Month: February 2024

Are our sermons too long?

February 29, 2024

Are our sermons too long? As a preacher this is something I have been thinking about for about five years. In the church traditions I have attended for most of the last 30 years, the sermon is placed towards the end of the service and it lasts from 20-30 minutes, sometimes more.

As time goes on I am starting to think that is too long for most people to listen to and take in, especially if there is no real structure to it. When I preach I always have an introduction with a title, a Bible reading, let the people know there is 3-4 points, then close with a summary and prayer.

I always use PowerPoint up on the screen with the main points and verses. Having the main points on the screen helps me to keep focussed when I am listening to others and people have said the same to me.

Something I have been doing lately is listening to a lot of shorter messages called sermonettes or Homilies. They are usually from 2-10 minutes in length and are very concise and to the point.

I am finding I am getting a lot out of these shorter messages. Mostly they share a Bible passage, or it is read by someone else before, and then one or two quick points and have a prayer that calls you to action or reflection.

I know from my website statistics that the sermons that most people download are the ones that are under 10 minutes long. People listen to the longer sermons, but the ones in the sermonettes section are downloaded five times more.

I am not really sure why this is? But I guess it is to do with people being busy and not having much time? It could also be people wanting quick encouragement? Whatever the reason it has got me thinking.

I think on my next sermon I will trim it down to be more like a sermonette or homily and see what feedback I get. I will still use my same format, but aim for ten minutes and see what feedback I get.

I will let you know how it goes.

Inviting Jesus in

February 27, 2024

As I was doing my morning devotions today I was thinking about the phrase “Inviting Jesus in”. As I dwelt on this I realised how important it is to invite Jesus in to the various areas of our lives.

1. Our life – this is the first and most important area. We need to invite Jesus in to our lives. He needs to be let in as our Lord and Saviour. This is when true life happens and He lives with us.

2. Our relationships – relationships can be hard at times with all the stresses of life. We need to invite Jesus in to them all. Our marriage, with our children, our friends, our workmates – He needs to be in them all.

3. Our work – inviting Jesus into our workplace to help us do well and serve Him. Whatever job role we have we ultimately do it for the Lord. Colossians 3:23 tells us who we really serve as we work. We are all gifted by God and we need His help to serve.

4. Our finances – many of us struggle with our finances. Inviting Jesus in to this area helps us to understand that He loves and cares for us and He is our provider. One of the names God is known by is Jehovah-Jireh which means “The Lord will provide”.

5. Our health – a lot of people I talk to have health issues that they battle with, myself included. Our battles can be very debilitating. Inviting Jesus into our health issues allows Him to provide comfort, strength and healing. Another name God is known as is Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals.

6. Our future – there are times in our lives where we can really worry about the future and what will happen to our families or ourselves. One thing God has been reminding me of lately is He holds our future. We may not know the future, but we can be confident God holds our future. Each of us are in the palm of His mighty hands.

Today I would encourage you to invite Jesus in to the different areas of your life. If you have never done this before, you can prayer this prayer below.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I invite you to come into my life. I want You to be my Lord and Saviour. Please come in and cleanse me from my sin. Help me to follow You with all of my heart. Lord, I also invite you into all of my relationships, my work, my finances and my health. Come in and help me in all these areas. Bring healing, provision and peace to them all. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen

What do I believe?

February 24, 2024

Recently I was asked what I believe as a Christian. My response was my beliefs are similar to most people who follow Jesus all around the world.

As I reflected on this question I was reminded of some of the ancient creeds. The Apostles Creed is a great summary the early church fathers created many centuries ago.

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.

This statement of faith is one that many Christians around the world today would say they believe. The same goes for many Christians down through the ages. Many churches say it out aloud together each week as a declaration of joint faith and unity.

As Christians I believe it is important to have a statement like this that unites us. We all may have slight differences depending on our church denomination we attend, but there is much more that unites our faith than separates us.

The best gift I have received

February 18, 2024

The best gift I have ever received is salvation from Jesus Christ. He died on the cross for my sin. He paid the price for it and by putting my faith and trust in Him I receive forgiveness, salvation and new life.

The Bible says in Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT that “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. [9] Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. [10] For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

These verses give us several major truths about salvation in Christ.

1. It is by grace we are saved through faith

2. Salvation is a gift from God

3. It is not a rewards for our good works

4. We are new masterpieces in Christ

5. We are saved to go and do good works

The greatest gift we can have is salvation from Jesus. When we put our faith and trust in Him, He gives us the gift of salvation. Then we walk in new life in Him and do good works He planned long ago.

Would you like to find salvation and peace with God? Please visit our peace with God page here.