Discovery Church Podcast: Recent Episodes
Discovery Church
Discovery Church in Melbourne, Australia is a place to belong, be restored and create new life in Jesus. We encourage you to find yourself inside a bigger story.
09/02/2025 - Jody Destry
Key Scripture: Matt 25:1-13 – The Parable of the 10 bridesmaids
Jesus and his disciples are gathered together on the Mount of Olives – a place significant to the life and ministry of Jesus. It was here that Jesus often came to pray to his Father. It wa hear that Jesus often taught spiritual truths to the people who gathered to hear him. It was from the Mount of Olives that Jesus made his triumphal entry in Jerusalem as he prepared to lay his life down at the cross for us. And it was here that that the disciples witnessed Jesus ascend into heaven after his resurrection.
In this moment, the disciples ask Jesus a question: ‘What will be sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’ – in other words, they were asking Jesus when he would be coming back after his death and resurrection to once and for all seal the victory over evil and bring his followers into eternity with him.
In answer to their question, Jesus tells them this parable (or story) to help them understand.
The moral of the parable is this:
We need to stay alert and be ready and prepared for Jesus’ return – whether it be soon or long in coming because there are significant consequences for those who are not prepared and found not ready when Jesus returns on the final the day.
The Bible frequently uses wedding imagery to describe God’s relationship with his people. In the NT, Jesus is referred to as the Bridegroom and the Church (his followers) are referred to as the Bride.
In this parable, The Bridegroom again is symbolic of Jesus, but in this instance, it’s the bridesmaids who represent individual believers/followers of Jesus.
Why did Jesus feel the need to tell them this story and give them this prophetic warning?
Jesus knew that his disciples would struggle to stay the course and could becoming easily distracted from the assignment he had given them. Jesus knows our propensity to grow weary, to become complacent and distracted too. Jesus was also addressing the behaviour of many of the religious leaders of that time who were known for not practicing what they preached. Their faith was all for show on the outside but underneath it was found to be shallow and inauthentic.
Every parable has a sting in the tail:
Jesus warned them that not everyone who professes faith in Jesus with their lips will enter the Kingdom of God. Some, like the five foolish bridesmaids, will find themselves on the outside looking in on the great celebration that’s taking place, wondering why they haven’t been let in.
So, as modern-day followers of Jesus, this parable invites us to consider how we might be intentional about staying alert and ready and how to prepare well for Jesus’ return.
Pursue true discipleship
– Commit to cultivating a real and living faith in Jesus.
– Practice daily rhythms of time with Jesus – scripture, prayer, worship
– Guard your heart against complacency / auto-pilot faith
– Plant yourself in community with others for accountability and encouragement e.g a Discovery Group, a mentor
Q: Am I performing Christianity, or am I truly walking with Jesus?
Q: What is one way God is inviting me to pursue true discipleship this year?
- Keep growing and maturing in faith
– Practice faithfulness in every season – “A long obedience in the same direction”
– Stay teachable
– Desire wisdom
– Be intentional about your growth as a disciple
Q: Am I bearing fruit? (Am I growing in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control)
Q: Am I relying on past spiritual experiences, or am I actively seeking fresh encounters with God?
Q: Am I being obedient to what Jesus has asked of me?
- Be prepared for delays
– Invest in spiritual habits that sustain you over time, not just in moments of need (keep your oil well stocked)
– Learn the unforced rhythms of grace (walk at the pace of Jesus)
– Send your roots down deep.
Q: What regular rhythms currently help you stay connected to Jesus? (e.g. prayer, scripture, sabbath, etc)
Q: Where do you see signs of spiritual fatigue or weariness in your life?
Q: Are there any spiritual habits you feel prompted to deepen or recommit to?
Q: What would it look like for you to live at Jesus’ pace – unhurried but purposeful?
- Live with urgency
– Make the most of every opportunity
– Love your neighbour today (not tomorrow or next year)
– Be a diligent steward of your gifts and resources
– Resist unhelpful distractions
– Be continually filled with Spirit
Q: What distractions need to be removed for you to stay focused on God this year?
Q: How are you using your time, energy, and resources for God’s Kingdom?
Q: Who in your life needs to hear about Jesus and how might you be intentional about being open and available to share your faith with them?
Can You Hear Me Now?02/02/2025 - Matthew Destry
Matthew 13:1-17
- What is a parable?
- παρά (para) – meaning “beside,” “alongside,” or “near.”
- βολή (bolē) – derived from the verb βάλλω (ballō), meaning “to throw” or “to cast.”
a/ Story / narrative (not like a metaphor)
b/ Examples from everyday life
c/ One main point (not like an allegory)
d/ ‘Sting in the tail’
2i. Why?
Parables are not just illustrations; they are a form of spiritual discernment. They test the heart of the listener.
- To those with faith, parables illuminate the mysteries of the Kingdom.
- To those with hard hearts, parables obscure the truth, leaving them in their blindness.
Isaiah 6:9-10: “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes.”
2ii. The Parable of the Sower: A Parable About Parables
The Parable of the Sower describes four different responses to the message of the Kingdom, just as people respond to parables in different ways:
- The Path (Hard Hearts)
- The Rocky Ground (Emotional, but No Root)
- The Thorns (Distracted Heart)
- The Good Soil (True Discipleship)
- How: Parables invite reflection and understanding for those willing to listen deeply.
- Revealing and Concealing:
- Spiritual Readiness:
- Fulfilment of Prophecy:
- Blessings for Disciples:
- Every Heart is Invited:
Now: Do You Have Ears to Hear?
“Whoever has ears, let them hear.” (Matthew 13:9)
Pray: “Lord, give me ears to hear. Give me eyes to see. Make my heart good soil. Amen.”
This week, we heard from the lead pastors of our various ministries here at Discovery Church, as they shared what we’re believing for in 2025.
I Believe
26/01/2025
Beck Lambert
1 Peter 2:4-5 “As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ”.
- From one location to two: Expanding our reach and presence.
- From Polish to Presence: In our gatherings, prioritising authentic encounters with God.
- From church engagement to community engagement: Through the legacy project and the work of DCC, creating spaces that reflect our commitment to belonging, restoration, creativity and Kingdom.
- From concert to cathedral: not just seeing God in the ‘big, loud and bold’ but also in the quiet, liturgical and routine.
- From comfort to cost: Challenging ourselves to give sacrificially and cheerfully.
- From roads to rivers: we are transforming our discipleship pathway and calling Discovery to connection in small groups, and making pathways of connection and community more simple and life-giving.
19/01/2025 - Nathan "Dubsy" Want
What does it mean to be “all in” on your faith?
- “Be willing to surrender all to him”
- “Completely committed, devoted to him & totally engaged”
Jesus described what it meant to be all in on your faith by saying….
Matthew 16:24-25 ESV
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
Matthew 19:16- 22 ESV
16 And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” 17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.”18 He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, 19 Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
3 things about what it means to be all in on your faith & live a life or surrender?
- We need to … focus on the main thing
Matthew 22:37
37-40 Jesus said, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’
That you would love God with not just some of your life or in certain time slots but with all your life.
If we are going to be a community of people that is all in and sold out in our faith:
It first starts with do you love him?
Do you devote time and energy to live for him?
To devote yourself in his word and his instruction?
The second thing we learn about going all in:
- The price to go all in is not up for negotiation.
In this text: (Matthew 19:17,20)
- Jesus is staying strong
- He’s not watering down or adjusting what’s expected to be all in.
- Even though this man is asking questions trying to find a loophole – questions like “which ones” (v17), “what do I still lack” (v20)
- This mode of questioning is quite common for people like pharisees looking for a loophole but finding a way out and not a way in to what Jesus is asking for them to do.
- But Jesus stays strong and doesn’t negotiate or change what is expected.
Q: Have you been trying to negotiate what your spiritual journey looks like?
The third thing we learn about going all in:
- If we don’t surrender ALL, we miss it
Verse 22 in the message – 22 That was the last thing the young man expected to hear. And so, crestfallen, he walked away. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and he couldn’t bear to let go.
Jesus has asked him to go all in, but he’s not prepared to do it – based on money.
He was not prepared to lay down his wealth to go all in on Jesus.
Because he wasn’t prepared to do that, he missed out on the life that Jesus had for him…
How easy is it to be this man in the story. You follow Jesus. You’re keen to learn more about it…But then there’s just one thing…. That gets in the way… of us fully trusting, fully believing and fully living for him.
Q: What’s that one thing stopping you from going all in?
Q: What’s the one thing you would tight… that you would not bear let go…
Q: What’s getting in the way of fully trusting, fully believing and fully living for him?
One Thing:
“Whatever rules your heart, rules your life”
Q: Who rules your heart, and what rules your heart in 2025? What do we need to surrender to go all in our faith?
12/01/2025 - Zeke Murley
Context
- After witnessing Jesus’ glory on the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter, James, and John return to a scene of need and failure (Matthew 17:1-13).
- A desperate father seeks help for his son, but the disciples are unable to heal him (Matthew 17:14-20).
- Despite their earlier success in healing and casting out demons (Matthew 10:1), they face a spiritual roadblock.
Key Questions
- Why did the disciples fail when they had been given authority?
- What does Jesus’ frustration teach us about faith?
Reflection Points
- When We Say “I Can’t” (v. 16)
- The disciples’ inability mirrors moments when we lose faith and stop praying for breakthroughs.
- Challenge: Is “I can’t” becoming “I won’t”? Are we limiting God by our doubt?
- Faith Like an Atheist (v. 17)
- Jesus rebukes a “faithless generation,” equating a lack of faith to disbelief.
- Reflection: Do we truly believe God can move mountains, or do we let fear stop us from praying boldly?
- The Tension of Faith and Healing
- God doesn’t always heal everyone, but our role is to pray and trust His will.
- Question: Are we a church that seeks God’s presence like a starving man seeks food?
Faith as a Mustard Seed (v. 20)
- Misunderstood Faith: It’s not about how much faith we have but about who our faith is in.
- The Seed’s Design: Faith connected to God grows and fulfills its purpose, just as a mustard seed becomes a tree.
- Challenge: Shift from “I can’t” to “I can through Christ.”
Final Reflection
- Faith isn’t about size or quantity but connection to God, the source of all miracles.
- Prayer Challenge: What would it look like for you to boldly pray, “God, do it again”?
Renewal Season05/01/2025 - Doug Pors
Renewal according to the dictionary.
- To resume something after an interruption.
- The action of extending the validity of something.
- The replacement or repair of something.
AND:
The state or process of being made spiritually new in the Holy Spirit. The call to continual spiritual renewal.
How Confident in God are you for this next year?
Are you listening to His voice as you plan 2025?
Caleb, in Numbers 13, Trusted in God’s voice because he listened and saw the amazing things that God had promised.
Before entering the Promised Land, The people forgot who God was to them, and so were easily led to distrust.
Fear and anxiety ruled their hearts and minds Rather than a listening ear which leads to trust.
Caleb: God will lead. He will give it to us. Listen and don’t be anxious.
Our praise reminds our hearts of who God is.
- What needs to be removed from our hearts and minds for us to be renewed in our trust?
- How will we bring a listening, non-anxious presence to 2025?
Renewal Season is about embracing a new TRUST in God’s already active plan for YOU.
When God is with us, We can certainly do it!
If you would like to know more about our ‘Launch Team for Discovery Church Frankston’ please let our Information Center team know your details, a registration for two information sessions on the 9th and 16th of Feb at Discovery Mt Evelyn, will be open soon also.
We’d love to hear from you!
This week, Pastor Matt reminds us of why Jesus is the Good Shepherd, but also encourages us in what we should do if we truly believe he is the Good Shepherd.
Join us this week as Pastor Jody Destry shares an encouraging word, beginning in Exodus 34 and concluding in Luke 15. It's a timely and necessary reminder of the compassion that God, the Good Shepherd, has for us.
Sermon Notes:
The Compassion of the Good Shepherd
08/12/2024 - Jody Destry
The first word God uses to describe himself in scripture is compassionate:
Exodus 34:5-6 — God appears to Moses on Mt Sinai
“Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”
Root and Meaning: Hebrew // Rachum
- The word rachum comes from the root רָחַם (racham), meaning “to have mercy” or “to show compassion” to be “deeply moved to action”
- The root is connected to the Hebrew word רֶחֶם (rechem), which means “womb.” This suggests a deep, nurturing love, like that of a mother for her child—intense, protective, and life-giving love.
All throughout Scripture, God’s compassion is evident: This is not theoretical; it’s deeply personal and relational.
In Creation: He formed humanity out of the dust with his own hands, lovingly breathing the very breath of life into us. (Gen 2:)
In Deliverance: He heard the cries of the Israelites in Egypt and had compassion on them and rescued them (Exodus 3:7)
In Jesus: We see the ultimate expression of God’s compassion is Jesus Christ, who entered into our suffering to bring us salvation.
In Matthew 9:36, we see this vividly:
“When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”
Jesus’ compassion wasn’t passive. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, he welcomed the lonely and those on the fringes, he listened attentively, he extended grace and met our ultimate need when he laid down His life for us.
His compassion moved Him to action.
While God’s compassion is infinite and limitless – our capacity to experience and express compassion can feel so limited.
Our ability to experience and express compassion invites us to confront our vulnerabilities and our desire for comfort. oCmpassion confronts our exhaustion and our human limits. –
Barriers to compassion
1/ Compassion Fatigue
We live in an age of constant information. News feeds bring global crises to our fingertips, every time you open your feed, you are bombarded with crises and needs.
To add to that, we are surrounded by the growing needs and the personal challenges being experienced in our own communities. While these moments call for compassion, sometimes the sheer volume of need can overwhelm us. And we can find ourselves thinking – How can I care deeply about it all? It just all feels like too much!
Compassion fatigue is described as a physical, mental and emotional withdrawal caused by an extended exposure to the suffering, trauma and needs of others. Often experienced by those in helping professions but is becoming more widespread across communities as everyday pressures of life increase.
2/ Psychic Numbing
In a similar vain, researchers have coined a phrase called ‘psychic numbing’ – where we stop being able to acknowledge fully the impact of past traumatic events and even future threats.
If you’ve ever watched the news and seen war unfolding or seen an ad on TV about starving children in Africa and felt desensitised to it – this could be why.
It’s definitely easier to look away than to feel deeply isn’t it?
3/ Scarcity Mindset
This happens when we perceive a shortage of the resources we need for survival, safety and comfort. Often causes stress and anxiety about the present and the future (remember empty store shelves in lockdown). This lead to us having decreased empathy and compassion for others.
It’s a lens that makes it hard to see past our own challenges and needs to see the needs of others.
4/ Self-Compassion
Often we struggle to extend compassion to ourselves. We find it easier to forgive others, or show empathy to others than we do to ourselves. ]\
“The more we diminish our own pain, or rank it compared to what others have survived, the less empathetic we are to everyone.” Brene Brown
Overcoming The Barriers:
Q: How do we begin to overcome these barriers?
The answer to this question is another question:
Q: How do we open ourselves to experience more of God’s compassion to us so that we can express more of God’s compassion through us to others?
There’s a story Jesus tells in Luke 15 that I think might help us reflect on this: offers a vivid picture of both our need for compassion and how experiencing it transforms us.
Luke 15:11-32
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
———————————————————————————————————-
His Father doesn’t wait for his son to grovel or prove himself worthy. Instead, he runs to him, embraces him, and showers him with undeserved grace and love.
This extravagant display of compassion restores the son’s dignity and identity—not as a servant but as a beloved child.
Each one of us is like the Prodigal Son, desperately in need of God’s compassion.
Recognising our need for His grace requires humility—an acknowledgment that we cannot fix ourselves.
When we open ourselves to experience God’s boundless compassion, it changes us. We no longer operate from a place of scarcity or judgment but from the abundance of grace we’ve received.
God’s compassion transforms us, it expands the boundaries and the borders of our hearts overcoming the barriers that erect themselves there. It softens our hearts toward those who are hurting, lost, or difficult to love. God’s compassion to us opens our eyes to see and live in the world differently.
God doesn’t ask us to solve every problem or meet every need—He asks us to reflect His love and compassion in the small, everyday acts of care and kindness.
He asks us to imitate him who moved slowly through the crowd, who looked people in the eye, who listened well, who took time to be present with people, to pray with people, to serve people and to love people.
Reflect:
1/ How is God inviting me to receive and experience his compassion today?
2/ How is God inviting me to express his compassion to others today?
Join us this week as we begin a new sermon series, The Good Shepherd. Pastor Matt Destry shares an encouraging word from John 12:24, offering timely insight on the importance of recognising when we’re at the end of a season — and whether it’s time to Let It Die.
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Sermon Notes
Let It Die01/12/2024 - Matthew Destry
John 10:11 – “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
John 12:24 – “Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.”
The Good Shepherd and Death
- Jesus ties His goodness to His willingness to die for us.
- True fruitfulness requires death.
Three Theologies of Success
- Worm Theology: Fear of failure or rejection keeps us stuck.
- Romans 8:1 – No condemnation in Christ.
- Psalm 139:14 – Fearfully and wonderfully made.
- World Theology: Endless growth is idolised.
- Ecclesiastes 3:1 – A time for every season.
- Matthew 16:26 – Don’t gain the world and lose your soul.
- Christ Theology: True success begins with surrender.
- Philippians 2:5-8 – Humility leads to exaltation.
III. Application: What Needs to Die?
- Mindsets: Pride, fear, or insecurity.
Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust the Lord’s way.
- Seasons of Life: Recognise when to move forward.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 – A time for everything.
- Relationships: Let go of toxicity and unforgiveness.
Colossians 3:13 – Forgive as Christ forgave you.
- Habits/Worldviews: Step away from unproductive patterns.
Romans 12:2 – Be transformed by renewing your mind.
- Four Forms of Death in the Christian Life
- Persuasion: Using words, not force.
- Prayer: Acknowledging dependence on God.
- Service: Taking a lower place.
- Suffering: Embracing God’s redemption through pain.
Romans 5:3-5 – Suffering produces hope.
- Encouragement and Challenge
Trust the Good Shepherd who leads through death into resurrection life.
Reflection: What needs to die in your life for new fruit to grow?
Philippians 2:5-8 – “Have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.”
Join us this week as Pastor Zeke Murley reminds us that the Lord is knocking on the door of our hearts and encourages us to invite him in.
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Sermon Notes:
SCRIPTURE
14 “Write to the angel of the church in Laodicea: Thus says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the originator of God’s creation:
15 I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot.
I wish that you were cold or hot.
