It's the buzzword of 2020 - the "new normal". It's a phrase that is repeated countless times as people recognise that COVID-19 has changed life as we know it and a 'new normal' is needed to live by. But have things really changed that much? The same thing that has always paralysed people, discouraged people, robbed them of courage and hope, and caused worldviews to shrink is still present and controlling lives across the globe. It's called fear. But God has already called us to a new normal through the resurrection of his Son Jesus. It's a life of boldness that comes from trusting in the amazing work of his grace that has and will be accomplished in us and through us. Suffering will not stop his transforming work. Circumstances don't limit his ability to redeem and restore. His hand holds you, his love strengthens you, his mercy sustains you, his compassion cares for you and his power is in you enabling us to move together with boldness until we share in the fullness of his victory and eternal glory. We’ll celebrate that today.
#6 in series: Move Together
Click here for this weeks Bulletin
Join the Chat group at 10.30am Sunday here
THEME VERSE
And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 1 Peter 5:10
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
In times of suffering, you are never alone. God not only cares for your deepest anxieties but he has overcome them all so your ‘new normal’ can be living boldly in his name. Whatever you face, the Lord will restore, empower, strengthen and establish you. That’s his promise.
“It’s not fair!” Said every child to every parent ever. How many times has that been said over the last six weeks as freedoms have been curtailed? How many people have uttered those words as Centerlink informs them they are not eligible for Job seeker or Job keeper. How many business owners have responded this way as some business are allowed to remain open while their own doors are shut? And every parent everywhere has said in reply: Life’s not fair. We know it…We live in a world that is not fair; where some seem to always draw the short straw…get the worst of a deal…lose out…get tripped up…It’s not fair.
But instead of complaining about life’s unfairness, Peter point to the unfairness of grace. It wasn’t fair that Christ suffered and died. It wasn’t fair that it cost Christ everything. But he willingly drew the short straw so we would get the benefit and blessing from the unfairness dealt to him. In a world that is harsh at the best of times, among people who will often turn their worst against your best, Jesus calls us to MOVE TOGETHER IN GRACE to bring grace to all as he brought grace to us.
#5 in Series; Move Together
Read this week's Bulletin here
Join the Chat group at 10.30am Sunday here
THEME VERSE:
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 1 Peter 3:18
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
Grace is never fair. God gives it to the undeserving. But it’s grace alone that saves. It’s grace alone that equips us to move together as his chosen people, returning kindness for insult, patience for rudeness, love for indifference. It’s grace alone that has the final word; that transforms us…and others.
It's said that credibility is the currency of trust. If that is true, then many leaders, governments and organisations are insolvent! Whether it's the World Health Organisation coming under fire for criticising travel bans or disseminating false information that the virus cannot be transmitted between humans or the conjecture surrounding the virus' origins. Whether it’s State or Federal leaders saying one thing only to have a minister in their cabinet say another a few hours later, or experts encouraging school return in one state while in another saying, "keep them home". With the mixed messaging being given, is it any wonder that people are confused and don't know who or what to trust? Is it any wonder that people are asking what is credible and what is not? This credibility deficit has been years in the making. Our political leaders have squandered trust over decades, banks and big business are still under a cloud for their excesses, abuses, and identified illegal behaviour, and the practices of the Church have come under close scrutiny. It’s an issue of credibility and it’s the same issue Peter addresses today. As people being again into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus, how credible is our witness? How would people know that we are telling the truth? Peter tells us that Christians are most believable, most credible when our lives look like Jesus, when we move together in love and enter into and share the pain and suffering of those around us. It’s a living that is credible and missional and we’ll explore that today.
#4 in series: Move together.
Click here for this week's bulletin
Join the Chat group at 10.30am Sunday here
THEME VERSE
To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:21
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
You are called to suffer. Expect it. It is part of the rhythm of a Christ-centred life. Yet in suffering, God’s grace is at work taking us beyond the boundaries of our own wisdom and strength and transforming us to live credibly so we can move together in love in the world, for Christ’s sake.
Australians love their points. Whether it's airlines, supermarkets, liquor stores, petrol stations, fashion retailers, garden centres, local clubs, coffee shops, or fast-food outlets, it's estimated that 90% of Australians are a member of a loyalty scheme, with the average Australian carrying four or more reward-earning cards. Each card signals that you belong. Most of them are free to join (though you still need to give all your personal details which are then used to tempt, seduce and coerce you into spending more with them) but the only way they work is if you do something first. If you spend, they will give discount. If you are loyal, they will reward you. Sign up and join the club and receive the benefits on offer. There are many who think that God works that way too. Sign up and receive the benefits. If you are loyal, you will be rewarded. There was a time when Peter thought that's the way God worked too. But there was one encounter that changed all that, moving Peter from an observer and reward seeker, into a participant and grace receiver. We'll explore that today as we 'Move together in Christ.
