Good foundations are important in all aspects of life whether it is buildings, family, theology, learning, or relationships; they are the base upon which everything else is built. Relationships need a solid foundation of trust, the early years of learning needs a basic knowledge in a given subject to provide a foundation for further learning, a good foundation provides structural integrity to the building that is erected on it. Strong foundations anchor our lives in changing times, protect our lives in all conditions, are load bearing when we most need support and give confidence in moving forward. That's Jude's final reminder to all Christians today. Faith matters because faith in God is the foundation on which the Church together can build strong, secure lives which reveal to the world what we truly believe. Today we'll explore that as Jude points out "What you do!"
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THEME VERSE:
But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Jude 1:20-21
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
A foundation built on the holy God enables us together to:
Live obediently
Love completely
Pray boldly
Hope eternally
Serve purposefully.
FAITH TALK
1. What hope does your faith bring to you?
2. How do we as a Church keep ourselves in the love of God?
Counterfeits, fakes, knock-offs. To the unwary traveller or online shopper they can be a dangerous trap as they end up with cheap imitations of the real thing. But here's the truth - every good and valuable thing God has given to humanity has a knock off or cheap imitation. Jude says the same thing happens with the Gospel. So Jude, who knew the real thing and had spent a lot of time at the feet of Jesus who was the real thing, knows a counterfeit when he sees it. He can spot the fake, the knock-off in the Church, and calls out those who say they are Christian yet peddle a poor copy of the real Gospel. There's no substitute for the original and Jude reminds us today that Faith Matters as he points out what we're up against. Anything less that the real thing will leave you shipwrecked, dry, barren, dirty and wandering aimlessly through life.
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THEME VERSE:
For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. Jude 1:4
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
The better you get to know the real thing, the easier it is to spot the counterfeit! Spend time with Jesus today.
FAITH TALK
1 How do you know if someone is teaching the truth or teaching a lie?
2. What good things created by God have had cheap imitations substituted for the real thing.
A well-timed and well-delivered pre-game speech or pep talk can have the power to motivate and inspire individuals and teams. Athlete's use them to get into performance mode, to get their game face on. Teacher's use them to motivate their students. Coaches use them to inspire the team to unite around a common goal. Military leaders use them to rally their troops and send fearful and hesitant soldiers courageously into battle. Jude, one of the early Church leaders, goes from an at ease stance to high alert in seconds. An enemy has infiltrated the camp and Jude delivers an urgent pep talk to all Christians to put them on high alert, to remind them of their foundations and to inspire, galvinise and rally God's people around one central truth - that faith matters. Today Jude reminds us of what we have.
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THEME VERSE:
I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. Jude 1:3
REMEMBER THIS WEEK:
We have identity, purpose and security in Jesus. That is the one truth worth fighting for. Anything that seeks to erode, diminish, dilute or rob people of the freedom and joy this Gospel brings needs to be called out and fought against.
FAITH TALK:
1 What does it mean to you to be “called” by God?
2. Are there times when your faith in Jesus is at odds with a common attitude in the world? Share.
On your own. Three small words that contain a range of emotions. Fear. Excitement. Dread. Anticipation. Loneliness. Freedom. On your own. Three small words that cover a range of transitions. From dependence to independence, from needing your parents to drive you everywhere to driving on your own, from living at home to living on your own, from being in a relationship/marriage to being on your own. From having someone do things for you to making it on your own. From a house full of kids to being just on your own. From being connected and having a purpose to feeling like you are on your own. From sharing a lifetime together to being on your own again. From having a faith passed on from your parents to believing the claims of Jesus on your own. Life is full of 'on your own' moments that can either halt you in your tracks or launch you into new adventures. So how do you thrive when you’re on your own. We'll explore and discover that today.
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THEME VERSE:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1
REMEMBER THIS WEEK:
You are never alone, when you on your own.
For in God's presence, you have an abiding home.
FAITH TALK
1 When do you feel most “on your own/alone?"
2. When has God been especially present to you in a recent “alone” time?”
Covid-19 has dramatically changed the way we live and work, affecting every element of life, from family and community to even how we socialise. Work has seen one of the greatest shifts, from in person meetings to zoom meetings (with kids banging on the door wanting to see mum or dad), from workers commuting to offices and flying internationally to putting on the tracksuit pants and walking to the home office in 20 secs. For some the change has brought better work/life balance, for others it has created incredible stress as they have had to upskill in new technology, pivot in different ways, and adapt to flexible environments. But the changing nature of work has been in evidence for several decades with the sandwich generation and early retirees, caring for ageing parents while supporting their children and becoming the new generation of unpaid baby sitters! How do you thrive when your work is different? How do you find purpose and significance when your work and life encounter new terrain? The Apostle Paul invites us to do a heart pivot in which we discover a new purpose, a spiritual significance and a deep fulfilment that enables us to thrive even when work changes.
#3 in seres: New Terrain
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THEME VERSE
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:17
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
What you do each day becomes an act of faith that brings the presence of Christ into ordinary moments to bless others.
FAITH TALK
If someone asked you, 'Why do you work?' how would you respond?
