Author: Philip

‘See the aspects of His return as promised by the Saviour (1)’ (Luke 12:35-48)

Philip

After warning His hearers on the dangers of greed and being found unprepared for eternity because our hearts are set on eartlhly things, Jesus began to take up the theme of being prepared for His return in Luke 12:35-48. The New Testament scriptures breathe with the hope of Christ’s return, and yet in some cases, it can be entirley overlooked or given too much emphasis. Jesus taught that His disciples (and, all those who aren’t) should be ready for Him to come back at any time. Expectancy, watchfulness and vigilance are all necessary in order that people everywhere might be prepared!

Message

Outline

• The thirty-ninth in this series
• Not ‘old ground, but new
• The return of Jesus in the New Testament
• See how Jesus taught of …

  1. The need for careful preparation (v.35-39)
  2. The need for continued watching (v.40)
  3. The reasons for constant readiness (v.41-48)

Sir Eric Shackleton
Priorities
Rewards
Readiness…

‘See the warning against greed given by the Saviour’ (Luke 12:13-34)

AudioPhilip

When asked to intervene in a family dispute over an inheritance, Jesus, rightly and carefully explained that ‘a man’s life does not consist of the things he owns’. A far cry from ‘he who dies with the most toys wins’!! To make his point, in Luke 12:13-34, we find that Jesus not only told the parable of the rich farmer, but that he also had other things to say about wealth and greed and the love of money which are all so relevant to our wealth-hungry world! And yet at the time, Jesus spoke to people who were much poorer than we will ever be. How much more should we take heed of his warnings!

Message

Outline

• The thirty-eighth in this series
• Jesus responding to questions
• A parable and well-known words
• See how Jesus taught that his disciples should…

  1. Beware of pursuing earthly things (v.12-21)
  2. Resist worrying about earthly things (v.22-30)
  3. Earnestly seek for heavenly things (v.31-34)

What would you do for $10million?
Keeping wealth in perspective
The parable of the three friends…

‘Clarity for navigating life’s grey areas’ (Sam Braid, 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1)

AudioPhilip

Sometimes things in life are black and white. Other times things are grey. The Bible calls us to love God and to love our neighbour, yet it is not always clear what that looks like. 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1 reveals that in first century Corinth, idol worship was prominent and posed a bit of a conundrum for the Christian community. Worshipping idols was clearly wrong, but did that mean they shouldn’t eat the meat sacrificed to those idols and what about going out to dinner at a pagan’s house? The Apostle Paul teaches us how to navigate such a scenario, while providing the wisdom of God and the example of Christ to enable us to tackle any tricky situation we might find ourselves in. We learn that God has given us great freedom in the Christian life, not to live recklessly or indulgently, but to wholeheartedly serve God and seek the good of many. This requires clarity around the important issues as well as a servant-heart. After considering this passage we may need to repent of thoughtlessness and selfishness, but we will also gain greater peace and confidence to navigate life’s complexities.

Message

‘See the warnings against hypocrisy given by the Saviour (2)’ (Luke 12:1-12)

AudioPhilip

Followeing on from the things Jesus concluded in Luke 11:29-54, He had mre to say about hypocrisy as :Luke reciords in Luke 12:1-12. The whole section can be understood as awarning about the ‘leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy’ (Luke 12:1-2), as Jersus gives some reasons why hypocrisy is to be avoided. The truth behind Jesus’ teaching is that God wants the truth to be in our hearts, where the light it will bring will deliver us from inner darkness.

Message

Outline

• The thirty-seventh in this series
• Avoid being like the Pharisees!
• A working definition of hypocrisy
• See how Jesus gives us reasons to avoid hypocrisy …

  1. Because all truth will be revealed (v.1-3)
  2. Because the Lord will be the Judge (v.4-7)
  3. Because only faithfulness will be rewarded (v.8-12)

‘We are all hypocrites…’
The one in the mirror
Having the light within!

‘See the warning against hypocrisy given by the Saviour (1)’ (Luke 11:29-54)

AudioPhilip

When Jesus spoke out in judgement on the Pharisees in Luke 11:29-54, He did not mince his words or hold back. If there was anyone that made Jesus angry, it was the self-righteous, hypocritical religious leaders who did everthing they could to advance themselves in the eyes of the people, but failed to live honestly before God. Hypocrisy is such a dangerous snare for all of God’s people. We must beware iof it and avoid being like these Pharisees at all cost!

