Sermons@Kingsley Sermons@Kingsley

Guest speaker Carl Carmody from Challenge Newspaper shares with us about the priority of prayer in evangelism… and everything else for that matter!

Psalm 40 is a wonderful song of thanksgiving as David reflects on what God has done to bring him out of a pit of despair. To get more insight into what David was feeling before his deliverance we tune into Psalms 38 & 39 which describe that in more detail. While our stories might be different, most of us know what it’s like to feel stuck, recognising our own mistakes and their consequences and being surrounded by people who either don’t know how to help or are taking the opportunity to have a go at us. As David comes out of that by God’s grace he celebrates that his story can also be a blessing to others if he’s brave enough to share it and if they are humble enough to learn from it. That’s the kind of community that we want to build too.

After celebrating a child dedication earlier in our service, we take a look at Psalm 78 which reflects on the spiritual journey of Israel from the generations since their exodus from Egypt. The psalm has much to teach us about how we can help each successive generation to know God and walk in His ways. It describes the blessings that are experienced when that happens as well as the burdens that come from forgetting God’s works and His ways. With ANZAC Day approaching we take some time to reflect on the history of our nation and the world around us from God’s point of view – just as Asaph does in Psalm 78. We challenge ourselves to remember and pass on those critical lessons which are so important in navigating the challenges our world currently faces. We remind ourselves that the same principles apply in our communities and families. We all have stories that we are part of, which formed us and shape how we are also forming others. Will we take the time to seek God’s perspective on our history so that we might step into the future with full confidence in God and obedience to Him?

On Palm Sunday we retrace Jesus’ journey from Jericho to Jerusalem with Luke’s gospel as our guide. Luke is very careful to describe both the physical and spiritual journey Jesus took with His disciples and the crowds who flocked to Jerusalem on that day. The crowds were full of anticipation of what would happen when the Messiah rode into Jerusalem as the prophet Zechariah foretold. Their enthusiasm scandalised some of the religious leaders travelling with them, just as it would scandalise the Temple authorities when they arrived. Yet Jesus would not let the crowds be silenced. God wanted it to be clear who was arriving in Jerusalem that day. In this message we explore the reason why Jesus chose to arrive publicly on this occasion and why our decision about what we do with Jesus is the most important decision we will ever make.

In the gospels we hear Jesus call His followers to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him (eg: Lk 9:51, 14:23-24). As He shows us what that actually looks like, we realise that none of us is capable of doing it! That’s exactly the point Paul makes in the letter to the Galatians as he addresses those people who are trying to impose Jewish law on Gentile believers. He clearly sees the danger in moving away from complete dependence on Jesus to save us – not only from the penalty of sin but from its power in our lives. In correcting this dangerous error he uses the example of Peter – a fellow champion of Gentile inclusion and the person God used to lead the early Church to discover and live by these truths (see Acts 10-11). But even Peter had the opposite effect on people when he was controlled by fear rather than the Holy Spirit. Whenever we are controlled by anything other than the Holy Spirit we drift into sin. However when we choose to die to ourselves to live for God we find that He is able to produce a love for God and others that becomes more and more courageous and complete with each faith-fuelled step we take.

After celebrating a baptism and as we prepare to celebrate communion, we take some time to reflect on what Galatians 2:20 teaches us about the life we have through faith in Jesus. It’s not a once-and-done experience, but a continual dying to self so that we might find our life in Christ.