City Gate Church, Salisbury: Recent Episodes
Rob Holzer
Rachel encourages us that God is calling us to be a remnant rising not a remnant hiding and that God will build His church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Part of this rising includes us being willing to step out with boldness and expectation in our use of the gifts of the spirit.Sharing personal stories and examples from scripture, Rachel teaches specifically on the gifts of words of wisdom and words of knowledge, encouraging us that these gifts can be exciting catalysts for church building and kingdom advancement.
We conclude Mark's gospel with chapters 15 and 16, which take us through the trial, death and resurrection of Jesus. Stuart draws our attention to the 'Silence of the Lamb' as Jesus the great speaker & teacher chooses to remain largely silent throughout chapter 15 in sharp contrast with the 'Proclamation of the King' in Chapter 16 where Jesus' resurrection, commission and ascension speak volumes! Stuart invites us to ask ourselves: How can we prepare the way for the gospel of Jesus Christ?
Working through chapter 14 of Mark's gospel we can see who Jesus is revealed to be in the different aspects of the stories shown: He is the one who is worthy of our all as shown at His anointing at Bethany, He is the mediator of the new covenant as revealed at the Last Supper, He is the man of sorrows as demonstrated in the Garden of Gethsemane and He is seated at the right hand of the Father in Heaven as Jesus himself declares during His trial. Rachel opens our eyes to the King we worship and invites us to love Jesus in light of who He truly is. How will we respond to this revelation of Jesus and will we walk the path set before us as Jesus did?
The Resurrection is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. If we believe in the resurrection wholeheartedly, it should shape how we live our lives here on earth as we hold onto the promise of eternal life with Jesus. Walking us through the issues raised in Mark chapter 12, Sam challenges us by asking two key questions: 1). Do you feel empowered to live a bold & courageous, God-centred life because you know there's better to come? 2). Does the thought of Jesus coming again fill you with joy, dread or are you indifferent? Thought-provoking questions when we live in a society that values, as the Sadducees did - comfort, wealth and power for this life!
Throughout Mark's gospel we are invited to witness the revelation of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, yet He doesn't look like the Messiah that had been expected. Delving into chapter 11, Mary encourages us to explore what kind of King Jesus is, focusing on the accounts of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a colt, His cursing of the fig tree and clearing out of the temple, His teaching on the power of faithful prayer and concluding with the Pharisees challenge to Jesus' authority. Through carefully unpacking these accounts, Mary helps us to identify the beautiful attributes and purpose of Jesus our Messianic King!
Chapter 10 of Mark's gospel presents many more teaching opportunities for the disciples as they continue to discover the true values of the Kingdom of God. Stuart invites us to focus in on Jesus' call to discipleship through the areas of teaching, testing and trusting, looking at topics like our relationships, our possessions and the counter-cultural challenge to serve others before ourselves. Mark finishes the chapter with another miracle, which serves as a timely reminder that Jesus has the authority as the Son of God to teach us, to test us and that we can always trust Him!
The Transfiguration at the beginning of Mark chapter 9 dramatically reveals more of Jesus' identity with His glory vividly on display. The rest of the chapter shows that the disciples believe they are destined for prestige and glory too as close followers of the Messiah. Jesus has His work cut out helping them to understand the upside down thinking that defines His kingdom: Mark 9 v.35 "Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all." Following Jesus involves cost and sacrifice alongside the joy and blessings, but are we aware that there is a war on or are we looking for a walk with Jesus that is more like a summer holiday as Tom Wright highlights in his commentary 'Mark for Everyone'. Kate unpacks the lessons the disciples were learning and helps us to think about what lessons we still need to learn today as the war continues!
Mark chapter 8 focuses on what it is to really see Jesus. Peter saw He was the messiah, but didn’t have eyes to see He was the suffering messiah. How many of us have this blindness to aspects of who Jesus is? Are we open to Him revealing characteristics that might be uncomfortable or personally unknown? What does it mean to follow Jesus? We give Him our yes, but what happens when trouble comes or the path doesn’t look like we thought it would? Does Jesus really have our yes? Will we be tempted/seduced to a path that’s more comfortable or like Jesus will we say “get behind me satan” and then embrace the path & His teachings no matter the cost? Are we like the blind man, do we need a second touch to really see clearly? Jesus links the disciples lack of understanding to hardness of heart, do we need to ask God to soften ours? Are we prepared to live out our yes even if it’s a path marked with suffering as Jesus’ was. In doing so we get to know Jesus in ways we may never have expected. As we ask to know Him more, are we prepared for that to be His hardships/betrayal/misunderstanding/pain or do we just want to know His love/grace/joy/peace etc. To know Jesus fully and to walk as He did and to share in the resurrection life we need to be prepared to live a life marked by both! Rachel unpacks all these questions as we continue our journey through Mark.
Jesus' teaching in Mark chapter 7 that it is not what goes into us that defiles us, but what comes out of our hearts that makes us unclean would have required quite a shift in the traditional Jewish thinking of the day. It is useful for us to reflect on our own traditions and practices that have shaped us as well as recognising our naturally sinful ways that separate us from God. The story does not end there though as we are reminded of the journey of transformation that occurs over time if we pursue the Holy Spirit in all areas of our lives. Sam then goes on to beautifully link in and unpack the story of the Syrophoenician woman which teaches us more about the wonderful gift of the grace of God!
Mark chapter 6 reveals a lot about Jesus' identity as he performs many miracles and walks on water. In this passage there is a strong correlation between people's faith or doubt in Jesus and the extent to which He can work miraculously amongst them. Mary invites us to let go of our preconceptions about Jesus and instead to ask the question again 'who is Jesus?' as we journey through the book of Mark. If we truly grasp the reality that Jesus is the Messiah, the type of Messiah that God ordained, then our trust in Him will grow and we can play our part in seeing His kingdom come today!
Mark chapter 6 reveals a lot about Jesus' identity as he performs many miracles and walks on water. In this passage there is a strong correlation between people's faith or doubt in Jesus and the extent to which He can work miraculously amongst them. Mary invites us to let go of our preconceptions about Jesus and instead to ask the question again 'who is Jesus?' as we journey through the book of Mark. If we truly grasp the reality that Jesus is the Messiah, the type of Messiah that God ordained, then our trust in Him will grow and we can play our part in seeing His kingdom come today!
Throughout our lives and throughout scripture we see the enemy at work trying to draw us away from God, causing us to be fearful of evil and causing us to doubt our salvation. As we look at the miraculous accounts of Jesus sending demons into a herd of pigs and raising Jairus' daughter from the dead in Mark chapter 5, we are encouraged not to be fearful of evil or death, but to fully believe and trust in Jesus' authority over these two areas. We are called to boldly stand against evil because Jesus has already established His victory over Satan. Similarly, we are called to confidently hope in the wonderful promise of eternal life with God, because Jesus has already conquered death. Kate invites us to live in the security of these truths as we resist Satan and set our sights on the hope and joy of our eternal life with Jesus.
Rachel takes us through Chapter 4 of Mark's gospel. She invites listeners to keep hold of two main themes that flow through the gospel: The gradual revelation of Jesus as the Messiah and the theme of conflict and Jesus' authority and victory over it. Rachel pauses in the parable of the sower, challenging us to allow the teachings to expose the condition of our hearts. She encourages us to sow far and wide, trusting that God will bring about the harvest in His time and also to make choices for God in times of challenge when fear or other things can tempt us away from our trust in God.
The 'Son of Man' is a title Jesus regularly used to describe Himself, a title which speaks into His humanity, position, divine attributes and authority. As we delve further into the gospel of Mark, we consistently read about the authority given to Jesus to bring spiritual and physical healing to individuals' lives. That authority demonstrated throughout His earthly ministry is the same authority He has chosen to share with us. Sam challenges us to think about the role we have to play in a world crying out for more of Jesus' power and authority.
Prophetic word for City Gate Salisbury from Kate Forbes of City Life Church Southampton
Our journey over the past couple of years as a church has involved a huge amount of preparation as we have endured collectively and individually the many trials which have been thrown at us, mirroring the trials the Jewish people went through under Roman occupation and the preparation that John the Baptist took them through, calling them to confess and repent of their sins. Alongside this we have been tested, tempted and disciplined as we have journeyed through our teaching series on the Book of James, this time mirroring the testing and temptation Jesus was subjected to during His 40 days in the wilderness. Having completed these stages, it is now time to welcome Jesus afresh into our midst and to witness His ministry amongst us, mirroring the way Jesus takes centre-stage in Mark's gospel. Kate challenges us by asking whether we fully engaged with the preparation and temptation stages, allowing them to shape and mould us ready for what is to come next? This is the last call for repentance before the church takes off on the adventure God has called us on. Don't miss the boat, it's about to set sail!
In the second part of Andy's prophetic encouragement to us as a church, he refers to witnessing Jesus in the midst of our relationships and how the fresh window of heaven is blowing over our relationships. He speaks into a new dawn coming for us, that God has a song that He is singing over us and that there are new songs to come out of us as a church which will be signs of the new season. Andy also draws our attention to rivers which are a big theme in scripture, reminding us of the rivers described in Genesis, Ezekiel and Revelations along which the Tree of life/ trees of life grow whose leaves are for the healing of nations. Andy concludes by inviting us to see how the River of God which brings healing to the nations starts with us and it starts with relationships.
Andy and Sue Horne from South Africa share with us an update on what is happening with RLABS in Cape Town and Andy shares his prophetic thoughts on what he thinks God is doing with us here at City Gate in this season. Andy speaks into the 'fresh window in heaven' and the fresh wind of the spirit blowing through us a people. He also speaks into the idea of coming back to where we started but seeing it afresh quoting from T. S. Elliot's poem 'Little Gidding'. He encourages us that there is a hope to be discovered afresh but we need the eyes to see it.
Rachel talks to us about the events of Holy week and how they fit within the context of God's great story that sweeps through scripture. Starting in the Garden of Eden and ending in the New Jerusalem, Rachel walks us through how the events of the garden led to the need for a saviour who could deal with the issue of sin and the death that it leads to, the relational divide with God and with the powers of darkness. We see how at the cross and through the resurrection these three issues were dealt with. In light of this we are encouraged to stand in awe of the sacrifice, respond with gratitude and look forward with hope that Christ is with us. We also consider what it means to follow in Jesus' footsteps, living lives of love, servanthood and surrender, pursuing our relationship with Jesus above all else.
