In Sermons: showing 31-45 of 486

Build Community That Reflects God’s Love Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Jan 17, 2017

Building a Christian community is almost impossible, yet God is the God of the impossible. He can enable us to do amazing things if we let him. We can build the sort of community God wants, through the power of his Holy Spirit, if we let him

What better occasion to be talking about community than at a confirmation and baptism service. The teenagers have just spent 4 weeks following a study called the People of God where they’ve thought about why God calls us to be members of his Church. You could ask them later what they found out. But ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:1-13, Ephesians 3:14

Denomination: Anglican

Teach The Bible Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Jan 17, 2017

Why should we read the Bible and why should we read it regularly?

I wonder how many of you are old enough to remember a TV show called the Greatest American Hero. It was about an ordinary guy who encounters aliens who’ve decided that earth is in such a bad way it needs saving. So they send him a belt that gives him super powers. They also give him a set of ...read more

Denomination: Anglican

A Call For Justice

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Jan 17, 2017

Be careful what you ask for when you make a complaint to God. Sometimes God delays bringing justice to the world because the price is so high. Sometimes justice is brought about by unjust people. Be prepared to let God decide when's the right time to act.

The cry for justice is a common occurrence in our world isn't it? Injustice takes place at all sorts of levels and we wonder, why does God allow it? It's like what we saw in Psalm 73 a few weeks ago. Why do the wicked prosper? Why do the powerful get away with taking advantage of the weak and ...read more

Scripture: Habakkuk 1:1-17

Denomination: Anglican

A Psalm Of Lament

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Jan 17, 2017

The psalmist looks at the world and everything is wrong. it's the arrogant and wicked show are blessed. Yet having reentered the temple of God he finishes with a resounding cry of confidence in God

A Psalm of Lament audio (5MB) Psalm 73 Today we start a short series on the Psalms – culminating in our evening worship service with Sons of Korah on May 26th. Over the next 3 weeks we’ll be looking at 4 different types of psalm – today a psalm of lament, next week a psalm of yearning, then a ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 73:1-28

Denomination: Anglican

Be Strong In The Lord & In His Mighty Power Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 16, 2016

Never give up in the fight against sin and evil. But always remember the power of God and the armour with which he’s equipped us. And pray on every occasion that you’ll be able to stand firm.

Do you remember when we looked at Paul’s prayer in Eph 3 that I commented how difficult it is to achieve the sort of unity that God wants from his church? In fact I pointed out that that’s why Paul prays the way he does: because only by God’s power can this miracle come about. Paul knows that apart ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-24

Denomination: Anglican

A New Way Of Relating - Mutual Submission Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 16, 2016

If we’re truly united with Christ then our basic approach to our relationships will be one of mutual submission, working together to do Christ’s work.

I hope you’ve picked up as we’ve gone through this letter over the last few weeks that Paul isn’t just giving us lessons in Godly behaviour. He isn’t just telling us how to live lives that will please God. Rather, he’s telling us how to live lives that’ll ...read more

Denomination: Anglican

Darkness Into Light Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

We're the light of the world and children of light. Allow that light to shine brightly in our lives to light up those around us. Let’s expose their deeds as we seek to shine brightly for Jesus, so that they may be quickened and made light themselves.

This is an image from my childhood that has just stuck with me. It’s from one of those movies that we used to watch over and over again, at least every holiday. It’s from the last of the original, and good, Star Wars movies. In my mind, it’s one of the pivotal scenes from the ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:3-20

Denomination: Anglican

New Clothes Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

As we live as a body, we should help each other to be well dressed, to look our best. Let’s be dressed to impress – impress the world that God is our God, that we are his people, that we are Christ’s body!

Sermon by Rev George Hemmings. Over the last three weeks, I’ve been to three weddings. They’ve all been very different, but they’ve all presented the same challenge – What am I going to wear? The first was Ellen and Jamin’s wedding. I thought I was pretty safe and ...read more

Denomination: Anglican

Unity & Diversity In The Church Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

The body of Christ is being built up until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.

We come today to the core issue of the letter: If we're to fulfil our destiny as a church, if we're to demonstrate the manifold wisdom of God then we must be united in heart and mind. Here in ch 4, Paul begins to outline how being the new people of God is to be worked out in the down-to-earth, ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-16

Denomination: Anglican

Paul’s Prayer For His Converts Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

Paul prays for the Church that God would be glorified in and through us

Have you noticed how the more you want something the more likely you are to pray for it? And to pray for it consistently. That means if you want to know what someone is really passionate about, see what they pray for regularly. Well Paul is about to let us in on the great desire of his heart. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 3:1-21

Denomination: Anglican

The Saving Grace Of God

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

those who are outside the people of God are in rebellion against Him and are therefore spiritually dead. But God makes them a free offer to bring them back to life. All that’s needed is to believe his promise, turn away from that rebellion and live.

Well, the academy awards have been announced. The beautiful people have been down the red carpet. And it’s all over. Did you watch it or just catch up on the news the next night? How many of you had seen all the movies that were up for awards? How many of you managed to pick the winners? I know ...read more

Denomination: Anglican

God’s Eternal Plan

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

God’s great plan is eternal because he set it out before the creation of the world, because it’s effective right now and because it reaches into the future to the end of time. This eternal, cosmic plan is being worked out day by day and we’re part of it.

I hope that those of you who were here last week have been waiting with anticipation to hear more about God’s eternal plan for the world. As we’ll see in a moment it’s an eternal plan because he set it out before the creation of the world, because it’s effective right now and because it reaches ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 1:1-14

Denomination: Anglican

Complete In Christ

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Dec 15, 2016

Introduction to the letter to the Ephesians. What does it mean if I say that if you’re a Christian you’re “in Christ”?

I wonder how good your theology is. How well thought out are you? Have you worked out the answers to those difficult questions about God that arise from time to time? Or are you like me and are still thinking some things through? Of course those who are well educated theologically have probably ...read more

Denomination: Anglican

Freedom For The Captives Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Feb 24, 2015

Paul's whole plea to Philemon is to act the way the loving Father acted: to welcome home the beloved son; to restore him to fellowship with the family. There will be, and have been, occasions when we'll be called to respond to wrongdoers the same way.

There's something quite different about reading this letter compared with all Paul's other letters. In all the others, even those addressed to individuals, the focus is on the Church where they're ministering. But here there's a much more personal feel to the correspondence. You can feel the warmth ...read more

Scripture: Philemon 1:1-25

Denomination: Anglican

Decaf Christmas? Series

Contributed by Chris Appleby on Feb 24, 2015

The reason we decaffeinate Christmas is because we don’t want Jesus intruding on our lives. Don’t want to admit that we need help. Little baby Jesus is OK, but he’d better not get out of the manger.

This week a number of articles have come out, commenting on the push to get Christ out of Christmas. The best I read called this the decaffeination of Christmas. Carols that are all about trees, snow, reindeer, not about a baby born in a manger. Why do we do this? For some the story of ...read more

Scripture: Mark 12:1-12

Denomination: Anglican