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New Beginnings - Community
Sunday, 13 January 2013
by Phil Irvine
Passage: John 4:1-42
Duration: 27 mins 22 secs
John’s gospel about spiritual insight and going beyond the physical. In John 4:27-42 the Samaritan woman is focused on the physical but Jesus wants to reveal something to her on a deeper level. Similarly we get caught up with the physical and miss the greater depth that Jesus has for us. We can’t see this without the Holy Spirit. We can be part of Christ’s work to bring about God’s kingdom if we open ourselves to God and others.
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New Beginnings - The Disciples
Sunday, 06 January 2013
by Phil Irvine
Passage: John 1:35-51
Duration: 31 mins 32 secs
We did not choose Jesus, He chose us. No matter what happens in 2013, we can hold onto this truth. In John 1:35-51, we see the response of several people to Jesus. Their stories show us that despite how we may think or feel at present Jesus knows, and has still chosen us and loves us. Jesus lives with us so He knows exactly what we’re going through and can sympathise perfectly with us.
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Jesus the Light
Sunday, 23 December 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: John 1:1-12
Duration: 28 mins 3 secs
In an increasingly biblically illiterate world, people still know the Christmas story. Jesus is what makes Christmas meaningful. In John 1:1-12 we are reminded that Jesus was there in the beginning. He is the Word, light and life. Just as we can not exist without physical light, we need the spiritual light Jesus gives. You can blindly miss Jesus if you are not looking for Him, but those who believe and receive get to become children of God.
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The Birth of Jesus - Wise Men
Sunday, 16 December 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: Matthew 2:1-12
Duration: 25 mins 53 secs
What is the real truth about Christmas? Truth is more than a series of propositions or a majority opinion of people, it is about knowing Jesus Christ because He is the truth and if you do not know Him you will miss the truth and the understanding of what it means to have a relationship with Him. The wise men travelled a great distance in search of the truth and to worship the true King - Jesus Christ.
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The Birth of Jesus - Shepherds
Sunday, 09 December 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: Luke 2:8-30
Duration: 20 mins 47 secs
Luke 2:8-20 records the reaction of the shepherds to the birth of Jesus. God ordains all things for His purposes. The Christmas story is something to wonder at anew every time we hear it.
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Releasing and Equipping the Saints for Ministry
Sunday, 02 December 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: Ephesians 4:1-16
Series: Re-Church: Returning to Things of First Importance
Duration: 26 mins 25 secs
In a world more united than ever before by technology and transport, people are more divided than ever. If you remove God from the picture this is inevitable. It is Jesus who draws all people to Himself and to His body the church, whom He sends out into the world to draw in more people. The church is where unity and peace should be seen, because that is what God has done for us and in us. It is not uniformity because God has made us each different, but unity is a byproduct as we work collectively on what God has called each of us to do.
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Re-Engaging Our Culture and Our Mission
Sunday, 25 November 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: 1 Corinthians 5:11-21
Series: Re-Church: Returning to Things of First Importance
Duration: 20 mins 54 secs
We need to not just talk and plan about loving people and fulfilling our mission, but actually do it. It would seem easier for God to just do it Himself, but He has made us His ambassadors. He works through us as His witnesses. If Jesus is the most important thing in your life, does your conversation, and life, reflect it? We need to create curiosity arousing lives so others will ask us questions that are an opening to share about Jesus and our motivation for what we do.
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Re-Imagining Community
Sunday, 18 November 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: Acts 2:41-47
Series: Re-Church: Returning to Things of First Importance
Duration: 33 mins 46 secs
Our individualistic world makes us think that faith is like that, but God calls us into a community. Jesus said that the quality of our community is to be the most attractional and distinctive thing about His followers. We know it does not tend to look like that, yet the church in Acts provides a model. It was a learning, sharing, worshipping and growing community. Our values at EPCBC are sound, but we need to make sure that we show them in practical terms.
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Recommitting to Holiness
Sunday, 11 November 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: 2 Peter 1:3-11
Series: Re-Church: Returning to Things of First Importance
Duration: 29 mins 50 secs
God commands us to be holy, but we do not need to feel overly burdened that holiness depends on us, because it does not and can not. God is leading us and enabling us to become all that He has called us to be. The paradox is that although we can not do anything to achieve holiness, we must actively engage in seeking it. We are to possess traits such as those Peter lists in 2 Peter 1 in increasing measure. We need to take hold of our faith and live the way God wants.
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Relinquishing Worldliness
Sunday, 04 November 2012
by Phil Irvine
Passage: 1 John 2:15-17
Series: Re-Church: Returning to Things of First Importance
Duration: 29 mins 4 secs
We are part of this world and there are many good things, but even the things we need to survive can creep into worldliness. It is hard to navigate the line between loving the things of this world and loving God. We need to get our priorities sorted; ensure there is nothing coming between us and God and direct our cravings toward Him; and have the right perspective, remembering that everything in this world is passing away.
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