16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold,
I am going to spit you out of my mouth.
17 For you say, ‘I’m rich; I have become wealthy and need nothing,’
and you don’t realise that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.
18 I advise you to buy from me gold refined in the fire so that you may be rich, white clothes so that you may be dressed and your shameful nakedness not be exposed, and ointment to spread on your eyes so that you may see.
19 As many as I love, I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous and repent.
20 See! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
REVELATION 3:14–20 CSB
CONTEXT
John, the disciple who walked closely with Jesus, was exiled to the rocky island of Patmos for his unwavering testimony. In this isolation, he received a vision from Jesus, meant not only for his time but for the Church throughout history. In the vision, Jesus addressed seven churches in Turkey, dealing with real issues like persecution, compromise, and spiritual complacency. These letters offered encouragement and warning, with Laodicea being the final church addressed.
Laodicea had rebuilt itself 35 years earlier after an earthquake, relying on its wealth and resources without outside aid. Known for its prosperity, community service, and medical advancements, the church likely expected praise. However, Jesus followed a consistent structure—commendation, challenge, and response—pointing to deeper spiritual truths that went beyond their outward success.
JESUS IS THE AMEN (SO BE IT)
Before we even get to the letter, he says he is Sovereign over all. He is in control.
I KNOW YOUR WORKS (v15-16)
HOT = All in, Old Life Gone, New Life Risen, Renewed, Disciple of Jesus who denies themself, picks up their cross and follows Jesus daily.
COLD = Unbeliever. But that word cold in the literal Greek means ‘water that has never been hot’.
YOU CAN NOT CONSUME YOUR WAY INTO THE KINGDOM, I CAN NOT CONVINCE YOU INTO THE KINGDOM, YOU HAVE GOT TO COMMIT YOUR WAY INTO THE KINGDOM.
THE ROOT OF THEIR LUKEWARM CONDITION (v17)
The root of their condition did not start in the here and now. It started 35 years ago when the church in Laodicea forgot the Sovereignty of God.
A church that does not need God to come through for them is a LUKEWARM CHURCH.
BECAUSE JESUS HAS WHAT YOU NEED (v18)
Not only does Jesus have what you need, he desires to refine, renew, revive you.
He desires to dress, cover, protect you from your spiritual blindness.
HE DISCIPLINES THOSE HE LOVES
Here we get a act of love that is not defined by:
- Acceptance
- Approval
- Affirmation
We get a biblical definition of love that is defined by:
- Sacrifice
- Protection
- Care
THE HOPE FOR THE CHURCH
The Lord is (NOT) there. But he is at the door and knocking.
As we rapidly head towards the end of the year we'd love to invite you to take a pause and catch your breath with us on the Nourish Podcast. Join Ps. Jody and Gabi Gulay as we explore 'Psalms that Sustain Us'.
In this series, we unpack a favourite Psalm in each episode and ask ourselves the question: "What is it that God might want to reveal about himself to us through his Word and how does this Psalm encourage, strengthen and anchor us in the seasons of life?"
This week we dwell on Psalm 103.
We continue our series, The Lord is There, with a challenge and call to a season of renewal with Pastor Matt.
Sermon Notes ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Exodus 34:29-35
When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai. When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.
1 Kings 18:36-39
At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.”
Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!”
2 Corinthians 3:18
“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit”
2 Corinthians 4:16
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day”
Story: Searching for “David”
Key message: Jesus is guiding us into the heart of what transformation means as disciples in His story: a continual journey of change that aligns us ever closer to the likeness of Christ, and a renewal of all things in His presence. He is ‘chipping away’ at us – renewing us, creating us, and bringing out in us what was always there.
- Unveiled faces: embracing vulnerability
- The necessity of renewal: Formation vs. Malformation
- The process of beholding: transformation through worship
- Faith in the power of the Spirit: we build the altar, He brings the fire
Question: What are the shifts on the horizon for Discovery Church, and what role to Jesus’ followers play in this season of renewal?
- From one location to two:
- From Polish to Presence:
- From church engagement to community engagement:
- From concert to cathedral:
- From comfort to cost:
- From roads to rivers:.
- How is God calling you to renewal personally?
- What is He asking you to surrender?
- In what ways is He calling you deeper, wider, or in new directions?
As we rapidly head towards the end of the year we'd love to invite you to take a pause and catch your breath with us on the Nourish Podcast. Join Ps. Jody and Gabi Gulay as we explore 'Psalms that Sustain Us'.
In this series, we unpack a favourite Psalm in each episode and ask ourselves the question: "What is it that God might want to reveal about himself to us through his Word and how does this Psalm encourage, strengthen and anchor us in the seasons of life?"
This week we dwell on Psalm 121.
This week we continue our series "The Lord is There - Our Mission in Community," with an encouraging word on prayer from Pastor Jody. We are encouraged this week that if we want to see renewal and His kingdom come in our community, that we need to start with prayer.
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Sermon Notes:
Big Idea: Prayer is the foundation for renewal in our community.
Key Scriptures:
Matt 6:5-13
Gen 2:15
Psalm 8:4-8
Isaiah 9
So what is prayer really?
Prayer is a relationship – it’s about connectedness to God. Prayer is a conversation with God.
Prayer is communion – a way of being with God, and ultimately, it is the place where we experience God’s deep love for us. And prayer is where God births in us a deep love for others
– for our friends, families, neighbours and our community.
Prayer is the foundation of the Christian life.
The Challenge: We live in a world where “MY Kingdom” is often more important and central to us than seeing God’s Kingdom come.
Question: What does ‘your kingdom come’ mean?
– God’s kingdom refers to His rule and reign coming on the earth. It exists perfectly in heaven but it’s under opposition here on earth.
The Invitation: To Imagine a better Kingdom than the ones we are creating for ourselves & to move from ‘my kingdom come’ prayers to ‘Your kingdom come’ prayers
Question: What would it look like to see this prayer realised? To see the kingdom of heaven breaking out in our midst – God’s rule and reign returning to the earth?
- Read Isaiah 9 to find out!
Application: Living and Praying For Kingdom Renewal – How do we position ourselves to partner with God in this?
1/ Start in surrender – commit to a deepening life of prayer – asking for God’s kingdom to come and His will to be done in our lives, families, and community. Come under his rule and reign.
2/ Follow Jesus’ example – Jesus was a man of prayer – he got up early and stayed up late, he wrestled in prayer, he wept in prayer, he contended in prayer, he prayed before making big decisions, he was still in prayer even on the cross.
Find regular rhythms of private and corporate prayer to participate in. E.g anchor it to a practice – prayer walk around your neighbourhood / prayer chair, pray in a garden – a quiet place.
Prayer in your Discovery Group, Prayer and Fasting, Pray at work, at school – United Prayer Events etc
3/ Contend with Jesus for renewal – let God break your heart for what breaks his. Let him stir you to a new level of faith and conviction.
“Do not let your prayers be all about your own sins, your own wants, your own imperfections, your own trials, but do let them climb the starry ladder and get up to Christ himself, and then, as you draw nigh to the blood-sprinkled mercy-seat, offer this prayer continually, “Lord, extend the kingdom of thy dear Son.” Such a petition, fervently presented, will tend to elevate the spirit and tenor of our prayers.” (Charles Spurgeon)
As we rapidly head towards the end of the year we'd love to invite you to take a pause and catch your breath with us on the Nourish Podcast. Join Ps. Jody and Gabi Gulay as we explore 'Psalms that Sustain Us'.
In this series, we unpack a favourite Psalm in each episode and ask ourselves the question: "What is it that God might want to reveal about himself to us through his Word and how does this Psalm encourage, strengthen and anchor us in the seasons of life?"
This week we dwell on Psalm 145.
Join us this week as Ps. Matt shares on how we can truly encounter Jesus.
We are encouraged that to truly see Jesus for who He is, we must encounter Him in worship, listen to His Word, and follow Him into the work of compassion and prayer.
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Sermon Notes:
Scripture: Luke 9:29-43
Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,[a] which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. 34 As he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One;[b] listen to him!” 36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen. 37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. 39 And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was coming, the demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astonished at the majesty of God.
The Mountaintop Experience
When we have a spiritual journey and encounters with God, those moments help us see Jesus with fresh clarity.
Exegesis: Understanding the Mountaintop Encounter
- The Old Testament Significance of Mountains
- The Presence of Moses (the Law) and Elijah (the Prophets)
- Jesus’ Exodus
Application: Up and Down the Mountain
- Following Him Up the Mountain
- Look at Him (in worship)
- Listen to Him (by His Word)
- Following Him Down the Mountain
- Imitate Him (in compassion)
- Imitate Him (in prayer)
Prayer: May we leave with a renewed vision of Jesus—fully God, fully man, leading us from glory to glory and calling us to participate in His transformative work in the world.
As we rapidly head towards the end of the year we'd love to invite you to take a pause and catch your breath with us on the Nourish Podcast. Join Ps. Jody and Gabi over the next 4 weeks as we explore 'Psalms that Sustain Us'.
In this series, we unpack a favourite Psalm in each episode and ask ourselves the question: "What is it that God might want to reveal about himself to us through his Word and how does this Psalm encourage, strengthen and anchor us in the seasons of life?"
This week we dwell on Psalm 27.
In this inspiring and challenging sermon titled "For The Good Of The Hood," Pastor Jody Destry ecnourages followers of Jesus to actively engage with their communities as instruments of love and transformation. Drawing from the book of Matthew, Jody emphasises that loving God inherently means loving our neighbours, challenging us to overcome fears and insecurities in sharing our faith.
Through practical steps and a heartfelt call to action, listeners are invited to reflect on their role in partnering with God to meet the needs of those around them. Join us as we continue our series, 'The Lord is There."
Sermon Notes:________________________________________________
For The Good Of The Hood
27/10/2024 - Jody Destry
Followers of Jesus are called to be a gift to the community.
God is already present and at work in our community and he chooses to use humans to outwork his mission to see the lost saved and to see communities transformed by the Good News of the Gospel.
Matt:22:36-39
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Loving God and Loving our neighbour are the 2 most important roles of a disciple of Jesus. You can’t love God without also loving your neighbour.
What Stops Us?
- The fear of intruding or imposing our views on others in this current social and political climate of ‘You do you’& ’Your truth’,
- The fear of rejection
- A lack of faith to be open and bold about our beliefs
- Feelings of inadequacy – the needs are so great, where do we begin? What do I have to offer that would make a difference?
Matt 14:3-21 – Jesus feeds the 5000
The miracle of feeding the 5,000 wasn’t just about filling empty stomachs or revealing Jesus ‘ working power. It was about teaching the disciples to take responsibility for the needs around them.
They wanted to outsource the solution – but Jesus was teaching them that he wanted them to be the solution.
As followers of Jesus, we have a responsibility to partner WITH Jesus in caring for our community.
Reflect on this invitation from Charles Spurgeon
“No one intrudes on a hungry man if he brings him bread to eat. Go and intrude yourselves, my Brothers and Sisters, among the hungry, with the Bread of Heaven! Intrude yourselves in the valley of dry bones and cry aloud unto them, “Thus says the Lord, you dry bones, live!” Intrude yourselves as Christ intruded into a world which despised and rejected Him, to whom, after all, He is the only Saviour.”
Application:
What does respectful and intentional intrusion look like:
1/ Pray – community transformation begins in prayer
2/ Get to know your neighbours – be intentional about engaging locally, learn people’s names,
3/ Listen to the needs – of your neighbours and community and meet them where they are
4/ Work for peace – look for ways to engage in practical acts of love, kindness and service – come up with your own “For The Good of The Hood” project
5/ Commit to community transformation as a Church – Legacy Project
6/ Don’t give up – play the long game
Pray:
Father God, give us your heart for our neighbours and our community. Help us to truly see them through your eyes. Increase our compassion and our conviction to love our community well. Give us opportunities to be a voice of hope to others, to your hands of feet of compassion and kindness.
Lord, give us a renewed boldness to share our faith and be a light in the darkness.
In Jesus Name,
This week at Discovery Church, Pastor Matt shares with us about "Making Sense of Life" in the second sermon of our series, "The Lord is There." We delve into the profound lessons of Daniel 4, exploring themes of pride, vulnerability, divine wisdom, and the transformative power of surrendering to God’s rule. Join us as we reflect on our personal experiences in light of the story of the ancient Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar, and discover how acknowledging God's purpose can bring clarity and peace amidst life's chaos.
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Making Sense of Life
20/10/2024 - Matthew Destry
Daniel 4
Context of the Book of Daniel
- Exile – What was it?
- Daniel – Who was he?
- Babylon – What was it?
- King Nebuchadnezzar – Who was he?
- Despite All of Our Advancement, We Are Still Vulnerable (Daniel 4:4-5)
Reflection Questions:
When have you felt most secure in life, only to realise your vulnerability?
What dreams or events have challenged your sense of control?
- God’s Word ≠ Conventional Wisdom (Daniel 4:8-9)
Reflection Questions:
How have you seen God’s wisdom challenge conventional thinking?
Where do you need to seek God’s wisdom instead of relying on your own?
- God’s Imagination (Daniel 4:10-16, 17b)
Reflection Questions:
How might God be speaking to you through your imagination, dreams, or unexpected events?
What parts of your life might God be asking you to see differently?
- God’s Purpose Prevails – Daniel’s interpretation (Daniel 4:26-27)
Reflection Questions:
Where in your life do you need to surrender to God’s rule?
How can you trust in God’s purpose even when things seem out of control?
- Pride Takes God’s Gift and Makes It Our Own (Daniel 4:29-30)
Reflection Questions:
How might you be taking credit for what is ultimately God’s gift?
In what areas do you need to replace pride with humility?
- The Rule of God Makes Sense of Life – All Else Is Insanity (Daniel 4:31-34)
Reflection Questions:
Where have you experienced chaos from trying to rule your own life?
How has acknowledging God’s rule brought clarity and peace?
- There Is a Way to Prosper Under God (Daniel 4:36)
Reflection Questions:
What does prospering under God’s rule look like for you?
How can you align your life more fully with God’s purpose to experience this kind of peace?
In this episode, we explore Pastor Matt Destry's sermon "If These Walls Could Talk," the first message in the series "The Lord Is There." Discover how church buildings serve as powerful symbols of God's presence and mission in our communities, while reminding us that the true church is defined by the people of God. Join us for insights on the deeper meaning behind our places of worship!
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Sermon Notes:
Main Idea: Church buildings are more than physical structures; they stand as visible declarations of God’s presence and mission in the community, while also reminding us that the church is the people of God.
- Introduction: Buildings That Speak
Scripture: Ezekiel 48:30-35 (“The name of the city from that time on will be: The Lord is there.”)
Key Point: Just as ancient cities symbolised God’s presence, so do church buildings today—they act as a declaration that “The Lord is there.”
Reflection Question: What does our church building communicate about God’s presence and mission to those who pass by or enter?
2. Ecclesiology: The Church as a Living Community
Scripture: 1 Peter 2:5 (“You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house.”)
Key Point: The true church is not the building, but the people—believers are the “living stones” of God’s spiritual house. However, physical spaces can still serve as powerful symbols of God’s presence and invitation to the world.
Application: While the church’s mission is about the people, our buildings can still be a tangible signpost pointing to the Kingdom of God.
Reflection Question: How can we, as “living stones,” reflect God’s presence both inside and outside the walls of our church?
3. Buildings as Prophetic Witness to the Community
Scripture: Matthew 5:14-16 (“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.”)
Key Point: Just as a city on a hill cannot be hidden, our church buildings serve as visible declarations to the community—they testify that “God is here.” Historically, churches have served as places of refuge and mission.
Reflection Question: What message does our church building send to the community around us? Is it a place of hope, healing, and welcome?
4. Vision and Legacy: Frankston Church of Christ and Legacy Project Update
Scripture: Ephesians 2:19-22 (“Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus as the chief cornerstone.”)
Key Point: Our building is part of our larger mission to reach the community for Christ. It represents a legacy that will serve future generations through the ministry it enables.
5. Application: The Role of Buildings in Our Mission
a/ Investing in the Future
a/ Inviting the Community
BeholdStrahan Coleman
Scripture: Genesis 2:7 “Then, the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being”
Quote:“A sign of peace and also a sign of well-being,” that can bring “oneness of thought, purpose, desire and hope.”
– Cleve Barlow, Tikanga Whakaaro: Key Concepts in Maori Culture.”
Scripture: John 20:22 “Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them. “Receive the Holy Spirit”
Quote: “Just as for God to speak is to do, and to look is to love, so for him to gaze is for him to transform, to bring radiance and beauty. Our very existence, our very beauty as a person, is the fruit of this sustained gaze of love. And yet there are certain gifts, a process of transformation, which can only occur when this gaze is fully accepted, when our eyes open to meet the eyes that look upon us.”
– Joshua Elzner
Quote: “Mirror neurons allow us to identify the emotions and mood of others and predict their behaviour. You can imagine it like an automatic replay. If we watch someone, our brain acts as if we did/suffered what we’re just observing passively…You could say mirror neurons make sure we get “infected” by the joy and pain someone else feels.”
– Aurorasa Sima
Quote: “Envisioning an authoritarian or critical entity – be it another person or God – will activate the limbic areas of the brain that generate fear and anger… However when you perceive God as a benevolent force, a different part of the brain is stimulated in the prefrontal cortex. Loving, compassionate images, faces, or thoughts activate a circuit that involves a tiny area in the front part of your brain called the anterior cingulate.”
– How God Changes The Brain, Andrew Newberg & Mark Robert Walkman
We wrap up our 'Under the Sun' series this week with Ps Doug delivering a challenging and encouraging word on how to discern God's will for our lives and how to move forward into a Christ-aligned, wisdom-filled life.
________________What is God’s will for my lifePs Doug Pors
Short answer? Love God, Love people.
However, in the everyday world we live in how does that work in our lives.
Is finding out God’s will, just about finding out what car or house to buy? Which person to marry, which job to take?
Three things will help us discover His will for us.
- Our alignment to His will.
- Our relationship with His Word.
- Our relationship with Him in Prayer.
Alignment.
We will struggle to find satisfaction when our ‘way’ is not in alignment with God’s.
Isaiah 55 reminds us that His ways and thoughts are higher than ours.
God does things from a bigger and longer perspective. He sees the end result of our choices and decisions, wise or unwise.
Alignment with His will brings clarity for us.
His Word.