The journey from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday portrays the stark shift in the mood of the people from a cheering crowd to a jeering crowd. It's easy to get caught up in the mood of the crowd, but we are called to commit to something greater than ourselves. Jesus' life was filled with the fulfilment of prophecies so the events that happened were not mistakes. There was always a divine plan and a hope in everything that occurred. Stuart shares his thoughts and encourages us to find hope in the trials of life.
Our busy lives often cause us to forget that we should be living in the expectation that Jesus is going to return one day. "Waiting well" is a challenge that we need to respond positively to, even if our lives are at times uncomfortable or even painful. Kate takes us through James' teaching on the importance of allowing the qualities of patience and endurance to be developed in us while we wait. Prayer is a powerful weapon to help us deal with any situation we may face, but we must also learn to recognise that God is sovereign and that, whatever His response to our prayers is, it will always be for His glory and our ultimate benefit. We felt that our meeting this Sunday was of particular significance for the church and so we have included here contributions from other members of the congregation also: Sue shared from 18:19, Jess read a poem from 26:39, Teresa shared some prophetic encouragement for specific individuals from 29:32 and Robin's dad read Ps 84 from 32:16.
Our attitude to money and material things is yet another aspect of our lives addressed in characteristically robust manner by the writer of the book of James. The issue that confronts us here is not whether we have a lack or an excess in our bank account - both categories face exactly the same primary challenge, which is whether we put our trust fully in God or not. Being able to avoid the worldly trap of making our bank balance an idol (often inadvertently) is a sure test of the quality of our relationship with the ultimate and generous source of true riches - God Himself. Rachel shares her thoughts on this key area of our lives.
Is it ever ok to judge someone else? Is it ok to be ambitious for what we can achieve in our lives? In the book of James both these issues are addressed in the uncompromising manner with which the epistle writer speaks elsewhere. Sam leads us carefully through the challenge of interpreting what James is actually saying about these issues and applying it correctly in our own lives.
In a world which prizes knowledge but seems increasingly to have lost sight of its true value, which is to apply it for the benefit of humanity and the glory of God, the need for us to understand the importance of God-inspired wisdom could not be greater in our current age. The book of James, recognised as it is as continuing a Biblical tradition of wisdom literature, has this theme interwoven throughout. Rob shares his thoughts on this and how we can address in our personal lives the problem of double-mindedness.
A humble heart provides the soil in which the seed of God's word can flourish and grow and be fruitful. Humility is another of the highly challenging themes that the book of James addresses without apology. In a world in which "self" is a prefix to so much of our thinking, God's word shows the need for us to allow Him to turn everything upside down and to recognise that our fulfilment and fruitfulness as his children depends completely on our submission to His ways. Kate shares her thoughts on this key aspect of God's plan for our lives.
A constantly recurring theme in the wisdom literature of the books of Proverbs and James is the challenge for us to recognise the power of our words. As part of God's refining process we need to engage with His work of transformation in "taming the tongue", as the writer James puts it. Our words have disproportionate power to bless and encourage, but also to wound and curse. In this next session in our series of teaching from the book of James Rachel offers an opportunity to consider the importance of this aspect of God's gracious work of sanctification.
In one of the more controversial passages in the Letter of James he makes it clear that, unless our faith is accompanied by practical outworking, it is questionable as to whether it is real and alive! This may seem to contradict Paul's clear assertion that salvation is by faith in Christ alone. Sam takes us through other passages in Scripture that describe what real faith might look like and justifies the expectation that fruitfulness should flow from a living faith as a matter of course.
The book of James addresses many ungodly attitudes prevalent in any human "tribe" including the Church, one of which is prejudice. James is addressing the problem of worldly standards that had apparently been infiltrating the wider Church of his day. We must not assume that we are immune to this ourselves. Mary shares her thoughts on this issue and the need for us to guard against favouritism and prejudice in the way we regard others in our congregation - regulars or visitors.
The book of James addresses many ungodly attitudes prevalent in any human "tribe" including the Church, one of which is prejudice. James is addressing the problem of worldly standards that had apparently been infiltrating the wider Church of his day. We must not assume that we are immune to this ourselves. Mary shares her thoughts on this issue and the need for us to guard against favouritism and prejudice in the way we regard others in our congregation - regulars or visitors.
The book of James is all about how God develops our character to make us more Christlike. In this talk Kate focuses on the "listening and doing" section of the first chapter of James. We need to learn true, biblical humility and James explains what this looks like. In the normal course of our lives we will encounter plenty of opportunities to practise humility in the way we relate to those around us. Every now and then, when our circumstances put pressure is on us, we get to assess the progress of sanctification in our lives - what comes out of us when we are squeezed is an accurate indication of this! According to James God has graciously planted his word within us and we need to allow these seeds to flourish and grow and bear fruit according to God's plan for His people. Kate quotes Brian Bilston's poem "Refugees" - found here https://nationalpoetryday.co.uk/poem/refugees/ and from Richard Foster's classic book "Celebration of Discipline".
In this second talk in our season on the book of James Rob explores the themes of testing and temptation. God is able to use the temptations that all of us face in a fallen world as opportunities for us to undergo the ultimate in "resistance training" as part of the process of an ongoing process of sanctification. The link to the video shown at 14:00 is here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zswOFJZ4vZE.
Rachel launches our new season of teaching in 2023, which will focus on the book of James. Trials and challenges are an inescapable part of our experience in this world. In His mercy, God is able to use these experiences to refine and mature his people and what many may consider as misfortune can actually become our means of grace. James is writing to churches made significantly up of Jewish converts, who were suffering famine, persecution and hardship and is encouraging them to recognise that God is at work within these situations and is achieving outcomes that could probably not be achieved by other means. God promises a "crown of life" to all who persevere through the trial and stand the test of their faith.
Rachel shares her thoughts on some of the challenges we in City Gate are facing as God moves the Church forward. She identifies a shaking and sifting process that is uncomfortable for many of us, but is part of God's plan for our lives as he prepares us for the coming season. God's word to us (as echoed by Denise early during Rachel's talk) is, "Hold on!"
Mary explores the amazing truth of the incarnation, especially relevant in this season of Advent, and what this means for us and the ministry of the Gospel that God has entrusted to us. Please see attached Mary's notes on this talk.
Mary explores the amazing truth of the incarnation, especially relevant in this season of Advent, and what this means for us and the ministry of the Gospel that God has entrusted to us. Please see attached Mary's notes on this talk.
Rachel concludes our Autumn season of teaching on the book of Acts with a call to persevere and "run the race" in the same way as the early apostles did. This can only happen as we are empowered by God himself, not in our own strength. Our responsibility is to call on God to receive this empowering. We need to learn to live with the mystery of being in God's plan, without necessarily knowing exactly how it is going to work out. Paul did this in this final episode in his adventure of faith. In the midst of the challenges we are all facing at this time we need to be willing to trust God and engage in the battle by living out the Gospel, preaching it at every opportunity and speaking God's truth into a world that desperately needs to hear it.
Despite the fact that by this point Paul had been imprisoned for more than two years, he was still able to defend his ministry with zeal and clarity. Paul never gave up on his calling but described himself as "guilty of having hope" in the fulfilment of God's promises. Paul's battle, at this point in his imprisonment and trial before potentially intimidating authorities, was to continue to declare the truth of the Gospel without fear or compromise. We are also in a battle and need to recognise its nature and our proper response to it. In City Gate, we are currently needing to battle with a lot of sickness and attack from the evil one. We need to allow a righteous anger to motivate us to engage in the battle. We must not be "asleep in the barracks", but out on the battlefield. God intends us to be warriors for His truth. Kate makes a strong appeal for the Church to recognise the need for warring prayer, saturating ourselves in the Truth of God found in Scripture and wielding the weapons He gives us. Like Paul, our ministry can be effective and fruitful and a source of joy and satisfaction. If we respond to God's call on our lives to be warriors for the truth we will see Him glorified among us - and the world will notice!
Paul's defence of his ministry before various earthly authorities showed that he had no fear of man. He did not even view his imprisonment as a barrier to his preaching of the Gospel, but took every opportunity to fulfil his ministry. Speaking to people in power is something that the Church needs to learn to do confidently and clearly - some of us may be given the opportunity to do this, but would we be willing to appear before them, like Paul, "in chains" and at an apparent disadvantage? The challenge for us is to recognise that the truth revealed to us is all we need to be effective ministers of the Gospel ourselves. Can we learn to trust that God, as our King, will empower our ministry and provide for us as we step out in front of a world in chaos?
God has given each of us access to spheres of influence in which we, uniquely, have a mandate to witness and fulfil the call to make disciples of all nations. We have both authority to speak into these spheres, but responsibility also. Sam shares her thoughts on Acts 21 and 22 in which Paul effectively exploits the access he has to his own several spheres.
Stuart moves us forward in our season of teaching from the book of Acts. We need to remember what we have been called to do - ie to fulfil the call the preach the Gospel. We will not be able to do this effectively unless we learn to expect the Holy Spirit to guide, inspire and empower us. Please note that around 2:50 in the recording Stuart did a short (silent) demonstration of how easy it is to imitate someone whom you can see - the point being that if we fix our eyes on Jesus and do what He is doing, we are probably being discipled in the Great Commission. We need to "get comfortable with the 'E' word", as Stuart puts it, and ask again and again for the Holy Spirit to fill us so that we are able to touch the lives of those around us with the power of God's love.
Tony Wilson is a long-standing friend of City Gate and, as a visiting speaker, shares his thoughts on the books of Acts chapters 17 and 18. He compares the responses of four of the churches Paul visited in these chapters with the different outcomes for seeds sown in the parable of the sower.
Early challenges to the Acts Christians included attempts by Jewish converts to impose Old Covenant rules upon the gentile converts, disagreements between the apostles and hardships stemming from radical commitment to preaching the Gospel. Kate continues our exploration of the book of Acts and identifies what we can learn from how the apostles dealt with these challenges.
