Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify t...  Read More

Q. 94. What is Baptism?A. Baptism is a sacrament, wherein the washing with water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, doth signify and seal our ingrafting into Christ, and partaking of the benefits of the covenant of grace, and our engagement to be the Lord’s.Westminster Shorter CatechismI’ll never forget the first baptism at Village Church. I don’t think we get ‘monso...  Read More

You are good, and what you do is goodteach me your decrees.Psalm 19:68Most of us desire to do the ‘right thing’ and be good people. But in a complicated world - what does this look like? Over the coming Wednesdays we’re going to consider ethics, morals and how we can be good and do good.Goodness, ethics and morals begin with God. How do we know what goodness is? How can we discern what is right an...  Read More

31 “It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.Matthew 5:31-32Approximately 44% of Australian marriages end in divorce. Therefore, it is statistically likely that readers of this b...  Read More

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”Mark 12:30-31The commands of our world are do whatever makes you happy. There is only one command. The singer Adele famously lived by these commands. She chose her own happiness over ...  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

27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to...  Read More

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6Life is full of problems to be solved. Little problems like what to eat for dinner. Big problems like family or work conflict. Sometimes, particularly these big problems, they consume us. We begin to lose sleep. We can’t think of anything else.Do you hav...  Read More

Q. 92. What is a sacrament?A. A sacrament is a holy ordinance instituted by Christ; wherein, by sensible signs, Christ, and the benefits of the new covenant, are represented, sealed, and applied to believers.Westminster Shorter CatechismAgain, don’t be undone by the language. Our beliefs are not shallow (historically speaking) but have a depth of meaning. The sacraments (baptism & the Lord’s Suppe...  Read More

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. 1 Thessalonians 5:15Life is complicated. It wasn’t long ago that we had some relatives over at our house and one of the kids made a comment that they didn’t want to wear a pair of sunglasses because they were ‘girls’ sunglasses. Which elicited a response from my non-Christian...  Read More

21 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgement. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.Matthew 5:21...  Read More

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 4:8Let’s double down on yesterday’s passage. I really hate exercise. I’d rather not do it. I like being fit and feeling fit. But not the process. But I do some form of exercise four or five times a week. I get through it by reminding myself of the...  Read More