Sermon series: Miscellaneous

As Jesus entered the Jerusalem, the crowds were looking for a king and the Pharisees were looking for a way to get rid of him, but Jesus entered on a donkey, a king who had to die.

God works through the frustrations of Paul and his companions to bring them to Philippi, and he then works in different situations to touch the lives of Lydia, the slave girl and the jailer.

Even though the disciples have gone back to their old way of life, Jesus meets them where they are and blesses them. He knows we’re human, and he reinstates us when we fail.

Jesus doesn’t call us to follow him to safe places but to follow him wherever he leads. He calls us to reach people, and we can do that by showing them love. [Audio to follow]

When taking the gospel to people from different cultures, we need to understand whether they come from an “innocence/guilt” culture, an “honour/shame” culture or a “fear/power” culture. We need to be careful of reading “honour/shame” passages in the Bible as “innocence/guilt” passages.

God tells Joshua to be strong and courageous, because he is with him. We need to hear God’s exhortation to be strong and courageous because God is with us in all circumstances.

We never get beyond the need to trust in God. We will be fruitless if we trust in man.

Jesus has inaugurated a new exodus. God’s calling us to to enlarge the borders of our tent, and our children will go to the nations.

God commands us to rest, and Jesus frees us from four burdens - the pressure to prove ourselves, the pressure to meet other people’s expectations, the pressure to try and stay in control and the pressure to live life to the max.

Leaning on somebody is a sign of weakness, but when we lean on Jesus God’s power is seen in our weakness. People should be able to ask “Who is that, and who is it they’re leaning on?”

Just as David defeated Goliath by holding on to the word of God, we too can exercise reckless faith in the face of giants as we remember the promises that he has made to us.

Fasting can help us to draw close to God. God’s people fasted in the Bible when they were in trouble, when they needed a breakthrough, when they were on the brink of something new or when seeking direction from God.

God directs his people for a purpose, but we can easily become discouraged when things go wrong. Are we willing to step back and pray; obey him; step into the impossible; and worship even before we reach our destination?

We belong to God because he made us, bought us and won us. In what is an amazing exchange, God also gives himself to us.

Jesus equipped his disciples by giving them peace, opening their minds to understand the Scriptures and promising them power. He equips us in the same way.

Phinehas was jealous for God’s honour. We should have the same attitude towards God’s honour. Sin does not honour God and so it needs to be killed.

It was worth Satan’s while to discourage Elijah, and it is worth his while to discourage us as individuals and as a church. God overcomes Elijah’s discouragement by refreshing him, by restoring him with a still small voice, and by reinstating him.

God is a generous God who loves to give, and loves it when we give generously and cheerfully.

[A small section of the message at around 38 mins was not recorded due to technical difficulties]

We need to remember and understand the resurrection of Jesus in order to believe it.

Jesus teaches us to approach God with personal reverence, addressing him as our father, and also with shameless persistence and childlike confidence.