Rachel continues with our season on Acts, focusing on chapters 13 and 14. After prayer and fasting the apostles send Paul, accompanied by Barnabus, on his first missionary journey. Paul and Barnabus enjoyed an eventful journey, which included amazing success, but also serious opposition - even threat to their lives. Their response to these challenges is an example to us as we engage with our own mission. Paul and Barnabus were clearly aware that they were in a battle, but refused to be deflected from their purpose. Their own determination and commitment was backed up by demonstrations of God's power, which we must surely also learn to expect when we step out in faith with the message of the Gospel. We must also learn to focus on our victories and not the set-backs that we will inevitably experience. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” (Acts 14:22)
Continuing our series of teaching talks on the book of Acts, Rob covers chapters 11 and 12. The strategic significance of the city of Antioch for spreading the Gospel message into the Gentile world and the waves of opposition that challenge God's plan are evident here. The release of Peter and the poignant death of Herod hint at the underlying victory that the Gospel carries. At this time in the history of the Church the disciples had little time to plan and strategise themselves as events rapidly unfolded, and had to learn to rely completely on the Holy Spirit's inspiration and direction. Human planning is potentially an empowering exercise, but it must never be clung-to at the expense of obedience to God's bigger plan and its divine empowerment. In a world increasingly driven by the agenda of secularism God wants us to offer our own agendas to Him as part of our holy act of living sacrifice. Learning to do this on an-hour-by-hour basis can potentially turn into a lifetime of fruitful service.
Sam takes us through Acts chapters 9 and 10 and invites us to consider biases against others that we may be inadvertently harbouring in ourselves, or tolerating in our Church community. Early Jewish converts to Christianity needed to have their whole worldview gradually renewed in order for them to be able to recognise that the Gospel was for the Gentiles as well as for God's chosen race - as they saw themselves. We need to ensure that our own biases do not impede our own witness.
Continuing with our Autumn journey through the book of Acts, Kate covers the stoning of Stephen and the witness of Philip to the Ethiopian eunuch. She draws particular attention though to the account of Simon the Sorcerer. God's question to us is "Are you ready as a body to receive the gifts that God has promised us?" How well would we cope with someone else in the Church, other than us, moving in a mighty gift of healing for example? We need to be able to celebrate when God begins to work through the Church in signs and wonders, even if it is "not through me"! Kate challenges us to make sure that we are willing to repent of anything that prevents us from being fully available to God, whatever he wants to do with and through us.
The Bible has some "difficult" passages that can challenge our understanding of God and His ways - the account of the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5 is a case in point. Rachel shows how to approach this type of issue in scripture and highlights the need for us to hold in tension the revelation we have of God as our Father and the intimacy that this offers, with a reverent fear of Him. An extension of this idea is that, if we properly fear God, we will not fear man. At this time in the life of the Church, with the first fires of persecution beginning to challenge the preaching of the Gospel, holy boldness was an essential characteristic of those called to this task. The importance of this to our own ministry of the Gospel today is clear. Rachel also addresses the need for everyone in the Church actually doing what they are called and gifted to be doing - as described by the choosing of the "seven" in chapter 6.
As we continue to explore the life and works of the early Church, Rob covers chapters 3 and 4. The dramatic healing of the crippled man at the Beautiful Gate seemed to have triggered the first wave of persecution. The temple authorities were unwilling to recognise that God was at work through this rough band of uneducated men, but their attempts to intimidate them into silence completely failed. The response of the apostles was to pray for more of what had got them into trouble - more boldness! We need to have this same "overflow" of the Holy Spirit in our lives, so that we can effectively minister the Gospel to a world that is often sceptical and hostile to the truth that we have to share.
Rachel launches the first talk in our new season of teaching, which will take us through the book of Acts. In the life of the early Church the Holy Spirit worked powerfully through the apostles and the community in which they lived. The once frightened band of disciples were transformed into radical, faith-filled miracle workers, persuasive preachers, passionate pray-ers who, empowered by Spirit baptism, began to outwork the same Great Commission that all Christians to this day are called to fulfil.
All Christians need to recognise that there will be times in their lives when they will experience trials. Rachel, working this Sunday with the children as well as with the adults, takes us through the Biblical explanation of how God uses such seasons in our lives to accomplish character development that makes us more like Jesus.
Samuel is the final "name" recorded explicitly in Hebrews 11 and is unique in that he seemed to have lived without apparent compromise, despite being surrounded by a many others who lived in a constant state of rebellion against God. Rachel closes our season of teaching on the Hebrews 11 "hall of fame" with an exploration of Samuel's life.
David was shocked when Uzzah was struck down as a result of touching the Ark of the Covenant, which was not being treated as God as instructed. He had to recognise that full obedience to a Holy God is required and, as a man of faith, David had to repent of his carelessness with regard to how the Ark was to be treated. David's humility as a result of this wake-up call brought great blessing to David and the the nation of Israel. We want this too! Kate delivers a short message and then leaves space for God to speak to the congregation - which He did actually do in our meeting. Perhaps you could do the same right now!
Sam takes us through a challenging passage in the book of Judges concerning a little-known character who is mentioned in the Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith - Jephtha, the mighty warrior of Judges 11 and 12. He is remembered more for his rash vow, which had catastrophic consequences, yet he was faithful regarding the vow he made and is commended for this.
"In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit." (Judges 17:6) The fact that God might be blessing and empowering someone does not necessarily mean that what they are doing or the way they are living is right. Samson is a clear example of of this important truth. Amazingly, though, despite the fact that he made many terrible life-choices, he still had faith in God at certain points and he gets a mention the Hebrews 11 Hall of Fame!
Faith is something that works best when it is shared. Barak was encouraged by Deborah's faith to lead the Israelite army to victory over the Canaanites in the account in the book of Judges. Stuart talks us through this important aspect of the way in which faith is intended to work as the next episode in our series of teaching based around Hebrews 11.
Angus continues our season of teaching about what it means to exercise faith by examining the life and work of Gideon.
Stuart provides the next episode in our "Journeys of Faith" series with an exploration of the character of Rahab and the context of her life and legacy. Rahab is described unambiguously as a prostitute in the Bible and yet is not only commended for her faith in God, but also respected as a member of the ancestral line of Jesus himself. Stuart's talk includes a showing (at 1:16) of a clip from the 2011 Rob Mclellan film short "Rahab" - available on YouTube (link below). Please accept our apologies for the poor quality of the voice recording here - the fault is with our equipment, not yours!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTuI73UhzLQ
Rachel continues our series of explorations of how the stories of faith of the heroes recorded in Hebrews Chapter 11 can be applied to our own walks of faith. For many of these Biblical characters, their actions clearly foreshadowed the work of Jesus himself.
Kate continues our Journeys of Faith series by exploring the early part of the ministry of Joshua, who does not actually get a mention in Hebrews 11, even though he was clearly a major player in the history of the Hebrew nation. Kate explores the Bible account of Joshua as he begins to rise to prominence immediately after the crossing of the Red Sea and, alongside Moses, his exemplary faith in the face of opposition from grumbling Israelites and attacks from the Amelekites.
Stuart shares his thoughts on the Biblical account of the crossing of the Red Sea. Our understanding of the implications of this story from Israel's history has deep significance for us now as it resonates with the situation the church finds itself in. Stuart argues that our response to what the Holy Spirit wants to teach us here has the potential save lives!
(Please accept our apologies for the poor audio quality of this recording)
What does it mean to have "a calling"? We are all called to follow Jesus but, once we have responded to the call, we have a responsibility to find out from God what our calling as an individual actually is. We also need to exercise courage as we engage with a call that is unique to each of us. Continuing with our "Journeys of faith" series, Sam takes us through a part of the life of Moses, as identified in the book of Hebrews, in which he discovers and outworks his calling.
Rob takes us through the events leading up to the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, which we celebrate the start of Holy Week on Palm Sunday. Jesus rode into the city on a donkey and this choice of transportation has real significance for each of us - we need to learn how to get on the donkey that God has provided on the mission He has set before us in His "upside-down kingdom".
As we continue our series on Journeys of Faith based around the lives of the heroes in Hebrews 11, Rachel examines the reference to Joseph and, in particular, his instructions from his deathbed regarding his bones. These reveal that he had a prophetic vision for the future deliverance of the Hebrew nation from Egypt 400 years later and shows us how his "big picture" view of God's plan for His people foreshadowed the work of Jesus - our Deliverer.
Isaac only gets a very short mention in Hebrews 11 - and for something he was actually tricked into doing! How then was he eligible for a mention in the "Hall of Fame"? God's ways are not our ways and clearly Isaac did enough - he did have a basic track record of faithfulness recorded in Genesis which is explored here. Rob also argues that Hebrews 11 is at least as much about God's faithfulness as it is about the faithfulness of those ancients commended for their faith.
Isaac only gets a very short mention in Hebrews 11 - and for something he was actually tricked into doing! How then was he eligible for a mention in the "Hall of Fame"? God's ways are not our ways and clearly Isaac did enough - he did have a basic track record of faithfulness recorded in Genesis which is explored here. Rob also argues that Hebrews 11 is at least as much about God's faithfulness as it is about the faithfulness of those ancients commended for their faith.
Abraham's faithfulness in obeying God when he was called to sacrifice Isaac on Mount Moriah was commended by God and recognised by the writer of the book of Hebrews as an example of the sort of faith that we need to emulate. Radical obedience is needed if we really want to enjoy the relationship with Father God that Christ enabled through his work on the cross. Stuart continues our exploration of the hall of fame of faithful heroes in Hebrews 11.
Abraham's faithfulness in obeying God when he was called to sacrifice Isaac on Mount Moriah was commended by God and recognised by the writer of the book of Hebrews as an example of the sort of faith that we need to emulate. Radical obedience is needed if we really want to enjoy the relationship with Father God that Christ enabled through his work on the cross. Stuart continues our exploration of the hall of fame of faithful heroes in Hebrews 11.
Sarah, mother of Isaac and wife of the patriarch Abraham, is commended by the writer of Hebrews as a woman of faith. Despite all the challenges to the role she played in God's plan for the Hebrew nation, her faith was there when it really counted. Rachel continues our season of exploration of the lives of those listed in the Hebrews 11 hall of fame.
What are the grounds for us having a real, confident faith that enables us to keep on believing in God's love for us, even when we have to face crushing disappointments or seemingly hopeless situations. Angus explores this challenging issue as demonstrated in the life of the biblical patriarch Abraham.
Most of us are fortunate enough to be surrounded by "nice" people and are able to live reasonably comfortable lives and for this we should certainly be thankful to God. We are also called though to be distinctive and to stand out from the crowd that surrounds us - this is what the story of Noah's faith conveys. Would our faith stand up in the face of ridicule, as Noah's did? Are our lives characterised by the same sort of radical and enduring obedience that he showed? Sam's message challenges our complacency as she takes us through the next episode in our season in Hebrews 11.