It has been said: ‘As the family goes, so does the nation…’ As the family is able to navigate changing times, as the family is able to thrive in the midst of crisis, so is the nation able to navigate uncertain times and thrive in changing circumstances. What could we conclude about the health and resilience of our nation as we look at families at this time? Some families are thriving as they find a new found purpose in rearing children into competent and confident adults who can overcome life's difficulties. Some are embracing the togetherness that this crisis has brought. Many are struggling as they fight to stay upright themselves on foundations that are shifting. Some families are living out the law of exposure which says that our minds absorb and our lives reflect that to which we are most frequently exposed, with frightening and destructive consequences. So how do we navigate the new terrain we find ourselves in and thrive as families change? How do we thrive through the changing stages of family life as we move from dependency to growing independency and everything in-between? Joshua gives us some insight today. He not only led a nation, but his own family though times of crisis, discovering the one that enables families to thrive in any crisis and change.
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THEME VERSE
But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15b
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
In a world filled with options and choice, choose C every time. For the Creator, the Chief Cornerstone and Counsellor is the foundation that supports, empowers and enables thriving families through all the changes and crises of life.
FAITH TALK:
What is your family motto, or if you could choose a motto for your family, what would it be?
UP WORDS FROM THE SERMON:
But listen up. Let me give you a heads-up, because it won’t be easy to fire up. When God said that he’ll join us up, it won’t always add up, and you’ll need to buckle up. We all have hang ups, we all stuff up. When things begin to pile up, and you mess up, or foul up or muck it up, or there’s a blow up or a dust up, or a break up or crack up and you feel like giving up or going belly-up, or selling up, and you want to pack up and you’re fed up, and your life seems screwed up, and you feel cut up, or maybe a relationship has broken up, and your heart ices-up, and things foul up, and love dries up, you can’t speak up, and you want to throw up and sell up and pack up, and you think there’s no back up, and you want to even up, or cover up, don’t give up. Buck up. Cheer up. There is a back-up, or a pick-me-up, and a leg up, and a hand up. We will need a check-up, and be reassured that God shows up! He rolls up. And He will follow up! He wants your heart to soften up, for you to ‘fess up, and open up, so don't pass this up and be stuck up. God wants you to wake up, move up, and make up, and man up, and perk up, and grow up, and loosen up. God wants you to join up, and wise up, and pump up, and belt up, and cheer up, so you people, in your lives, lap-it-up, and fire up, and light up, and step up, and talk-it-up, so you can be filled up, to live-it-up,‘ cause God never lets up.
So here’s the lowdown. We have a God who comes down. He’s a God who comes to us. A God who comes down when we’re run-down, or there’s been a put-down, and helps us calm down, and makes sure we won’t be let down. If you’re down cast, he doesn’t look at the down side. The times we break down, or fall down, and our world turns up-side-down, and there’s a meltdown, and we need to shut-down, and go into lock-down, Jesus comes down. He’s the down load.
The only real constant in the world is change. To cope with that we develop a reflex response. You don’t think about it, you don’t plan for it, you can’t seem to stop it. It just happens. When life’s challenges hit, when we are confronted with a shifting and changing landscape and life-scape, most of us revert to our reflexive response. Some respond by giving up, taking flight or curling up in a ball saying, “I can’t take it.” Others fight the change angrily or aggressively. Still others respond with a cool indifference, having developed a protective shell around their hearts that nothing can penetrate. Then there are those who thrive on the challenge saying “Bring it on!” In this season when we have lost so much and stand to lose perhaps a whole lot more, when we grieve all that is no longer available to us and the future uncertainties loom large and are overpowering, what is your reflexive response? Navigating change is tough. Finding a ‘new’ normal is tedious. Living through grief and loss is painful. Wherever you are in that today, God promises his steadfast love, his faithful presence and his unfailing strength. It’s a gift to help you stay true as you navigate new terrain and thrive in life’s changes, especially grief and loss.
#1 in series: New Terrain
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THEME VERSE
The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him! Lamentations 3:22-24
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
God’s grace is sufficient for you today and it will be sufficient for you tomorrow
FAITH TALK:
When life gets hard, what’s your reflexive response? Why do you think that is?
Gaps - life is full of them. Between intention and action, potential and performance, inexperience and wisdom, doubt and confidence, reality and dreams, fear and courage, the known and unknown, between life as it was and life as it is now. Gaps always take us to the edge of what we know, to the border of what we believe and to the horizon of what we can see. In many ways COVID-19 has revealed the widening gaps that are a part of our life and the spiritual poverty that exists. But if we are willing to step into that gap, letting go of our self-reliance, letting go of our need to control, letting go of our lives, we might just discover the riches of poverty - a God who graciously and generously bridges every gap in our life so that we can step into the gap and embody Christ-like generosity for others. We'll explore how faith-formed generosity can not only pull together the gap in people's lives today but fill it with the blessing of Christ’s presence.
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THEME VERSE
"All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” Luke 21:4
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
Faith formed generosity does not begin in the hand but in the heart.
“Do you want fries with that?” For most of us that was our introduction to the marketing ploy “upsizing.” A subtle yet convincing insinuation that you really wanted more…bigger is better…more is more satisfying. That upsizing mindset has permeated much of our thinking.
Older Australians are encouraged to upsize their homes to protect their pension. Sellers experiment with upsizing their packaging to appeal to a wider customer base. As a society we are constantly told to upsize ourselves. To believe in ourselves, to put our best foot forward. Look at your resume! The classic upsize…promote ourselves and upsize our achievements. But Jesus wasn’t concerned about upsizing or even downsizing because he proclaimed that for God’s saving purpose in this world, you are just the right size. Today we explore what Faith formed service really looks like.
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THEME VERSE
'…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:28
REMEMBER THIS WEEK
You are the right size to serve. In all things, his love will fill you, his Spirit will equip you, his strength will enable you, and his presence will guide you to leave the imprint of his self-giving love in every act and every interaction.