Posts with the category “save-our-sundays”

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.Proverbs 27:17I consider myself a pretty self-sufficient person. I like to solve my own problems. I spend time reflecting on my life, my weaknesses and my strengths. I think about ways to grow and to follow Jesus more faithfully.Do you see yourself as pretty self-sufficient?One thing the last twenty-five years of being in Church has convinced m...  Read More

What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”1 Corinthians 1:12You know, one of the saddest things that can happen to a Church is division. Conflict or fractures can occur for a number of reasons. Doctrine/theology, moral failures, poor pastoral care just to name a few.But one of the saddest things ...  Read More

The Lord said to Moses, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. Be ready in the morning, and then come up on Mount Sinai. Present yourself to me there on top of the mountain. No one is to come with you or be seen anywhere on the mountain; not even the flocks and herds may graze in front of the mountain.”...  Read More

Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.1 Timothy 4:7-8We are a community obsessed with physical training. Going for a run, to the gym, surfing or sport, we think exercise is the key to thriving under ...  Read More

Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds perched in its branches.”Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”Luke ...  Read More

“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them. And in any locality where survivors ma...  Read More

For your ways are in full view of the Lord,    and he examines all your paths.The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare them;    the cords of their sins hold them fast.For lack of discipline they will die,    led astray by their own great folly.Proverbs 5:21-23I’ll put it straight. There is no more important discipline for the Christian than the regular attendance at the Sunday Gathering. I don’t think...  Read More

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. Ephesians 6:18-20Ge...  Read More

Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.1 Peter 2:2-3Life is full of cravings. Family. Friendship. Fulfilment. Food. Fun. I’ve run out of f’s. Perhaps we could add one more. Faith.Deep down we need a mature and strong faith. A solid assurance of who God is and His love. A confidence in how to li...  Read More

Taste and see that the Lord is good;    blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord, you his holy people,    for those who fear him lack nothing.The lions may grow weak and hungry,    but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.Psalm 34:8-10There is a big difference between how I eat my cereal in the morning and how I eat my favourite meal. One is all about just getting something ...  Read More

The Lord says to my lord:"Sit at my right hand    until I make your enemies    a footstool for your feet."The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion, saying,    "Rule in the midst of your enemies!"Your troops will be willing    on your day of battle.Arrayed in holy splendor,    your young men will come to you    like dew from the morning's womb.The Lord has sworn    and will not change h...  Read More

 Therefore, you kings, be wise;          be warned, you rulers of the earth.       Serve the LORD with fears          and celebrate his rule with trembling.      Kiss his son, or he will be angry          and your way will lead to your destruction,          for his wrath can flare up in a moment.          Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Psalm 2:10–12.Buddy Jesus is the image that comes to ...  Read More

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons:Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until nowPhilippians 1:1-4Our pray...  Read More

Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.Ephesians 4:3-6To the outside world, the Church is divided. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Presbyterians, Baptists etc. etc. In Ep...  Read More

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;    yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.I will consider all your works    and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”Psalm 77:11-12Do you ever spend time just remembering and reflecting? I’m hopeless at this. I feel caught up in the endless need to be stimulated. Or the need to be busy doing whatever is next.But it really is a weakness of our culture. W...  Read More

As iron sharpens iron,so one person sharpens anotherProverbs 27:17We live in a time where people are more interested in blunting each other than in sharpening. That’s my general assessment. We want affirmation. Echo chambers. People to agree with us. And we only listen to them if they do.Maybe the issue is that we are no longer made of the right stuff, we have become chalk where once we were metal...  Read More

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.1 Peter 4:12-14Have...  Read More

Blessed is the one    who does not walk in step with the wickedor stand in the way that sinners take    or sit in the company of mockers,but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,    and who meditates on his law day and night.That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,    which yields its fruit in seasonand whose leaf does not wither—    whatever they do prospers.Psalm 1:1-3There are...  Read More

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.Hebrews 3:12-14Post-Covid lockdowns (and being able to li...  Read More

