressive life. These things aren't necessarily bad, but they can become functional saviours when we put our hope in them to make us secure or complete. Yet worldly saviours always promise more than they can deliver.Ultimately, we need a greater King. Jesus is the perfect King who doesn't merely look like the Saviour we want - he is the Saviour we actually need. Through his death and resurrection, Jesus defeats sin and death and offers salvation to everyone who trusts in him.
We're attracted to superstition but God cannot be manipulated. He is the holy, powerful and sovereign King who acts for the honour of His name.
We've become so used to leaders who are corrupt. God hates this more than we do but what is His solution?
We’re always looking for leaders to guide us, protect us and take us to a better future. 1 Samuel 1 points us to a leader who deeply cares for us, a leader worth following.
We all wear masks but there is real irony to hiding our real emotions from God, the one who knows us completely. Why do we do this? And what does it look like to mature emotionally before God?
Prayer is a massively popular activity across the globe but what is unique about Christian prayer and why pray?
Imagine having exactly what everyone needed. What would keep you from giving that to everyone who asked? What would motivate you to give it away every time?
As Christians we love Jesus, but are often less convinced about His church. We can treat church as optional - a service to consume, or a helpful bonus to our Christian life. But what if we've fundamentally misunderstood how Jesus sees His people?
Does God exist for me or do I exist for Him? The answer is supremely good and the key to loving God.
What does it mean for God to be growing his church as every disciple takes up their part?
God's design for the Church is that it is big and close, wide and deep, at the same time. How can we do that at Salt Church?
The Church in Australia is declining in size and influence; the future looks bleak. But Salt Church is growing in size and impact; the future looks promising. So where is Church going?
Following Jesus isn’t about adding Him as another option into our lives, but giving Him everything. Divided hearts don’t work. Jesus doesn’t offer a “smorgasbord” - He calls for total commitment. And while that feels costly, it’s the only response that actually makes sense if He really is who He says He is.
Following Jesus can feel like losing everything -freedom, control, and the life we want for ourselves. So is following Jesus really worth it? In this sermon, we explore one of Jesus’ shortest stories that flips everything upside down - and shows us what might look like loss could actually be the greatest gain imaginable.
How good is it when something good comes ‘at just the right time’! But most of the time life is not like this, more the opposite. To all of us, Easter presents some seriously good news.
The resurrection of Jesus is a big claim with even bigger implications, but is it true?
At first glance this passage seems to be all about the Lord’s Supper, but Paul shows that the real issue was a deeper problem: some believers despised the church of God. In this sermon we explore how that can happen today - and how the gospel leads us to truly love, honour, and serve our Church family.
God has an enormous heart for those that are lost without Jesus. How far would you go to win someone to Jesus?
The Apostle Paul gives up his right to be paid for the gospel. Where does that leave us in paying pastors?
We hold our rights and freedoms dear to us but is there ever a time when I should give up my rights?
If you’ve ever felt like life should be better but isn’t, you’re not alone. We explore what the Bible says about what we were made for - and how we can experience joy that lasts beyond the ups and downs of life.
Why is Jesus important to our Christmas? And what does it mean that Jesus came into our World to overcome darkness?
God says there's 1 thing that if you leave out of your Christmas and out of your life, then it's too small. Find out what it is, in a 2700 year old promise.
Jesus is the light dawning on a world living in darkness and the shadow of death, our only hope and all of God’s initiative.
In response to gracious God's free gift of saving us, our response to salvation is all about love – not a wishy washy kind of simple feeling- but love in action, faith working it self out in love of God and love of other people which involves the hard work in never giving up doing good to others.
It's human to fear, and we fear lots of things - the biggest of all being death. Jesus makes the extraordinary claim that He can offer life beyond the grave. Do you believe this?
Our big prayer at Salt is to see a flood of lifelong disciples of Jesus in the Illawarra and beyond. This is God's work and He has a key role for each of us to play in making it happen. How might God use you to make His disciples?
Trust in leaders is at an all time low in Australia. How can we trust Jesus when He says He is the best leader of all time?
Light is essential for life. So what does it mean that Jesus is the light of the world?
Where do we find 'bread' that will sustain our life and satisfy us? Jesus is the 'bread of life' who sustains eternal life & brings lasting satisfaction.
God is the one who makes disciples. And at the same time, God involves us as genuine co-workers. Why is our part of vital importance?
What does Jesus mean when He says He's come to give us life to the full? In what sense is following Jesus the best news ever?
The message of Christianity is most commonly referred to in the Bible as ‘good news’! But not everyone thinks so. Why are we tempted to doubt it’s the best news the world has ever heard?
Everywhere we turn we face evil - can it ever be defeated? Who is able to overcome evil? Find out in our last talk from the book of Job.
When we ask God why He runs the world the way He does, what we most need to know is that He is God and we are mere creatures. When God brings Job to his knees, that is the gift of God.
