When you became a Christian, your membership in the church took both a universal and a local shape – a wide and narrow view if you like.
What is the difference?
Category Archives: 52 1 Thessalonians
Conference Talks – Heaven & Hell
5 AWAY Weekend Away Talks – by Ken Noakes
Talk 1 – Scaring the Hell out of You!
Talk 1 Outline – Scaring the Hell out of You!
Talk 1 Script – Scaring the Hell out of You!
Discussion Group Questions – Hell
Talk 2 – Heaven Sent!
Sermon – Gospel-driven guidance: God’s Work in You
In this, the third of three sermons on Gospel-driven guidance Geoff Lin explains that the Bible teaches that God is more interested growing in our character and convictions than in our current circumstances – God is in the business of growing us in holiness, making us more like Jesus. Watch or listen to the sermon to find out how God will do this.
How can the Bible be from men but also from God?
How is it that the Bible arrives in the form we have it?
The Apostle Paul, along with Timothy, writing to the church in Thessalonica said:
‘we thank God continually because when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe’ (1 Thessalonians 2:13)
The word received, was handled down by God through those who had first heard it and their job was to tell others.
Of course that begs the question – how can the Bible be from men but really from God? How can we be sure that humans who spoke and wrote actually have the spoken and written word that God wanted them to express?
Sermon – Be Like The Bereans (Acts 17:1-15)
Who are the Bereans and why should we follow their example? Sermon ‘Be Like The Bereans’ (Acts 17:1-15) by Geoff Lin is now available in audio and video: http://bit.ly/2n2PGuU
Read the Bible text: http://bit.ly/2m5nVwV
English Support Document: http://bit.ly/2m5cOEj
Why leave a ‘church’?
The question ‘Why leave a ‘church?’ may be a dangerous question to ask, especially on a church blog!
The reality is that all churches have people leave them – for both wise and unwise reasons. It is worth spending some time thinking about why one would take the step of leaving a ‘church’ and then further considering how to do that well. That said, I am hoping that no one reading this will in fact leave 5pm Church as a result!
In the previous two articles we have considered ‘What is ‘Church’?’ and then ‘What to expect of ‘Church’?‘ which as background should help establish that leaving a church should be thought about carefully – that is not a decision that should be made hastily or prayerlessly. If ‘church’ is about God’s people gathering as a family in Christ around his Word, it should give some pause for thought to a person when deciding to stay or to go. Leaving means leaving a family and a place where God’s word should be key to their fellowship.
Changing churches or leaving church altogether is no small thing.
What is ‘Church’?
Christians do Church. Some more regularly than others!
Why on earth do we commit ourselves to regularly going to Church? To answer that, let’s first think theologically about ‘church’.
What is ‘Church’?
Presumable if we are to be members of church, we need to understand what Church is!
Very simply, Church is an assembly of God’s people.