Hear my prayer, Lord;    let my cry for help come to you.Do not hide your face from me    when I am in distress.Turn your ear to me;    when I call, answer me quickly.For my days vanish like smoke;    my bones burn like glowing embers.My heart is blighted and withered like grass;    I forget to eat my food.In my distress I groan aloud    and am reduced to skin and bones.Psalm 102:1-5I rekon that a...  Read More

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believersGalatians 6:10You get out of it, what you put into it. You know that phrase? I’m not sure it’s always true. But one place it often is true. Is Church. Some people come to Church to ‘get fed’. Some to tick a box. Some by force of habit. But my experience is that this approach wi...  Read More

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.Matthew 5:14-16Sometimes at night, when I go to close the blinds on my...  Read More

Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you.1 Timothy 4:13-14What is the primary job of the pastor? What is the thing above all else they should devote themselves to? I wonder what some would say? Would they say, feeding the poor? Or mak...  Read More

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.Acts 2:42I grew up around food. My Dad is Italian, he was raised in a small village in the southeast of Italy. My ‘nona’ (we didn’t call her that, it made her feel old), never failed to feed us whenever we went to visit. It was stereotypical, ‘mange, mange’ (eat, eat), all the time. I don’t ...  Read More

 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge...  Read More

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”Matthew 28:18-20Last Sunday (in the sermon) we saw that we...  Read More

Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 1 Peter 3:8-9I had only been at church for a few months (many many years ago in a church far far away) before I witnessed a sadly classic ...  Read More

As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.1 Peter 2:4-5At dedicated moments throughout the year, Israel would gather together at the tabernacle and later the temple to offer sacrifices...  Read More

Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.2 Timothy 2:8-10There are times in life when being a part of God’s...  Read More

There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.Hebrews 4:9-11In the busyness, noise and anxiety of our technology fuelled world, the concept of Sabbath is having something o...  Read More

There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is...  Read More

I delight greatly in the Lord;my soul rejoices in my God.For he has clothed me with garments of salvationand arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,Isaiah 61:10Imagine being a cleaner to a King. You come in every day to dust down the royal apartments. It takes you the whole day just to do the walk-ins (wardrobes). One day, you notice the Royal Robe is hanging on its hook. You can’t help yoursel...  Read More

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.Deuteronomy 6:6-7One of the things I love about Village Church is our kids. Oh sure, they are noisy and messy. But they are God’s kids, given to us to raise in the way of the Lord. He has entru...  Read More

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”John 8:12The world feels very dark right now. The Doomsday clock has been moved to 100 seconds to midnight. It’s the war in Ukraine and Palestine. It’s floods and fire. It’s COVID. It’s climate change. It’s the shattering of the narrative tha...  Read More

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.James 5:16The Christian life comes with many costs that we are quick to count. Yet, the privileges far outweigh the costs (if only we would see them). Prayer is a great example of this.Most of us really like the idea of having people in our life th...  Read More

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.John 13:35Have you ever walked into a house or an office and just known that there was a coldness there? That something was missing? That there was no love? What a tragedy if someone walked into a Church like that.Village Church was planted in Bulli to see more people hear about Jesus and be drawn to His love. Because in...  Read More

But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.Hebrews 3:13So. I’ve done the smallest amount of pottery. When I was young I made a boat. It served as a paperweight for some time. My understanding with making pottery is that while you work the clay, it needs to stay a little wet to stop the clay from hardening and becomin...  Read More

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.Romans 12:4-6Have you ever tried to write with your feet/toes? What about something crazier, have you ever tried to eat through your nos...  Read More

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.Romans 12:15Have you ever felt like you had to put on a ‘front’ as you walked into Church? That somehow you had to pull it together and at least appear like everything was ok, no not just ok, but great :) I’ve experienced this. Why does this happen? Well, I want to take responsibility, sometimes it was my pride, I didn’t want to be seen to...  Read More

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.I will consider all your worksand meditate on all your mighty deeds.”Psalm 77:11-12I encourage you to go and read all of Psalm 77 if you can. It’s a wonderful example of why God’s people sing. The Psalmist is in a dark place. Feeling forgotten by God. Ever been there? But what does the Psalmist do? Verse 6, he rem...  Read More