When we ask God why he runs the world the way he does, what we most need to know is that he is God and we are mere creatures. When God brings Job to his knees that is the gift of God.This week we also had a time of Q&A - with Michael answering people's questions. We've included the recording from our 9am gathering.
Why am I suffering? How do I make sense of life in the darkness? This is the question of every human heart who suffers and is not unique to Christianity, but Job gives us a profound and unexpected answer.
How can we know God's for us when it looks like God's against us? By faith in our living redeemer.
If I'm sick have I sinned? We learn from Job's friends what not to say to a suffering believer.
We all want to live a life that makes a difference and leave a legacy that lasts. Work is often a way we do this. There is only 1 type of work that is never in vain: the work of the Lord Jesus.
We heard last week that we don't use work as an idol to make our own identity, to amass $$ to consume, or to find our satisfaction and meaning. So why do we work? God gives us 2 radical new reasons to work - to love our new boss, and to love people as we work with them, and through the work we do we do for them. That means we can love God and love people in any work.
We do a lot of work and it's a mixed experience for each of us. God designed work for our good but because of our rebellion we work against God and work has also become painful toil. We experience both those realities and need God's help not to whinge about work or to worship work, but to thank God it's Monday and to go work with him.
What if serving Jesus can be energising instead of draining? How to find joy and strength in reaping the harvest Jesus has sown.
We all want justice - our world is broken and it can seem hopeless. But Jesus is the King who suffers, justifies, and rises again - to bring us hope and a future!
God has written an ancient love song through his prophet Isaiah to help understand what Easter is all about.
Our culture is obsessed with romantic relationships. The message is loud and clear: singleness is a problem that needs fixing. To be single is to be waiting, incomplete, unfulfilled. But what if God sees it differently? What if singleness isn’t second-best, or a season to just “get through,” but actually a good gift from God?
How do I decide whether to get married or remain single? The gospel radically changes our thinking on marriage and family.
Is it wrong to want a change of circumstances? Are some situations in life better than others?
It is estimated that the average marriage in Australia lasts 12 years with separation before divorce occurring around 8 years. Why is the divorce rate is so high in Australia? What does God have to say about Marriage, Separation and Divorce?
What you do with your body is more than just a personal choice - it’s a reflection of who you belong to. In 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, Paul challenges us to think about our freedom in Christ, how we’re called to honour God with every part of our lives and how true freedom is found when we live for Christ, not ourselves. Who really has control over your life - you or Jesus?
Grow up - is a key part of the message in this part of 1 Corinthians. They have before them situation where Christian brothers are taking each other to court, and for such a trivial matter that should have been very easy for the church to sort out - but they are so immature that they can't even judge the simplest of cases. They are struggling to make right judgements in their immaturity and they need to grow up. Those in Christ should grow to have a mature eternal view point enabling them to easily discern what is right in much smaller earthly matters. The Corinthians are so muddled that they even need reminding of basic things that will keep people out of the kingdom of God. As Paul reminds them, there is a great reminder for us of the grace and generosity of God in his salvation of us which ought to then give us clarity to make right judgements in this world as we wait for Christ to return.
What are we to make of Paul's instruction to remove someone from church when it appears so unloving?
Spend 20 seconds scrolling online and you'll see that our world is full of wars, violence, corruption - and people are just mean! But are these issues caused by just a few bad people or are we all mostly bad? We're going to dig into the fundamentals of human nature and see what God, our creator, has to say about us.
Our origin story determines our purpose & value as humans. There's 2 competing accounts - we’re either accidents resulting from the big bang and evolution who have no purpose or value (and so we create our own), or we're designed by a knowable creator who made us & gives us our purpose & value (to know Him & to be known by Him).
Paul has a grand view of heaven and is pushing on to get there. What are we to do while we wait for Jesus? We press on too, imitating those who are a little further ahead so we can attain to our glorious resurrection.
What is the best thing about Christmas? It's the gift Jesus came to bring - the lasting satisfaction of a relationship with God through the Cross.
The best gift is the unexpected one you didn't even know you needed. The best gift God gives us is coming in the person of his Son with flesh on to make us his adopted children.
Christmas can be a real mixed bag. How can we enjoy God's good gifts to us at Christmas?
We know God loves us because 1) he displayed his love in sending his Son for us, 2) we love like him so we must have first been loved by him, and 3) our love for each other proves he lives in us.
What's a sure sign that someone has become a disciple of Jesus? Self sacrificial love for their brothers and sisters.
Babies always look like their parents, so what do you look like when you're born of God? And how can you tell if you're one of God's children? We become children of God by God's great love in sending his Son to make his enemies into his family. And we know we're God's children because we're not rebels against God anymore, and we do what's right like our Father who does what's right.
Why is it dangerous to be a Christian? By nature humans hate God so also hate God's people. How does God help us to face persecution? He gives His sure promises & someone to bring them about.
