Sermons from June 2018
A Song for the Forgiven
If anyone knew about the agony of guilt, then it was King David. And if the strongly attested view is accepted, then David is the author of this powerful psalm, writing out of his own bitter experience. Sin in any shape or form, whether out in the open or tucked away in the privacy of our own hearts, cuts us off from God and makes us guilty. Every one of us is a guilty sinner before the holy God. But there is a cure, which God Himself has provided. He promises to remove our sin, if only we will confess it and cast ourselves upon Him for forgiveness and grace. What a blessing! What a joy! Do you have any unconfessed skeletons that are tormenting you today? Take them to Jesus Christ and be set free today.
A Church with Purpose
Like us, the readers of Peter’s letter were living in a society that was unbelieving and antagonistic to the gospel. These Christians needed encouraging to persevere. As God’s church, they exist together not just to survive until Jesus’ return, but God has given them a specific identity and purpose. We share this purpose as God’s church today – to grow, to worship and to witness. 1 Peter 2:1-10
What if I receive the gift of singleness?
Single people make up a very significant portion of our society (and the church). For this reason alone it is important that we speak clearly and biblically about singleness in the church. Listen as we consider what it means to have the gift of singleness and what God says to those who are single (and married) about singleness.
How can I have a great marriage?
Strong, godly and lasting marriages are modelled on the relationship between Christ and the church, sustained by covenant faithfulness and saturated in grace.
Hope and holiness in difficult times
Learning how to live under pressure, especially when it involves the testing of our faith, is essential to our progress in the Christian life. In today’s passage we take a closer look at how suffering is related to the gospel, and how God wants to use it to help us grow in holiness. Jesus is the Messiah, the ’Suffering Servant’, who shed His precious blood to redeem us and make us children of God. Understanding the greatness of this salvation gives us the confidence and hope that whatever we may face in this life, the best is still yet to come …. and it’s worth waiting for.
Why did God create marriage?
A bride and groom approach their wedding day full anticipation, excitement, hopes and dreams. It’s a happy day, and they hope for a happy marriage. Whether we’re already married, hoping to be married one day, or considering a lifetime unmarried, we tend to assume God created marriage for the sake of personal happiness. Companionship, sexual intimacy, children and other things marriage brings might make us happy to some extent, but as we read the Bible it seems that God has other priorities for marriage. So we ask: “Why did God create marriage?” and “What should our purpose be within marriage?”
Longing for home
The book of 1 Peter is making a comeback today. It’s original readers felt like ‘exiles’ or ‘foreigners’ in the world of the early church. And that’s the way more and more Christians are starting to feel these days. Somehow we don’t really fit as the world around us becomes more secular. But the reality is that we are different and we don’t fit. This world is not our true home and we aren’t meant to belong here. So how do we cope with this tension, especially when trials come and our faith is tested? In this message, Pastor Murray urges us to see how God wants to use these times to prepare us for the glorious ‘inheritance’ that awaits all who truly belong to Christ. (1 Peter 1:1-9)