Parkhead Nazarene: Recent Episodes
Parkhead Nazarene
Today, we delved into the profound and essential topic of the Armour of God, as outlined in Ephesians. We began by emphasizing the importance of knowing our Captain, Jesus Christ, and understanding His character and attributes through the Scriptures. The first three chapters of Ephesians are particularly enlightening in this regard. Knowing our Captain helps us to be strong in the Lord and to put on the full armour of God, enabling us to stand against the devil's schemes.
We then explored the concept of familiar spirits, which are demonic entities that know our family history and weaknesses intimately. These spirits aim to exploit our vulnerabilities, but by knowing our enemy, we can better defend ourselves. Jesus called the enemy the father of lies, and understanding this helps us to recognize and reject the lies that come our way.
Next, we discussed the various pieces of the Armor of God: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. Each piece has a specific role in protecting us from spiritual attacks. For instance, the shield of faith helps us to deflect the enemy's lies, while the helmet of salvation protects our minds from doubt and fear.
We also touched on the importance of praying in the Spirit at all times. This means being fully engaged and present with God, praying in faith, and using the Word of God in our prayers. The enemy's most strategic plan is to keep us from abiding in God and obeying His commandments. Therefore, we must be vigilant in our spiritual practices, including prayer and reading the Word.
Finally, we shared a personal testimony about the transformative power of God's Word and the importance of declaring it over our lives. By doing so, we can break free from the lies and limitations imposed by the enemy and walk in the fullness of our identity in Christ.
Today's sermon focused on the theme of spiritual warfare and the importance of being equipped to resist the attacks of the enemy. We began by emphasising the omnipotence of God with the repeated declaration, "Who can stop the Lord Almighty?"
This set the tone for understanding that our strength and victory come from God alone.
We then transitioned to discussing the armour of God as described in Ephesians 6, highlighting the necessity of putting on the full armour to stand against the devil's schemes.
We explored the concept of resistance through various historical and contemporary examples, such as the D-Day landings and the Mothers of the Disappeared, to illustrate the importance of standing firm in the face of evil.
The sermon also delved into the nature of our enemy, the devil, who is described as a liar and a murderer. Despite his defeat through Jesus' death and resurrection, the devil continues to wage battles against us, trying to lead us astray.
The importance of knowing our Captain, Jesus, was stressed. We were reminded that our strength comes from Him and that we should focus on His goodness and promises rather than the enemy's lies. The practical outworking of this involves declaring God's work and promises in our lives and communities.
Finally, we examined three pieces of the armour of God: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of the gospel of peace. Each piece was explained in terms of its spiritual significance and practical application in our daily lives. The belt of truth holds everything together, the breastplate of righteousness protects our hearts, and the shoes of peace prepare us to share the gospel and stand firm against the enemy.
Let me start by asking you a question: How often do you go mad? By that, I mean, how often do you Make A Difference? If you were removed from your workplace, family, or community, would anyone notice? This is a crucial question because making a difference is what we are called to do.
Let's turn to the Bible, specifically 2 Peter 1. God's divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him. We are called to add to our faith goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, and love. If we possess these qualities in increasing measure, we will be effective and productive in our knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Peter emphasizes the importance of growth. Think back to where you were a year ago. Have you grown in your faith and expression of Jesus? Adding to our faith requires effort. It's not just about lying back and letting God do everything. There's a balance between God's power and our responsibility to grow. Imagine packing everything your child needs for a camp, but they come back having used none of it. Similarly, God has given us everything we need in Jesus, but we must unpack and use it.
In practical terms, this means adding to our faith qualities like goodness, wisdom, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness, and love. Jesus exemplified these qualities, and we are called to follow His example. For instance, self-control is not just about avoiding addiction but mastering our egos and desires. Perseverance, or stickability, is about being consistent and steady, even in the face of insidious compromise.
Godliness means living with a God-focus, doing everything for God, like God, and with God. One of my friends exemplified this by cleaning a prison cell as if it were for Jesus. This is the kind of godliness we are called to.
In conclusion, making a difference requires effort, growth, and embodying the gospel story. Let's strive to add to our faith and make a lasting impact in our communities and the world.
Key Takeaways
1. The Power of One Great Truth: You don't need to know a lot of things to make a difference; you just need to be mastered by one great truth. Charles Studd's life exemplifies this. He gave up his upper-class life and cricket career to serve in the Congo, and his sacrifice has had a lasting impact. This teaches us that being deeply committed to one great truth can change lives and communities.
2. God Has Given Us Everything We Need: God's divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him. This means we are fully equipped to live a life that makes a difference. However, we must actively unpack and use these divine resources. Just like a packed suitcase for camp, everything we need is there, but it's up to us to use it.
3. Growth and Perseverance: Peter emphasizes the importance of growth in our faith. We are called to increase in measure, not just in the first few years but throughout our lives. This continuous growth prevents us from becoming short-sighted and forgetful, keeping our spiritual urgency and direction intact.
4. Embodiment of the Gospel: To make a difference, we must embody the gospel story, not just be talking heads. Jesus didn't just speak words; He lived them. We are called to weave the gospel story into the lives of our neighbors and the people we interact with daily. This practical application of faith is what truly makes a difference.
5. Qualities to Add to Our Faith: Peter lists qualities like goodness, wisdom, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness, and love that we must add to our faith. These qualities are not just for personal growth but for making a tangible impact in our communities. For example, self-control is about mastering our egos and desires, while perseverance is about being consistent and steady in our faith.
