Category: Sermons

The child with four amazing titles

December 23, 2023

The title of my Christmas message this year is “The Child with Four Amazing titles”.

Now in the Bible we see that Jesus is given many names. All of these names refer to some aspect of who He is and what He does. He is given names like the King of kings, the Lord of all lords, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Alpha and the Omega, the Lamb of God, the Bread of Life. He is also called the way, the truth and the life.

In today’s Christmas message I want to look at one verse from the Old Testament in the book of Isaiah. This verse was written some 700 years before the first Christmas, but it was written about Jesus. The verse comes from Isaiah chapter 9 verse 6.

It says, “For a Child is born to us, a Son is given to us. The government will rest on His shoulders. And He will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

In this verse the baby Jesus is given four amazing titles. Today, I want to look briefly at these titles.

1) Jesus is our Wonderful Counselor

Wonderful Counselor – what a great title. I don’t know about you, but sometimes in this life I need a wonderful counselor. Like most of us, sometimes I just don’t know what to do and I need help.

One of my favourite memory verses comes from Proverbs 3.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.  6 Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.”

Isaiah 55:8-9 also says, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And My ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.  9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts.”

It is great to know that I can pray to Jesus and ask for His wisdom and His guidance. It is great to know I can call on someone whose thoughts are higher than my thoughts. When I do call on Him in prayer, I find that before long the right path to take opens up.

Not only is prayer a great way to find guidance, but also are Jesus’ words in the Bible. In His famous sermon on the mount we see there are so many great truths contained for everyday life.

A quick scan of the Sermon on the Mount shows us how to have the right attitude to life, how to pray, how to respond when people wrong us, how to live in a marriage relationship, how to use our money and possessions, how to be generous, and how to be a true follower of Jesus.

These are timeless truth for how to live, how to relate to each other and how to relate to God. In fact, when He finished His sermon people were amazed. Matthew 7:28-29 tells us, “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at His teaching, 29 for He taught with real authority–quite unlike their teachers of religious law”.

So not only can we pray and receive direction from our wonderful counselor Jesus, but we can also read His words in the Bible.

2) Jesus is our Mighty God

The second amazing title in this passage is mighty God. In His time on earth Jesus showed His power and glory in the way He lived and interacted with those around Him. Shortly after the sermon on the mount, Jesus moved out into the world and did a number of amazing miracles.

As we saw a few weeks ago, Jesus performed a number of miracles including…

The healing of the man with leprosy (Matthew 8:1-4), healing the Centurion’s slave (Matthew 8:5-13), the calming of the storm (Matthew 8:23-27), healing the  Paralytic man who was brought by his friends (Matthew 9:1-8), Jesus raised the Dead Girl to life (Matthew 9:18-26), Jesus healed the Sick Woman who touched His cloak (Matthew 9:20-22), He healed the Two Blind Men (Matthew 9:27-31), and He drove the demon out of the Mute Man (Matthew 9:32-33).

In performing these miracles Jesus showed that mighty God is a title that sits well on Him. He healed the sick, drove out demons, calmed the storm and He even raised the dead. Jesus showed that He had power that is not of this world. He did things that no mortal man could do. He did things that only God could do.

At times in life when we feel weak and we don’t think we can do the things we need to do, it is great to know that we have Jesus we can call on for help and strength. The Bible tells is we can do all things through Christ who is our strength (Philippians 4:13).

This Christmas we know that help from “Mighty God” is just a prayer away.

3) Jesus is our Everlasting Father

The third title is “Everlasting Father”. This title shows that Jesus is eternal.

John 1:1-4 reminds us that Jesus is eternal. “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.  2 He existed in the beginning with God.  3 God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him.  4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone.

When I first got interested in reading the Bible in my early 20s, I thought that Jesus came into existence when He was born at Christmas time to Mary.

Before long I realise that Jesus was there at the creation of the world. He was there when Adam and Eve were created. He was around when Noah build his ark, He was around when Moses led the people of Egypt to freedom, He was around the great kings and prophets walked the earth in Old Testament times. Then 2000 years ago He walked the earth to show us what God is like, to show us how to live, and ultimately to show us how much He loves us by dying on the cross for our sin. Now He has returned to heaven and He promises to come back for us one day. This is the great hope for all who trust in Jesus for their salvation.