Kate continues our series on Biblical characters named in Hebrews 11 who walked with God. Are we so different to those around us that people notice? Are we ready for the return of Jesus? Do we have the faith and desire to see God move in the miraculous? These challenges are what God wants us to respond to as we choose to walk closer to Him.
Stuart continues our season teaching about Biblical characters named in Hebrews 11 by exploring the episode in Genesis that tells the story of Abel. How can we be convinced of the things we cannot see? How can we have faith like the examples of faithful witnesses in Hebrews 11? Reading carefully between the lines of this story, it becomes clear that what God valued and recognised was faith that led to action - in this case acceptable sacrifice. Under the New Covenant the perfect, acceptable sacrifice has been offered in the death of Jesus on the cross and, by putting our faith and trust in Him, the destructive effect of sin on our relationship with our Heavenly Father is cancelled. The promises that flow from this are ours to claim!
Rachel launches City Gate's teaching program for the first part of 2022 with a talk based around Hebrews 11. We are going to be focusing on the lives of Biblical characters who were on a journey in God's purpose who, even though they did not live themselves to see the fulfilment of the promises that God gave them, nonetheless were faithful in pursuing God's plan for their lives.
Rachel shares her thoughts on issues the Church needs to address as we enter 2022. Idolatry is a real snare for all Christians - all of us are at risk! Being an effective servant of Christ and son or daughter of God is impossible unless we recognise the extent to which we each are subject to this and deal radically with it! This talk also includes some prophetic content from Rachel and also from Elizabeth Bugg.
Mountains in the Bible have key associations in the history of the Hebrews. Stuart explores the significance of these and their relevance to us today.
Stuart shares his thoughts about what God may be doing with City Gate this year. We can expect an outpouring of the Holy Spirit!
Roger and Sim share their hearts on the way ahead for City Gate as our relationship with 24/7 develops. This is an informal Q+A session.
The death and resurrection of Jesus have tended to be the focus of much of our theological thinking and the significance of the incarnation is often overlooked. Mary shares her thoughts on this issue, which is particularly appropriate in this season of advent. Mary's notes are available to download as a PDF
The death and resurrection of Jesus have tended to be the focus of much of our theological thinking and the significance of the incarnation is often overlooked. Mary shares her thoughts on this issue, which is particularly appropriate in this season of advent. Mary's notes are available to download as a PDF
Rachel shares some thoughts on advent with an examination of Revelation 12 and the perspective it gives us on the birth of Jesus. She suggests that the birth of Christ, while being unquestionably an act of God's love toward humanity, resulted in angelic warfare in heaven which has implications now for us too.
Sam finishes our short series of talks on Paul's letter to the church in Colosse with an exploration of chapter 4.
Rachel continues to lead us through our study of Paul's letter to the church in Colosse and draws out more ways in which we can apply Paul's wisdom and insight into the power of the Gospel in our own lives.
Rachel kicks off a series of two talks on Paul's letter to the Philippians with an exploration of chapters 1 and 2.
Rachel talks on looking at what the bible is, why we should consider it an authority and the importance of knowing the big story of the bible and reading scripture in light of this.
Graham continued from where Rachel left off last time, by talking about prayer and relationship with God.
Rachel spoke on prayer and shared her thoughts on different types of prayer and how we live a life of prayer, communing with God always.
Angus spoke about prayer, his own first experience of answered prayer and the importance of prayer in our walk as Christians.
Reflections on how God sees us as His children spoken by Hannah and backed by Stephane's music - enjoy being still and getting saturated in God's presence...
Reflections on how God sees us as His children spoken by Hannah and backed by Stephane's music - enjoy being still and getting saturated in God's presence...
Dave and Faith Dalley, who are old friends of City Gate Church, have sought God for us and share what He has gave them in this first of our Thursday Zoom Extra meetings. Please accept our apologies that the initial part of what Faith shared with us (less than a minute) was not recorded and that the general quality of the recording is limited by the fact that this was a recording of a Zoom meeting. Dave and Faith have a very nice webpage here - http://www.davidandfaithdalley.com/ - it gives more information about who they are and what they do.
Sue and Rob broadcast from their home. Includes communion, so have your bread and wine/red juice ready!
Sue and Rob broadcast from their home. Includes communion, so have your bread and wine/red juice ready!
Old friends of City Gate, David and Iris from South Africa, share their thoughts with us.
Allan shares first some thoughts on how we should respond to the coronavirus pandemic, encouraging us to respect one another's need to feel safe. He then continues with an exploration of the role of stillness before God and the way the Holy Spirit uses this discipline to he us to become all that we were meant to be - God's masterpieces!
In Matthew 16 Jesus highlights the conflict between "the thoughts of men" and those of God as he responds to Peter's rebuke. "If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me" (Lk 9:23) - but what does this actually mean? Rob argues that the sinful nature (the flesh), although crucified and dead in someone who has become a Christian, continues to exist in our memories and habits and is able to influence our thoughts and behaviour. Learning to recognise this influence and to resist the temptation to think and behave as we did before we met Jesus is a major aspect of the Holy Spirit's work to make us more like Him, and is therefore a principal aim of discipleship.
Elizabeth discussed the implications of striving to please God as opposed to simply trusting Him to do His work of transformation. A focus on behaving like "good Christians" can lead us into the trap of feeling we need to wear a mask to cover our failings. She explained how Jesus is willing to allow us, as his disciples, the grace to fail and sometimes make a real mess of of our lives, and that he is more interested in our progress as we walk with him than in our current level of imperfection.
Sue spoke about discipleship and living by the Spirit. She related the points that she made back to the church values and encouraged the church to think further about these things during the week. Please see Sue's accompanying Powerpoint Presentation by clicking 'Download PDF' on the left.
Sue spoke about discipleship and living by the Spirit. She related the points that she made back to the church values and encouraged the church to think further about these things during the week. Please see Sue's accompanying Powerpoint Presentation by clicking 'Download PDF' on the left.
Discipleship is all about a learning process, but what do we need to learn as Christians? What is the true mark of Christian maturity? What is the meaning and importance of our lives? Graham takes us through some answers to these key questions as our season of teaching on discipleship gets underway.
Rachel takes us through Jesus' final hours before he was crucified, examining key aspects of his journey to the cross. Isaiah 53 provides an Old Testament perspective on the suffering he went through, even going as far as allowing his very soul to be made a guilt offering for sin. The ends to which he went to clear the way for us to enter into a relationship with his Father should surely challenge us to respond with open hearts and minds! Rachel was anxious to correct an inadvertent misapplication of Matthew 26:61 - Jesus did not say "I am able to destroy this temple and rebuild it in three days". This was a twisted version of what Jesus had said earlier (John 2:19), spoken by false witnesses when Jesus was being tried before the Sanhedrin.
As we begin to conclude our journey through Matthew's Gospel, Rob leads us through the Great Commission in Matthew 28. He highlights the imperative, not merely to make converts, but disciples (who can, in turn, make disciples themselves). The wide failure of the modern Church in the West to effectively fulfil this command is something that we need to address by finding out, perhaps for the first time, what it really means to be a disciple - so that we can make more of them! (Please accept our apologies for the poor quality at the start of this recording)
How do parables work? The keys to understanding the stories that Jesus told are far from obvious and it is easy to misinterpret (or over-interpret) and miss the real point of these culture-specific stories. With this challenge in mind, Rob takes us through the three last "parables of the Kingdom" in Matthew's Gospel.
Allan spoke about the Parable of the Wedding Feast and God's desire to give us life to the full.
Graham spoke from Matthew about 'The Keys of the Kingdom' and went into detail about the context and meaning of the words from the verse, "Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." - Matthew 18:18
Elizabeth spoke on the subject of 'Keys to the Kingdom' and the challenges we face in everyday life. She encouraged us to have a 'What if?' attitude when troubles come. Rather than worrying about the worst that can happen, consider what God can do in these situations.
Rob spoke on the subject, 'The Kingdom of Heaven is like...' - He shared the Parable of the Sower initially focusing on the seed that fell on the rocky place and among the weeds. He explained that we are called to be fruitful, but at times in our lives the seed falls on weeds and rocky places. We need ongoing repentance to get through these times and to be fruitful again.
Rob shared from the three immediately following parables, highlighting that, in this age, it is not easy or comfortable to live in God's Kingdom and we should not really expect it to be so.
Rob has added the notes below following some requests for clarification about what he said: 1. Repentance described by me as an ongoing process, rather than solely as a response to the Gospel that leads to salvation: I accept that this idea, like much of my (partial) revelation, is open to legitimate challenge. I like Bill Johnson's one-liner "Most Christians repent enough to get forgiven, but not enough to see the Kingdom", but recognise that a more accurate Biblical concept may be to do with the renewing of the mind, which certainly is something that should be happening on an ongoing basis. 2. Does my interpretation of the parable of the Sower, focusing on the middle two categories (which I said did not necessarily represent a permanent state of the hearers) imply that salvation cannot be lost? I can simply say that I had not considered this implication and was not trying to take a position either way. I think also that this parabolic form (parabolic in the broadest sense, since this is treated by Matthew as an allegory) was not intended to be pushed to this type of conclusion. Of course some may argue that I had already inappropriately extrapolated from it in my own interpretation! I do believe that our God gives us many "second chances" in His work to make us fruitful, but also that we should not be casual recipients of His grace. 3. What was Jesus trying to convey by his choice of a mustard seed? I did some prior research on this as part of my preparation for this talk and found a range of different interpretations. The one I provided seemed to me to best fit the context of the several "The Kingdom of Heaven is like..." teachings here, which all carry a similar theme: The inauguration of the Kingdom of Heaven may have seemed small and insignificant on the broad stage of 1st Century Palestinian affairs, but it was going to be highly disruptive, invasive and costly. It would "overturn the tables" of the religious ruling class, the occupying power and, eventually, the whole world order and would culminate in judgement of all at the end of the age. Whether the mustard seed variety spoken of was or was not actually banned from Jewish gardens, fields, land, soil is probably immaterial, although Jesus' original hearers would have known better what he intended. The point I wanted to convey was that we should not expect anything other than disruption to our own agendas and that the apparent disorder of the leavened world we live in is the soil in which God intends us to be fruitful. (Please excuse the chaotic mix of metaphors!)
May I thank the people who have kindly challenged me on these issues? I am delighted that so many were actually listening and am equally delighted that we can share together the richness of revelation from God's Word.