Listen along as Emma brings us our next message as we continue in our series of BEHOLD.
As we continue on our series of BEHOLD, we are joined by Dr Deirdre Brower Latz, Ph.D., Principal and Senior Lecturer in Pastoral and Social Theology, Nazarene Theological College. Listen along as Deirdre brings God's message to us and unpacks its truths for us to digest.
Listen again as we have Barry bringing the Message to us as we continue in our series on Behold
Wes starts us off on our new series, Behold.
The theme this week is 'For Goodness Sake' and the passages we will look at are Genesis1: 1, 2, 10, 31, Genesis2: 18, 22-23.
Behold, the goodness of God!
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This week we hear from Alex who continues in our Advent series as well as a taster into his recent travels to Indonesia.
Wes brings us this week's message as we continue through our Advent series, and getting us ready for welcoming Christ at Christmas.
Getting ready for Advent.
Is your heart prepared for Christmas?
Are you distracted by other things, such as work, finance, shopping, emotions, or even by other people, from allowing you to focus on what is truly important, and the significance of the Christmas story?
Our anniversary special message from Fred Drummond, at EA Scotland and continuing in our Who Are You sermon series.
Becky Dunphy brings us this week's message as we continue in our series, Wisdom in Proverbs
Wes brings us the second message in this series looking at the Wisdom in Proverbs and beyond.
Richard Porter brings us a special message for our anniversary Sunday as we continue in our Back to Basics series
Wes continues in our Back to Basics series and follows on from last week's message on why and how we talk to and with God.
Emma White brings us a special all age service message today and looks at what makes us say 'wow'.
What is the passion, power and the Holy Spirit?
Wes White continues in sharing God's Word in our current series on Back to Basics.
In today's message, Shelley, discusses the topic of Psalm23 and Psalm100, and that no matter what trials are in our life, when we trust in God, God's love will be with us through any and all troubles, never leaving us and supporting us, whatever the outcome.
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Listen again as John starts us off in our new series, Summer in the Psalms, looking at Psalm 1
Listen on as Shelley brings our current series on 1Peter to a close by recapping on what we've heard over the course of this journey through 1Peter.
In today's message, Wes reminds us of what it means to emulate Christ in our daily lives, to be Christ's example to the world.
In this week's message, we hear from Adi who shares part of his story and his own suffering as he journeys in his relationship with God.
We also hear from Shelley today as she brings us God Word and what it means to suffer - and how God comforts us during those times.
Listen to Wes as he continues in our current series and unpacks this weeks passage; 1Peter 2: 11 - 3:7.
During his message, Wes takes us through the 'Four calls to voluntary subjection, Four actions of Christ and Four critical caveats'.
As we continue through the book of 1Peter, John Craig asks us the question, what kind of church are we to be?
Start of a new series through 1Peter. This week, speaker Wes White asks us, 'what does it mean to be saved?'
John Craig brings us this week's message looking at the passage found in Luke 24: 30-32
Listen to John Craig bring this Easter Sunday message, with the Bible reading from 1Cor15: 21-22
Listen to Wes White share this Palm Sunday message, with the Bible reading from Matthew 27: 45-54
Join with us as Claire takes us through what it means to be accountable, and accountable to God.
This morning we will be continuing in our series "The Return" and looking at the account of Cyrus' decree in Ezra chapter 1. If possible, please have pen and paper or a nootepad app ready on your phone so that you can take part in an exercise that John will introduce during our main teaching time.
The Return - Week 03
Thank you for joining with us this morning when Emma will be continuing our current series 'The Return' and preaching from Nehemiah Chapter 1.
Start a new series
We are calling it the return. Looking at God’s people returning from exile, re-settling in the land and re-building that which had been destroyed when they were taken captive.
And although we will be looking at a section in Jeremiah today, we will primarily be looking at Ezra and Nehemiah in OT.
But of course in that we’ll also be thinking about own process of return, especially as we are now in a season when restrictions are being lifted and many of our lives may start to “return” to something like they were before Covid-19.
Actually today it just so happens we’ll begin today by looking at the same chapter that Wes led us in thinking through. We’ll be thinking about a slightly earlier section and coming from a different angle but I do hope that our time in God’s word is helpful.
Please feel free to get a Bible and look along with us this morning.
Jeremiah 31: 1-14
Listen to Mick Kane sharing some helpful tips into improving our mental health, especially during these lockdown periods.
mentalhealth #church #recoverychurch
Continuing with our 'Whats in a name' series, we are looking at the name Jehovah Shammah
A new series looking at the different names given to God in the Old Testament and how these can remind us about the important truths of God's character in the midst of a season of uncertainty and misinformation
Listen to week 6 of our Prayer Course series.
For more information about the Prayer Course, please go to https://prayercourse.org/
Listen to week 5 of our Prayer Course series.
For more information about the Prayer Course, please go to https://prayercourse.org/
Listen again to our 3rd part in the Prayer Course series, adapted from the Pete Greig book of the same name.
Hear from John Craig as he brings us the 2nd installment to our new series, The Prayer Course.
Listen again to Shelley's message from Sunday as she continues in our current series, The Big Picture.
Listen again to our latest message, week 3 of our current series, the Big Picture from Ian Wills
Shelley brings us the 2nd message in our The Big Picture, talking about the goodness of God.