#3 in series: Move Together
Read this week's bulletin here(https://mailchi.mp/2eb8fdfc97ff/bulletin-april-19-4902517?e=UNIQID)
Join the Chat group at 10.30am Sunday here
THEME VERSE
As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:4-5
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
We are the church, the body of Christ, the living temple of God, called, loved, and redeemed by Christ to move together into the world, to participate in his life and reveal his glory and presence wherever we go.
It’s a basic reality that anyone in the emergency response, law enforcement or the defense forces will tell you - in crisis or threat situations almost no one “rises to the occasion,” but almost everyone “reverts to their training.” That’s why schools practice fire drills & lock-down drills That’s why firefighters train under difficult circumstances so that when the real crisis comes, they will “revert to their training”, fires will be extinguished and lives protected. What is most ingrained in our lives, our deep convictions are what is displayed in times of crisis, when the heat’s on, when push comes to shove, and when backs are against the wall. That’s why Peter writes to the church in crisis and under threat. He wants to deepen their conviction, fortify and strengthen their faith, reinforce the truths in which they have been trained, so that in difficult times they can continue to function dynamically – moving together with convictions that hold firm whatever is experienced.
#2 in series: Move Together
Read this week's bulletin here
Join the Chat group at 10.30am Sunday here
THEME VERSE
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. 1 Peter 1:22
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
Convictions on the inside will always show up on the outside. People convicted by the love of Jesus are a hope filled people. Hope filled people are a loving people because they know they cannot lose. What God has given, his Word and promises are eternal and cannot be taken away
Two heads are better than one. Together everyone achieves more. There’s no “I” in “team” We are all in this together. If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. Great motivational slogans…but the truth is they point us to what many of us are missing in these days of isolation and distancing. When the church is told it is “non-essential” and we are pushed farther to the margins of society. When it’s tempting to simply withdraw from the public square and leave the world to its own devices, Peter, the bold brash big fisherman speaks with great wisdom calling us to remember we are firmly planted in Christ not as isolated individuals but as a community - a gathered body, even if scattered, that together lives in the assurance of Christ’s resurrection and into the hope that only the living Jesus can give. It's a living hope that we can share with the world, even if we’re forced to stand at a distance from each other for a time.
#1 in series: Move Together
You can read this week's bulletin here
You can join this Sunday's chat at 10.30am here
THEME VERSE
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. Peter 1:3-4
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
You are on the front line of what God is doing in the world. God moves towards you in the Gospel to propel you outwards in the world with a living hope that protects, sustains and enables the real life of Jesus to transform every day.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! The resurrection of Jesus is earth-shaking; death couldn't stop him, hell couldn't hold him, the grave couldn't contain him and sin couldn't beat him. Life moves and the impact of his life continues to move around the world with aftershocks that are history-making, life-transforming and eternity-changing. Today Jesus invites us to make the next life move…to let him come alive fully in us that his presence through us will continue to shake up the world.
#5 in series: Seismic Shift
This week's bulletin can be found by clickinghere
THEME VERSE
He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” Matthew 28:6-7
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
The epicentre of life is Jesus
Every brokenness is the raw material for a new beginning…
Every tomb is a workshop of resurrection…
Every life is the canvas of a new creation…
when his life moves in you and through you.
It’s a life that will rock your world with joy for eternity!
Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! The resurrection of Jesus is earth-shaking; death couldn't stop him, hell couldn't hold him, the grave couldn't contain him and sin couldn't beat him. Life moves and the impact of his life continues to move around the world with aftershocks that are history-making, life-transforming and eternity-changing. Today Jesus invites us to make the next life move…to let him come alive fully in us that his presence through us will continue to shake up the world.
#4 in series: Seismic Shift
This week's bulletin can be found by clickinghere
THEME VERSE
He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” Matthew 28:6-7
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
The epicentre of life is Jesus
Every brokenness is the raw material for a new beginning…
Every tomb is a workshop of resurrection…
Every life is the canvas of a new creation…
when his life moves in you and through you.
It’s a life that will rock your world with joy for eternity!
The Seismic shift of our world has been huge in these last months...our foundations have been shaken, the ground beneath our feet has shifted. It has left nations destroyed, communities devasted and lives in ruin. Death Moves among us, confronting and challenging each one of us, leaving us raw and vulnerable, exposed and alone. The very word has a hollow ring that echoes through the caverns of our body, leaving our body shivering and shaking with despair. Today death moves again and it has Seismic repercussions - the very earth quakes at the cross of Jesus who is plunged into the heart of death. But it is this death that shifts everything for eternity. His death that changes the outcome of death for each one of us. His death that can fill every death move in your life with hope and life.