Most of the time for most of us God is hidden and it's not clear what He is doing in the world. What is the hidden God doing? The hidden God is at work to defeat the kingdom of this world - a kingdom which looks powerful & appealing but is desperately weak & viciously cruel.
Christians are often unsure what to do with the topic ambition. Self ambition is condemned in the Bible - but is there a godly alternative? Often in this confusion Christian people can remain highly ambitious in their private lives but remain happy to settle for mediocrity in the church. This is not good. In this sermon ambition will be scrutinised through the passage in Genesis 11 (The tower of Babel) and people will be challenged to put aside petty ambition and pursue first the kingdom of God and be ambitious for that
Another one of the Corinthian church errors is lovingly being exposed in this passage. Their thinking about leadership (christian leadership) is back to front. They are taking pride in one leader over another. Paul warns them that such thinking is dangerous, and he uses the a number of images to show how foolish this thinking is. One image is that their leaders are not kings at the front of a victory parade but the down trodden condemned men at the end of the procession. The second image is that leaders are not the prized possession people treasure but rather the scum of the earth. Both images display the foolishness of taking pride in one piece of rubbish over another. The great one is the God they serve and it is important to remain humble before Him. The problem with taking pride in one leader over another is that it flows into your own assessment of yourself and that you are now far more able to take pride in yourself over others - this is a grave danger. We need leaders and people who follow them as humble servants of God, not going beyond what is written
Everything we have comes from God. Knowing this means we can't judge others and we can't boast in ourselves.
We get to join God in building the Church where He lives by His Holy Spirit, so build on the right foundation (Jesus Christ) & with the right materials (that fit the foundation & show how special it is) rather than building a monument to your own life.
Why is it that the things that are good for us are so hard to do? Case in point - why is it so hard to be mature spiritual Christians and to stop being worldly fleshy spiritual babies? Paul rips into the Corinthian Christians for still being spiritual babies and in doing so unearths 3 things under the surface that we need to understand and to really believe: 1) that we're in a war between what our flesh wants and what the Holy Spirit in us wants. 2) that true spirituality looks like having the fruit of the Holy Spirit in us, and not necessarily the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 3) God is the one who ultimately brings spiritual growth.
We have a part to play in God's plans for a flood of lifelong disciples in the Illawarra! Let's give thanks for growth at Salt and hear next steps for growth and progress on our New Home.
Why aren't more people followers of Jesus? What is it with the message of Jesus that makes it so unpopular?
How do we avoid splitting our Church based on which Christian leader we prefer? Let go of loyalty to leaders & follow Christ alone, and use God's criteria to assess our leaders not our culture's criteria.
Have you ever thought about what might lead you to abandon Jesus? Here's the way to not only remain a disciple of Jesus, but thrive.
Paul is in prison and everything seems to be going wrong - yet he is excited that God's name is being glorified. He's even joyful?! Why don't we have this kind of response when things are hard for us? Is it because the goals/aims of our life are different to Paul's? In this passage God will show us how we too can have joy no matter what!
Christianity offers profound and deep joy grounded in the knowledge of who we are in Jesus and the work he has called us into.
If Jesus' resurrection is true, what difference does it make? It proves he is the Lord with absolute power, who uses his power for good, especially the good of being with us. So if you're a Christian, trust, obey and share him; and if you're not yet a Christian, explore Jesus fairly.
What are the signs around Jesus' crucifixion that make his death the most significant in history? You'll respond in one of three ways.
What Jesus is thinking about in the final hours before his death give us an insight into the enormity of what he faced at the cross for us.
The last meal that Jesus ate on earth is the most significant meal in all of history. What's this meal about? And why is it so important to this day?
Someone who knows king Jesus, and so shows that by how they live, and especially by how they love the king’s family.
Knowing the future has a profound effect on how we live now. What does Jesus say about it? It’s complicated but profoundly life changing.
If there's one thing Jesus and the average Aussie has in common it's hatred towards the hypocrite! Learn why Jesus gets so fired up about religious hypocrisy.
The most important questions in life are not the ones we come up with but the ones Jesus asks us. Here (in 22:41-46) Jesus asks us who is the Lord of the universe. Spoiler alert, it's Jesus! Why does that matter? If we get that Jesus is Lord, and make him "my Lord" like David does, then it protects us from missing the shape of the universe (and so being forced to bow before Jesus as Lord), from fake religion (which the Pharisees have in 23:1-7), from false promotion (which the disciples are tempted to do in 23:8-10) and from a foolish quest (to exalt ourselves and be served rather than serve as in 23:11-12). What a great Lord we need and have!
Jesus demonstrates he is the Messiah with his extraordinary wisdom! What does he have to say about our attitude toward government?
So many things competing for our attention and energy… what’s worth giving ourselves to? The coming of Jesus and the judgement brings razor sharp clarity for us.
Down through the ages, across different cultures humanity has sought true spirituality - our culture is no different. Why is God's way better?
Some are saying we live in the 'age of anxiety'. We all feel it to differing degrees, for some it's debilitating. What difference does Christianity make to the way we think about anxiety?