Again, everlasting father is a wonderful title. It helps us to know that when we put our faith and trust in Jesus, we are not just trusting in a baby who grew into a man who walked the earth some 2000 years ago, but we are putting our faith in someone who is eternal and everlasting. And as Colossians 2:9 tells us, “For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body”.

Everlasting Father is a title that sits well on Jesus.

4) Jesus is our Prince of Peace

The final title in this verse is “Prince of peace”. Another great title that was given to Jesus.

It doesn’t take much to see that the world desperately needs a prince of peace. When we read the newspaper in the morning or watch the nightly news we see peace is needed. At times it is easy to get overwhelmed by it all.

However, when I get troubled by world events like terrorism, wars, floods, earthquakes, famine and the like, I close my eyes prayerfully and think about the prince of peace. The one who came from eternity, was born in a manger at Christmas, lived amongst us and gives us His peace.

There are two great verses that still my heart and mind when I am worried…

In John 14:27 Jesus said these words to His troubled followers when they were afraid, “I am leaving you with a gift–peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So, don’t be troubled or afraid.”

And in Philippians 4:7, the Apostle Paul who was one of the leaders in the early church said, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Story of Peace

Long ago a man sought the perfect picture of peace. Not finding one that satisfied, he announced a contest to produce this masterpiece. The challenge stirred the imagination of artists everywhere, and paintings arrived from far and wide. Finally, the great day of judging arrived. The judges uncovered one peaceful scene after another, while the viewers clapped and cheered.

The tensions grew. Only two pictures remained veiled.

As a judge pulled the cover from one, a hush fell over the crowd.

A mirror-smooth lake reflected a perfect scenery of rolling hills with a perfectly blue sky. Along the grassy shore, a flock of sheep grazed undisturbed. Surely this was the winner.

The man with the vision uncovered the final painting himself, and the crowd gasped in surprise. Could this be peace?

A tumultuous waterfall cascaded down a rocky cliff; the crowd could almost feel it’s cold, penetrating spray. Stormy-grey clouds threatened to explode with lightning, wind and rain. In the midst of the thundering noises and bitter chill, a tiny tree clung to the rocks at the edge of the falls.

A little bird had built a nest in the elbow of that branch. Content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings, she rested on her chicks. With her eyes closed and her wings covering her little ones who were oblivious to the storms, she manifested peace that transcends all earthly turmoil.

This picture was declared the unanimous winner.

Jesus, as the prince of peace, can give us peace. A true and lasting peace that is not of this world. It is the peace of heaven. If you want to experience true and lasting peace this Christmas, it is found in the prince of peace.

Closing

So, as I close, I want to wish you all a wonderfully happy, safe and blessed Christmas. It is my hope and prayer that this Christmas you will experience the love of the child who grew up to be a Saviour with four amazing titles – the wonderful counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting father and the prince of peace.

If you have not made your connection with God, I would encourage you to  click on the “Finding Salvation” link to find true and lasting peace this Christmas.

Merry Christ everyone.

Read it out loud and absorb it

July 12, 2023

At my last church I Pastored the Elders understood that some weeks as a Pastor you are really busy with people, extra training, planning or prayer.

In those weeks it was okay for me to just read a passage of Scripture and share a couple of brief thoughts. At first I found this hard, but slowly I realised that while preaching is a key part of a Pastors work, sometimes the best thing I can do is just read out Scripture and let it be absorbed by the people.

This is an example of a passage I might read on those weeks…

Psalm 103:8-18 NLT
[8] The LORD is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. [9] He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. [10] He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. [11] For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. [12] He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. [13] The LORD is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. [14] For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust. [15] Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. [16] The wind blows, and we are gone- as though we had never been here. [17] But the love of the LORD remains forever with those who fear him. His salvation extends to the children’s children [18] of those who are faithful to his covenant, of those who obey his commandments!