Psalm 25:4. Show me your ways and your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me!
A psalm of submission to ways and thoughts that are higher, which draws our hearts and minds up to see from a better perspective. One which is connected to His plans for us.
God’s Word is his heart and mind revealed to us.
Reading it, transforms our thinking and grows our understanding about what His Ways look like.
Joy in finding the promises of God’s involvement in our life will encourage us to seek and do His will instead of stubbornly pushing on with ours. This releases us from the ensnaring pull of the world and its influence over us.
Prayer.
James 4:8. Draw near to Him and He does the same. This closeness in speaking to Him about your plans for your life allows honest dialogue and a space to hear from Him about where God may want you to see His will for you.
If you don’t talk, you never find out.
The advantage of having more than one voice and heart seeking His will for you is immense!
Gather friends and submit your ways to God and just see what more you will find!
Next steps:
Write down all your plans.
Self-reflect to see if they align with what God has in mind.
Read your Bible and go after the wisdom and guidance that He reveals there.
Pray. Alone and with others to leverage the heart of many for your journey.
Then Trust that God has a plan not to harm but to prosper/grow/expand your life deeper and wider than you ever thought possible.
The Wisdom of Surrender
Our Under the Sun series continues as Pastor Matt Destry offers a reminder, encouragement, and some introspective questions about control and surrender, drawing from Ecclesiastes and Proverbs.
We will explore how to lead wisely, address offence, and seek God’s perspective and sovereignty in our daily lives.
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The Wisdom of Surrender: Relationships in Light of Eternity
The wisdom of God is found in surrender, not in control.
Act 1: The Futility of Control in Relationships
Scripture: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 – “Two are better than one… A cord of three strands is not easily broken.” And, 4:4 – all toil and achievement spring from envy
Point 2: Surrendering to God’s Sovereignty in Relationships
Scripture: Proverbs 3:3-6 – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”
Point 3: Wisdom in Relationships – Forgiveness, Patience, and Understanding
Scripture: Proverbs 17:9 – “Whoever would foster love covers over an offence, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.”
Proverbs 19:11 – “A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offence.”
Application:
If we’re not called to control or fix our relationships, what are we called to do? The wisdom of Proverbs gives us three concrete actions:
- Choose Forgiveness Over Retaliation: Proverbs 17:9 reminds us that wise people seek to preserve relationships by letting go of offences. Think about where you’ve been holding onto a grudge—how can you let that go this week? (PRAYERFUL SURRENDER)
- Practice Patience in Conflict: Proverbs 19:11 encourages patience and understanding. When you feel wronged, pause before reacting. Ask yourself, “Is this something I can overlook for the sake of peace?” (RELEASE THE NEED TO CONTROL)
- Foster Love Through Humility: In a world that values being right, wisdom means choosing love over pride. Let humility lead your interactions, prioritising the relationship over your own ego. (SEEKING WISDOM, NOT PERFECTION)
Our "Under the Sun" series continues this week as Pastor Jody draws our attention to Ecclesiastes 3 and the idea that there is a season for everything.
What season are you in right now? What is this season right for in your life? Have you moved ahead of God's timing? Are you delaying or avoiding embracing a new season?
Join us as we explore the wisdom from the Word this week.
Sermon Notes:
We worship a Creator God who established the world in seasons – who has a created order and time for things according to his good plans and purposes.
“You made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to set”
- Ps 104:19
A picture of a God who is very much in control – intimately involved in the details of all of life.
Life happens in seasons.
The idea of ‘Seasons’ is one of the big master metaphors used in scripture to describe the way we experience life and the journey of faith and following Jesus.
Jesus often used illustrations of seasons in his parables to teach the disciples.
Wisdom literature (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Job) where we’re anchoring ourselves in this series – is all centred around how to live God’s way in the world – also speaks a lot about seasons.
The Word offers us some great wisdom and encouragement when it comes to how we are to discern and navigate our way through seasons of life that come our way.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 (NIV)
There is a time for everything
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6
a time to search and a time to count your losses,
a time to hold on and a time to let go,
7
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.
15
Whatever is has already been,
and what will be has been before;
and God will call the past to account.
Locating Question: What season are you in?
– It could be a season of planting, a season of building and growing, a season of grief or lament, a time of letting go or repairing something that’s been broken, a season of celebration etc
- Other seasons of life – transition, ageing, married, single, retiring, changing jobs, parenting, building your career, buying a home, moving geographically , studying, preparing to leave school and launch into adulthood….
If there’s a right time for every season – there is also a wrong time for every season.
The invitation that comes up repeatedly throughout the wisdom literature and ALL of scripture – is learning to move at the speed of God.
‘A wise youth harvests in summer,
but one who sleeps during harvest is a disgrace’ (Prov 10:5)
‘Those too lazy to plow in the right season
will have no food at the harvest’ (Prov 20:4)
Questions:
What is it the right season for in your life right now? (Ask God for his wisdom)
Have you run ahead of God?
Are you delaying or avoiding embracing a new season?
Prayer – Ask God to guide you back in step with his Spirit
Psalm 27:11-14
11
Teach me how to live, O Lord.
Lead me along the right path,
for my enemies are waiting for me.
12
Do not let me fall into their hands.
For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;
with every breath they threaten me with violence.
13
Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
while I am here in the land of the living.
14
Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and courageous.
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.
The significance of THROUGH – (the journey v the destination)
There are no shortcuts or cheat codes when it comes to growing and maturing as a follower of Jesus – wisdom and character are formed and forged in us through the experiences of life, through the successes and the setbacks – through the seasons of joy and the seasons of pain and challenge.
The journey is just as important as the destination. The journey is where our faith is forged.
Prov 14:23
‘All hard work brings a profit,
but mere talk leads only to poverty.’
Phil 1:6
‘He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.’
Question:
Are there any shortcuts I’m trying to take (whether intentionally or unintentionally) that God wants to draw my attention to today?
What is God teaching me and forming in me through my current season?
Take comfort – God doesn’t leave us in our seasons to navigate them alone – we worship a God who is ever-present with us in the seasons of life.
The tension of the mystery – growing a holy curiosity
The tension of the mystery – we might not always know what God is up to but we can know his heart and his nature towards us:
V11 holds two curious phrases worth exploring …..
‘He has made everything beautiful in its time’ – God’s sovereignty – his redemptive plan for humanity and for the world – a reminder that even when we can’t see it, God is moving and restoring things, bringing order to chaos, beauty for ashes, life to bareness ….
‘He has set eternity in our hearts’ – This is an inner knowing that we were not made for this world – rather we’re just passing through. An inner knowing that there’s ‘more’ to life than what this world has to offer. It’s what we call The Bigger Story – the gift of perspective to help us through the seasons of life.
And it’s these 2 things the author of Ecclesiastes says should lead us to a place of holy fear.
What does it mean to fear God?
– The fear of God is an awe and reverence that comes from acknowledging God in his sovereignty – as the one who created all things and in whom all things hold together (Col 1).
- This kind of holy fear should lead us to a place of humility and surrender and complete worship and adoration of our God for who he is and his grace and love toward us.
Pray:
Invite God into your season.
Pray that God would lead you to a place of humble surrender as you worship him in holy fear (awe and reverence)
Let him remind you of his sovereignty – that he is in control and present with you in every season you face. May his presence and power bring you renewed comfort today.
In week 2 of the "Under the Sun" series, Pastor Zeke Murley delves into the root of many of life's struggles: the crisis of identity. He explores how challenges in relationships, careers, and health often stem from this core issue. Drawing from Genesis 3, we gain insight into where the crisis of identity began. Pastor Zeke outlines three crucial steps for navigating an identity crisis: Assess the situation, Communicate clearly, and Implement & Adapt. He also warns of the dangers of not responding well, which can lead to questioning God, living in shame, and shifting blame.
Sermon Notes:
Emergency Management Plan
Every good management plan involves 3 key elements…
- Assess the Situation
- Communicate Clearly
- Implement & Adapt
“there is nothing new under the sun.”
Ec 1:9 ESV
The Fall
3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.
He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden,
3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.
5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”
10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.”
13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Genesis 3:1–13 ESV
Question God
Did God actually say?
“5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
James 1:5–8 ESV
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5–6 ESV
Shame
Blame
What is our correct response?
24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version Matthew 7:24–25
11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version Jeremiah 29:11
8 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version Romans 8:1–2
4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him are radiant,
and their faces shall never be ashamed.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version Psalm 34:4–5
8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version 1 John 1:8–9
3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version Matthew 7:3
In this week's podcast, we kick off a new series, "Under The Sun," where we tackle some of life's hard questions.
Questions about relationships: the call to be peacemakers and to live in covenant communities of love.
Questions about our minds: our relationship with our feelings, our anxiety and the call to rest.
Questions about what forms identity: our relationship with ourselves as God’s image.
Questions about purpose: our relationship with our work and how we outwork the creativity of God in the earth in our time.
Today's episode, "It's Not What You Know," addresses the question of where we go for answers and how to live wisely.
Sermon Notes:
Question: when was the last time you thought “I just don’t know what to do?”
I have questions about relationships: the call to be peacemakers and to live in covenant communities of love
I have questions about our minds: our relationship with our feelings, our anxiety and the call to rest
I have questions about what forms identity: our relationship with ourselves as God’s image
I have questions about purpose: our relationship with our work and how we outwork the creativity of God in the earth in our time
Proverbs 4:1-9
Hear, O sons, a father’s instruction,
and be attentive, that you may gain[a] insight,
for I give you good precepts;
do not forsake my teaching.
When I was a son with my father,
tender, the only one in the sight of my mother,
he taught me and said to me,
“Let your heart hold fast my words;
keep my commandments, and live.
Get wisdom; get insight;
do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her, and she will guard you.
The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honour you if you embrace her.
She will place on your head a graceful garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”
a/ Seek wisdom
b/ Wisdom runs along generational lines
c/ Seeking wisdom is positive and involves all of life
James 1:2-8
Count it all joy, my brothers,[b] when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
d/ We can ask God for wisdom
e/ God is generous
f/ God uses our trials to build wisdom in us
g/ In a strange way, hardship is a gift
“Wisdom is not what you know… but who you know”
Grit and grace // Time to Start Again // Epilogue //
Judges 17-21 — “Time to start again”
In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
Judges 21:25
The most dangerous thing in the world is not an atom bomb, or a terrorist group, ora pride of lions, or a pile of snakes, but an ungoverned heart.
And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.
1 Samuel 8:7
The epilogue of Judges: a dot-point narrative (a tale of two Levites)
“That all Scripture is profitable does not mean that interpretation is simple”
“In all my life so far… I have never heard a single reference from pulpit or song writer or study leader or anybody else at all — never one tiny whispered sound — that related to Micah of the Book of Judges” — John Hercus, “God is God” (1971)
1/ Do-it-yourself faith
The right worship the wrong way
So when he restored the money to his mother, his mother took 200 pieces of silver and gave it to the silversmith, who made it into a carved image and a metal image. And it was in the house of Micah. 5 And the man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and household gods, and ordained[a] one of his sons, who became his priest. Judges 17:4-5
Passage: And Micah said to him, “Stay with me, and be to me a father and a priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year and a suit of clothes and your living.” And the Levite went in. 11 And the Levite was content to dwell with the man, and the young man became to him like one of his sons. 12 And Micah ordained the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah. 13 Then Micah said, “Now I know that the Lord will prosper me, because I have a Levite as priest.” Judges 17:10-13
2/ Simulated obedience
The right reward for the wrong action
They said, “Arise, and let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. And will you do nothing? Do not be slow to go, to enter in and possess the land. 10 As soon as you go, you will come to an unsuspecting people. The land is spacious, for God has given it into your hands, a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.” Judges 18:8-10
But the people of Dan took what Micah had made, and the priest who belonged to him, and they came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword and burned the city with fire… And the people of Dan set up the carved image for themselves, and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. 31 So they set up Micah's carved image that he made, as long as the house of God was at Shiloh.
Judges 18:27, 30-31
Conclusion: The need for a King and the patience of God
Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? Romans 2:4
We continue learning from the Judges of Israel, this week, Pastor Jody draws our attention to the life of Samson.
Character Study – Samson
- Samson is the last recorded Judge of Israel
- He led Israel for 20 years
- Samson is known for being a Nazarite and having a supernatural has a supernatural gift of strength given to him by God.
- Samson didn’t use his gifts to serve God but to serve himself and his own desires yet even despite his moral weakness and constant failings, God still used Samson to deliver Israel.
Warnings from Samson’s story:
1/ How easy it is for the gifts God gives us to become a source of pride that leads us to sin instead of a gift stewarded with humility and wisdom.
2/ When we live by sight we are governed by the desires of our flesh – seeking to please ourselves, When we live by faith we are governed by the desire to please God
God’s Great Redemption Plan:
Samson had squandered God’s gift, he’d traded it away for pleasure time and time again instead of protecting it.
He was faithless, he was foolish and he was fallen – yet still God intervenes an acts on his behalf.
Even amid his terrible failure and his shame God ‘remembered’ Samson and answered his prayer
God can use us in spite of our weakness, our failures and our sinfulness.
God sent Jesus as the ultimate Judge and Saviour and through his life, death and resurrection for every person who puts their trust in God rather than in themselves shall be saved, restored and healed.
Samson’s story is a reminder that If we put our hope in ourselves or in other people we become weak and enslaved – our true strength and hope is found in God alone.
Jephthah's VowThis week we continue the Grit & Grace series, diving into the lives of the Judges of Israel, and discerning how God is calling us to live, based on their achievements and failures. This week we learn about the life of Jephthah.
Jephthah’s Vow - Sermon Notes
Who is Jephthah?
Nobodies Become Somebodies
“Did you not hate me and drive me out of my father’s house? Why have you come to me now when you are in distress?”
Judges 11:7 ESV
“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
Galatians 1:10
“If you bring me home again to fight against the Ammonites, and the Lord gives them over to me, I will be your head.”
Judges 11:9 ESV
- Remember Gideon
- Remember when he was called to leadership.
“Rule over us, you and your son and your grandson also, for you have saved us from the hand of Midian.” 23 Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you.”
Judges 8:22–23 ESV
Victories Become Arrogated
"It is a solemn thing, and no small scandal in the kingdom, to see God’s children starving while actually seated at the Father's table. The cause of this sad condition is spiritual pride.” - AW Tozer
“Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.” - C.S Lewis
Faith Becomes Transactional
“If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, 31 then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.”
Judges 11:30–31 ESV
34 Then Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah. And behold, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances. She was his only child; besides her he had neither son nor daughter.
35 And as soon as he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you have become the cause of great trouble to me. For I have opened my mouth to the Lord, and I cannot take back my vow.”
Judges 11:34-35 ESV
When Differences Become Divisions
12 The men of Ephraim were called to arms, and they crossed to Zaphon and said to Jephthah, “Why did you cross over to fight against the Ammonites and did not call us to go with you? We will burn your house over you with fire.” 2 And Jephthah said to them, “I and my people had a great dispute with the Ammonites, and when I called you, you did not save me from their hand. 3 And when I saw that you would not save me, I took my life in my hand and crossed over against the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into my hand. Why then have you come up to me this day to fight against me?” 4 Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with Ephraim. 5 And the Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan against the Ephraimites. And when any of the fugitives of Ephraim said, “Let me go over,” the men of Gilead said to him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” When he said, “No,” 6 they said to him,“Then say Shibboleth,” and he said, “Sibboleth,” for he could not pronounce it right. Then they seized him and slaughtered him at the fords of the Jordan. At that time 42,000 of the Ephraimites fell.”
Judges 12:1–6 ESV
Stand Up Like a MouseGrit and grace — Gideon, part 2
2 Corinthians 12:9
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
Things that recur in this story
Weakness, foolishness, bread/grain, night missions, fear, idolatry
a/ Separating the weak from the strong - and using the weak
Judges 7:1-8
“you have too many men”
Beaten by a loaf of bread
Judges 7:9-15
“If you are afraid”
No swords, just jars
Judges 7:16-24a
“a sword for the Lord and for Gideon”
Epilogue: Disappointing leadership - it’s hard to end well
Judges 8:22-28
“Gideon’s Golden Guidance system”
4 good things that we can fall into worshiping (as beautiful guidance systems)
Theology
Experience
Nostalgia
Worldview / ideology
CS Lewis: The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things—the beauty, the memory of our own past—are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshipers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.”
The final rest
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Scripture: Judges 6:1-6
Context - the crushing oppression of Midian
Scripture: Judges 6:11-16
2 questions, 3 statements
Scripture: Judges 6:25-27
Meet the Baals
A tale of two bulls
Apply: Do it afraid
1/ Address family idols
2/ Remember, it’s God’s story
3/ Sort your own life out before you attempt change the world
Final scripture: Isaiah 44:6-8 (NIV)
“This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;
apart from me there is no God.
Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it.
Let him declare and lay out before me
what has happened since I established my ancient people,
and what is yet to come—
yes, let them foretell what will come.
Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me?
No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”
The story of Deborah
Key Scriptures Judges Ch 4&5
Who is Deborah?
A judge and prophet in Israel for 60 years
A national leader
A military commander
A songwriter
A war hero
A spiritual mother of Israel
Story Summary:
- The pattern of the people of Israel continues and once again they have turned away from God and returned to their idol worship and they find themselves under the brutal oppression of a foreign King. God raises up a new leader, Deborah (a judge and a prophet) to speak for him and to lead the people to victory and deliverance by God’s mighty hand.
- God is sovereign and brings about his perfect plans yet he chooses to use humans to be part of his mission on earth.
- Deborah, Barak and his 10, 000 men and Jael are all examples of how God uses people to be part of his story of salvation.
- Deborah’s song in Judges 5 serves as a prophetic warning to the people of Israel and to us today about the importance of surrendering our lives fully to God. God blesses those who are obedient and willing to partner with him.
– Deborah and all its colourful characters serve as a reminder to us that God is looking for hearts and lives that are fully surrendered to him.
Questions:
1/ Is there anything in my life that I have not yet fully surrendered to God?
2/ Is there anything God has asked me to do that I haven’t acted on yet? If so, what is causing me to hold back or hesitate?
2/ How is God inviting me to be part of his story?
Response:
So often, The thing you’re holding back, the thing you haven’t yet acted on is the very thing God wants to use you to bring deliverance and freedom and liberty to your life and to the lives of others through you.
PRAYER:
God give us the courage, the boldness, the vision, the conviction to follow you wholeheartedly. God help us to trust in you when we are afraid and to lives fully surrendered to you. Bring your victory and deliverance to us afresh today.