Angus spoke on forgiveness. He shared how forgiveness is not optional if we want to be forgiven by God. He shared examples of the tremendous impact that forgiveness can have.
Mary spoke on the subject of being Sons of God because of Jesus. She discussed how we can know God as Father. We are not orphans because we have been made Sons of God. We are adopted into God's family and He is the Good Father.
Mary spoke on the subject of being Sons of God because of Jesus. She discussed how we can know God as Father. We are not orphans because we have been made Sons of God. We are adopted into God's family and He is the Good Father.
Rob spoke on repentance and explained the importance of knowing the direction we turn to, once we have repented and turned away from our wrong actions and attitudes. The context set by Jesus' ministry, "Repent, for the kindom of Heaven is near", helps us to understand Jesus' teaching in the sermon on the mount - how can someone who is poor in spirit, mourning, or being persecuted be "blessed"? The reason this can be so is because their repentance enables them to see the reward that lies ahead. They are undergoing a process of "repentance from..." and "repenting to..." in the presence of Jesus our Saviour.
Graham spoke on 'repentance'. He explained that repentance is 'to change one's mind' and that we are not instantly transformed, but that our walk as Christians is a process of being transformed by the renewing of our minds.
Sue spoke on the Kingdom of God. She did a brief overview of Israel's history and considered how they were a nation without a king. She discussed the reality of the Kingdom of God as a 'present reality' and a 'future hope'.
Liz spoke from Matthew 11:28-30. She discussed the desert times in our lives, times of disappointment and challenge and how these times can be intimate times with Father God.
Rob did a Bible study from the book of Matthew. Rob spoke about authority and how Jesus used His authority to forgive sins and to heal.
Graham spoke on Prayer from the book of Matthew. He encouraged us that prayer is effective and important and that God wants us to pray for things outside of ourselves - to fulfill the calling of Genesis 1:28 - to fill the earth, subdue it and rule over every living creature.
Rachel spoke on the importance of repentance in our live. She discussed what repentance means and explained that it isn't a one-time thing, but is a continual part of our lives. She shared an encouraging testimony of repentance in her own life.
Elizabeth shared on the theme 'The Kingdom of Heaven is Near'. She discussed how the Kingdom of God requires risk and shared some exciting testimonies from her own life. She encouraged us that we have authority and should expect to see great things.
Graham spoke from the book of Matthew about the importance of the law, but that what God desires from us is to be in relationship with Him.
Carey spoke about her experiences in South Sudan. She also spoke about the importance of forgiveness in our Christian walks.
Jess spoke on the early church as an example of community. She discussed how Kingdom community can look, God's desire for unity and reconciliation, the challenges that relationships within the church can face and practical ways that we can overcome these difficulties.
James spoke from the book of Matthew on the subject of 'Strengthening the Church'. He discussed how Jesus was tempted in the desert and was strong because of His relationship with God and knowledge of the Word. He also spoke on how the Beatitudes turn the traditional understanding of 'Blessed' on its head and also how the Lord's Prayer can be so helpful and encouraging in our prayer life.
Graham Spoke on Easter Sunday about the Kingdom of Heaven coming on earth and how the early disciples would have understood this. He challenged us to consider how we can see the Kingdom of Heaven on earth today!
Rachel spoke on the subject of transformation - How Jesus' ministry was one of transformation; how the ultimate tranformation is our salvation and how transformation is a God-ordained process in our lives.
Rob spoke about transformation - He talked about how we behold the Glory of God and then display this to the world.
Graham completed our monthly theme on 'Integrity'. - We often act and speak through a filter if we fear who we truly are. Is it different for us as Christians? Graham challenged us with this question and discussed the common issue of having a huge amount of head knowledge, but not having this filter through to our hearts.
Rachel spoke on integrity - She challenged us to consider What integrity is, she highlighted scriptures that talk about integrity, what can cause a breakdown in integrity, how to deal with people that are on a journey to learning integrity and what we can do if it's an area in our lives that we wish to see growth in. She inspired us to consider what our community could look like if we grow in integrity and how our integrity affects how we love the least and how we evangelise.
As we continue to explore our values as City Gate Church, Allan and Lizzie Cox share their thoughts on the value of integrity. Integrity is what governs our behaviour when no one is watching. As "works in progress" we need to be willing to face up to, and allow God access to, the inconsistencies in our own conduct. We also need to be quick to extend grace towards others who are dealing with their own issues. Allan plays a YouTube clip at one stage of Lauren Daigle singing "You say". This is not included in the recording here. The session concludes with some prophetic encouragement by Lizzie, addressed to certain individuals.
As part of our Nativity service Graham shares briefly his thoughts on the mystery behind the familiar Christmas story. The fact that Jesus was completely man and, at the same time also completely God, is something that we struggle to comprehend, yet this idea is central to our understanding of the work God did to restore man to himself. God is with us - Immanuel!
God's nature is to be unceasingly generous. His generosity towards sinful man in giving His precious son to die for us on the cross is surely the ultimate act of generosity to an undeserving people. Rachel encourages us to reflect this attribute of God in our dealings with one another without fear of going short ourselves.
Allan Cox who, with his wife Lizzie, oversee City Gate and its leadership team, shares his thoughts on the subject of generosity. This talk was given in a less formal "workshop" style and some of the less audible discussion has been edited out. This talk is a continuation of our season of teaching intended to explore our values as City Gate Church.
God always intended man to live in intimate encounter with Him as their creator. In the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve lived in this way until the Fall. It has always been God's intention and desire for this relationship to be restored. Rachel talks us through various occasions throughout Biblical history which record some of God's encounters with men and women and reminds us that God's ultimate promise to His children is that they will be fully restored to this level of intimate encounter when Jesus returns.
In our current season of exploration of our values as a church Elizabeth Bugg shares her thoughts on the topic of encounter. We firmly believe that encountering God is a key part of our daily experience as His children. Elizabeth focuses on the idea that we can live our lives with God in the fullness of His words and promises given to us in the Bible.
Continuing with our Autumn series on our values as City Gate, Rachel develops the theme with this talk on the life of adventure that we embark on when we become a child of God. We have a destination to dream about, a path to follow and a guide to help us on our travels. Our God does not leave us to make our own way through life's highs and lows, but desires to journey with us - we are never alone.
As Christians, we are called to a life of adventure every day. Without this our lives lose their purpose and meaning. Continuing our series of talks on our values as City Gate Church, Elizabeth explores this aspect of our calling. At the end of her talk we show a YouTube clip from the Lord of the Rings trilogy which can be found here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlyYBtASteQ
Rachel continues our season of exploration of our values as City Gate, starting in John's Gospel (Ch 17) with the prayer that Jesus prayed for all future believers - "...that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you...that the world may believe that you have sent me." Our connectedness with one another, as well as with our Heavenly Father is as much part of our witness to the world as our explicit preaching of the Gospel. This level of connectedness is what comes from being in God's family. This is not just something to aspire to - it must be fully possible for us to attain, otherwise Jesus would not have prayed it!
The City Gate values video referred to in this session can be seen at https://spark.adobe.com/video/Q7bJlpv8IWw4v. As City Gate has been revisiting its values we have had several informal teaching sessions over the summer break. These are available on request. At the start of the Autumn season Rob kicks off here with a talk on the issue of accountability - an area which has been the source of some controversy in the house church movement over the years. Is it ever right to judge our brothers and sisters? How do we properly deal with issues of sin? What are the "disputable matters" that Paul refers to in Romans 14?
Mary, who has been heading up the "Turning" campaign in Salisbury, gives a report on the immediate outcomes from the evangelistic activities over the previous two weeks. She shares some thoughts on how to best administer the follow up discipleship programme for those who have volunteered to provide this support to the Turning campaign.
Rachel examines the way in which the power of the Gospel flows from the central truth that God is good and he loves us! Jesus said "It is finished" and the gift of salvation became fully available to us. The power of the Gospel is sufficient to accomplish all that God wants to accomplish in us and through us. Our role is to obey the call to witness and to trust that Jesus really has done all that is needed for the Gospel we share to do it work in the lives of others.
Graham continues the teaching he started previously on the subject of spiritual authority. He describes the heavenly order and the nature of the authority of the "prince of the air". Jesus himself has modelled the way in which the church should exercise spiritual authority and we need to ensure that we fully understand the limits of this and seek to stay within these limits - for our own safety and in order to ensure the proper effectiveness of our own ministry.
God never had a "plan B". Plan A is still in place! His original commission to mankind still stands, and the authority to fill the Earth and subdue it, bringing the heavenly order of Eden, surrendered by Adam, into the wider Earth, has been won back for us by Jesus's death on the cross. This is the first of a series of three preaches on the subject of spiritual authority. We are hoping that our home groups will listen to this again and discuss its implications.
After spending some time recently with missionary friends in Kenya Rachel has returned with some thoughts about Church that she shares here. She covers 6 key areas: the value God places on relationships, how God feels about the poor, the importance of generosity and hospitality, the need for us to count the cost, the wisdom of the elder people in our community and the need to remember who God is.
Just before his ascension Jesus told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the gift of the Holy Spirit. When this event actually happened the Church was born and the next part of God's plan began to unfold for mankind. Sarah explains what happened and explores the implications for the present day church.
Based in Cape Town, Marlon has been a long-time friend of City Gate. He is well-known as a social entrepreneur and is the founder and director of RLabs (Google it - it is amazing!). Today he shares his thoughts on what it means to be sons of God and encourages the church to get ready for what God has for us next. He proposes that some of us have, for a time, "aborted" our inheritance and challenges us to reclaim this gift of God - for His glory.
The temptation to soften the implications of Jesus' own teaching on the subject of Hell is one that parts of the Church have increasingly surrendered to. A weak gospel is what we are left with if we fail to appreciate and proclaim the inescapable fact that the choices we make in this life have eternal consequences. Graham takes on the challenge of sharing his own understanding on this contentious subject. This teaching does stand alone, but also follows on from Rachel's previous coverage on the subject of the fear of God, which is recommended listening alongside this talk of Graham's. Please do feel free to comment (constructively) on this delicate topic - email rob@citygatesalisbury.com and you will get a reply!
What does it look like when when we outwork a proper fear of God in our lives? We should expect it to affect our relationship with God, the quality of our worship, our attitude towards sin, towards one another and towards those who do not yet know God. Rachel builds on her previous talk on this subject and shares some more of the Biblical perspective on this key developmental issue.