Five tips for new Christians

May 19, 2023

If you are a new Christian you have made a great decision to follow Jesus! To get you started I have provided some suggestions for you to help you grow on your new journey. Below you will find some things that really helped me nearly 35 years ago when I decided to follow Jesus.

Read the Bible

The Bible will help you to learn more about God and gives you practical advice about how we should live. A good place to start is the Gospel of Luke that is found in the New Testament. This book will give you information on the life of Jesus Christ and you will be able to read about His miracles and teachings to His followers. After this you can move on to the Book of Acts. This talks about the early church and how they got started. We also have a number of two week reading plans on our Bible Readings page. If you don’t have access to a Bible, you can find an online one here at www.biblegateway.com

Start to pray

Prayer is simply communicating with God. It is a part of building our relationship with Him. Just remember to keep it simple. The Bible tells us to give thanks to God for what He has done when pray and also to ask for the things we need for ourselves and others. Before long you will see the difference prayer makes in your life and in the lives of those around you. You can check out our prayer category on our blog for some tips.

Meet with other Christians

God wants us to meet with other Christians and be a part of a caring faith community. We see in the Bible that He wants us to have a support network and a place where we can learn more about Him. We don’t recommend any church in particular, but encourage you to try a local one near you in your community. If you are in Western Australia you might like to look for a local Church of Christ , Baptist Church or an Australian Christian Church.

Do a discipleship course

Doing a discipleship course will help you to set a solid foundation for your new life in Christ. We have a free booklet you can download on our discipleship page. The booklet has 10 short studies on the Bible, prayer, church, serving God, sharing your faith and being assured of your salvation. It includes a number of Scriptures on each topic, some reflection questions, a simple prayer and some Bible memory verses.

Tell others about your new faith

Sharing your faith can be fun and rewarding. You might like to start by telling people close to you that you have accepted Jesus into your life. Telling others about your faith and decision to follow Jesus can will allow them to follow Him too. If you need some tips to help you share your faith you can visit a sermon I preached on this topic.

Five ways to be a living sacrifice

November 13, 2022

Bible Reading: Romans 12:1-13, 1 Corinthians 12:4-8

The title of my message today is “Five ways to be a living sacrifice”. For my devotions this past week or so I have been working my way through Romans 12. As I did this Romans 12:1 has really stuck in my mind.

Romans 12:1 NLT says, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him”.

In this verse Paul urges us as believers to follow Jesus example in being a sacrifice, but rather die for sin, we die to ourselves and offer ourselves to God. Paul encourages us to be living sacrifices. To give our lives for God’s service. He says that this is an acceptable sacrifice to God and the way we truly worship Him. It is a right response to the actions of a loving God.

But how do we go about being a living sacrifice? What are some of the things it entails? If we read through the rest of chapter Romans 12 Paul gives us a few clues. Today I just want to touch on some of the things that jumped out at me as I meditated on this chapter.

1. Renew our mind

Verse 2 says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Renewing your mind. This is a vital first step if we are wanting to live a life in God’s service and be a living sacrifice. We need to line our hearts and minds up with God’s thinking.

How do we do this? The primary way is by prayerfully reading, reflecting and meditating on the Bible. As we do this we allow God’s Spirit and God’s Word to enter our minds and sink deep into our hearts. The result of this if we do it diligently over a period of time, it changes our hearts to our minds forever. The result of this is “Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

I find that as the years go by and my mind is renewed more and more, the things of God become easier and more natural to do. It is easier to love others, it is easier to serve others and it is easier to live by Kingdom standards.

In many ways our minds are like the gearboxes of our lives. If our minds are renewed, it is easier to put them in D for drive and go forward in Christ and His will for our lives. If they are not renewed we might be in Park, Neutral or even Reverse. Those who drive an automatic will know that if you are in drive, you only have to take your foot off the brake and you start moving forward.

As I said I will unpack renewing our minds in a deeper way in a future sermon. But today I just want to make the first point that a key to being a living sacrifice is to renew our minds.

2. Use our gifts well

Verses 6-8 – “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.”

Paul tells us to use whatever gift God has given us to the best of our abilities. If it is to prophesy, teach, serve, give, show kindness or encourage we should do the best job we can.