We live in a moment in history where we have immediate access to almost anything that we think will make us happy - and yet we’re still not satisfied. Our lives can feel like a constant quest for happiness - but it never seems to last. But God has a better way to find happiness - true, lasting happiness.
What does God want for your 2024? For you to become more mature as you experience more of his love.
Can you really experience joy at Christmas? Learn from Elizabeth not just the secret to a different Christmas but a new life.
What is it that we need to stay focused on not to derail our faith and destroy the church? There's one distraction that will grind us to a halt.
With so much teaching from Jesus on how to live, why do Christians still have a bad reputation? Why don’t we look more like Jesus?
What will bring real transformation in our lives? Ditch the band aid treatment and hear how radical change is possible.
Good teaching from God leads to radically counter cultural lives that are suprisingly attractive to our world. Also, hang around to the end for a live Q&A following the sermon.
Why does truth matter? Lies create harm, truth creates health. Where do we find truth? God speaks the truth because he is truth, & submitting to God’s truth leads to good.
Psalm 90 is a stark look at the reality of life and the inevitability of death. The Psalm is written by Moses who came face to face with death many times and he reflects on how God is eternal and strong while we humans are finite and weak. And yet even in the face of death, there is a great hope for us because of the incredible mercy that God has shown us.
The unstoppable Gospel has reached Rome and now the ends of the earth! Will you be part of God's desire to see the nations turn to Jesus or has your heart become calloused?
Where is God in life's setbacks? How should we view suffering in the Christian life? The Bible has something refreshingly challenging to say to us through the Apostle Paul's journey to take the good news of Jesus to the ends of the earth.
The Gospel is an intriguing paradox! As we unravel its divisive nature we also see its incredible power to change lives. What can we learn from Paul's example of Christian living? And how can we, as followers of Christ, navigate a world where the Gospel divides yet offers eternal hope?
The Spirit directs Paul in all his movements towards Jerusalem. How can we expect God to guide his people today?
Paul's farewell speech to his leaders is intense! What is the role of church leadership and what does that say to all of us about church?
The good news of Jesus brings unavoidable conflict. This has some profound implications for both the conflict adverse and the conflict seeker.
Nothing stops the good news of Jesus powerfully changing lives to this day, not even evil spirits. What does that look like today?
Who wouldn't want to love the vulnerable? but in what unique way are God's people called to love the disadvantaged?
God has a better design for sex & marriage than our culture offers. He even gives laws to retrieve/regain/salvage good outcomes when his people sin sexually… and he even gives his Son to retrieve/regain/salvage people who sin sexually.
Laws show us what God cares about. In these laws in Deut 19 he cares about every human life, true justice, our actions & motives. In Jesus' life God shows us what it looks like to truly live this, then at the Cross God endures the very opposite of these 3 things he cares about from sinners. In that act he pours our just punish on himself so we can now live his way.
We're made for one another and no one wants to be lonely. What sort of community does God want his people to be?
- What’s the reason for the OT food laws? So God’s people can live holy lives, even in their kitchens. || 2. What are Christians meant to do with OT laws? See how it points us to Jesus, and get an insight into God. || 3. What are Christians meant to do with food? OT: live holy lives, even in our kitchens. NT: eat anything but for God’s glory, guided by love.
If you want to love God you're going to feel the pressure to wander. What are these pressure points and why does God take them so seriously?
We love God by worshipping him his way – worshipping him any other way is deeply insulting and deeply unsatisfying.
We want a New Home to be and become lifelong disciples because God’s plan is we’d be & become lifelong disciples.
A New Home needs us to be generous and God gives us gifts to be generous with, and the grace to use them.
We want a New Home for God’s glory because it’ll help us glorify God, and God’s glory is what matters most.
We all want to succeed in life. So what’s the secret recipe for guaranteed success? Rely on God for all we do and be part of what God himself is building, the Church.
What do you do when everything feels like it's falling apart? Or in those moments when it feels like God has left... This Psalm reminds us what God has done and gives us practical advice on how to keep our eyes fixed on him
Some events are world-shaping and life-changing. Jesus’ resurrection is a life-changing event that really happened - but how can we know? And how does it change anything for us?
The injustice of Jesus' trial before he's crucified on the first Easter gives us the answer to why Good Friday is so good!
When we invest we expect a return - God invests in his people and is looking for a harvest in return but what will he find?
Who is Jesus & therefore, what’s the right response to him? Jesus is God the saving-King so the right response is to trust, obey, worship him. We can bear this fruit though because Jesus refines us so we can respond rightly.
God uses his power to serve us so that we can do the same – use your power to serve others not to seek for yourself.
God is so exceedingly generous it creates another problem for us. How should we respond to the overwhelming generosity of God?
Who wouldn't want eternal life if it was on offer? Jesus' promises it but say it's impoosible for the wealthy to get it. What is it about our money that would stop us receiving eternal life?