In Jesus name,
Amen
“Human history is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.” – CS Lewis
Exodus Chapter 1 – Judges Chapter 1 – Summary
Slavery in Egypt
Deliverance by God through Moses (Red Sea)
40 years wandering in the desert with Moses
Crossing the river into the Promised Land with Joshua
Conquest of the promised land
Death of Joshua
Failure to complete the conquest
Syncretism / pluralism in the new land
Israel’s disobedience and decline
Judges Chapter 2 – Summary
Judges 2:18-19
Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge. For the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who afflicted and oppressed them. 19 But whenever the judge died, they turned back and were more corrupt than their fathers, going after other gods, serving them and bowing down to them. They did not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways.
Israel’s Cycle (from above) :
Israel worships idols
The Judge dies
Israel attacked by foreign armies
Israel turns back to God
Israel cries out to the Lord for mercy
God raises up a leader (Judge)
Israel’s Cycle (from the side):
Call of Samuel
(1 Samuel 1)
Death of Joshua
(Judges 1)
So what can we learn from the book of Judges?
- God is still present, even when things are bad
- God is still gracious in the midst of the ‘grit’ of life
- We have a tendency to run to God in bad times and forget Him in good times
- God wants our whole lives lived in devotion, not just some parts
- The Bible doesn’t try to hide the mess
- Right when you think there is no hope, God still has a plan and will bring it to pass
Exodus begins with the death of Joseph
Joshua begins with he death of Moses
Judges begins with he death of Joshua
Even 1 Kings later on, begins with the death of David.
Can you think of any others?
And so now, we meet our first Judge…
Othniel, the boring Judge
Judges 3:7-11
And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth. 8 Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia. And the people of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. 9 But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the people of Israel, who saved them, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. 10 The Spirit of the Lord was upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand. And his hand prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim. 11 So the land had rest forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
v 7-8
forgetfulness, idolatry and God’s steadfast love
v 9-10
God’s double salvation
v 11
An invitation to rest
Communion – offer your ordinary story to God again
Guest speaker John Lamerton from Global Mission Partners
Acts 1:3-8
3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Time:
The Book of Jonah is set during the reign of Jeroboam II (793–753 BC), a period marked by Israel’s relative prosperity and expansion. The exact date of the book’s composition is debated, but it is traditionally placed in the 8th century BC.
Place:
- Israel: Jonah begins his journey in Israel. He is a prophet from the northern kingdom, specifically from Gath-hepher in the region of Zebulun.
- Nineveh: The primary setting for Jonah’s mission is Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, located on the eastern bank of the Tigris River (in modern-day Iraq). Nineveh was a large and significant city known for its great wickedness and power.
Context:
- Jonah is part of the prophetic tradition in Israel, where prophets were called by God to deliver messages of warning, repentance, and hope. Unlike other prophets who primarily addressed Israel, Jonah’s mission extends to a foreign city, highlighting the universal scope of God’s mercy.
- During Jonah’s time, Assyria was a growing threat to Israel. The Assyrians were known for their cruelty and aggression, which makes Jonah’s reluctance to preach to Nineveh understandable from a human perspective.
Who is Jonah?
The son of Amittai from Gath-hepher in Zebulun, who prophesied the restoration of Israel’s borders, which was accomplished by Jeroboam II (782–753 b.c.) (2 Kgs 14:25), and the hero of the book of Jonah (1:1).
A SEASON OF EXPANSION MUST BE FOLLOWED BY A SEASON OF EXTENSION.
1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.”
Jon 1:1–2 ESV
7 Reasons to run from Nineveh:
Notorious
Idolators
National Enemy
Ego
Vengeance
Exiled
Hopeless
Questions:
- What Nineveh are you running from?
- Have you run from your calling?
- What are your reasons for running?
- How long have you been running from God?
Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call
out against it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord.
Jon 3:1–3 ESV
Scripture: Phil 4:1-9
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!
2 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Context:
– Paul is writing from prison to the church in Philippi about what it means to walk the walk as followers of Jesus and to encourage them in what it looks like to live out their faith in real life!
- Paul speaks to the temptations that were facing the Philippians that would cause them to sink into the culture of their day rather than stand out from it.
- Paul speaks with honesty from his own experiences and discusses 6 key attributes that should be evident and obvious in the lives of those who follow Jesus.
You’ll stand out if you…..
1/ Stand firm
- don’t retreat or waver when opposition, trial and challenge comes
- resist running to old patterns and old comforts (anything that draws our attention and affection away from Jesus is idolatry)
2/ Seek unity
- be committed to resolving differences instead of holding grudges
- working together = increased effectiveness for the Gospel
3/ Be gentle with one another
– the literal meaning of the word ‘gentleness’ in this scripture translates as ‘sweet reasonableness’ – to be intentionally kind, compassionate and humble towards others especially when they’re facing struggles or difficulties.
- a strong hand with a soft touch (1 Thes 2:7 – gentle like a mother caring for her children)
- gentleness is not weakness
4/ Pray (Don’t be anxious)
– there were plenty of reasons for the Philippians to be anxious, discouraged and worried – Paul invites them to experience prayer as an active strategy against anxiety
- Paul shows them that prayer is a gateway to God’s supernatural peace
- God’s peace is not dependent on a perfect outcome – God’s peace is available to us in the midst of our circumstances
- being a person of peace in an anxious world stands out!
5/ Focus on what’s good
- Paul addresses the battlefield of the mind
- our thoughts are prone fix themselves on things are unhelpful and unhealthy but Paul also teaches us that we are to be transformed by the renewing of our mind – Rom 12:2
- what we think about and focus on translates into our behaviour.
- This serves as a reminder to be wise about the content we engage with
6/ Walk the Walk
- moving from head knowledge to heart transformation
- discipleship is a journey not a destination – a journey of practicing the way of Jesus and becoming more like him
– When we encounter the grace of Jesus we can’t help but be changed – this change should become evident to others.
Invitations for us today:
- To stand out boldly in our culture rather than blend into it
- To be the hands and feet of Jesus to the world – faith in action
- To keep growing by practicing the way of Jesus
- To live a life worth following
Questions:
Q: How is God inviting me to stand out for him?
Q: Am I walking the walk or just talking the talk?
Q: Do my actions line up with my words?
Q: Am I the same person on Monday as I am at church on Sunday?
Q: Do people encounter the nature of Jesus in me?
Q: Am I becoming more like Jesus each year?
Philippians 4:14-16
14 Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. 15 Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; 16 for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need.
Philippians 3:17-20
17 Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. 18 For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
Matthew 5:15-17
15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
09/06/2024 - Matthew DestryThe elephantThe goldfishPhilippians 3:1-14Observe:a/ ‘Finally’b/ Watch out for the dogsc/ Paul’s pedigree 1/ If you’re going to look back, look back at what God has done2/ If you’re going to look ahead, look forward to new things3/ If you feel like letting go, know that Christ is holding you Questions:1/ Is there anything in your life that you will sometimes trust in other than Christ (good behaviour, church attendance, Christian background, anything else)?2/ Are there any negative past experiences that are currently holding you back from living a full life for Jesus now?3/ How could a big, bright and beautiful vision for the future influence your living today?
Philippians 2
a/ Sing an old song: an ode to humility
Verses 1-11
The real ones live for humility and unity
b/ Hold on and hold out
Verses 12-18
Daniel 12:3
3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
The real ones live with gratitude and thankfulness
c/ Pay the price
Verses 19-30
Real ones give honour where honour is due
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“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
Philippians 1:21 ESV
How do we live?
To live is self, to die is loss.
“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money…”
2 Timothy 3:1-2
Live for something bigger than yourself, Paul defines his life as a partner of the Gospel.
If dying is seen as loss, it is because you live for self and not for Jesus. Without God, death is seen as the end of self.
Pentecost Sunday 2024
Acts 2
Pentecost Sunday — Shauvot — Feast of weeks - celebrated 7 weeks after Passover (Jewish)
What for:
To commemorate the giving of the law,
The grain harvest,
And entrance into the promised land
What did they do:
A feast that explicitly included leaven or yeast
A covenant renewal ceremony
A tithe of first-fruits from the harvest, leaving the edges for the alien
A public reading of the book of Ruth
All Jewish males required to travel to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices
Pentecost - 50 days after Easter
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested[a] on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
1/ One baptism, many fillings
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”
2/ Going beyond
And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.
3/ Collaborative leadership
16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:
“‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;
even on my male servants and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
4/ Peter’s covenant renewal ceremony
And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe[d] came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
5/ Vibrant community
1 Sam 1:1-20
The Womb – A biblical metaphor
Hannah Stood Up
Hannah Responds
Hannah takes all the emotion, anguish, grief, disappointment and desperation, the years and years of longing, waiting, the torment from Penninah and she pours it all out before the Lord.
The peace comes before she even gets the outcome.
While Hannah was waiting for a baby, God was waiting for Hannah to come into alignment with a bigger story. Hannah’s prayer is not a prayer of bargaining but a prayer of surrender.
What are you waiting for or clinging to that needs to be let go and surrendered in order for God to bring about the breakthrough in your life?
‘The point of prayer is not the power it releases, but the person it reveals’ (Peter Greig – 24/7 Prayer)
1 Sam 2:1-10
A prayer that points to Jesus
Why? Because the person it reveals is a God who loves us – and in his grace meets us in the middle of our story – changes and transforms our lives!
A God who takes the barren and lifeless things and breathes new life into them.
A God who takes the broken things and makes them beautiful.
A God who turns our mourning into dancing
A God who binds up the broken-hearted
A God who bestows on us a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair
THE INVITATION:
1/ To be reminded that God sees you in your season – you are not forgotten.
2/ To see a bigger story for your life – God has good plans for you!
3/ Changing your life starts with surrender – coming into alignment with God’s good plans for you
Psalm 42:1-5
As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”
These things I remember
as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
under the protection of the Mighty One[d]
with shouts of joy and praise
among the festive throng.
Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
What is the middle?
Types of “middles”
Looking at Psalm 42/43:
The tyranny of distance
The voice of detractors
The isolation of spirit
“Send out your light”
1/ Faith becomes personal
2/ Celebration is communal
3/ God is the goal
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
TS Eliot
Jesus’ Prayer for ALL Believers
John 17
20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—
23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.
25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you[a] known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”
A PRAY on words…
ἕν (heis) = one, of
Strong’s #1502
“in”
ἡμεῖς (hemeis) = us, we ourselves
Strong’s #1510
“with”
εἰμί (eimi) = I am, I exist
Strong’s #2249
“through”
The essence of Jesus’ prayerful repetition…
- That believers would be IN Jesus (Eph 2:8, Col 2:6)
- That God and Humankind be WITH each other (2Thess 2:16-17)
- That God would work THROUGH believers (John 3:17, Romans 5:15)
“In” prayer sounds like…
- Projecting God to be IN our lives, hopes and circumstances
- Ask + Task God to be IN things we are hoping for
“With” prayer sounds like…
- Experiencing ideas and thoughts WITH God present
- Observing ourselves and our circumstances WITH God present
“Through” prayers sound like…
- Uniting with God’s plan THROUGH you, your church
- Praising Him for what He is doing THROUGH you, your church
Amos 7:8 (NIV):
“And the Lord asked me, ‘What do you see, Amos?’ ‘A plumb line,’ I replied. Then the Lord said, ‘Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.’”
Jeremiah 1:11-12 (NIV):
“The word of the Lord came to me: ‘What do you see, Jeremiah?’ ‘I see the branch of an almond tree,’ I replied. The Lord said to me, ‘You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.’”
Zechariah 4:2-3 (NIV):
“He asked me, ‘What do you see?’ I answered, ‘I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.’”
God is asking us, “what do you see?”
God is calling us to imagine the Kingdom in three distinct areas: People, places and time
Text: Acts 10:9-15
The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. 10 And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance 11 and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. 12 In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. 13 And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” 14 But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” 15 And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.”
Matthew 9:35-38
And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Exodus 3:2-5
Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”
A biblically informed imagination:
1/ Soak in Bible stories
2/ Befriend silence and solitude
3/ Write things down
4/ Ask yourself ‘why’?
5/ Best case scenario
5 Keys to a Disciples Prayer
To Recognise and to Know
God’s Will > My Will
Come Daily for Daily Bread
Forgiveness Both Ways
God Protects & Delivers
Questions to reflect on:
- What is prayer to you?
- What are the things you tend to pray about when you pray?
- When do you pray?
- How often do you pray?
- Where do you pray?
- When you pray what do you experience?
- When you pray what don’t you experience?
- When you pray, what would you like to experience?
- Does God answer your prayers?
- If you don’t pray – why not?
- Does your prayer life bring you life and joy or has it become stale?
Do you think the average Australian prays?
What is prayer?
In its simplest form: Prayer is a conversation with God.
What Prayer Is NOT:
Rubbing the lamp to get 3 wishes from the genie
A self-help strategy
A test of eloquence
Not magic (but it is supernatural!)
One size fits all
Prayer IS:
A way of being with God (the God of the Bible)
Talking and listening to God
A practice of devotion and worship to God
A gateway to God’s peace and power
Both a private and communal experience
‘Then the man and his wife heard the sound of God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day’ (Gen 3:8)
6 INVITATIONS OF PRAYER:
1/ Prayer is a gateway to Connection
Psalm 139: 23
‘Search me, God, and know my heart’
2/ Prayer is a gateway to Compassion
Lam 3:22-24
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”
3/ Prayer is a gateway to Comfort
Phil 4:6-7
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. “
(NLT)
“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the centre of your life.”
(MSG)
4/ Prayer is a gateway to Clarity
Rom 12:2
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
5/ Prayer is a gateway to Celebration
Psalm 100:4-5
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
6/ Prayer is a gateway to Communion (with God and others)
Matt 18:20
For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
Invitations:
1/ Ask God to refresh and reinvigorate your prayer life.
2/ Think about how you might commit to giving prayer another chance over the coming weeks.
3/ Be intentional about creating time each day to pray.
4/ Be honest before God in the knowledge that you are seen, known and deeply loved.
The evidence for, and implications of the resurrection
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.
1 Corinthians 15:3-8
Are there reasonable evidences for the resurrection of Jesus in the historical documents, and if there are, what does that mean for us today?
1/ Jesus was buried
2/ The tomb was then found empty
3/ Jesus’ post mortem appearances
4/ The witness of the early church
Implications
1/ Jesus claims about himself were true – they were vindicated by his resurrection
2/ There is reason to live today – there is a bigger story
3/ If there is life after death, our lives must be shaped by the narrative of death and resurrection
4/ We have a story to tell
5/ Your life is to be lived for Christ – you are His and He loves you.
Giving what we cannot keep to gain what we cannot lose
Recap: what does it mean to live the good life?
Matthew 5:10
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
1 We know what we really love by what what we are willing to suffer for
——
Matthew 21:6-11
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”
2 We know what Jesus means to us by what we think He’s saved us from
——
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons[a] of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
3 We know who Jesus is because of the relationship between His words and deeds
——
He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose – Jim Elliot
Passage – Matthew 5:9
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God”
εἰρηνοποιός, peace-making, peace-maker
2 immediate observations:
a/ Jesus assumes there will be conflict
b/ Jesus commands His followers to engage in conflict resolution
4 ways to handle conflict – think about the crowd gathered — who is there?
- like a Saducee (plan political gain)
- like a Pharisee (double down on ‘rightness’)
- like the Essenes (seek utopian separation)
- like a Zealot (fight, fight, fight)
Like Jesus…
a/ humble heart – assume your own ignorance
b/ curious questions – find out the story behind the story
c/ give generous mercy and be willing to lose
Conclude – Ephesians 2:11-22
Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens,[d] but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by[e] the Spirit.
Peace between creator and creation
Do you over-value the seen over the unseen?So our belief of God is based in the ability to see him, know him, understand him, discern what he is doing. Just show me you are moving, just show me miracles, signs and wonders.8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”Mt 5:8 ESVWhat is a pure heart?PURE (KATHAROS) & HEART (KARDIA)PURE HEART (KATHAROS KARDIA)The good life is for those who have been pruned to the deepest part of their being.Allow God to enter into those deepest parts of your life and prune it back, prepare you, do a deep work in you.Hard Heart or Pure Heart?God is not that hard to find
Ep 4/ Contagious Community - Acts 2:42-47 - The eternal impact of a devoted community. What is the priesthood of all believers and how are we invited to be part of a contagious community? Join Jody and the Discovery girls as they explore this and more.
Matthew 5:1-7
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
Who gets to ‘live the good life’?
Developing your palate
Mercy (ἔλεος) and the two levels of relationship
How do we live as mercifully as this?
- Our need for ongoing mercy
- Seeing others through a Kingdom lens
- A heart of mercy with a firm hand
Advancing the Kingdom by merciful works
What fuels this kind of mercy?
Psalm 136
We're joined by guest speaker Ash Barker. Ash Barker is immersed in the multi-racial and multi-religious inner city neighbourhood of Winson Green, Birmingham (UK) as the Founding Director of Newbigin House.
My Father’s Business - Luke 2:41-52 - Join Jody and the Discovery girls as they explore identity, calling & clarity and ask the question: who's agenda are we living for?
Matthew 5:5 — “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
5 blocks of teaching
Block 1- Matthew 5-7: 8 beatitudes, sermon on the mount
Block 2 – Matthew 10: The “sending” sermon (Go into all the towns)
Block 3 – Matthew 13: Kingdom parables (The Kingdom of heaven is like…)
Block 4 – Matthew 17-18: The values of the Kingdom (Childlike faith, upon this rock)
Block 5 – Matthew 24-25: 7 ‘woes’, new temple, judgement to come
Meekness – Psalm 37:7-11
Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!
Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
For the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.
In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.
Meek – Gk: pra-us – the pra-us are unimportant and vulnerable.
Inheriting the land – Genesis 15:7
And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
No Jubilee – Leviticus 25:10-13, 23
And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan. That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of itself nor gather the grapes from the undressed vines. For it is a jubilee. It shall be holy to you. You may eat the produce of the field.
“In this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his property… “The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me.
