christian

In this, our rememberance day service, Rev. John Dickinson contrasts the story of the forgotten war -the war in the east - with the life and suffering of Jesus Christ. Many unlikely heroes were involved in breaking the Japanese occupation of Burma, Malaya and Singapore, many of them were local tribesmen who had been despised by the people they were now helping. Likewise, Our Lord was rejected and despised, yet he still took the blame for our sin and won a victory for us that ensures a place for us in the only empire that will never fade. The Kingdom of Heaven.

If only - the curse of regret
We have a miraculous God who can restore even that which has been destroyed beyond repair - even things that we bitterly regret. But the apostle Paul warns us that there are two kinds of regret. One leads to salvation, the other to death. In this first talk of a new series Rev. John Dickinson examines the difference between the two.

Here's a good question for you. If an angel of the Lord appeared right here, right now with a message for you, how would you respond?
In this sermon, we look at the key role that angels played in the Christmas story as they relayed messages and instruction from God.

"Do we really have God's heart and God's vision for Mission?" That is the question posed by Scott Sherman, our guest speaker on his first visit to Ireland from the USA.
Jonah eagerly anticipated God's judgement on the ancient and very violent city of Nineveh. Instead, God was greatly concerned about the 120,000 inhabitants of that great city who "did not know their right hand from their left". Jonah didn't get it and was so angry he wanted to die. A lot of us today don't get it either.
God's call to every Christian is to share His concern for the lost of whatever city or suburb they live in. If you are a Christian then reaching out to your neighbours is not an optional extra - it is at the very heart of what God wants us to do.

He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. (Luke 10 Vv 2 & 3)
Derek and Linda Roulston have been working in the harvest fields of Galana, Kenya for six years and the Lord of the harvest is using them to great effect. As the local commumity has reaped the benefit of a new school, new crop plantations and more, the Holy Spirit has moved powerfully in the region to establish a thriving community of new believers.
In this, our harvest celebration service, Derek describes the work underway and the amazing results that have been achieved so far.

Our Vision is that we will be a vibrant community of Christians devoted to the task of spreading the Gospel in our area and winning back the lost of our generation for Christ. When God answers our prayers, how will we deal with the increase in size of our already large Congregation? In what ways will we have to change our custom and practice to make "strangers" feel at home amongst us? And how can we change so that no-one amongst us fears ridicule from Spiritual "posers"?
The new-born Church faced and solved these tough questions when the Holy Spirit moved powerfully to build his Church in an incredibly short period of time. We need to do the same today.

"God is seeking Worshippers, not Worship". This statement might seem a bit surprising, given that we are told to "Worship the Lord your God and serve him only" in Matthew chapter 4. The difference lies in how we worship him. Cold,mechanical worship for its own sake leaves God feeling nauseated. But when we gladly praise him and make room for him in the centre of our lives, he shows up in our midst and does amazing things.
At the house of Cornelius, a large gathering of Gentiles listens in the presence of God to Peter as he preaches the good news to them. Suddenly the Holy Spirit is poured out to the Gentiles, much to the astonishment of the Jews accompanying Peter.

The last in the series.