Message

Outline

• The thirty-sixth in this series
• From bad to worse
• Committed unbelief
• See how Luke tells us that Jesus spoke against …

  1. The blindness of their hearts (v.29-36)
  2. The falseness of their lives (v.37-54)

The importance of…
Truth on the inside

‘See the accusation against.. and the defence of… the Saviour’ (Luke 11:14-28)

AudioPhilip

When Jesus chose to heal a man from demon possession in Luke 11:14-28, he got much more than he was expecting in terms of opposition to his miracle. Those who observed the miraculous deliverance of the man, could only reach a conclsuion that was opposite to what might have been made by those with ‘two eyes’, attributing the miracle to the works of the evil one. But Jesus was not deterred and used the opprtunity to press His claims and to point out what responsing to Him the right way really means.

Message

Outline

• The thirty-fifth in this series
• Encouragements and discouragements
• Divided witnesses
• See how Luke tells us of …

  1. The ‘crime’ Jesus committed (v.14)
  2. The accusation they levelled (v.15-16)
  3. The defence Jesus gave (v.17-28)
    R
    S
    N

Courtroom drama
What’s your verdict?
Hearing and heeding…

‘See the teaching about prayer by the Saviour’ (Luke 11:1-13)

AudioPhilip

After Jesus had left the home of Marth a and Mary, the dfisciples observed Him (as was His usual custom) praying. They aked Him therefore to teach them to pray. In Luke 11;1-13, we find the respoonse Jesus gave them in which he laid down for them a pattern for prayer, encouraged them to be persistent in prayer and also encouraged them by reminding them that God the Father welcomes their requests. The challenge for us is not so much understanding what Jesus said, but doing what He said!

Message

Outline

• The thirty-fourth in this series
• Connecting back to last week…
• What the disciples observed about Jesus
• See how Jesus taught about…

  1. The pattern needed for ordered prayer (v.1-4)
  2. The persistence needed for effective prayer (v.5-10)
  3. The assurance needed for answered prayer (v.11-13)

The hardest thing to do?
Spurgeon’s comment
‘Teach me to pray!”

Evening Fellowship and the Luke Drama, this Sunday, July 26th

Philip

We’ll be meetuing together this Sunday evening at 5pm in our Hall meeting room (the ‘Upper Room’) for worship and the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. Philip will be continuing his evening series on the topic of ‘God the Father’, the fifth in this series. All welcome.

After this, we’ll be heading up to La Trobe Uni for the ‘Luke Drama presentation by the Bendigo Christian Union. Come and join us! It’s free!

‘See the sisters who loved and served the Saviour’ (Luke 10:38-42)

Philip

In Luke 10:38-42, we find Jesus in the home of two sisters, Mary and Martha. Distinctions are often made between thse two sisters, and often the conclusion reached is ‘Be like Mary and don’t be like Martha, after all, Martha was too busy for Jesus and Mary wasn’t’. Maybe that’s right. Maybe it isn’t. Both sisters were busy. It’s just that their choices were different. Both loved and served Jesus and He was gentle and encouraging to both.

Message

Outline

• The thirty-third in this series
• Where we left off…
• A common (but incorrect) approach to the text?
• See how Luke wants you to note…

  1. The tension behind the busyness (v.38-40)
  2. The frustrations behind the outburst (v.40)
  3. The misunderstanding behind the accusation (v.40-42)

Balancing acts
The warning from Martha
Making the better choice

Presbytery Visitation this Sunday, July 19

Philip

One of the joys of being a part of the Presbyterian Church (of Victoria, and Australia) is the levels of oversight we are used to. As a Presbyterian congregation, we are under the oversight of the local elders (Session) as well as the oversight of our Presbytery, a body made up of representative teaching and ruling elders of all the congregations within our region. In our case, the Presbytery of North Western Victoria which stretches from Castlemaine to Mildura. You can read more about Presbyterian Church government here.

This Sunday, July 19, we will welcome members of the Presbytery’s Five-Yearly Visitation Committee, whose task is to (as the name suggests), visit us, ask questions of members, managers, elders and the minister, receive the completed questionairres issued by the Presbytery beforehand, and work all this into a report for the Presbytery regarding the health of the congregation and how the gospel is progressing among us. It’s been some time since the last Presbytery visit, so we are looking forward to this one, after our usual monthly lunch (which has been moved a week earlier to coincide with this!)