In 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 Paul also says, “4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.”

And in 1 Peter 4:10 Peter reminds us to, “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

Using our gifts well is a key part of being a living sacrifice for God. This is sometimes where the sacrifice part comes in. There is work is finding, recognising and developing your gifts. I may be an encourager but we have to work at it. My loner tendencies needed to be overcome so I could be where people were who needed encouragement. I was told I had a gift of teaching, but I had to work to develop my gift with diligent study. I also had to get over my paralysing fear of public speaking. It can be hard and a sacrifice, but there is no greater and more peaceful place to be than being right in the middle God’s will using God’s gifts for the good of others. I wouldn’t be standing here today if I didn’t work hard to develop my gifts.

3. Really love each other

Verses 9-10 – “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves”.

Both the NIV and the NLT say this well, but I love the way the NLT puts it “Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them”. That is straight to the point!

I remember when our girls were young we put this verse on the fridge. We then had a list of ways we could show we really love someone. It said things like…

  •     Pray for them
  •     Do nice things for them
  •     Share things with others
  •     Listen to them
  •     Speak nicely to them
  •     Give them a hug
  •     Give them a present
  •     One even said by giving them chocolate!

Kids have a way of putting things simply. I have never forgotten these things. They showed me that we love others in practical ways, by helping when they are in need. This is sometimes a sacrifice. But it is well worth it. Because it means we are living out this life that Jesus calls us to live and being a light unto the world around us.

There are a number of other places in the New Testament that talks about the importance of loving one another.

1 John 4:7 – Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

1 John 4:11 – Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

John 13:34-35 – “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

These verses remind us that we are commanded to love one another, that those who love are born of God, that since God loves us we should love one another and by our love for one another people we know we are Jesus’ disciples. My heart is to be known as a disciple of Jesus, so I need to love others.

4. Live in harmony with each other

Verses 14-18 – “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

In the next section Paul urges us to live at peace with everyone. The NIV says to live at peace with everyone as much as it depends on you.

I remember years ago I worked with a lady who just didn’t like me. No matter what I did or said she just would not warm up to me. She would even go out of her way to make sure I did not receive favourable treatment at work. One day I read these verses and it reminded me that no matter how she treats me I had to live at peace with her. So I prayed and asked God to help me work with her and to ask if there was ways I could bless her. In time I emailed her and apologised if I had offended her without knowing. As a result, we were able to talk and the problem was sorted. We had a good working relationship and were able to talk and we did not a barrier between us.

It really brought home to me that we should try to love and serve others even if they persecute us as Christians. God makes it very clear it is not our place to curse or take revenge. That is a big sacrifice at times and is contrary to a worldly way of thinking.

If you want to be a living sacrifice, you need to live at peace with everyone as much as it depends on you.

5. Conquer evil with good

Verse 21 – “Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good”

Paul finally finishes this section with a plea to not let evil overcome us, but we need to press on and overcome evil with good deeds. I remember years ago I was heavily involved in community outreach with our church in Perth. We would go door to door giving away Jesus videos. We were on fire and we wanted to take on the world. Then along came September 11. It is when I let evil overcome me. I was horrified at the evil people could do to each other. It really knocked me and I found it hard to go out every Saturday. I knew there was evil in the world, but somehow it brought it home to me. It took me a few months to get back on tract.

Verse 21 was one of the things that helped me get back on tract. God commands us to conquer evil by doing good.

Edmund Burke once said, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”. I think Princess Di used that in one of her famous speeches too.

It can be a sacrifice to have an overcoming attitude. But if we keep moving forward and serving God by serving others the Bible promises we will reap a harvest at the right time. It tells us this is Galatians 6:9.

Conclusion

As we can see from these things being a living sacrifice is about:

  1.     Renewing our minds to line up with Kingdom thinking
  2.     Using our gifts well
  3.     Living at peace with those around us.
  4.     Really loving and serving others.
  5.     Conquer the evil things that take place in this world by doing good.

And while we do these things we are to keep our hope, be patient when things are going wrong and keep praying faithfully.

Let’s pray