Incredibly, as His children, God has made us the resting place for His love! What gives us our identity (and our true value) has nothing to do with our behaviour, or even our potential to "do great things for Him" - What delights His heart is that we call Him "Abba!", "Daddy!" and, in doing so, appropriate the blessing for which He paid the ultimate price...in this second part of ministry from the Barbeys, Hannah follows on from Stephane's talk of the 11th Feb. The YouTube resource Hannah refers to can be found here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYU1tTkRgyM
So much follows from us having a proper, wholesome fear of God: knowledge, proper friendship with God, healing, security, long life, provision , prosperity and more are all promises for those who embrace the fear of God. Rachel explores the Biblical perspective on this key Christlike attribute and its importance for every Christian who wants to live a fruitful Kingdom life.
Dave Cordey challenges us to discover what Sabbath actually means for us and the need for us to deal with our unbelief in order to be able to enter God's rest.
Sandy and Dave Cordey share the pulpit this Sunday - this is Sandy's talk. Sandy believes strongly in the need for us to be real with God and speaks here on the importance of having this level of openness and intimacy with God as we learn to enter fully into his Sabbath rest.
Stephane shares his reflections on his own journey into relationship with Father God. It should be easy for us find our way into God's presence, but we often allow ourselves to be distracted, diverted and simply cheated out of this incredible blessing Jesus won for us on the cross.
We have been recognising the need for us to have our own "stories" about what God is doing among us, rather than just relying on getting a buzz from someone else's testimony. It may be true that one area in which this is especially important for us is with our evangelistic activity. Liz speaks with the authority of someone who really is practising what she preaches and shares here some of her recent experiences.
In his first letter to the Corinthian Christians Paul addresses issues of division that apparently arose when the Church seemed to have lost sight of the essence of the gospel. To lead others to true salvation we need much more than just persuasive words. To be able to receive the full gospel we all need to encounter both God's power and His creative wisdom - most perfectly expressed in the person of Christ himself. Rob explores the ideas Paul discusses in the opening chapters of 1 Corinthians and relates this to the practices of the Acts church, in particular on this occasion, focusing on the breaking of bread and the way in which this recounts the events leading up to Christ's crucifixion.
The book of Obadiah is easy to overlook - when was the last time you read through this, the shortest book in the Old Testament? Obadiah's message was anything but insignificant however. Stuart leads us through the highlights of this little-studied book.
As 2018 gets underway, we know that God has great plans for us. One of the issues that was raised in our pre-Christmas prayer campaign was the need for us to repent and allow God to show us the way ahead, especially regarding our evangelistic activity. Rob picks up this issue and encourages City Gate to expect to see the power of God released as we preach the Gospel. This preach was quite interactive in places, so there were other contributors also and the sound levels vary in places as a result.
Repentance is the process we need to be willing to undertake to respond to what God is saying to us. Graham continues the theme he launched in his previous ministry talk. God is always doing "a new thing". We do not really have the option of stopping where we are, even though it might be the most comfortable option for us. God's purpose is unfolding continuously and we need to be able to respond to His call on our lives. Even though we may have regrets about things we have previously done, God requires us to leave these things behind and not be bound by shame or regret. The talk includes a 4 minute clip from a talk by Brene Brown.
Graham covers some key issues that we currently face as a church. What we believe about ourselves unavoidably determines what we actually achieve. In the year ahead we need to recognise that if we continue to do what we have always done we will not progress in God's plan for us. The Great Commission requires a response from us as individuals, but also, critically, as a body of people. Repentance is the way forward and we need to change our minds about who we are and what we are here for! Every change that God calls us to make to our lives requires repentance. We need to willing to accept this. The Great Commission is something we need to respond to far more actively this year - we have not made this a priority in the recent past and in 2018 we intend to address this central call on the church.
God's intention is for our lives with Him to be an adventure of faith - with a reward, not just at the end, but along the way too! We tend to regard the concept of reward as being in some way beneath us; we do what we do for God out of pure love, not seeking any reward. Allan explores this issue, maintaining that the reward is something God Himself provides as motivation and that it should therefore be important to us. We should be running to win! In God's economy though, the adventure along the way with Him is also part of the reward, not just an endpoint of the journey. Many of us seem to be satisfied simply to have prophetic words spoken over us and do not realise that the rewards implied have to be contended for. The part faith plays in this process of contention is something many of us need to discover, so that the reward will actually be ours in time and that we will have a crown to cast at Jesus's feet when we meet him!
Perhaps the area of Church life that is most challenged by sin, the world and the devil is our unity as a body. We are urged to "Endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace" by Paul in Ephesians 4:3 for this very reason. Rachel starts with Jesus's prayer for all believers in John 17 and takes us through Act and finally into Galatians for some practical guidance on what this might mean for us as we seek to live out the Gospel in a credible and powerful manner.
Rob and Sue share the story of the recent rediscovery of some prophecies given to City Gate which they feel are particularly relevant to us at present. The first part of the talk has been lost - in it, Rob read from 1 Peter 4:7-10. The talk starts soon after this passage was read.
God is very creative in the ways in which he communicates His love and His purposes to His people. In Biblical history He has used the "wrong" people in remarkable ways, even using a donkey to warn Balaam of the danger he was in by making his prophetic gift available to God's enemies. Rachel continues our season of exploration into how the Holy Spirit works to accomplish God's will on Earth with an examination of some quite bizarre stories of how He went about this. She also addresses the issue of how to spot the counterfeit in an experience-hungry world.
Following on from Graham's talk last week on what it means internally to live a Spirit-filled life, Liz explores some of the external consequences of "living in the Holy Spirit". Walking in step with the Lion, the lamb and the dove is not something that will go unnoticed by those around us. The dominion of the King will go wherever we go - to our families, neighbours and workmates - even to the nations!
We have the almost unbelievable privilege of having God Himself live within us. Graham explores the some of the amazing implications of this biblical truth and what this means for us as God's children. The Holy Spirit reveals Jesus to us and is the creative power in our lives.
In the second of our season of teaching on the Holy Spirit Rachel gives a tour of the scriptures that deal explicitly with the ministry of the Holy Spirit in a believer's life.
As a "pneumatic" church we recognise the central role the Holy Spirit plays in our lives. We need to "watch our life and doctrine closely" to check that what we believe is actually consistent with scriptural revelation. Checking that what we are building aligns with our foundations means that we have to be open to allowing our present revelation to be tested. We also need to be expectant for the deeper revelation that God always has for those who earnestly seek Him. We all want "more" of God in our lives - Rob kicks off our Autumn series of an exploration of what He has for us.
Two of our young children were dedicated this week. Stuart Rivers provides some advice for their parents (and for the whole congregation) on what this might mean. "It takes a village to raise a child" - we firmly believe that, as God's family, we all have a responsibility for raising our children in the knowledge of the Father who loves us all.
In some respects City Gate church is needing a certain amount of "rebuilding". For this to be possible we are going to have to temporarily put aside what we consider to be be our individual callings in order to participate in the task. Rachel urges us to apply ourselves to this challenge and provides some practical guidance from the book of Nehemiah on how we can ensure that the job gets done.
When the walls of Jerusalem were completed under Nehemiah's supervision they were dedicated with a highly significant act of praise and worship. James takes us through some of the elements of how we dedicate our own lives to God in praise and worship.
It is too easy for us to underestimate the value of what God has already given us - he has written into our lives something of Himself that shows the glory of the New Covenant. In faith we must recognise the revelation of God's glory already imparted and allow Him to keep writing into our lives more of this precious treasure that will reveal His nature to a desperately needy world. Andy is an old friend of City Gate, whom God has used to speak prophetically into the church in the past. He shares his thoughts on what God wants to accomplish in our lives. There is a publicly available pdf file of the review of the the book (Imagine heaven) that Andy refers to here.
It is too easy for us to underestimate the value of what God has already given us - he has written into our lives something of Himself that shows the glory of the New Covenant. In faith we must recognise the revelation of God's glory already imparted and allow Him to keep writing into our lives more of this precious treasure that will reveal His nature to a desperately needy world. Andy is an old friend of City Gate, whom God has used to speak prophetically into the church in the past. He shares his thoughts on what God wants to accomplish in our lives. There is a publicly available pdf file of the review of the the book (Imagine heaven) that Andy refers to here.
Nehemiah did not just have a "what?" for his vision for rebuilding Jerusalem's walls, he also sought God for a "how?" Graham shares some thoughts from his own life (inspired by Nehemiah 2) about how we can actually see vision for our own lives come into being - provided we take the trouble to find out how to do it God's way. The role of biblical hope is also a key factor in avoiding the debilitating disappointment that can so easily paralyse our efforts and prevent us from seeing God-given vision come into reality.
This is not actually about the intercession ministry, as the title might seem to suggest, but about something even more fundamental; The people working on the wall had to work at some physical distance from each other, which will have made communication difficult. Liz picks out some aspects of the way in which Nehemiah's anointing united the residents of Jerusalem so that they were able to complete the rebuilding of the wall in an incredible 52 days. She offers some practical suggestions for how we can "close the gaps" that our lifestyles almost unavoidably put between us, so that we can complete the work God has called us to do.
Continuing our Nehemiah season, Rachel addresses the challenge raised in verse 14 of chapter 4 - how should we fight for our families in our own context? We need to remember that we are fighting for a cause that God has given us a vision for, not fighting against demonic forces simply to survive! She suggests a range of Biblical "weapons" of our warfare to help us realise our vision for the family that God has planted us into - and beyond.
Continuing our Nehemiah season, Rachel addresses the challenge raised in verse 14 of chapter 4 - how should we fight for our families in our own context? We need to remember that we are fighting for a cause that God has given us a vision for, not fighting against demonic forces simply to survive! She suggests a range of Biblical "weapons" of our warfare to help us realise our vision for the family that God has planted us into - and beyond.
Continuing with our series on reflections from the book of Nehemiah, James explores the issues around building for the future of City Gate. We need to actively plan our way forward and then engage fully in doing what is necessary to bring the plans into earthly reality. Leaders need to have people who will follow them; followers need the vision set by the leaders; we all have a part to play!
In our season in the book of Nehemiah, Sue explores some aspects of biblical leadership as demonstrated by Nehemiah as he returned to Jerusalem to start the process of rebuilding the broken walls. God's pattern for leadership and how it works is often very different to the way the world models this essential characteristic in human society.
