Draw Near to God and to Others
Hebrews is helpful for anyone wanting to think about the importance of Church.
In Chapter 10 the author writes to Christians who were losing confidence – some were persecuted, some were leaving the faith to avoid suffering, and others were abandoning Christ because they wanted to fit in with the world around them. His advice? – draw near to God and draw near to others!
David’s songs are a commentary on his experience of the God who reigns and saves and to which David owes everything. They are words that are sung by all who depend on God for their salvation in a fallen world.
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 22-23
– Ken Noakes
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?
Membership
In the world that we live in, ‘Membership’ is a fairly common idea. We have memberships to libraries, sports clubs, magazines or journals, road service organisations, schools, clubs, gyms, churches and much more.
We pay, to secure some benefit – be it the ability to borrow books, or to secure good seats to watch our favourite sport, or to receive the magazine that interests us, or guarantee help if the car breaks down, or help for the school to give our children a better education, or a vote in the club that we belong, or cheaper entry to be able to use exercise equipment. You get the drift!
In many ways, the benefits of ‘membership’ in our secular world mirrors ‘membership’ in a church, but not completely – there is a difference.
Inspired by Acts 15:1-21…
We had an issue! It was obvious that if we didn’t do something about it our church family would be divided.
It was such an exciting time for us being a new church. As we talked about Jesus, so many people put their trust in him – and people from all kinds of backgrounds.
Through the twists and turns that has become the norm in King David’s household we see God painfully faithful to his word. His judgment remains on David’s house as Absalom rebels and David flees. Yet it is God who remains on the throne, and preserves David’s place on it, frustrating the usurpers, protecting his king and removing those who defy him.
In the ups and downs that we know in life, who calls the shots? How do you benefit by trusting God in the good and the bad?
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 14:45-19:8
– Ken Noakes
Love, Truth and Obedience are three Christian values that together define Christian Love. Christian love, is love where truth is valued. Christian truth tells us how to obey. Christian obedience demonstrates true love.
In the previous posts from this series we have looked at each.
What happens if you corrupt any one of those values?
Ever witnessed a bad situation seemingly spiral out of control?
Welcome to 2 Samuel 13-14. The failure of King David which was so dramatic recounted in 2 Samuel 11-12, now gets played out by his sons as they put on an even more inglorious display of lust, rape, hate, murder and treason – and all while David sits on the bench sidelined and unwilling to step up as a father, judge or king should.
What can Christians learn from this sad tale, when we too are plagued with sin, burdened by the consequence of judgement, yet covered by the grace of the gospel?
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 13-14
– Ken Noakes
– Josh Ord
What is love that is pleasing first to God? It has something to do with obedience in the context of truth. We have considered ‘Love’ (Part 3 of this series) and ‘Truth’ (Part 4 of this series), so this time let’s focus on ‘Obedience’.
Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them (1 John 3:21-24)
A love that is pleasing to God is a love that obediently follows his commands.
In this sermon you will hear about how King David, high on worldly success and power and secure in his earthly position, demonstrates the all-pervading reaches of human depravity as he defies God’s law, defiles his marriage bed, deceives and destroys others. Yet in awesome contrast, God prefigures and demonstrates his judgement, grace and everlasting love, even through the death of a son.
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 11-12
– Ken Noakes
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