We're all hurt by others at times and all hurt others at times. How does Jesus want us to handle hurts? He calls us to win our brothers & sisters by correcting sin and to forgive our brothers & sisters like we've been forgiven.
Last Sunday we saw what true faith looks like... But what does living a life of this faith look like? What do we have to do to enter Jesus' Kingdom? And do we really have to follow Jesus’ commands to chop our hands off and scoop out our eyes?
How do we make sense of the Christian life being so hard? As a disciple, God says we're conquerors in Christ, seated in the heavenly realms with him yet I have so many struggles and feel so weak. Is the problem my lack of faith?
At Salt we praying to see a flood of lifelong disciples in Wollongong and beyond! Here how, under God we're planning for this to happen in 2023 and how we all have a part to play.
Who doesn't want to be secure in life, but how much security can money provide? God warns on some massive pitfalls and graciosly provides us a better way.
If you don't think caring for the environment matters you're not only out of sync with culture but also with the God who made it all but how important should it be to us?
Our mental health matters to us so our society has some good solutions to boost mental health and tackle mental health conditions. Our mental health matters to God too, and God has a better way - to diagnose mental health, to fix mental health and to use mental health. So the more we know and trust him the healthier we will be.
It's a new year and its a time to consider carefully how you are building your life - you get one crack at it and you want to build it well.
If there's anyone who could be proud on the first Christmas it's Mary, she gave birth to the King of the world! and yet she models to us what Christmas is all about - humility.
How can Mary rejoice on the first Christmas? How will you? We explore her genuine joy in Jesus her saviour not in the absence of difficulty but in the midst of it.
What do you need to trust God for? Mary is given a massive promise and her response is impressive!
No matter what happens we can be completely sure God is for us because of his past actions and future promises.
Among all the other things God gives us, he gives us a new identity. We're sons of God, who call God our father, and who will be glorified with Jesus after we suffer with Jesus. So we can wait patiently and eagerly for our hope.
Built on trust in Christ, one sure and crucial evidence you are a Christian is living a life led by the Spirit, but what does that look like?
No condemnation from God is the awesome and unique message of Christianity for those who identify with Jesus, only possible because of both Jesus’ righteousness and death in our place.
There is a work that is eternal, never in vain and disciples of Jesus are to give themselves fully to. It all hangs on the resurrection of Jesus, is this work you're committed to?
Paul answers 2 questions about the future of our bodies. 1) what kind of body will we have? Answer: the resurrected you is you transformed, like Jesus. 2) How will we be raised? Answer: the resurrected you comes from Him when death is destroyed.
The Gospel is good news from God of utmost importance for everyone! You can be sure Jesus death and resurrection saves you from death if you believe.
If you're a Christian you've gone through a massive transformation not because of what you've done but because of God's love and kindness through Jesus. Do you realise this? Have you had this transformation?
God gives us a saying we can build our lives on - that Jesus came into the world to save you, a sinner.
Does God care how we worship him? God commands us to turn from false/misguided worship to know and worship him properly.
How would you know if God is at work in your life? Should we be looking for miracles and how would you know one if you saw one?
Should we be arguing with one another as disciples of Jesus? Aren't Christians meant to be about peace and unity? What could be so serious that the early church agrees to a fierce debate?
Is being happy a right expectation of the Christian life? In the next episode of God’s unstoppable plan we see being Jesus’ disciple on mission is both extraordinarily good and hard at the same time.
Dozens of missionaries have been killed throughout the world in the last few years. But why? And why do Christians continue to leave the comfort of their lives to risk persecution and death for the sake of a simple message? In this passage we see that God's heart is for mission as he works powerfully to save people through Jesus
God's unstoppable Gospel triumphs even over evil. What do we learn about the nature of evil from the church's first missionary journey?
We love a good underdog story! and the God of the Bible is the God of great reversals! If you're a follower of Jesus or consideriong becoming one, Acts 12 including Peter's miraclous escape from prison has lots to say about what to expect in this life.
Racism is a particularly ugly sin no one is innocent of. What is the cure? And how might we become a church and a world that doesn't unjustly discriminate?
How can we be the Christians and the church God wants us to be? By God's work & us living in response we can be Acts 9:31 Christians, with a healthy fear of God, peaceful, and being miraculously transformed by God.
The gospel is unstoppable because it's God's work and you can't stop God. Hard-hearts (like Saul's) can't stop God's work. Hardly qualified humans (like Ananias) can't stop God's work. So never give up on anyone, and be an Ananias by praying, sharing, and learning more about Jesus.
Perseverance in the midst of difficulty and opposition is not unique but essential to the Christian. What will help us stay the course, even take risks for Jesus?
While physical training has some value, it doesn't last - whereas Godliness has value now and into eternity! But what is Godliness - and how do we grow in it?
God promises Ancient Israel physical blessings and curses, based on whether they obey or disobey him. What blessings does God promise Christians? Every spiritual blessing in Christ because Christ was cursed for us so we could be blessed.