Liz launches our short season on reflections inspired by the book of Nehemiah. She provides an overview of the circumstances of Nehemiah's mission and shows how these can be applied to our own lives and individual callings.
Second of two talks on what it means to be the living sacrifices Paul describes in Romans chapter 12. This session focuses on Paul's second list in this chapter - which deals with how we relate to one another, rather than with our "ministries" in the body. Kingdom power flows through the Body of Christ as we learn to love and honour one another and participate fully in the Father's business as his children.
Much of the way we think and behave is shaped by the way the "pattern of this world" has hijacked and distorted our understanding of the importance of the individual in God's plan for humanity. As a consequence of this imbalance, we have to address ourselves to rediscover God's perspective on the place and purpose of the individual within the body of Christ. Rob teaches (again!) from Romans 12 on this issue. Paul's exhortation that we should offer our bodies as living sacrifices and his subsequent teaching in this part of Romans 12 provides some practical guidance as to how we can consolidate the ground we already hold and also how we can see the Body of Christ built up.
Rachel shares some thoughts on her own journey, having felt called to ministry in South Africa as a single woman, but having had to lay this calling down for a period while she raises a family. God has a "special calling" for every one of us, but also wants us to learn to live in the call we have on our lives to live for Jesus every day, even if we have not yet realised the ministry calling we long for.
God cannot resist pouring empowering fire on sacrifices made by his children who want their lives to have Kingdom consequence. Unless we are prepared to be the living sacrifices God desires, we will not experience the anointing power that transforms our lives and the lives of those around us. Rob shares his thoughts on how we should respond to the call to offer new covenant sacrifices.
Lissa continues our Spring series which focuses on the values expressed in our church vision statement. The freedom Jesus won for us on the cross has the widest possible reach and we often allow ourselves to be conformed by various forces, rather than be transformed and made fruitful by the love of God. Lissa covers a lot of ground here and this word is worth listening to more than once to get the full benefit of the wisdom contained!
This is the second of two talks on the topic of love as one of the key themes in City Gate's vision statement. Liz speaks about what holds the church together and enables it to express heaven's perspective on life. Our ministry is meaningless unless we are willing to embrace God's love for us fully. This involves a cost to us that we need to recognise, but the price we pay is incomparable to what we gain in Christ!
We cannot have a proper relationship with God on our own terms - we have to settle for His terms if we really want to be worshippers in spirit and truth. Rob shares his own testimony, including his own struggle with "Baptism in the Spirit" 34 years on from when he finally surrendered to this truth.
Sue provides City Gate with an update on the progress with our new initiative (Quench) and sets the tone for the year ahead. She describes how we need to persevere as we walk with Jesus, despite setbacks and discouragements - not "just about managing", but moving forward with joyful hope. "Keep on swimming!" - like Dory.
Many of us who were born again during what may well have been a revival 20-30 years ago had amazing dreams for what God wanted to do in us and among us. If we are honest we have to admit that few of these dreams have come to pass in the way or in the timescale we expected - yet they are still alive! God wants us to recognise that his strategy for us is "little by little", but we still need to know what we must do to move forward in His purpose. Rob shares some thoughts on how we might co-operate with God's plan for City Gate to achieve this - little by little.
Rob and Sue finish off our exploration of John's Gospel with their thoughts on the final two chapters. Rob discusses the purpose John had in writing the Gospel in the way he did - to enable the reader to believe and so release faith - and the need to make sure that we engage with the "plain truth" and apply it diligently to our lives. Sue shows how Jesus left no unfinished business and how he ensured that both the disciples en masse, and Peter as an individual, were ready to pick up the challenge of being apostles of the Good News.
Phil covers John chapter 17 (out of sequence in our series on the Gospel of John). He shares his thoughts about a pattern of prayer revealed by Jesus - he actually prays for himself. Perhaps this is something we do not do enough of?
Lots of scripture reading here! It is important that we build our core theology on the "blatantly obvious" points in this account and that we do not get unduly impressed by our ability in interpreting the fine detail - which can be fun, but can also lead to division over marginal points of theology. Jesus went all the way, submitting fully to the plan for the final part of his mission on Earth. John's account is laden with detail that could only be recalled by an eye witness to the events. He wants us to recognise that the account really is true and demands a believing response from us.
Elijah's fearful response to Jezebel's threat made against him at the start of 1 Kings 19 seems rather strange, given the fact the he had just seen God move in the most awesome manner on Mt. Carmel. Andy explores some of the possible reasons behind this response and why we sometimes need to be prepared to submit to the intimacy of silence in our own encounters with God. Ella and Joel (Andy's two eldest children) also share at the start of the talk.
Jesus is preparing his band of disciples for life without him. What does it mean to be a friend of God? Jesus is preparing his disciples to live well through the tribulations and hardships to come and describes the newly significant role of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Rachel takes us on the next stage of our own journey through John's Gospel.
Jo Thomson explores some key ideas in this dense chapter in John's Gospel, including the importance of having a trusting heart towards our Father in heaven. Jesus calls us to live lives of trust, not fear. We are called to live fruitful lives from a place of total security in the vine.
Sue picks up some challenging themes in our series on John's Gospel, including what it really means to serve in the Kingdom of God and the "tension" of predestination vs free will in the context of Judas' betrayal of Jesus.
In his ministry it is clear that Jesus is committed to pursuing his Father's agenda and not allowing the opinions of the people around his (including his own family) to deflect him from his purpose. Rob covers some content from John chapter 7, including the key role of honour in the way in which relationships in his Kingdom operate.
Dave Cordey shares his thoughts on the Gospel of John, chapter 10. He looks at the claims of Jesus regarding the abundant life he brings as the Good Shepherd and the response of the Jewish authorities to his work.
Continuing our series of explorations of John's Gospel, Rob shares his thoughts on the amazing story of Jesus healing the man born blind and the way in which this was received by the religious authorities. The gospel writer contrasts the response of the healed man with that of the pharisees, who remained willfully blind in the face of powerful evidence of Jesus' identity.
Rachel takes on the challenge of speaking on John chapter 8. The content in this chapter is substantial and she recommends that, after listening to her teaching, you read this chapter for yourself and allow God to speak directly to you! The main themes are to do with Jesus' claims about his identity and calling and the opposition he encountered from his listeners to the claims he was making about himself.
As "the disciple who Jesus loved", John wants us to know Jesus the same way as he did. His meditations about his time with his saviour and intimate are intended to draw us into the same intimacy. Graham examines some of the aspects of this chapter in John's Gospel, especially those that relate directly to the life we are able to have in Christ.
Should we be worried that such a low percentage of the UK population believe that the Bible is relevant to life in the 21st century? What do people who do not yet know Jesus really want to hear - our clever (we think) theological arguments or the reality of our own experiences with Jesus? Sue shares her thoughts from John's Gospel, and the healing at the pool at Bethesda, as well as some of her own experiences as a Street Pastor.
Evangelism is unquestionably at the heart of the commission that Jesus gave the Church to carry on His work, yet it is as aspect of our ministry that is often "left to the specialist" or simply avoided because it is too scary. Could the reluctance of much of the Church to engage with this activity be a result of trying to reach people by argument, rather than by enabling an encounter with a loving God? Alan shares his own experiences of an approach to witness distilled from Luke 10, which he has found to be far more effective than "traditional" approaches, with the aim of mobilising the whole Church in joyful, fruitful evangelistic activity.
Allan and Lizzie Cox, who oversee City Gate, were visiting us. Having been taken seriously ill while on a ministry trip to Nepal, Allan and Lizzie tell the story of how God delivered them through this trial and how His faithfulness is something we need to learn to depend on completely. God has something for everyone in City Gate to do that is exciting, valuable and which only you can do - Lizzie also teaches about two different types of Kingdom ministry, which need to work together to see His Kingdom come.
Sandy Cordey, inspired by John chapter 4 and the fact that it was Valentine's day shares some thoughts on the Christian walk, especially regarding what it means to live a life of true worship.
This is the first chapter in John's Gospel in which Jesus begins to teach in depth about himself and his part in His Father's plan to redeem mankind. The teaching is a response to the apparently genuine and non-hostile questions of Nicodemus. It is the where the term "born again" is first used. This teaching deals with the central role of the Holy Spirit in our salvation process and places this alongside Jesus's own act of redemption on the cross. John appears to also be developing a "legal" argument for the work of Jesus later in the chapter. Please note - most of this teaching was re-recorded later because of a technical issue when it was originally given. If you were originally at this meeting and do not recognise some of the content in the first part of the recording this is the reason, is is the reason. Rob used the same notes as on the day, but edited out a lot of the "erms"!
Rob Holzer continues the new series on the Gospel of John by speaking on chapter 2. John was writing to an audience that was likely to be mainly Jewish with Aramaic as the common language of their culture. John's writing is laden with symbolism which is likely to have immediate meaning to his original audience. We have to work a bit harder and listen to the Holy Spirit to be able to understand a lot of what John wanted to communicate.
Sue Holzer launches the new series on the Gospel of John with some thoughts on the prologue to John's Gospel in chapter 1. She recognises the importance of the individuality of each gospel account and the way in which each of the four writers reaches out to their chosen audience, but also the fact that each is complementary to the others. John's Gospel has its own unique contribution to make to our overall understanding of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Graham Hooper concludes our series of teaching in which we examine our response to the commissioning of the Church by Jesus in Matthew 28. Graham examines the need for us to change our thinking about this call in order to engage fully with the glorious task that Jesus has given us to fulfill.
Sue and Rob Holzer share some thoughts and encouragement about the way ahead into 2016. Sue talks about the importance of realising that, in His love, our Father God has a purpose for our lives. If we think that we might have stepped outside any "plan" He has for our lives we can be reassured that He will come up with another "plan" to help us towards His intended purpose. Rob speaks on Matthew 7 - the wise and foolish builders - and suggests some pointers for the way ahead in 2016.
Rachel continues our series on mission and teaches on several key scriptures that cover practical aspects of our call to mission.We are called to look after the poor, heal the sick and be motivated wholly by love.
Graham continues our Autumn series on mission. Mission is at the centre of God's purpose for his people. Arguably it started in Eden, but Graham starts with Abraham's call. God's heart is to see the world blessed through his Church and that is the central purpose of mission.
Allan and Lizzie Cox kick off our autumn series focusing on the call of the Church to mission. Allan explores the relationship between mission and social action and evangelism.
Andy Jolly shares his thoughts and insights into this central commandment from Jesus and how we should apply this in our everyday lives. Eileen (Andy's mum) also shares a dream she had.