God, in affect, is saying to the people of God: “this land will be yours again”
Apply – be less important, accept vulnerability, wait patiently
1/ Seek anonymity
2/ Accept vulnerability
3/ Wait patiently
A new Jubilee — Psalm 37:11:
But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in peace (Shalom) and goodness (Tov)
Devotion and Discipleship - Deuteronomy 6:4-15 + Luke 10:26-28 - What does living a life fully sold out for Jesus look like? What is wholehearted devotion? How do we balance head and heart? What's the invitation for us to model devoted discipleship to the next generation and to the person next door. Join Jody and some of the Discovery girls as they explore these Q's and more.
Everybody knows what it feels like to have a guilty conscience. To have done something we know we should’t have done.
And as we get older, we get more sophisticated at justifying our questionable behaviour to ourselves.
If we’re honest, we all still do things from time to time that we know we probably shouldn’t do but we’re way better at convincing ourselves why it’s really not that bad.
We say things ourselves like…..
I’m a good person
I try to do the right things
I’m kind be kind to others
I pay my taxes.
I don’t steal
I try not to lie
haven’t murdered anyone….
I’m trying to be a decent contributing member of society….
So, this little sin over here…. or this little white lie over there …..this little secret over here… it isn’t really hurting anyone…so it’s not so bad, right?!
Church & Culture:
In Church we tend to major on the grace message and minor on the sin message because it’s more comfortable. It’s more palatable and acceptable to talk about the positive stuff than the hard stuff. When we talk about grace we’re assuming the reality of sin but just don’t really like to talk about it that much.
In 2024, we find ourselves living in a very individualistic culture where it’s more about ‘your’ truth than ‘The’ truth. Where, ‘you do you’ is widely accepted often over and above the way of life Jesus calls us to if we choose to follow him and be his disciples.
The thing is though, the bible doesn’t shy away from talking about the hard stuff - we just often have selective hearing and selective reading.
Today’s scripture: Matt 5:4
‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted’ (NIV)
Jesus makes a radical statement here - we would never say to someone who is grieving would we? Oh, you’re grieving, look how blessed you are!
And if someone said that to us in the middle of a difficult time in our lives we would probably not receive it well at all.
It poses some big questions for us:
What is Jesus actually saying?
What kind of mourning is he talking about?
What kind of comfort is he promising?
How can experiencing grief possibly be the good life?
Who was Jesus talking to?
-
Jewish villagers under Roman occupation
-
Ordinary people - farmers, fishermen, women, children, tax collectors, sex workers.
-
living under the oppression of Roman rule, they’ve all but lost hope of any kind of deliveranc and believing their current circumstance is a direct result of their sinful ways - they had turned away from God and not been faithful to him.
They were mourning a future that felt hopeless
They were mourning over their own sin and brokenness
They were mourning over the state of their city
What kind of mourning was Jesus talking about?
Mourn - Greek verb = Pentheo - to mourn over one’s sin and brokenness (spiritual mourning over the state of one’s soul and circumstance)
We struggle to identify with this kind of mourning - it’s counter-cultural to us and a lot of the time, we honestly don’t see ourselves as people in need of a saviour.
“The present age is definitely not an age of mourning. Instead, people deliberately turn away from anything unpleasant, determined to fill their lives with those things which will divert their minds from anything serious. In their preoccupation with momentary pleasures and diversions, people settle for shallow and empty substitutes for reality. Millions give more thought to what programs they will watch tonight on TNT, or what videotape they will rent for the weekend than they do to the things of eternity.” - Billy Graham -
Jesus is saying this kind of mourning is necessary. Not just necessary - but good for us - ‘the good life’.
In other words, “You’re blessed when you can humbly acknowledge your sin and brokenness and grieve over it, for then you shall receive the comfort of forgiveness and healing”.
But there’s also a school of thought that would say Jesus wasn’t just talking about personal sin and brokenness but the grief and sadness that comes from living in a world ruled by death - in this earthly world where death has the final word - but in the Kingdom Jesus is talking about, death is swallowed up in victory and the promise is eternal comfort and eternal life.
The invitation in this scripture is to be present to our grief - to be honest to it with God - and not to ignore our need for comfort.
What kind of comfort is Jesus talking about?
Greek //
Comforted
παρακαλέω / parakaleó (verb)
Q: comforted by who or what?
Comforter
παράκλητος (paraklētos) (noun)
PARACLETE - One called alongside to standby.
Amazingly - this is same word that we see in John 14 & 16 that Jesus uses to describe the Holy Spirit who was coming.
When we ignore our need for comfort we cannot invite The Comforter into those places of pain to bring us the help and the relief that we so desperately need.
The Promise:
Help is on the way!
You do not have to be alone in your grief.
The Paraclete has been called to come and stand alongside you
He will advocate for you
He will console you
The promise is not that our grief would be removed instantaneously - but that in the midst of our grief and our pain we would experience the deep comfort of the Paraclete - our advocate, our counsellor and our standby.
“You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you. (MSG)
Extreme PDA - Luke 7:36-50 - A sinful woman anoints Jesus with her tears and his feet with her hair! This response to Jesus made everyone in the room uncomfortable EXCEPT for Jesus. Why? Join Jody and some of the Discovery girls as they explore what this encounter teaches us about radical devotion and how it challenges us to think about how we come to Jesus.
Matthew 5:1-3
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
A tale of two mountains
| Mount Sinai | Mount of beatitudes | | Old Covenant | New Covenant | | Moses | Jesus | | 10 Commandments | 9 beatitudes | | Written on tablets of stone | Written on human hearts | | Set free from slavery in Egypt | Set free from slavery to sin | | The kind of world that God is making | The kind of world that God is making |
What does it mean to be ‘blessed’?
A quick look at μακάριος
ahh… that is the good life!
What does it mean to be ‘poor in spirit’?
Powerless = the good life?
Empty hands for holding something better
We inherit the Kingdom of God by giving our power away
1/ Give your ear away
2/ Give your money away
3/ Give your influence away
4/ Give your grudges away
Luke 18:18-25
The Rich and the Kingdom of God
18 A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’[a]”
21 “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.
22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
Discipleship isn’t something you do, it’s who you are called to be
Matthew 7:22
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Perspective 1: Camel or Rope
Perspective 2: Eye of the needle gate
Perspective 3: It’s impossible
Luke 18:26-27
26 Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”
27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
Key Scripture:
John 3:22-30 (ESV)
22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptising. 23 John also was baptising at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptised 24 (for John had not yet been put in prison).
25 Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptising, and all are going to him.” 27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”
Observations:
John models here an acute sense of awareness to the move of God that was happening around him to be able to respond in such a way.
here was no hint of jealousy or insecurity present in John as Jesus influence and popularity began to increase. Why was this the case?
hint: John had a sense of deep clarity around his call and assignment.
Challenges:
We like to be at the centre of our own lives, and often we also like to be at the centre of other peoples lives too. We love to feel important, needed and celebrated.
Decrease is difficult for us. It makes us uncomfortable.
The Invitation:
The invitation is to NOT be at the centre – to NOT be in the spotlight and to NOT have the starring role in the story – but instead to take a posture of decrease in order that God’s presence and power and will would increase in us and be amplified in our lives so much that when others see us, what they really see is not us at all but a glimpse and a reflection of Jesus – of his kindness, his love, his grace, his mercy, his generosity, his gentleness, his faithfulness, his goodness……
Dallas Willard (Spirit of the Disciplines)
“The point is that in our culture we are conditioned to think that the most valuable way to do anything is to do or have more of it, and so we work more, consume more, learn more and get more friends on Facebook. We can then unwittingly transfer this way of thinking to our spiritual lives, and so we study more, pray more, fellowship more. The problem is not that such activities are bad or wrong (as a Bible professor I can certainly attest to the value of reading the Word!), but that we have a difficult time seeing the importance of disciplines in which we don’t do or add something.
However, it is important to realise that sometimes we need to take things out of our lives rather than just adding things to them. When we take something out of our lives, we create a space that needs to be filled, and amazing things can happen when we open up spaces in our lives. It is easier to hear the voice of God when we practice silence because our world is not filled with competing noises. Doing without something can help us appreciate it more. Sometimes when we remove something from our lives, even for just a short period of time, we discover how much unnecessary time we spend on it, or even how much it controls us…. Abstinence makes way for engagement. … A proper abstinence actually breaks the hold of improper engagements so that the soul can be properly engaged in and by God. However, the disciplines of abstinence can be harder to practice because we have to overcome our need to feel “productive.” In this we need to be willing to go against our inclinations if we are going to be able to make space for God to reveal himself to us and to show us our needs, shortcomings, blessings or his will for our lives.”
The pathway to increase, growth, maturity and fruitfulness in your life is, not by being bigger and louder, or by just doing more or just adding more into your life – it’s through adopting a posture of decrease, it’s through removing those things in our lives that are no longer serving us – the unhealthy behaviours or attachments, redundant attitudes and mindsets, unhelpful narratives, surrendering our often over-inflated egos, surrendering our pride and our need for assurance and control. Decluttering the mess and noise and creating space and room for God to increase, for his voice to be amplified and his presence to be magnified in our lives.
Questions:
Q: Am I open to God revealing himself to me in 2024?
Q: What needs to decrease in me in this year to make room for God’s will and work to increase in my life? What needs to be less, removed or surrendered in my life in 2024 to see an increase of God’s presence, power and purpose?
Q: How clear are you on who God has called you to be and what your current assignment is?
Q: Does my life point people to Jesus?
Q: Does the way I live and work reflect kingdom values and principles? Telling people about Jesus is often less about what you say and much more about how you live – are you living out God’s kindness, integrity, humility, servant-heartedness, self control.
Q: How might we imitate the kind of humility we see in John in our lives this year?
Q: Am I secure in who God has created and called me to be?
Q: Am I experiencing contentment and joy in my life?
Macquarie Dictionary word of 2023: Cozzy Livs
One of Jesus’ favourite places, and the disciples on their faces
The issue of authority
a/ Jesus’ defeat of the devil
b/ Jesus’ defeat of death
If “Cozzy livs” was your word of 2023, let “Because He lives” become your word of 2024
Hold up… I don’t see it.
He is working His authority through you
1/ As you go, make disciples: He makes us good news bringers
2/ Baptise, and be baptised: We surrender to him (baptism), immersed in body and mind
3/ Teach, and be taught: He puts His words into our hearts
“To the end of the age”
Parable of the Farmer, or sower.
Matthew 13: 1-23.
The parable was used by Jesus to tell an earthly story with a Kingdom meaning.
The farmer or sower is a representation of God the Father.
He is the one who sows the seed, not us.
Jesus speaks about four kinds of ground. Hard, rocky, thorny and good.
As Jesus jewish hearers would have wanted to know which of the grounds they identify with, we are asked the same question. Which ground am I?
The message of the Kingdom and the message of the Gospel.
Jesus explains the parable to the disciples and speaks about the message of the Kingdom. The fact that God wants us! Wants relationship with us. Wants us to be close to him.
The Apostles’ message was about the message of the Gospel, in which Jesus offers himself to make the Kingdom message possible!
The four grounds. Jesus compares the ground to our hearts and the seed is Holy Spirit.
The hard ground.
When our hearts have been trampled, we become hard and resistant to the Spirit. Just like Hard ground is resistant to the rain. The evil one can easily snatch us away from becoming soft and receptive to God.
The rocky ground.
When our circumstances keep us from being receptive to the planting of the Spirit in us , we need to remember that Jesus has come so that His new covenant erases the need to see our circumstances as God’s response to us.
We have gone from circumstantial to relational.
The thorny ground.
When the worries of life draw us away from God and our propensity to be lured by our comfort and wealth to satisfy, we struggle to surrender to Holy Spirit as he invites us into relationship with him.
Jesus tells us earlier in Matthew not to worry about the daily needs we have.
What are the weeds we need to confess and be accountable to removing?
The good soil.
Jesus speaks about the harvest that will come from good soil.
This harvest will be the fruit of the Spirit that God the Farmer plants in the good soil of our hearts. As this fruit is seen in action by people around us, they too will be invited to make their hearts good soil for the planting of the Spirit, by God.
It’s not about activity, it’s about proximity.
The closer we position ourselves to God, by Prayer that is open, honest and authentic, the more we will be empowered by our relationship with Him.
The things that we do, prayer time devotionals, Small groups, going to church, won’t bring us closer to God, as we get closer to God we find ourselves responding to his love with a desire to speak with him, learning about his word, being in community.
These are the responses to being in a close relationship with him.
Lets spend this next few weeks becoming the good soil that Jesus can plant his Spirit in for 2024.
How do we receive Jesus this Christmas?The gifts Jesus receive give us some helpful ways to receive him.Gold: A Gift for a KingFrankincense : A Gift for a PriestMyrrh : A Gift for someone who is to Die
Nativity: the place, event and occasion of someone’s birth
Judges 13:1-3
And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, so the Lord gave them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years. There was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. And his wife was barren and had no children. And the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are barren and have not borne children, but you shall conceive and bear a son.
An impossible task – Answer with faith
Judges 13:23
But his wife said to him, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering at our hands, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us such things as these.”
Luke 1:38
And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”
What is your impossible task?
Judges 13:4-5a
Therefore be careful and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb…
A quiet discipline – strong banks help the river flow
Luke 1:35
And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy…
Where is discipline needed in you?
Judges 13:5
…for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”
Matthew 1:21
She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
A local solution – Taking Responsibility
You see, God grows His solutions, He doesn’t import them!
How might God be growing your solutions around you, rather than you ‘importing them?’
One more question- what about prayer?
Sometimes, God works in response to us, because He is a friend.
Sometimes, God works all by Himself, because He is a King.
Galatians 4:4
But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
1/ A warning against unhealthy attachment:
2/ An encouragement toward divine joy:
3/ The growing happens in secret:
Judges 13:24
And the woman bore a son and called his name Samson. And the young man grew, and the Lord blessed him.
Luke 2:40
And the child (Jesus) grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.
What is God beginning in and through you in 2024?
Luke 1:26-38
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favoured woman! The Lord is with you!”
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favour with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the word of God will never fail.”
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.
Some observations about this story – a 3 layered interruption
1/ Interrupted by an angel (divine visitation)
2/ interrupted with unexpected news x 2 (you’re having a baby AND so is Elizabeth who was barren)
3/ Interrupted with a miracle that seemed beyond belief (A virgin birth)
This thing that’s about to happen is remarkable!
The prophesied Saviour King is being sent into the world!!
The one who would bind himself to humanity – and be called Emmanuel – God with us – bringing hope and salvation into the darkness of the world (both then and now) is coming! And he’s coming through the most unlikely, unexpected person – Mary, a 15 year old girl with no status or privilege from a small backwater town.
She has an experience that would forever change life as she knew it.
What is equally remarkable about this encounter is Mary’s response.
Q: How interruptible are you?
v. 38 “Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.”
But Mary’s not the only one in this story who’s life gets majorly interrupted…
Matt 1:18-25
18 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
20 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All of this occurred to fulfil the Lord’s message through his prophet:
23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
which means ‘God is with us.’”
24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. 25 But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.
Every time I read this Christmas story I’m inspired and deeply challenged by Mary and Jospeh’s responsiveness to having their entire lives uprooted, turned inside out and upside down in order to steward someone else’s plans.
“Revelation is hard to receive. You must give up everything else to receive it – like finding a treasure in a field and selling everything you have so you can get that treasure”
(Honest Advent book – Scott Erickson)
Q: How interruptible and responsive are we?
Q: How alert, awake and ready are we to how God might want to interrupt us with his plans?
Q: How willing are we to surrender our own plans for his?
Q: How might we make room in our lives for a divine interruption this advent season as we wait expectantly for the arrival of our Saviour?
1st gleaming theme and invitation – Be Interruptible.
2nd gleaming theme is – The hope of new life.
There is not 1, but 2 miraculous pregnancies wrapped up in this Christmas story.
- Zachariah and Elizabeth (old age / barren)
- Mary and Jospeh (young / virgin)
A double miracle – A picture of HOPE multiplied!
Anything worthwhile takes time to grow – but learning to wait in our instant culture is even harder.
In our culture everything is geared to speed us up toward Christmas ….. to make it come quicker – decorations are going up in stores in October in an attempt to bring Christmas to us early, the general pace of life speeds up right before Christmas which is ironic because Christmas and advent is actually all about the slow process of waiting patiently and expectantly for the arrival of a baby.
Q: Have you even had an experience of waiting on the Lord for something?
(chances are if you have, it’s taken longer than you would have liked to get an answer or a breakthrough)
Maybe there’s something you’re waiting for God to do in your life right now?
A need or a desire you have?
In waiting there is sense of longing and expectation – for what is to come, for what could be.
Advent invites to ask the question –
Q: What new thing is God doing in us? What is being birthed in us this season that God is inviting us make room for – to make preparations to receive?
Birth is beautiful and full of joy – there is something very holy and wondrous about it – but it’s also messy, it can be chaotic, it’s risky sometimes and painful – actually nothing neat and tidy about it.
It’s often the same when God is doing something new in us – sometimes it’s beautiful and joyful – but to he honest – it’s often messy and painful and risky too.
The journey Mary and Joseph had to go on together throughout the pregnancy through to the birth of Jesus was not an easy journey, there were obstacles and opposition, it was dangerous and risky.
Yet into the stench of that putrid stable and into the darkness of the night came the Light of the World – Jesus was born – a thrill of hope and the weary world rejoiced so the song goes!
At Christmas we celebrate that the Light of the World is still coming into the dark and putrid places of our world to restore hope and bring new life.
And he’s still coming into your life and into my life – into mess and the stench – bringing the hope of a future established in him.
So will we make room this Christmas for a divine interruption?
And will we make room to receive the hope of new life coming to us and in us?
26/11/2023 - Matthew DestryTherefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.Romans 12:1-2What is an acceptable offering to God?Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” 2 And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. 3 In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6 The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”Genesis 4:1-7a/ What is God’s mercy?“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”Luke 18:10-14b/ What is true worship?Sacrifice“I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings”Hosea 6:6Reasonable serviceThe son of God – a living sacrifice“How can the body become a sacrifice? Let the eye look on no evil, and it is a sacrifice. Let the tongue utter nothing base, and it is an offering. Let the hand work no sin, and it is a burnt offering. But more, this suffices not, but besides we must actively exert ourselves for good; the hand giving alms, the mouth blessing them that curse us, the ear ever at leisure for listening to God” (Chrysostom).c/ The proper use of the mind — to know God’s will1/ Good2/ Pleasing3/ Perfect (complete)
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.’”
Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
Mathew 3:1-6 (ESV)
They answered him, “He wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”
2 Kings 1:8
Life on the fringes
“in the wilderness”
A new story, a new song
‘baptised by him’ // ‘confessing sins’
A prophetic life
‘the kingdom is at hand”
What made JTB stand out?
The Nazirite Vow – set apart for God
Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord, he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried…. All the days of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head. Until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the Lord, he shall be holy. He shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long….All the days that he separates himself to the Lord he shall not go near a dead body.
Numbers 6:2-3, 5-6 (NIV)
No grapes or grape products: a vow of sobriety
No cutting of the hair: a vow of primitivism
No dead bodies: a vow of purity
Examples: Samuel, Samson (a bad example), even Paul took the vow for a time
To live a prophetic life of difference:
1/ Jesus, be my comfort
2/ Jesus, I give you my image
3/ Jesus, set me apart
Life with Jesus is an invitation to intentional living. We are not merely spectators in the world but active participants in God’s Kingdom Mission (the bigger story) and called to glorify him in all things. Join the conversation as Jody chats with Jo and Gabi about how we live “on purpose” in our families, workplaces and neighbourhoods.
Key Passage – – Luke 22:39-46 – The Disciples Fall Asleep at Gethsemane
Why was there so much urgency from Jesus for them to stay awake and what was the temptation that he was wanting them to guard against?
Luke tells us that the disciples fell asleep because they were ‘exhausted with sorrow
Q: Have you ever had an experience where you’ve felt overcome with sadness and sorrow about something, or so disappointed, or deflated or discouraged or overwhelmed about something in your life, that all you wanted to do was curl up in a ball and go to sleep?
Q: What was causing the disciples so much sorrow?
We too as modern day disciples carry sorrows that causes us to become exhausted and fall asleep to the things of God.
What sorrow are you carrying today?
Are you carrying unmet expectations?
Are you carrying dreams in your heart that are still yet to come to pass?
Are you carrying hope deferred?
Are you carrying a lack of clarity around your future or your sense of purpose?
Is there a healing or a breakthrough that hasn’t come despite your faithful prayer?
Are you restless and dissatisfied in your soul (not content)
Are you trapped in unhealthy behaviours that are causing you distress?
Are you carrying pain or offence in a relationship that’s causing you sorrow?
Does you feel as though God has been silent on something for too long?
Take some time to name these things before the Lord gives these burdens over to him.
There is an exhaustion caused by sorrow that the Lord is wanting to break in many peoples lives today.
There is a spiritual lethargy hanging over us that keeps causing us to fall asleep to the things of God – but the Lord is calling us to WAKE UP – He is rousing us from our slumber – he is healing our exhaustion and refreshing our dry places and drawing us to a place of renewed devotion in him.
Our constant temptation in our lethargy and spiritual sleepiness is to run to sources of comfort outside of the true comforter.
Our temptation is to seek relief and security and success from other places rather than trusting God’s goodness and provision to us.
Our temptation is to seek approval and love from things and people that were never meant hold such power and position in our lives instead of receiving love and approval from a Good Father who calls you his own.
Ron Rolheiser says it this way:
“We fall asleep out of sorrow whenever we become so confused and overwhelmed by some kind of disappointment that we begin to act out of hostility rather than love, paranoia rather than trust, despair rather than hope. We fall asleep out of sorrow whenever we sell short what’s highest in us because of the bitterness of the moment”
Q: Where am I acting out of hostility, paranoia or despair – rather than out of love, trust and hope?
Symptoms of being spiritually asleep:
lack of awareness of God’s love and grace for me
loss or lack of passion for God
loss of desire to spend time with God
prayer life is lacking
avoiding accountable relationships and vulnerable conversations
being unresponsive to God’s invitations to you or delaying obedience
heightened emotional reactions to things – highly defensive or easily offended
wondering if God is actually good
a need to be in constant control of situations
constant drive towards comfort and numbing behaviours
patterns and cycles of sin or unhealthy behaviours that you can’t seem to break
our lives are not bearing fruit / little evidence of fruits of spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control
God moves to the outside rather than being at the centre of our lives /
living according to our own agenda and plans rather than living according to God’s agenda and plans.
God is bringing us into a new seasoning of AWAKENING
God is waking us up to a greater awareness of Him.
God is moving us from a place of spiritual slumber to a new place of radical devotion.
From being on spiritual autopilot – to being fully alert and awake to his presence and his purposes.
Moving us out of those places of sorrow and exhaustion and making us a well refreshing and restoration for others.
But there is an awakening that the Lord is bringing across our community and he needs his people and his bride to be awake and alert and prepared and ready to usher it in.
There is healing and restoration and refreshing that the Lord is wanting to release in us that we might be a place of healing and restoration for others.
2024 – An invitation to Radical Devotion
Radical – Radix – meaning ‘changed from the roots’
Devotion – Consecrated – set apart for someone (set apart for and to God)
Radical //
When we enter into s relationship with Jesus our lives are completely transformed or ‘changed from the roots’ – it is radical life change.
When we’re changed from the roots our lives start to grow different kind of fruit – we start to hopefully become people of love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and people who are self-controlled.
And not only are we changed but we are invited into the bigger story – to partner with God in being agents of this kind of change in the world around us.
Q: Is Jesus in me obvious to those around me? If not, what is stopping me from living my faith openly and authentically?
Q: What would it look like for me to live everyday as someone ‘changed from the roots’?
Q: How is God inviting me to be part of this community as we seek to be a place of restoration and healing for others?
Devotion //
Exodus 20:1-6
Then God gave the people all these instructions:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.
3 “You must not have any other god but me.
4 “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. 5 You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. 6 But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.
The people of God have always had a habit of running after other God’s.
There is a good reason God wants our full devotion and affection. He has a mission he wants to accomplish on the earth and he chooses to use his people to accomplish it.
If we’re not fully devoted to him we are distracted and prone to falling asleep.
Our devotion is actually an act of spiritual warfare – it guards against the enemy’s plans to steal our authority for the Gospel.
Our devotion is what will unlock the move of the Holy Spirit waiting to come in and through our church, community, region, city, nation.
Our devotion is what will break the spirit of complacency and slumber
Our devotion brings us back to the feet of Jesus and puts him in his rightful place as King
Our devotion will release Kingdom resources for Kingdom work – legacy project
Our devotion will lead to a connected and flourishing community
Our devotion is what will release God’s favour of our lives and our church (for a thousand generations – Ex 20:6)
The Invitations:
1/ An invitation to Return
Rev 2:4-5
4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.
Waking up from our slumber and returning to our first love
undivided hearts – putting away the comforts and the idols we run to and instead running to the comforter
the practice of repentance and the pursuit of holiness
rekindling our passion in prayer and worship
2/ An invitation to Remain
John 15:1-4
“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. 3 You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.
– guarding our hearts against falling asleep by drawing strength from the vine
– openness to pruning
– a lifelong journey of being ‘changed from the roots’
– a renewed passion for the Word of God and the presence of God
3/ An Invitation to Realign
Luke 2:49
49 “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?
– be busy with the right things – The about the Father’s business
– His agenda over our agenda
– laying down my ego and our need to be noticed, celebrated and adored so that his name would be proclaimed, promoted, celebrated, glorified
This is a season of invitation go on a journey of personal renewal and refreshing in God
but it’s also an invitation for us to go on that journey together as a community to continue to become a place of life, renewal, refreshing, restoration and healing for others.
Will you come on the journey with us?
Special Guest Andrew Drummond from Kardinia Church joins us to speak about the life of Peter, a life of faith, courage and responsiveness to Jesus.
What is the cause of international conflict and where is God in the midst of it all?Genesis 25:24-33This prophetic poem, the shortest book in the Old Testament, is addressed to the people of Edom, and shows us just how bad things can get when brothers turn against each other. This prolonged antagonism between Judah and Edom is in evidence in Obadiah, serving as the prophecy’s framework. It serves as a cautionary tale to us about watching our relationships and living with humility.The vision of Obadiah…a/ Who will bring me down to the ground?Edom leaning on their strength: the danger of pride.b/ A word to the ‘wise’Edom leaning on their own wisdom: the danger of knowledge.c/ Where are you now when I need you?Remember, O Lord, what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell.‘Tear it down,’ they cried, ‘tear it down to its foundations!’ (Psalm 137:7).Sins of omission and sins of commission: when doing nothing is worse than doing somethingd/ Your wine shall turn to poisonGod’s justice is coming: be readye/ God is KingA new kingdom: not David, not Israel, but the Lord.EmpathyRomans 12:15-16Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.ResponsibilityGalatians 6:10So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.StoryHebrews 12:14-17Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.
Romans 16:3-5
Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. 5 Greet also the church in their house…
In this letter to Gaius, a house-church leader, John is apparently attempting to counter the opposing influences of Diotrephes, a different house-church leader who is asserting his own authority and rejecting emissaries backed by John’s apostolic authority.
3 John 1-4
The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.
2 Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. 3 For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
How many children do you have?
How is your progress?
Are your soul and body in harmony?
3 John 5-8
5 Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, 6 who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. 7 For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. 8 Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.
Hospitality opens doors
Who is welcome at your place?
Could your home be a mission field?
3 John 9-10
9 I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. 10 So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church.
An awkward moment
The attitude of pride
The actions of pride
Does not acknowledge godly authority
Holds the word of God back
Uses words as weapons
Acts as a gatekeeper for the church
3 John 11-12
11 Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God. 12 Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself. We also add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true.
Honour those worthy of honour – and listen to them
The marks of true hospitality
- Acknowledge and honour godly authority
- Offers and promotes and brings the word of God
- Use words to encourage and build up
- Act as a ‘doorkeeper’ ie. host to the church
Psalm 84:10
For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
3 John 13-15
13 I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.
15 Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends, each by name.
What was happening in 2 John?
The letter itself
The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth, 2 because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:
3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.
The recipient, the writer, the way things really are (truth)
4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father. 5 And now I ask you, dear lady—not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another. 6 And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.
An old command
7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we[a] have worked for, but may win a full reward. 9 Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, 11 for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.
A patient theology
The anatomy of Gnosticism
there is a secret to know (only the enlightened get it)
there is a salvation to experience (it’s about denying the flesh)
there is new revelation to receive (everything builds on what came before)
The antidote of the Gospel
the ‘open secret’ of the gospel
the in-body experience of the gospel
the old-time religion of the gospel
What we make a test of fellowship is not often what the Bible makes as a test of fellowship
The Bible’s test: that you acknowledge that Jesus came in the flesh. That he was and is and will continue to be the son of God — that he died as God and man and also that the Father raised Him up
The great commandment and the great commission – Not motivated by fear but by love
12 Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.
13 The children of your elect sister greet you.
Mouth-to-mouth
What do we see here? What is Paul doing? Vs 4-7.
Paul has a big favour to ask Philemon which has big feelings attached.
He reminds Philemon about the refreshing love he has shown, so that his request for a favour can be seen in the light of this kind of love.
Back story of Paul and Philemon’s relationship.
Paul led him to Christ at some point and sees himself as Philemon’s Spiritual Father.
Even though Paul had never been to Colossae, his friendship with Philemon attached him to that church.
Philemon was a wealthy man and had quite some influence and was the owner of servants and slaves.
One of these was a man named Onesimus, ironically whos’ name means profitable or useful, who had stolen an amount of money from Philemon and had run away.
And this is where the grace of God intersects the stories of these three men, Paul Philemon and Onesimus.
Onesimus makes his getaway with his loot, and decides to head to Rome to spend up big. But at some point, he gets himself in trouble with the law, gets caught and ends up imprisoned for his actions.
The prison that he was placed in already had another man in one of its cells by the name of Paul, eventually leading Onesimus to Faith in Jesus.
And there must have been some conversation between Onesimus and Paul about where he was from and who he had worked for, about the fact that Onesimus had stolen from his generous master Philemon and ended up in Rome!
Only God could have orchestrated these circumstances.
Paul sends this letter back with Onesimus with the purpose of appealing to Philemon to take Onesimus back without resorting to his first response which could have been un-Christlike.
How would we respond in this situation?
After the mistrust and anger and hurt, betrayal or loss.
Could we possibly love someone again that has taken advantage of us?
Could we, would we ever commit to restoring that person to relationship with us?
Or would we reject, hold back and push away instead?
Because, it’s our response that shows us what kind of fruit we are growing.
Paul asks Philemon to do a favour by taking back Onesimus. He asks a generous man to be even more generous.
- Paul appeals to Philemon on the basis of their relationship to see the change in Onesimus and take him back as a Christian brother and to forgive him and be an encouragement to him.
- In the first centuries slave owners like Philemon had the right as a slave owner to either brand Onesimus with a T or R representing him to be a thief or a runaway slave, or he could have had him crucified for the same reasons. They literally held lives in their hands.
Paul uses a bit of humour by playing with Onesimus’ name saying that he has now become profitable to both of them now that his heart belongs to Jesus. Vs 11
He is going to be the stealer of hearts now ie. Peter fisher of men.
How do we respond with the fruits of the spirit?
A couple of weeks ago our Youth Pastor Tiani, spoke about putting on LOVE like a garment.
It’s when we put on Love, when the love that comes from God in us, becomes the activating force in our life, then we can respond in grace and forgiveness and restoration.
Because we don’t just have courage we respond courageously,
we don’t have forgiveness, we respond by forgiving,
we don’t have compassion, we respond compassionately.
These are the fruit that come because we are clothed first in love.
We see others in a new light when our sight is directed to Jesus. And we can respond to them with the forgiveness and reconciliation we have received personally from him.
Paul sends Onesimus back to the house where he stole and deserted, so that restoration could happen for both Onesimus and Philemon.
This kind of Jesus following life introduces a new type of relationship between people in which the human grades of society cease to matter.
- Later on, in a letter to the Colossians 3:11 Paul explains this more, obviously using this situation to encourage the whole Church that there is no slave or free, jew or Greek male nor female. All are one in Christ.
- The things we use to separate, the labels and classes we put people in do not have any value. They are not Onesimus / profitable, or fruitful to us.
- Paul jokingly reminds Philemon of the fact that he led him to the Lord and if he is going to hold Onesimus responsible for earthly things Paul is holding Philemon responsible to remember his debt to the Lord.
But how does this little letter become profitable for us?
What is it that we ought to do?
- What labels or conditions to we place on people that change how we see and respond to them?
- What labels or conditions do we place on ourselves that assume how God sees us?
- If we saw ourselves and others through the lenses of active, restoring Jesus’ love, how would that change our day tomorrow?
Our capacity to respond with the fruits of the Spirit, has the capacity to influence way more than just our own personal relationships.
The potential is world changing.
After this situation was resolved, and because of Paul’s encouragement to change the heart about it, slavery completely died out within the Christian community, and the Christian world into the second century.
Onesimus was so restored, that church history tells us that he grew to be such a leader in the Christian community that he became the bishop of the church in Ephesus.
A short, one page letter, written two thousand years ago, from one friend to another, for the sake of another person, changed a lot.
Who is it that Jesus might be encouraging you to write to?
Colossians 3: 1 – 21
NIV & MSG translations
CONTEXT:
- Written by Paul
- writing from prison
- 60-62 AD, approximately 25-30 years after Jesus’ ministry
- Paul never visited them himself but learned of their challenges through his friend Ephaphras, the church’s founder.
- Community grappling with these false teachings and cultural pressures
Three pressures there were facing:
- Gnosticism: everything in the body bad but everything spirit good, separation of the two
- Pressure to submit to strict Torah rules by the Jews like circumcision, dietary laws and festival rituals
- Polytheism: Jesus was just another of many gods they were worshipping
Paul writes to the church to makes sure Jesus was the centre of all faith and religious experience.
Is Jesus at the centre of our lives or is he just an ‘add on’ to our already busy and full schedules?
How do we let Jesus word have the RUN OF THE HOUSE?
- In our households
- In our wider church community?
What are some ill-fitting things that God might want to take off us today? What have we grown out of? What things are not serving us any more?
God is calling us to clothe ourselves in:
- COMPASSION:
How can we cultivate a compassion of the heart, one that goes beyond mere sympathy and resonates in the depths of our being, like the “pit of our stomach,” so that we can truly understand the meaning of being “broken-hearted” and “gut-wrenched” for the sake of others?
- KINDNESS:
How can we actively cultivate a “helpful spirit” within ourselves, ensuring that our kindness is not just a passive attitude but a force for positive change in our interactions and deeds?
- HUMILITY:
How can we cultivate and practice the quality of humility in our lives, adopting a mindset of “lowly thinking,”?
- GENTLENESS:
Where might there be a power imbalance in my relationships? Where might God be inviting me to show gentleness or power in restraint too this week?
- PATIENCE:
What areas of my life do I need to practice having “long fuse” rather than a “short fuse”? What might God be teaching me through developing patience?
- Above all these – LOVE:
How can I embody the selfless, unconditional love of Christ to those around me this week?
People thrive when we are seen, noticed, heard and valued.
One tool to use in conjunction to these garments/values we put on: VALIDATION
Validation is the process of learning about, understanding, or expressing acceptance for another person’s emotional experience. What validation is not involves agreeing with everything someone says, nor does it mean we always believe the other person’s emotional response is warranted. Instead, it’s about demonstrating that we understand how others are feeling without trying to talk them out of their emotions or shame them for feeling that way.
What hand-me-downs are we going to pass down to the next generation?
21 “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”
Mt 18:21 ESV
Peter thought he was showing great faith and love when he offered to forgive at least seven times. After all, the rabbis taught that three times was sufficient.
22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.
23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
Mt 18:22–35 ESV
In this parable:
The King = God
The Servant = Us
We Owe:
10,000 Talents = 150,000 years Work for a slave = Highest Greek Numeral = More money than was even in regulation at the time = Impossible amount to pay back
We’re Owed:
100 Denarii = 100 Days Wage
FORGIVENESS MOVES US FROM:
Pride to Humility
Offence to Reconciliation
Victim to Witness
Matt is joined by Doug and Zeke to unpack Sunday's Father's Day message "Just a Phase?" exploring the 4 key phases of manhood, Beloved Son, Cowboy, King and Sage.
2 Peter 1:5-8: “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Ephesians 4:14-15: “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.”
This passage speaks to the importance of growing in faith to achieve spiritual maturity and avoid being misled.
Psalm 1:1-3: “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.”
Proverbs 20:29: “The glory of young men is their strength, gray hair the splendor of the old.”