Who would have thought pride could be so dangerous? On the edge of the Promised Land God's people are about to lose it all.
How do we love God in both the good times and the bad? What do we need to avoid the serious dangers associated with both success and failure?
The same God who hates evil in the Promised Land of Deuteronomy hates it today. As followers of Jesus, what does it mean to fight sin now that Jesus has died for sin and will return to judge?
The greatest love of all is the love God has shown us in Jesus. Now our greatest joy is to love him with our all and raise the next generation to do the same. What helps us and what hinders us from doing this?
Is Christianity harmful? Some would say it's dangerous. We take a look at the famous 10 commandments - are they good for us or will they do us harm?
"God's people are on the edge of the promised land and Moses warns them - stay faithful! God blesses those who keep his commands - so get rid of anything that will get in the way of wholehearted devotion to the Lord."
Shockingly, God commands his people to engage in Holy War and so they kill an entire nation. We can make sense of this only if we understand God's sovereignty (he is God and we are not), justice (he fairly judges evil and that's good), patience (he shows extraordinary patience to an evil nation) and mercy (he saves Ancient Israel who didn't deserve it). Christians deal with the same sovereign God who has shown us justice, patience & mercy as Jesus died for us.
God's people on the cusp of entering the Promised Land and despite God's goodness to them fail to trust him. There's a lot here we learn about God and ourselves, as well as a sober warning.
We can trust God that it’s good & noble to lead a Church - noble because leaders guard and grow the church in as they model, teach & govern, and noble because God deeply treasures the Church
Jesus is literally unique as he is the Son of God, to be listened to above all others, who makes criminals into sons & daughters of God - he gives us real hope in a confusing world.
The historical events of Good Friday provide the certain hope we need in uncertain times. This hope comes at great cost to Jesus and will cost you too. Will you count the cost of following Jesus?
The most important question of all time is 'Who is Jesus?' If the biographies of Jesus give such a clear answer why do so many get Jesus wrong?
Jesus is the King of not just the Jews, but the whole world! Anyone can come to faith in him - his compassion overflows to all people.
Human traditions can't make us right with God. In fact, they insult God & are completely ineffective at cleaning human hearts. Only God can clean our hearts from the inside.
Jesus's feeding miracles and walking on water are more than just party tricks, they point to something profound about his identity as the most compassionate King imaginable. Will you come to him for a meal that truly satisfies?
Good leaders are hard to find. We know what we want in a leader but so often we're let down. What do we learn about true leadership from Jesus and his forerunner in John the Baptist?
How you listen to Jesus matters. Only some will hear and understand what Jesus says - and for those who do will discover God's Kingdom it's worth more than anything.
It matters who you think Jesus is, because misunderstanding Jesus puts you in danger of being against him & being unforgiven forever. But understanding Jesus frees you from Satan’s rule to be forgiven forever.
What Jesus say to us about work and rest is supremely good but It offends the religious and is still counter cultural to this day.
Jesus has a huge heart for people who are lost without God. Where's our heart when it comes to the people of Wollongong? How can we be part of Jesus' misson at Salt in 2022 and beyond?
True greatness is entering the kingdom of God through Jesus, and serving the king Jesus.
Jesus sends Christians and Churches out on a unique, unpopular mission - so be unafraid and unashamed to be a lifelong disciple of Jesus, & to make new disciples of Jesus.
The idea that the universe rewards you is popular but does it work? Jesus has a refreshingly diffterent answer that brings hope to all.
Many people believe Christianity is not good because Christians do bad, + Christians & non-Christians alike doubt if all of Christianity is good. But Christianity is good for you because: 1) the God of Christianity is good, 2) the news of Christianity is good, 3) the fruit of Christianity is good.
If there even is a God out there, surely we can’t know this God and what they're like, right? But God has an unexpected truth for you: God is there, and you can know him
Through the eyes of a blind man, we see 3 things about Jesus (that he's a sovereign, good & life-changing king) that lead us to leave our cloak (our place of trust) & drop our dreams (our place of identity) to sacrificially follow Jesus in 2022.
How do you get real joy at Christmas? What's all the fuss about a baby boy born 2000 years ago? Meet your King this Christmas, find real life and joy!
Christmas is not always the happy occasion it's made out to be. Often times it's more about grief, anxiety or regret. How can we experience the 'thrill of hope' in Jesus at Christmas? Luke 2 helps us see the massive difference Jesus makes to our world as we explore the classic carol 'O Holy Night' through the responses of Simeon and Anna.
Respond to Christmas like the Angels and Charles Wesley who wrote this carol: Give glory to King Jesus by treasuring him, and seeing his glory - that in Jesus, God is with us to make peace with us.
We all have a story to tell of injustice or being hurt by someone. God's way for us to deal with it is radically good but also really hard. The more we see things God's way the easier it will become.