Rob shares his thoughts on a challenging passage in scripture, in Matthew 7. Jesus' words show us how important for us to allow God full access to our lives. Our salvation does not actually depend on what we do for God, but on how well we have allowed Him to "know" us.
Sue takes us through some aspects of one if the "little" books in the Bible - the book of Titus.
Graham continues to share his thoughts on the need for us to pursue the Holy Spirit and intimacy with God that makes us ultimately fruitful. If we do not allow this intimacy to grow, we will dry up. The reason why Jesus was able to live such a fruitful life himself is because of his intimacy with his Father in heaven.
Graham shares his testimony about how God kept him and his business going through difficult times. This is encouraging for anyone who runs a small business and is wondering how they are going to survive. The presence of the Holy Spirit in his life was what made it possible for Graham to live through this challenge.
Rachel speaks about the importance of living well at all times and here, specifically through times of trial. Rachel has her own healing testimony and is able to comment with the authority of one who really has lived out what she preaches!
Nick and Sarah speak about life in the Kingdom and the practical reality of how we do it, seeking the reward that our Heavenly Father promises and avoiding the temptations of hypocrisy. Nick used to live and work in Salisbury, and now lives with his wife Sarah in London.
Sue reviews events and developments from 2014 and invites us to consider what God may have for us in 2015 in the light of these things. Whatever lies ahead for us we need to be constantly thankful and to allow the gifts of faith, hope and love to be cultivated in our lives.
Rob explores the statement made by Jesus in Luke 13 v20 - that the Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast. This speaks of our motivations for what we do. If we are not fundamentally motivated by our love for God in our so-called "work for the Kingdom", we will not be the fruitful workers we long to be.
As part of the 2015 week of Christian unity, Rev Simon Woodley swapped pulpits with Sue and spoke in our meeting. He talks about the need to recognise difference and diversity within the Church and challenges us to show a world that often fails to cope with "difference" that we can actually live peacefully and productively alongside one another.
Dave and Faith are old friends of City Gate. Here they bring a word of encouragement and guidance. Listen and be encouraged and inspired!
Rachel, who has a developing prophetic and teaching ministry herself, shares some thoughts on this key topic. We believe that God speaks prophetically through his people today, as proclaimed by Peter in Acts 2. We also recognise that prophecy must always be weighed, firstly against the revelation of scripture. Rachel covers this key issue...and more
Jesus came for everyone - we need to reflect the inclusiveness of the Gospel in our witness. The players in the story leading up to the birth of the Messiah often showed great faithfulness as they played out their part. Jesus was complete in his humanity and his divinity - Rachel will explore these issues in her Christmas message.
Pat completes the series on 1 Corinthians by exploring some of the key aspects of one of the best-known passages in the New Testament - chapter 13.
Rachel provides the next episode in our mini series on 1 Corinthians. She examines chapter 12 and its teaching on spiritual gifts in the Church.
Graham continues our mini series of teaching on 1 Corinthians by speaking on chapter 15 - the subject of resurrection. Why is this such an important part of the Gospel message? After all, did Jesus not do all that was needed in his work on the Cross?
Sarah Kirby shares in our mini series on 1 Corinthians by examining the issues Paul writes to the Corinthian church about regarding propriety in worship and communion. She addresses the particularly challenging issue of the place of women in the worship activity of the church.
Allan and Lizzie Cox are part of the apostolic oversight of City Gate. Here Allan teaches on the importance of remembrance. It is importance that we remember who we are in Christ. Our "story" is central to our mission as individuals and as a congregation. He encourages us to consider aspects of our story as City Gate and how these should shape how we live out our lives here.
This is the 5th in our mini series on 1 Corinthians. Sue deals with the issues Paul addresses on immorality, marriage and singleness.
Rachel explores what it means to be an apostle of Christ as discussed by Paul in 1 Corinthians and how we should apply the ideas here to our own lives. Fourth in our Autumn series of teachings from 1 Corinthians.
Pat picks up the third episode in our Autumn series on 1 Corinthians by looking at the issue of food sacrificed to idols; how this issue is relevant to us today and how we should respond to the challenge of living lives in which we exercise our freedom in Christ, but do not use this as an excuse for causing others to stumble.
The Corinthian church struggled with various issues, including their tendency to follow men rather than Jesus and their inability to recognise the central importance of unity in the Church. Sue teaches on these issues in this, the second in our Autumn series on 1 Corinthians.
Rob launches the Autumn series on 1 Corinthians by examining the implications of the challenging scripture "But we have the mind of Christ" in 1 Cor 2:16. What does this actually mean for us as members of an apostolic church?
Sue shares her thoughts on recent experiences - the deaths of two members of the church. What should our response to these issues be? What is God saying to us to encourage and help us to move on.
Rachel shares her thoughts on prayer in City Gate. Rachel is a member of the leadership team and has a particular interest in the monthly "Seeking His presence" meetings, which focus on freedom in worship and prayer.
Three speakers for the price of one here! Rob, Lissa and Pat all share their thoughts on the prophetic promises we have over the church and over our individual lives. How should we respond when we realise that these have not come to pass as we had expected?
Graham shares his thoughts on Christian marriage. This is a short talk which followed the blessing of the marriage of a couple in the church.
Pat Woodward teaches on the final key distinctive of membership of the church family - the need to be teachable and willing to grow in the Lord. We all need to be willing to commit to a process of constant transformational change, having our minds renewed as we allow the Holy Spirit access to our lives. The body is only as effective in its ministry as the godliness of its members allows. Last talk in a series of 6.
Rachel Stanford-Jason explains the importance of being committed to following the vision of the church, being willing to play our own part in seeing this vision realised and being willing to submit to the church leadership. 4th in a series of 6 talks.
Lissa Painter shares her perspectives on the key issue of supporting the work of the church through giving and generosity. She makes the vital point that what God is after is not money, but soft hearts that are open to His thoughts and ways. Fifth in a series of 6 talks. (This one is out of the official order)
Rob Holzer explores the ideas behind water baptism as a key distinctive of being a member of the church family. Third in a series of 6 talks.
Graham Hooper explains the importance of being Spirit Baptised to membership of the City Gate family. We believe that God wants all believers to enjoy His presence in their hearts to enable them to live lives of power and intimacy with Him. Second of a series of 6 teachings.
What does it mean to be a member of the City Gate Church family? Sue covers the first key point - to be a "member" of the church, you need to be saved! First of a series of six. These distinctives would be the same for most church congregations, not just City Gate!
Third in our series of short talks on Isaiah. Graham explores another one of the incredible exchanges God holds out to His people - a double portion for the shame we otherwise deserve.
Second in our series of short talks focussing on a Bible passage that we feel God wants us to explore as a congregation. Rob speaks on verses 4-6 of Isaiah 61.
Earlier in the year several members of City Gate felt that Isaiah 61 had something for us to receive at this time. Rachel starts this series of four short explorations with verses 1-3.
Alba's reflections on hers and Nick's recent bereavement. Alba poses some challenging questions on what it means to have faith for a miracle and how we face up to the challenge of not seeing what we have been believing for. This is emotional in places and because the talk was interactive, there are several discontinuities where the (inaudible) comments from others have been edited out. There is also a moving testimony from Val Smith at the end of Alba's talk.
The original title for this was "Being irresistible to God". Rob gives his thoughts on what this means and its likely effect on our experience of the miraculous - with a focus on healing.
Sue gives the first in a short teaching series on what we believe regarding healing. The talk starts with several healing testimonies from members of the congregation.
Pat's reflections on what Biblical prophecy is and how it works - he concluded this teaching session with a practical activity in which many of the congregation prophesied and were prophesied over.
Graham Hooper and Alba Parkes speaking about a challenging health issue that she and her husband Nick are facing with their second child Abigail who, despite medical predictions that she would not survive long after birth, is now seven weeks old.
We have been given authority to fulfil the amazing call God has placed on our lives - this is a significant theme in Matthew's Gospel.
Pat Woodward speaking on Matthew's Gospel, chapters 1-7. Part 1 of a spring mini series
Val Smith, who is one of our main worship leaders, speaks on her vision for worship in City Gate Church
We become like the objects of our worship...this is a Biblical truth which has a negative aspect (we become like our idols as in Ps 115) and a shining spiritual principle expressed in Romans 8:29.
First in a mini-series on worship - God is looking for true worshipers, those who worship in spirit and in truth.
Many of us have dreams about how God might use us to do his work. We also have prophecies over our lives as individuals and as a congregation that are as yet unfulfilled. To see these realised God requires us to co-operate with him and not just sit back and "wait" for him to do it for us!
Alan and Lizzie introduce themselves as City Gate's new covering ministry and bring some encouragement and direction from the life of Abraham.
David's pursuit of God's presence ushered in a golden age in the history of the Hebrew nation which God used to reveal aspects of His nature which we are seeking to rediscover today.
Entering God's rest is part of our inheritance as God's children. The only way this can be realised in our busy lives is by us choosing to make God our "number one" concern.
Nigel Argall of the Bridge Project visited City Gate with several of the Bridge Project team and gave a presentation on their work in local schools.
Final episode in our series on the life of David. Our very own David explores what King David left behind for us - his legacy to us as worshipers "in Spirit and in truth"
Rachel prophesied over many members of the City Gate Church. This recording includes all but one of these prophesies.
David's family suffered the consequences of his sin. Our sin has consequences too, but our gracious God has provided for this in Jesus' death.
David's lifelong passion was for the presence of God. This presence was to be found between the cherubim on the Ark. Having the Ark in his home city was David's top priority, but this could only be on God's terms, not David's...
After Saul tried to kill him, David spent a significant period of his life living as an outlaw. He learned many valuable lessons during this period and showed his true qualities as a leader and survivor...
David's skills as a giant killer were not developed overnight, but learned over an extended period. We all need to be giant killers too.
Pastor Roger (from Cape Town Christian Fellowship) was visiting City Gate and explores some of the history behind our relationship. The "Bridge" he refers to is a monthly telephonic prayer meeting that has run for 10 years. He uses Exodus 3 as his text.
Part 1 of a short series on the book of Galatians. Sue focuses here mainly on chapter 1 and 2 and the three key issues of truth, faith and grace
Short teaching on the parable of the Kingdom, focussing on the buried treasure and the pearl of great price.
Our identity gives us access to heavenly resources from which flows earthly manifestation.