Sermon on ‘Strange Things Happen On Holidays’ (Mark 7:24-8:10) by Geoff Lin available to stream or download – http://bit.ly/1PeRJhy
Category Archives: Ken Noakes
How to make Easter more than just overpriced chocolate!?
We are less than a month out from Easter – that wonderful weekend of the year when we remember and celebrate the clearest demonstration of God’s love for his people – sending his son to the cross for those, like me, who don’t deserve this incredible act of grace.
The Easter weekend is also the weekend when the greatest number unbelieving folk walk into our gathering. Get that – they walk into Trinity City and 5pm Church under their own steam.
So how can you plan to make the most of this opportunity – not only for those that you meet that weekend at church, but also for those friends, family and colleagues who you might find will easily accept your invitation.
Here are some suggestions:
A Leap Year of Affliction?
Thirty days hath September,
April, June and November;
All the rest have thirty-one
Save February, she alone
Hath eight days and a score
Till leap year gives her one day more.
The 29th February plays a pivotal role in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera The Pirates of Penzance. In the story the hero Frederic realizes his pirate apprenticeship binds him till his 21st birthday, but as his birthday falls on the 29th of February it only occurs every fourth year, meaning he would have to wait to his 84th year before he was released from his bonds.
Frederic is a pirate who wants redemption!
Here is a question to consider. What makes our burdens and afflictions so difficult?
What is Peer Discipleship?
Peer Discipleship is when two or more Christians encourage one another toward Christlikeness with Bible in hand.
That is another way of saying – be intentional as a godly friend!
But let us retrace some steps and see how it is that we get to this definition!
Sermon: Life & Death (Mark 5:21-43)
Sermon on ‘Life & Death’ (Mark 5:21-43) by Ken Noakes available to stream or download – http://bit.ly/1Qi2Tnq
Sermon: Authority (Mark 4:35-5:20)
Sermon on ‘Authority’ (Mark 4:35-5:20) by Ken Noakes available to stream or download – http://bit.ly/1WuN9Bn
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.
Sermon: Kingdom of God (Mark 4:1-34)
‘The Kingdom of God’ (Mark 4:1-34; Isaiah 6) Sermon by Ken Noakes available to stream or download: http://bit.ly/23TH5I9
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.
churchcentralonline.com 