Are God's commands bad or beautiful, & unrealistic or achievable? They're beautiful & achievable b/c God does what he commands, + God forgives us for not doing his commands, transforms us to love his commands, & enables us to do his commands.
Not everyone who starts the Christian life finishes it. Will you be there at the finish line? What will keep you going in the Christian life for the long haul?
The transformed Christian life is a life of genuine loving service of others. Everyone wants to experience love but what does genuine love look like and how is it different to the world's love?
God gives all Christians gifts, not for our self-identity & self-satisfaction, but to use to serve any & everyone, for God's glory, Christian's growth & other people’s good. So go gladly serve with everything you've got.
If you're a disciple of Jesus you're living in two worlds. You live here but here is not your home. You're a citizen of Australia and a citizen of heaven. How then does church relate to government? Are we to obey government? What does it mean for our political allegiances?
As God's people we have been formed into a body. we therefore belong to each other and have responsibility for each other.
What God has done in Christ for us is massive! How are we to respond? The first verse of Romans 12 sets the scene for a radically transformed life.
God is for us but God’s not here for us. God is at the centre & we’re here for him | God answers prayers, gives victory to his King, does all he does, for His own glory
The God we know in the sky and sun, in speech, and in the Son, is a good God. Don't ignore him. Know him so he will forgive your sins, steer you from sin, and satisfy your soul.
Can the Gospel be stopped? Imprisoning and killing christians seem like pretty big threats! What would happen if it got much much harder to be christian in Australia?
The Gospel is unstoppable even when the messengers are killed. Stephen's death shows us 5 reasons it makes sense to sacrifice & die for Jesus: Jesus really is Lord, God is with us always, we’re in good company, the judge will bring justice, God wins.
We’re running a night to help you think about whether to be vaccinated, because it’s a decision we all have to make or have already made. But we’re doing something bigger than that too. With every decision we make we want to make a good choice. But we often need to make decisions where it’s complicated, there’s a lot of factors to weigh up, and it’s not clear what the “good choice” is.
So, how do you make those kinds of complex decisions? That’s what we’re going to explore, with the vaccine as a case study. The vaccine is a good example of a complex decision as there’s a big mix of factors to sift through, a gap widening in our society between those who are vaccinated and those who aren’t, and it seems likely this topic will keep impacting our society and churches in the weeks and months ahead.
Have a question or want to find out more about Salt Church? Get in touch!
www.saltchurch.info/connect
The Gospel is unstoppable but there are some real physical needs here! How do you care for the vulnerable and proclaim Jesus at the same time?
The Gospel is unstoppable but there are threats to the Gospel. Will the enemies of God stop God's plans?
The Gospel is unstoppable but there are threats to the Gospel. Will corruption in the church stop God's plans?
Nothing can stop God's plans and purposes through Jesus... So how should we respond when faced with opposition to Jesus?
If you get Jesus right you’ll get life - like a lame man’s limbs get life - because God is utterly determined to bless His enemies.
We're looking at the powerful work of the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts. What power does God the Holy Spirit bring? Who does God the Holy Spirit give power to? Why does God the Holy Spirit give us power?
Following the extraordinary events of Jesus' death and resurrection is the next chapter in God's amazing plan of salvation - the giving of his Spirit. It was ground breaking then and it is ground breaking today.
The stage is set for the explosion of God's church, the contuation of Jesus' unstoppable mission to make disciples to the ends of the earth. Are you apart of it?
What happens when God knows you? To be safely known by God leaves you secure & in awe. How do you get there? Jesus the Christ makes God known to you & you safely known by God.
In his extraordinay mercy God calls his people back to him for the final time in Hosea. They didn't respond, but have you?
Feel the anguish of God as he wrestles within himself as perfect judge and lover of his people. God is not like us, his extraordinary justice and mercy seen in the death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus.
The darkest chapters of Hosea have something very relevant to instruct us on today. Will we take God's warning seriously?
Want to love the things God loves and hates the things God hates? Listen this week in Hosea 6 to hear the heart of God, nothing will fuel you more to know God and make him known to our needy world.
God has revealed Himself and the good news of the gospel, to reject this knowledge is to invite ruin and judgement.
Why do we find counterfeit gods so attractive? What is an idol and how would I know if I'm committing idolatry? From Hosea to us we take an exploration into this hot topic.
We continue to explore the astonising love of God in light of Israel's blantant unfaithfulness. How will you respond to God's love for you?
God's astonishig response to Israel's shocking spiritual adultery says all we need to know about our treatment of God and his astounding response. Do you know God and do you know yourself?
War is an unfortunate reality of our world. But what does the Bible say about the topic of war and how should we respond to war as Christians?
The words we speak can have a powerful impact for good or cause significant harm. What we say matters. What does God say about how we should use our tongues?
Jesus does things that no one else can do. He teaches like no one else. He heals and casts out demons. He has power of the wind and the waves. Who can do these things? Only God's Servant - Jesus Christ.
