The Bible is very comfortable with the idea that you can talk to God. Depending on the Bible version you look at ‘prayer’ is referenced over six hundred and fifty times!
Category Archives: 58 Hebrews
Sermon – James vs Paul (James 2:14-26)
Sermon on James 2:14-26 ‘James vs Paul’ by Ken Noakes – available to stream or download: http://bit.ly/2cy1cZz.
Read the Bible text: http://bit.ly/2chYc32
Full Text of this Talk and Workings – James 2:14-26
In this talk, the question of whether James and Paul are at odds theologically over what it means to be justified by faith alone or by works is raised. The discussion is large and so the sermon deals with it briefly, but suggests this paper (‘Is James at odds with Paul?’) for further reading if so inclined.
Please note: This is an academic paper, so it is long, at times detailed, and uses technical language (including greek). Further, the paper was written several years ago and since then I have changed my position on the late dating of the letter of James (as you would hear in the sermon, I know think it is dated early). Regardless, it I think is still helpful for an inquiring mind.
English Support Handout – James 2:14-26
Sermon – House Rules (Psalm 27)
Sermon ‘House Rules’ (Psalm 27) by Ken Noakes is now available to stream or download: http://bit.ly/1t45gVU
Lessons Learned
Friends it has been a while since the last 5pm Update (a good indication that things have been a bit full on!) – in fact there has not been an update since I returned from Study Leave for Easter. Thanks for allowing me time to get away.
Study Leave meant that I could attend a series of Conferences, visit a series of Churches and check-out some theological colleges. Refreshing? – Yes! Challenging? – At times! Educational? – Mostly! Beneficial? – I hope so, but you will need to be the judge of that.
There were so many times that I just felt immensely thankful to God for Trinity City and for 5pm Church and for the leaders we have and for the ministry that we do – and thankful because I could see other examples in the States of similar ministries or conversely I could see examples of things that were not done half as well as how Trinity does it (under God of course).
Here are 5 reflections with 5 corresponding challenges which may be of benefit for us.
Imagine a World Without Hope
The good news about Jesus is often spoken of as the ‘hope’ of the gospel. It’s not a ‘hope-so’ or a ‘hope-ful’. Hope is the promise from God of eternal life gifted to all who place their faith in Jesus Christ.
The Bible speaks of the hope ‘that God has called you to’ (Ephesians 1:18), and the hope ‘laid up for you in heaven’ (Colossians 1:5). This is the ‘assurance of hope until the end’ (Hebrews 6:11).
Imagine a world without the hope of the gospel!
What to expect of ‘Church’?
The beginning of the year is often the time when people check out church (‘It is a new year, thought I would give it a go’), join church (‘I have moved and want to make this my church’) or leave church (‘I am making a life change’).
As such, it is reasonable that one consider ‘What should I expect of ‘Church’?’.
In the last update 
we considered ‘What is Church?’ and suggested that church was a place for believers (whilst still open to not-yet believers) and a place where God’s people gathered as a family in Christ. Expectations of church then are important because they help a person decide whether this church is doing what it should be or not.
There are a couple of ways to arrive at an answer.
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.
Eternal New Year’s Resolutions
- Clean my teeth twice daily
- Always stick to the speed limit
- No Chocolate
- Don’t lose my temper with the kids
- Always meet deadlines
- Weed each week
Are you a New Year’s resolution kind of person? If so, then today is a good day to be thinking about your new year’s resolutions! It is also a good time to review how you are going in faith. Would it not be a great thing if (by God’s Grace and with his help) in a years’ time you were even more godly than you might be today?
To start the year I thought I might offer some suggestions for resolutions which may have eternal benefits (rather than just annual benefit!)…
churchcentralonline.com 