1 Corinthians 9:24-27: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
So, we’re going to look at 4 seasons or stages in a man’s life — Son, Cowboy, King, Sage
We’re going to explore:
a/ what typifies this season
b/ what is being formed in a man
c/ what are the main threats to this stage
d/ how to provide support in this space
- Beloved Son
- Cowboy
- King
- Sage
Questions:
Where am I? Where is my partner/spouse/child/parent/friend? What do I need? How can I help?
Where is God? What do I need from Him? What is He asking of me?
Luke 2:52:
And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favour with God and man.
Jody is joined by Doug and Tiani to unpack Sunday's message "Word's to build a life on" about building our lives on the firm foundation of Jesus’ teachings.
Key Scripture – Matt 7:24-29
Who’s at centre of your life – Jesus or you?
The invitation – an opportunity to reexamine the foundation – to check for mission drift
– to reset – to reorient – to reestablish a firm foundation in Jesus.
Q: What are the situations and seasons in life that can cause us to put ourselves at the centre of our lives out of our need to be in control rather than keeping Jesus at the centre?
Application Points – How do we rest our foundation and put Jesus back in the centre?
1/ Locate yourself
- Where are you and where is Jesus?
- What place does Jesus hold in your relationships, marriage, family, life?
Pray David’s prayer: Psalm 139:23-24
23
Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
2/ Relinquishing control
Letting the Master builder build.& partnering in the plan
Psalm 127:1-2
1 Unless the Lord builds the house,
the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the guards stand watch in vain.
2 In vain you rise early
and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to those he loves.
Prov 16:4
Commit to the Lord whatever you do,
and he will establish your plans.
3/ Work his WORD into your life
The bible is our roadmap to God’s best life for us. It’s teeming with truths and wisdom that when worked into our lives – when infused into every area – every room – brings life and health and wholeness.
Q: Do you have a rhythm for the Word in your life?
Psalm 1:1-3
1
Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2
but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
4/ Have a bigger VISION for your relationships
Genesis tells us that God created marriage and family to reflect his image – but he didn’t just create it – he gave it to us as a gift – as something to steward and delight in!
His vision for all of our relationships is that they would be healthy and fruitful – places of joy and delight.
This isn’t the reality for many of us – but we can take prayerful and active steps towards this.
Q: What are the opportunities in front of us to move towards greater health in our relationships?
Q: What’s one thing you could intentionally do this week to create health in a relationship?
Q: How is God inviting us to see and imagine our relationships, families, marriages through his eyes?
5/ Be anchored in a faith community
One of the greatest tools to guard against drifting is being tethered to others
Heb 10:24-25
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Q: Do you have a community of people spurring you on?
Q: Is there anyone in your world that you could be a safe community for?
Closing Thoughts:
Sometimes we confuse God’s renovation work in us for an external storm. He is rebuilding and restoring each one of us day by day into a masterpiece that reflects his glory.
“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of – throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Context – People, place and time
- A personal name for a personal God
- A mysterious name for a boundless God
- It’s not about you
- The best is ahead
——————-
God’s personal name:
Self existent – he needs nothing to be – he is causeless
Rest – in Him
All sufficient – he needs nothing to live – He is needless
Give – out of gratitude
Eternal – He is outside of space and time
Live – for forever
Unchangeable – He will not be corrupted, bribed or swayed from His mission
Trust – in His character
Present – He reveals his eternal name but in the context of time – in the context of generations
Worship – He is here
———————-
We see Jesus
John 8:56–59 (ESV)
56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” 59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple…
What does exile look like?
In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the Chebar canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. 2 On the fifth day of the month (it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin), 3 the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the Chebar canal, and the hand of the Lord was upon him there.
Ezekiel 1:1-3 (ESV)
Exile is not something new – but experienced by the people of God in Ezekiel – as we just read in our passage. So, why did this come about for Israel, why does this happen to us, and what do we do about it?
Why were the Israelites exiled?
The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the hand of the Lord being strong upon me. 15 And I came to the exiles at Tel-abib, who were dwelling by the Chebar canal, and I sat where they were dwelling.[c] And I sat there overwhelmed among them seven days.
Ezekiel 3:14-15 (ESV)
A brief history… of people, place and time
David >
Solomon >
Divided Kingdom >
Northern Kingdom of Israel defeated by Assyria (715BC) >
Southern Kingdom is defeated and exiled to Babylon (read Ezekiel and Daniel) (590BC) >
Persia overthrows the Babylonians and allows the Jews back into Jerusalem (520BC) >
The exiles were separated from:
- Temple worship (temple)
- Each other (killed, exiled, displaced)
- their land (land, nature)
Which, had two specific outcomes:
- Separation from God
- Separation from themselves
The exiles, who have been so proud of Jerusalem, now find themselves dwarfed by the size and scope of Babylon’s buildings and businesses. And where is the God of Israel in all this? Is he still alive, or has he been defeated too?
How does this get resolved?
These shall be the exits of the city: On the north side, which is to be 4,500 cubits (1.5 miles) by measure, three gates, the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi, the gates of the city being named after the tribes of Israel. On the east side, which is to be 4,500 cubits, three gates, the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan. On the south side, which is to be 4,500 cubits by measure, three gates, the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, and the gate of Zebulun. On the west side, which is to be 4,500 cubits, three gates, the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher, and the gate of Naphtali. 35 The circumference of the city shall be 6 miles. And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The Lord Is There.”
Ezekiel 48:30-35 (ESV)
Jehovah Shamah – The Lord is There…
-
A way back from exile
-
God’s commitment to His people
-
There is a space for you
What happens now?
Reconnect with people, with church, with nature – inso doing, you will reconnect with God and yourself
So, come out of exile!
- he has made a way for us to connect with church community again
- he has made a way for us to connect with people again
- he has made a way for us to connect with place and nature
“It is esteemed by the prophet to be the highest blessing that could come upon a city that it’s name should be Jehovah-Shammah, The Lord is there’
Charles Spurgeon
Sarai and Hagar
16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. 2 And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.
Gen 16:1-2 ESV
Sarai: Women of rank, power, representative of the King.
Hagar: To flee.
“If God would concede me His power for 24 hours, you would see how many changes I would make in the world. But if He gave me His wisdom too, I would leave things as they are.”
― J.M.L. Monsabre (Pastor from Paris, 1850’s)
Whether you are a Hagar, Sarai or anything in between, God wants to reveal himself to you again today.
3 So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife.
4 And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.
Gen 16:3-6 ESV
- What do you do when God’s promise doesn’t seem to come through?
- What promises are you waiting on?
7 The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.” 9 The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit to her.” 10 The angel of the Lord also said to her, “I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.” 11 And the angel of the Lord said to her,
“Behold, you are pregnant
and shall bear a son.
You shall call his name Ishmael,
because the Lord has listened to your affliction.
12 He shall be a wild donkey of a man,
his hand against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.”
13 So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,” for she said, “Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.”
Gen 16: 7-13 ESV
- Where have you come from?
- Where are you going?
1
Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.
2
Why do the nations say, “Where is their God?”
3
Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him.
4
But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands.
5
They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see.
6
They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell.
7
They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
8
Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.
Psalm 115: 1-8
Key Scripture: Ex 15:21-27 – Bitter water at Marah
From worship to whinging – from a spiritual high to a spiritual low.
The Israelites are no longer in Egypt BUT Egypt is still in the Israelites.
The Grand Reveal – I AM the Lord who heals you
When God reveals himself to the Israelites as their healer in this way he is reminding them of how he exposed all the false gods of Egypt that they were relying on for their daily needs, for crops, for fertility and good health and fortune etc. In fact these god’s
were making them sick.
God is reminding them that he is intimately involved in every aspect of their well-being, That he is not only their deliverer and provider, but also their healer. He is interested in every part of their lives and their wellbeing – not just their physical wellbeing and health – the plagues that came upon the Egyptians brought destruction to every area of their lives and livelihoods – God is revealing himself as the ultimate healer and restorer of ALL things.
There is an invitation for us to know God as our one true healer – and to trust him with every area of our lives. Not just some parts of our lives but with everything.
WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN FOR US?
OBSERVATIONS + INVITATIONS
Observation 1: God showed Moses the wood (the source of the miracle) but Moses threw it into the water.
Invitation 1: How is God inviting us to trust him and to partner with him in our healing and restoration?
Observation 2: The wood (the source of the miracle) was native to the area. God showed Moses a solution to the problem using something native and familiar to the people.
Invitation 2: What or who are the native solutions and miracles that are right in front of you that could help restore what’s broken / what needs mending in your life? (E.g David and his sling, the boy with 5 loaves and 2 fish)
Observation 3: There are seasons in life where God will test our obedience and devotion to him
Invitation 3: Am I living life God’s way or my own way? Have I given God access to every area of my heart and life and fully surrendered to him? Is my devotion directed towards God or other things?
How does this story end?
Elim //
27 After leaving Marah, the Israelites traveled on to the oasis of Elim, where they found twelve springs and seventy palm trees. They camped there beside the water.
What began with bitterness at Marah closes with sweetness at Elim.
Elim was the opposite of Marah. Elim represents the Hope God was restoring to his people – the shade of his protection, the abundant future he had in store for them in the Promised Land and the ultimate restoration that would come to them in the gift of Jesus – our Jehovah Rapha in the flesh.
Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” 2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” 3 And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. 4 But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— 5 “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”
Exodus 4:1-5
What’s in your hand?
The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.”
10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.”
15 Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. 16 He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.” Exodus 17:8-16
Context – what has just happened?
The Amalekites at Rephedim
Joshua
Raising hands, relying on God
Supportive leadership, working together
Jehovah Nissi
17:15. altar: “Lord my banner.” The altar Moses builds is one of commemoration of the victory. The name given it, “Yahweh is my standard,” reflects the theology of Yahweh as the leader of the armies of Israel.
The staff:
1/ The staff was carried everywhere – God is with you
2/ The staff was used by travellers – God is moving you forward
3/ The staff was used by shepherds – God cares for you
4/ The staff was a symbol of authority – God will lead you
5/ The staff was ordinary yet miraculous – God will use you
Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Ge 12:1–4.
Background – 2000BC — A society that is poly-theistic (many gods), agrarian (semi-nomadic farming) and tribal (regional rulers, communities and languages not yet ordered by ‘States’)
In order to ‘know’, Abraham has to ‘go’
After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 2 He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” Ge 22:1–2.
There are some parts of the Bible that are not for children
Abraham is called to ‘go’ again
The first mention of love in the Bible
Prescriptive or descriptive?
Why didn’t Abraham protest?
A test or a temptation?
So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4 On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 5 Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.” 6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together. Ge 22:3–8.
A slip of the tongue?
“Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.”
“God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.”
Options =
a/ Abraham knew it was a test
b/ Abraham expected some kind of substitution
c/ Abraham expected a resurrection (see Hebrews 11:9)
d/ Abraham was being evasive and ‘economical’ with the truth
When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” 13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.” Ge 22:9–14.
The great substitution
1/ Obedience is the gateway to further revelation
What has been left undone by you? What is God calling you to obey Him on that you’re most afraid of?
2/ You won’t know God as your provider until He’s all you have
Do you desire to know God in a deeper way? Where do you need Him to provide for you? Is it because you’ve surrendered all in faith, or are you just being greedy?
3/ Love God more than His promises
Can you trust Him even if the outcome doesn’t work out how you would like? Will you believe even when all falls away?
Epilogue: A storied mountain
What makes you feel uncomfortable? What creates discomfort for you? How do you respond?
John 13:1-17 Jesus washes the disciples’ feet
Acts 10:1-11:16 Peter’s dream sequence (and explanation—“God has broken through”)
Acts 15:1-35 Council of Jerusalem “it seemed good to Holy Spirit and to us…”
1 Corinthians 12:12-27 One body/many parts…
Galatians 3:28 Neither Jew nor Greek in Christ’s family…
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 The vocation of every Christian is “the ministry of reconciliation”, “to persuade people to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them”…to find common ground
Confession and repentance come before reconciliation…
CCVT First Peoples Solidarity Statement
Nehemiah 1:1-11 Before designing/rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls, Nehemiah confessed and repented: One for many, far away. What courage and generosity, what maturity and humility. May Discovery be the same as we enter this conversation…
Discuss: Share a moment of discomfort that opened you to grow or change or be renewed or refreshed—spiritually, in a relationship, in a work or school or sporting setting.
Panel
Nick Wight—Coordinator-East, Indigenous Ministries Australia (GMP)
Carly Cassidy—Missions Minister, One Church, Blackburn
Steve Barrington—Team Leader, Foothills Community Care, Upwey/Ferntree Gully
Next Steps
Who’s isolated and disconnected in your world right now that you could seek to share peace with?
What steps might you need to take to find common ground?
How well do you know the history of Australia? Of Australia’s First Peoples?
If this is uncomfortable, could you choose these spiritual practices: Listen. Learn. Act. Reflect?
Resources
- Watch the “Us All” song by Bruce Cockburn at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lUUX3JzG2I&authuser=0
- Watch the First Australians series on SBS On Demand
- Watch Safina Stewart’s NAIDOC Week 2023 message for Common Grace https://youtu.be/hsdxSaXlt8U
- Watch Aunty Jean Phillips’ Listen to the Heart message for Common Grace https://youtu.be/vMbm8-Kbd2c
- Watch a documentary on Pastor Sir Doug Nicholls https://youtu.be/QZtMfG-zLqo
- Watch the story of William Cooper, the Indigenous Christian activist who led the only protest against the 1938 Kristallnacht pogrom https://youtu.be/RnKR537612w
- Find out more about Churches of Christ Indigenous Ministries Australia (and other resources) at https://www.gmp.org.au/about-us/more-about-ima
- Sign up to Common Grace for regular updates commongrace.org.au
- Chat with Peter Lusk about how Southern Cross Kids Camp is engaging First Peoples
- Listen to and read some stories from Coranderrk (Healesville) coranderrk.com
- Read brief Tearfund comments about reconciliation (and find a link to six more brief papers) at https://www.tearfund.org.au/what-we-do/first-peoples/what-does-reconciliation-mean-to-you
- Register interest in participating in a Songlines walk with Nick Wight by emailing questions@discoverychurch.com.au
- Ask for a copy of the CCVT First Peoples Solidarity Statement by emailing questions@discoverychurch.com.au
- Send any questions or comments to questions@discoverychurch.com.au
Isaiah 58:1-3a
Cry aloud; do not hold back;
lift up your voice like a trumpet;
declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the judgment of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments;
they delight to draw near to God.
‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Background / context:
Isaiah prophesied to Israel and Judah between 740-700BC
At the time, Israel was under threat from Assyria (Nineveh was the capital city – remember Jonah?)
Key prophetic themes:
+The exile and judgement of Israel, an their return under Cyrus the Persian King
+The book speaks of a “servant,” a “man of sorrows,” who would be “pierced for our transgressions,” accomplishing God’s purposes of salvation
+The final chapters give a beautiful description of a new creation in which God will rule as King, judging the wicked and establishing eternal peace.
a/ Is God even listening?
———
Isaiah 58:3b-5
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.
Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
b/ A divided heart
———
Isaiah 58:6-7
“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed[b] go free,
and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
c/ How we treat others is a reflection of what we think of God
———
Isaiah 58:8-10
Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
d/ When you pour out to others, God pours out to you
———
Isaiah 58:11-12
And the Lord will guide you continually
and satisfy your desire in scorched places
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail.
And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
the restorer of streets to dwell in.
e/ Participate in your own healing
———
1/ People before projects
2/ Heart before hands
3/ Prayer lines before party lines
On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.’ And Simon answered, ‘Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.’ And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.’ For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.’ And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.”
Luke 5:1-11 ESV
Background: the family business
For the disciple of Jesus, people are the priority…
1/ The work is slow
2/ The work is not guaranteed (people can be faulty)
3/ The work is unseen
Neighbourhood Principle: Sustainability**
Wash your nets: transforming your day job into your life’s work
The calling is everything:
Questions: How has God called you to a specific purpose or mission in your life? Reflect on the moments or encounters that led you to where you are today. How has God’s calling transformed your perspective and priorities?
Your story is crucial:
Questions: Consider the people who have been influential in your faith journey. How have their personal witness and testimony impacted your own commitment to following Jesus? How can you be a witness for Christ in your own circles of influence?
Provision is God’s pleasure:
Questions: Reflect on moments when God has provided abundantly in your life, whether in material blessings, Biblical insight, or emotional support. How have these experiences shaped your understanding of God’s faithfulness and provision? How can you trust God’s provision even in times of scarcity or uncertainty?
Your journey of transformation:
Questions: How has encountering Jesus led to a transformative change in your life? How did it reshape your values, priorities, or relationships? In what ways has the transformative power of Jesus impacted your journey of discipleship?
Going together:
Questions: Consider the role of community in your spiritual growth and the impact of collective discipleship. How has being part of a faith community shaped your understanding of the Kingdom of God? How can you contribute to fostering a supportive and transformative community for others?
Key Scriptures:Acts 1:12-14Acts 2:1-13Acts 2:14-41 What is Pentecost?Pentekoste (Greek) – meaning 505o days after EasterAn agricultural festival – wheat harvestthe birthday of the Christian Church and the start of the mission of the Church to the worldmarked by the sending of the Spirit
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.Acts 2:42-47
Who is a person who has had a significant impact your life? Whose ripples you are living in the wake of?Scripture is full of stories of people who encounter God and are changed and transformed because of that encounter. But it never stops there…. an encounter with God is never an isolated event…it always has a ripple effect.
The life of a follower of Jesus depends upon the power and presence of the Holy Spirit - but how? How does God empower us, and how does the Bible say we are changed in the process of following Him?
How fun is pottery?Forming something from a lump of clay and making something with a purpose. But this object only has purpose when it is filled.How are we being filled? And are the ways we are filling ourselves serving us well?Richard Rohr said’ Unless we are led to the limits of our present game plan… we will not search or find the real source.’The refilling of the Spirit, ‘the real source’, is an action of surrender of our will, hearts and world to Him, so that we are equipped to preach the good news of the kingdom.
WHO is the Holy Spirit? WHAT is he like and WHAT does He do?We worship a triune God – a God who is 3 in 1 (Father, Son & Holy Spirit)Each equally and fully God, but with a different expression of God and his nature towards us.We are designed for relationship with each person of the Godhead – with every part of who God is. When part of that is missing or lacking in some way we miss out on the fullness and the depth of that relationship.
How do we hold the tension between Friday and Sunday?Between death and life?How do we hold hope for better days for for healing, while also accepting that we’re not all healed now? How do we now live in God’s new world?