We live in a world that prizes itself on zero judgement, is that what Jesus means when he says 'Do not judge'?
Jesus says not to worry but surely it's not that easy. What's the secret to living in an anxious world?
Jesus says the key to living a righteous life is all about your eyesight. Do you see the world the way Jesus does?
God is better than we think... and we are worse than we realise. God is the source of all that's good, He's never the source of evil, but most of all God is already fixing and ending evil - it started at the cross and it will be completed. So trust him to deal with evil if you're a Christian, and if you're exploring Jesus ask him to deal with the evil in you.
God has spoken but are you listening? Nothing is more significant than how we listen to the words of Jesus. It will determine our eternal destination. What kind of listener are you?
When he is tempted, Jesus obeys his Father God, like no-one ever has before. Through Jesus, we can now obey God too.
Is Jesus who you think he is? Believe it or not Christmas is a time for lying. People say they like presents they really don’t but are they the only lies surrounding Christmas time? We take another look at the first Christmas and how it was surrounded by lies.
Is Jesus who you think he is? Getting Jesus right is the key to happiness - he is the flawless king who brings international happiness and he's here for flawed sinners, like you.
Through Zechariah, God promises the coming of his great day of reckoning! Are we to wait for it or has it already arrived?
God has sent His Good Shepherd to bring hope to dark-hearted sinners. Turn to Him and don’t turn back to idols.
God's King and all those who follow him are victorious in the end but the victory comes through near defeat. What does victory look like for followers of God's King, Jesus today?
Just like how God's people in Zechariah 1-2 were waiting for God to return and fulfill all his promises to them, Christians are waiting for Christ Jesus to Return and fulfill all His promises to us. We get weary of waiting so we need the comfort this passage brings. We feel uncertain while we wait, so we need the certain confidence this passages brings.
God's people have been entrusted with The Faith. This responsibility means we must contend against all false teaching.
Jesus loves his Church (that's us!). We're a messy, awkward, unusual community but Jesus loves us so much that he dies to bring us together. How does that shape how we do church? How does that change how we view church?
What does the Holy Spirit do in us? The Spirit lives and works in us, so we'll trust Jesus and become like Jesus together.
The climatic and earth shattering moment of Jesus' life is his death and bodily resurrection. We explore why this event changed humanity forever.
Jesus comes to us in the pages of the Bible as truly God and truly man. Why is this so important and what difference does it make if we get this wrong?
When Christians talk about God, we're talking about the God of the bible who is there, is massive, is eternal, triune and self sufficient. The only appropriate response to meeting God is to fall on our knees and worship Him
God speaks to us by his word in the Bible. But what does that mean? What is the Bible and how are we to read it? This is the 2nd sermon in our Doctrine series
Does it really matter what Christians believe? Michael talks about why truth matters and why we're doing this series all about Doctrine
Our God is Earth-shatteringly powerful - but what does he use his power for? This Psalm shows us how God uses his power for the good of his people.
What is distinctive about Christian leadership? What are the pitfalls of leading and following in God's church?
After holding back for so long, Tim unleashes his biggest soccer analogy yet to help us understand what it's like to be on God's winning team.
Nothing shapes the life of a Christian more than a determined focus on the end when Jesus returns to Judge. How can we be ready for this? and what must we do as we wait?
The new life expressed in our marriages might be counter cultural but it's profoundly good.
Jesus is risen. Can it be true, how could we know and what if it is? Find out as we look at the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Jesus is risen. This was the plan all along. It is our hope, our peace and our joy. Let's share it.
Luke 23 is the ultimate miscarriage of justice yet Luke's account reveals Jesus' suffering as so much more. Jesus is our substitute and perfect example. Is he yours?
Michael shares some thoughts on how we should respond to the current crisis as Christians.
At his final meal with the disciples Jesus prepares to defeat Satan explaining the significance of his coming death and his example of servant leadership
Today we commissioned Michael Plaege as our church's new Lead Pastor. Al Stewart helps us explore what this small obscure passage says about church leadership with 2 surprising rules on biblical leadership.
Jesus knows the future. He is going to return in glory, the living and the dead standing before Him in judgement. There will be signs and we are to stay watchful, waiting for our King to return.
4 episodes that show why so many people wanted Jesus killed. 4 game-changing truths that Jesus reveals about himself. 4 times that Jesus shows we need to be 100% committed: there's no halfway with following Jesus.
Jesus is rejected by the religious leaders and by countless people today. But God has reversed and overturned that verdict by raising Jesus from the dead. The rejected stone has become the most important cornerstone at the centre of God's purposes for the church and the world. So don’t reject the Son God has raised up – receive him as your Lord.
At the start of Jesus’ most important week of life on earth, what is he on about? Bringing peace with God, a peace that purifies, to all people, for His praise
Jesus meets 2 people who need saving - a 'sinful woman' and a religious leader. But only one of them gets who Jesus is and is saved... Jesus teaches us about forgiveness and how we too can be saved.