The majority of adults believe in a literal resurrection. But very few understand what that means for their life. We can mentally assent to the resurrection - yes, it happened. But the big question is - so what?Today, we will study together why the resurrection of Jesus matters. And we will walk through the seven points Paul makes in 1 Corinthians 15, to see what difference the resurrection can make in our world, what it means for us, and what we need to do next.
All-powerful - All-knowing - All-present - And yet here, God seems like none of those things. Indeed, we have been influenced by Greek philosophy which has led us to accept the doctrine of impassibility - that God is separate from humankind and therefore doe not and cannot experience pain. He is literally incapable of suffering. But he came to earth as a man, to suffer for us.
The way we see Jesus for who he really is, is when we see ourselves for who we really are.
If we look at the biblical story of where God lives – what we discover is that God has lived in a few different places over the course of history.But God’s heart and intention from the beginning was always to dwell with his people…So, Garden, tabernacle, Temple 1 & 2, The Word became flesh
Acts 16:25-3425 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer[a] called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.Taking your life or giving it to Christ
In this conversation we explore what it looks like to belong with others, and create belonging for others.
When has been a time in your life when you have taken a risk in your faith?Sometimes the biggest mountain to conquer when taking a risk is conquering our fear and doubts.Focus: Peter a man who was given an opportunity to step out and take a risk in his spiritual journey to leave behind what he knew, what made sense in the natural to move towards something he hadn’t done before.Matthew 14:27-35
Data tells us what things are, stories tell us what things mean.One big truth: there is one unifying story that envelops all of human history, and it finds its beginning, middle and end in the person of Jesus.One cultural crossing: We are servants, not superstarsWe are His church, living out His mission in the world, awaiting (and hastening) His returnWhat does the story require of us? How are we best found in the story?A Biblical narrative template: Creation — Fall — Recreation (Freedom, slavery, redemption)
What are the ‘senses’ that tell you that you’re home?What are the ‘senses’ that tell you that you’re lost?Big story: a study in getting lostLuke 15:11-32
The human heart has been created with connection and purpose in mind.We’ve been created:In the image of God – the desire for belonging (community)To seek restoration (answers to life’s problems)And to desire creativity (to make a contribution)Jesus offers this. So,Why doesn’t every heart come?Why isn’t everyone here?
1 big truth about God (theological truth)A life in God is not a prize to be earned, but a gift to be received1 story : David vs the giant — 1 Samuel 17
The 3 Markers of the Loveless ChurchWhat You Say is More Important Than What You Do (Eloquence)We are never alone. God's character remains constant. God's grace is sufficient.God loves you and he sent his Son for you.God is making all things new.Jesus came to save you. He is the way the Truth and the life.
What are the old covenant mindsets that, are restricting your relationship with God? Who are the people in your life that aren’t really helping you to be a disciple of Jesus? What obsolete ideals and thoughts do we have that need to disappear so that the new covenant of light and life, can be a reality in our everyday discipleship?NEW COVENANT = New Beginning = Freedom, Grace Light and Life!
Our lives are filled with big decisions, but none more significant than the decision of delight. What do we give our hearts to? What will we find joy in? The answer to these questions will radically shape our happiness, joy and fruitfulness for the year ahead.
Isaiah 9:1-6
This passage was written at around the time of the fall of the northern kingdom, to Sennacherib’s invasion of Judah in 701 b.c, to the period of the Exile — around the time of Israel’s exile to Babylon.
The first question we might ask is: who is the prophet talking about? Who is the son that will be born?
Two ways to understand OT prophecy…two meanings: now and not yet
one: the time and culture of the day
two: the cosmic meta-narrative ‘in Christ’
The rhythm of work and rest was created by God and embedded in the creation story. God modelled a rhythm of rest to us from the beginning of time. God didn’t rest because he was tired – He’s God – he doesn’t get tired. So what was the purpose of this rest? To stop, to step back and to delight the creative work he had just completed. (He saw that it was good!). Everything God does is intentional.
We live in a world divided, a world rapidly splintering as individualism becomes the norm. We're rejecting community and, consequently, becoming less than human. How does the gospel of Jesus free us from these chains? How can we move from survival to serving one another?
What does a thirsty man do to get rid of his thirst? He drinks.
What does a hungry man do to get rid of his hunger? He eats.
Key Scriptures about The World:
- 1 John 2:15-16
- Romans 12:2
- Mark 8:36
- Colossians 3:2
- James 4:4
- John 16:33
- John 3:16-7
Key Scriptures about the Word of God:
- Hebrews 4:12
- 2 Timothy 3:16-17
- Psalm 119:105
- Isaiah 40:8
- Matthew 24:35
- Romans 10:17
What does the bible say about spiritual health and wellbeing? What does being spiritually healthy look and feel like? How is your spiritual health right now? (How is it with you soul? Really??)
Our spiritual health and well-being matters to God. He is the author and image of wholeness, health and well-being. Being made in God’s image means we have been created for that same wholeness, wellness and health.
Birthdays are the opportunity to reflect, and this reflection always includes reflecting on CHANGE. How do you deal with change? Fight it? Accept it? Contribute to it? Love it? Today is a significant day in the life of Discovery Church, as we both look back in celebrating 75 years of service to this region, but also forward into the future of this community and her part to play in the region, extending the borders of the Kingdom of God and seeing people come into the knowledge of God’s great story.
Ezra – A lens through which to view God’s design for hope and restoration for his people – and as a way of listening together to how God is inviting us to partner with Him in His mission for The Legacy Project.
The future of the people of God is within the people of God because Holy Spirit is in the people of God; the future of Discovery is within the people of Discovery because Holy Spirit is in the people of Discovery.
The story God is writing in us and in our neighbourhood in these days is the legacy we’ll gift to the future.
Matt 9:35 – 10:1ESV
The Harvest Is Plentiful, the Laborers Few
35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
The Twelve Apostles
10 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.
In this final episode of the series, Dan is joined by Liv, Beck and Tim to chat about finances. Jesus tells us "You cannot serve both God and Money" Matt 6:24, so how do we view money in relation to discipleship. We look at cost of living, looking to the future, financial abuse and being a victim of online scams, and ultimately that God is a generous God who wants the best for all of us. This podcast follows on from Matt's message titled "Do you need more money?", so if you haven't yet, check out that Podcast now.
We hope this series of bonus podcast has blessed you.
Money is a form of power — power should be wielded with emotions in check — it’s been said that Money is an excellent servant, but a terrible master... So how do we approach money when we come to faith? How is our money transformed by our discipleship?
Dan is joined by Phil, Jody, Doug and Mel to chat all things family. God's ultimate plan is for families to be restored, especially with Him. In this episode we're exploring additional questions and going deeper on the content of our Sunday message, Relatives + Restoration = Real Life. We hope you enjoy this conversation.
Everyone’s experience of family is varied. From awesome to really challenging, from healthy to fully dysfunctional. Especially for the most vulnerable in our community… children. We need to talk about family, because it is so important to God.
Join us for the We Need to Talk Podcast, a chance to go behind the curtain and hear stories and reflections about the topics we’re covering in this series. In this episode we're exploring additional questions and going deeper on the content of our Sunday message, A Living Faith: Action in an age of sentimentality. We hope you enjoy this conversation.
Our world is moving faster than ever, and as we move faster, we also become more shallow. How do we cultivate deep, satisfying spiritual lives that don't remain as a strange idea, but get put into action? How might our faith benefit the people around us and deepen their lives as well?
As we bring our series on Revelation to a close, we explore the kind of world we live in, and thekind of world that Jesus has come to redeem. What is our part to play in the re-creation of theworld, and how does God bring it all about?
Things are not how they should be, and things are not always as they seem. Who is behind the evil in our world? Why do we always fight each other? Today we explore the existence of evil, the devil’s ultimate defeat, and how the woman and her child from Revelation 12 relate to each one of us.
We live in troubled and uncertain times. War, violence, inequality, and disease are a mark on our existence and on the way we live. Each of us experience the brokenness in our hearts and culture in different ways, but often the result is the same. So, what is God doing? How do we thrive in the midst of it all? Join us as we find answers in the book of Revelation.
Jesus writes a letter to seven churches as prophetic encouragement and warning to his disciples about how to live in the world but not of the world.
The number seven is symbolic of Jesus completed work on earth. This means his letters are for the church worldwide. They are just as relevant for us today as they were when they were first written in 96AD.
We live in a fragile world full of pressure. Chaos is everywhere, and often inside of us. Pressures come from all angles - both external and internal. How do we set our world in order again? How do we 'reset' after a particularly chaotic time? How might the Bible encourage us to find a place of equilibrium?
As children, we ask this question, and sometimes children will draw their answer - their image or impression of God and what He looks like. The truth is, that our impression of what God looks like in our imagination is shaped by many forces. So, how you see God will determine your approach to Him, whether for safety, comfort or for encouragement.
How do you approach God?
The book of Revelation has confused and confounded the church for centuries. It has caused fear, speculation and drama in the hearts and lives of many people who are followers of Jesus. Yet, beneath this, there is an encouragement to the church and a clear hope for the future that Jesus brings. How might we understand today what Revelation was saying, and how might we apply this great book to our own lives?
Pastor Jody continues our series 'Alpha & Omega' with her message 'Into The Chaos'. Reflecting on a crazy year in the history of the world, we find comfort in the Christmas Story.
Jody Destry
This message ‘2020 An Underdog Story” bookends the previous message, “One Hit Wonder”. How do we see Jesus? Is His story a story of defeat or a story of victory? Is it a story of loss or is it a story of gain? Pastor Matt turns to the book of Revelation to find the answer.
Matt Destry
Pastor Matt Destry's message ‘One Hit Wonder’ begins our December series 'Alpha & Omega'. In this first message, Pastor Matt begins to paint the picture of how, right at the very beginning of scripture in the book of Genesis, we see how Jesus is there. We know He is at the end and we can have the assurance that He is with us right now.Matt Destry
Pastor Matt ends our Rock 'n' Roll Relationships series speaking on marriage and the gift of singleness.
Matt Destry
Pastor Jody’s message ‘Full House’ opens with the passage from Ephesians 2:19:22 where scripture tells us that we are part of a family of faith, part of God’s household. Jody speaks about the generational relationships within God’s family, and the beauty and richness of a full house of generations. Jody Destry
In his message Soul Knitted, Pastor Ben Kumar speaks on friendship, opening with the statistic in a recent study that 55% of people reported being lonely. He shared from Proverbs 18:24, where it speaks about a friend who sticks closer than a brother. The friendship between David and Jonothan was this kind of 'soul knitted' friendship. We need this kind of friendship in our lives. Pastor Ben gave us some wise advice on how to cultivate and recognise this kind of deep friendship
Matt Destry opens our new series Rock n' Roll Relationships with a message titled 'The Chamber of Truth'.
Jody Destry finishes our series 'A voice of one calling' with a message title 'A hope you can count on'.
Pastor Phil Hamilton's message 'The Lord Will Provide' is based from Genesis 22 this weekend. Sometimes we might be tempted to question: Is the Lord good? Can the Lord be trusted? Is God dependable? But the Lord provides the peace of His presence in the most devastating of circumstances. He is with us.
Phil Hamilton
Pastor Doug Pors message titled "You're a Real Piece of Work", reminds us how we are called to live authentically who we are. When we BE ourselves, we point others to the Creator.
Doug Pors
In his message titled "Build Your Life on God's Reality", Pastor Ben Kumar asks several questions. Is the Kingdom of God idealistic or real? Do you live your life out of the belief that God's Kingdom is real? How do you allow this Kingdom reality to shape your life? Pastor Ben gives us practical ways to start living out of Kingdom reality.
Ben Kumar
Continuing our series "A Voice of One Calling", Pastor Tiani's message "All On The Altar" looks at what it means to offer ourselves as 'living sacrifices' to God. She says that as followers of Christ we are called to be living sacrifices but that sacrificing for us does not lead to death. It leads to life and life to the full! It’s only in surrender that we truly find freedom for ourselves.
Tiani Walters
Pastor Kate Boehringer's message is titled "The Other Side of Love".
She speaks from Hebrews 12:18-29. We are reminded that there is no longer any need to fear condemnation. We are no longer in the state of before finding God's love. We are on the other side of His love. In the context of relationship with Jesus, we have freedom to experience the full extent of His love.
Kate Boehringer
Reading from Isaiah 40, Pastor Matt Destry launches our new series 'A Voice of One Calling' sharing that, even in our isolation and difficulty, God longs to come near and comfort us! We do not have to hide our brokenness from Him.
Matt Destry
Celebrating Father's day 2020, Pastor Matt Destry speaks to us about the everlasting trustworthiness of our Father God. He will never deceive us. He is our great provider.
Matt Destry
In the final message of our series "The New Normal", Pastor Matt Destry speaks from the book of Romans, chapter 8, verses 31-39. Titled "What Keeps Us Together", this message reassures us that absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God.
Matt Destry
Have you ever wished for unshakable hope? In his message titled "Hope Filled Skies" Pastor Ben Kumar shows us there is hope available to us that is a reality - a reality that is more real than any thing we may be fearing right now in these uncertain times.
Ben Kumar
Have you ever wondered what God's best for us is when we are anxious? If that's a question you need answered, Sunday's message in our series, The New Normal - Living in Anxious Times with Unswerving Hope will be so relevant! Pastor Jody Destry's message discusses the 3 keys for combating anxiety in our lives.
Jody Destry
Speaking for our new series, The New Normal, Pastor Matt Destry's message titled "Get Out of Jail Free" is based from 2 Corinthians 12. We see how God can use limitations to activate, focus and humble us for His glory and our good.Matt Destry
Pastor Matt Destry launches our series "The New Normal" with the question "How can we sing?" We can see from Psalm 137 that God does not expect us to ignore the difficult times we are in. He understands the pain of the journey. BUT He is bringing about restoration.
Matt Destry
Pastor Matt Destry concludes the Everyday Faith series speaking from 1 Samuel 25 regarding the power of our words to build up or tear down. Are we using our lives to create life? Are we speaking peoples’ potential over them? What world will exist from the words we are speaking?
Matt Destry
Pastor Doug Pors shares from Genesis 3 and 1 Peter 2 regarding God's heart to restore us to Himself EVERYDAY. And as restored ones, we are equipped to share restoration with our world.
Doug Pors
Continuing our series Everyday Faith, Pastor Ben Kumar shared from Ephesians 2:19–22 and 1 Peter 2:5 regarding how each of us is a unique stone that BELONGS in the Kingdom that God is building. We are reminded that when Jesus is the cornerstone of every part of our lives we are placed exactly where we belong.
Ben Kumar
Beginning our new series "Everyday Faith", Pastor Matt Destry shares from Philippians 2:12-13 regarding how Jesus wishes to work on us INWARDLY to empower us to OUTWARDLY live our faith.
Matt Destry
In this the second of a two part discussion panel, Phil Hamilton, Moriah Weston, Paul Cameron and Andy Bennett look at the role of the individuals and the church in carrying out the great commission to go and make disciples.
Phil Hamilton. Paul Cameron, Andy Bennett & Moriah Weston
In this the first of a two part discussion panel, Phil Hamilton, Moriah Weston, Paul Cameron and Andy Bennett look at the role of the individuals and the church in carrying out the great commission to go and make disciples.
Phil Hamilton. Paul Cameron, Andy Bennett & Moriah Weston
Pastor Jody Destry is joined by Pete Lusk, Bec Gebert, and Heidi Waddell to discuss what it has meant to them to be discipled and to disciple others.
Jody Destry, Pete Lusk, Bec Gebert, & Heidi Waddell
Pastor Matt Destry continues our "On the Road Series" at the AM services with his message "Ghost Stations". Unpacking Luke 10, Matt explained that a disciple is one in form AND function. We need safe people discipling us. But we also need to be graciously discipling others. This is urgent work that requires us to give and receive with vulnerability and generosity.
Matt Destry
Pastor Phil is joined by Pastors Shereen Barker and Ben Kumar to discuss what it means to them to walk the road with Jesus.
Phil Hamilton, Shereen Barker & Ben Kumar
Pastor Phil Hamilton continues our "On the Road Series" with his message "Walking the road with Jesus" Phil reflects from Mark 10. As the disciples were grappling with Jesus speaking of His death we can only wonder at their emotional state. They were astonished by the peace and even the joy of Christ as He spoke of His own torture and death. It's in this we see what it means to abide. As Christ abides with the Father there is joy, no matter the circumstances. As we abide in Christ there is joy, as we attach ourselves to Christ there is peace.
Phil Hamilton
Pastors Jody Destry and Phil Hamilton join Pastor Matt to discuss practical applications of his message "Leave Everything Behind".
Matt Destry, Jody Destry & Phil Hamilton
Senior Pastor, Matt Destry kicked off the "On the Road Series" with reflections from Luke 5. God is calling us to move from independence to community; pride to humility; everything to nothing. You may feel like you have been labouring to no avail, but God is calling you into something new, to leave everything behind and join Him on the discipleship road.
Matt Destry
Pastor Jody Destry is joined by Pastors Matt Destry and Ben Kumar to discuss the privilege and joy of living with Holy Spirit inside us.
Jody Destry, Matt Destry & Ben Kumar
For Pentecost Sunday, our final Sunday of the House to House series, Jody Destry shares her message "Greater Things". Jody speaks on how we are in a season of regeneration - a season of new life - for us and our communities. Every one of us can receive Holy Spirit's power to live supernaturally. We are the dwelling place of God.
Jody Destry
A panel of Tiani Walters, Sam Tinsley & Ben Kumar reflect and share personal insights on Tiani's message "Come to the Table".
Tiani Walters, Sam Tinsley & Ben Kumar
Youth Pastor, Tiani Walters speaks from Acts 27, answering the question - what does Paul teach us about God in the midst of our life's storms? God is a sure foundation. He promises grace kindness and peace even in the midst of fear. We can be seated at His table and rest in His presence.
Tiani Walters
Following on from the message "New Things", Youth Pastor, Tiani Walters and Kids Pastor, Kate Boehringer join Pastor Matt to discuss their thoughts on the Acts 10 passage. It is great to listen to their testimonies of times when they've participated in the new thing God has been doing.
Matt Destry, Tiani Walters & Kate Boehringer
Pastor Matt Destry preaches in this message from our House To House series from Acts 10, asking the question - are we ready for God to do a new thing? God has new wells, new connections and new communities for us to experience.
Matt Destry