Sermons@kingsley

After arguing powerfully for the gospel of Grace against a religion of works, Paul now applies his message very practically in the lives of his readers. He contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit and calls us to the better path of keeping in step with the Spirit. Mike reminds us of what we’ve seen in the letter – that the works of our flesh can sometimes look like lawless self-indulgence and it can also look like legalistic self-righteousness. But the way of the Spirit is to trust in the finished work of Jesus and all that He has accomplished for us; and to express that faith in obedience that is not possible in our own strength but is possible through the Spirit’s power. The Holy Spirit moves Paul to explain this very practically as his letter draws to a close, showing what this looks like not only in our individual lives, but in the way that we need each other’s help to keep in step with the Spirit.

The Apostle Paul finishes his defence of the good news that we don’t have a list of laws to live up to, we have a new identity to live out of. This new identity is ours by God’s grace alone and is received through faith in Jesus Christ, not by any effort of our own. Having argued for the gospel from their personal experience, Scripture, history, reason and their relationship with Paul; the closing argument is an analogy from the life of Abraham and his two wives. It’s a powerful illustration of what it means to be children of Promise. Placing our faith in God to fulfil all His promises is the only way for us to have true fellowship with God and each other, for us to live in freedom from sin and law and finally, for our lives to bear good fruit – fruit that we cannot produce by our own efforts.

In his letter to the Galatians Paul is fighting a threat to the fellowship that Galatian Christians have with God and with each other; the freedom they have to live the life that Christ has given them; and the fruitfulness that comes as a result of God’s life welling up in us and overflowing through us. In chapter 3 Paul argues from the personal experience of the Galatians, the testimony of the Scriptures and the voice of reason to prove that we are made right with God and each other by grace alone which is received by faith alone in Christ alone. Our fellowship with God and each other could never be accomplished by following the Old Testament law or through anything else that depends on human merit. This challenges the way we so often see and treat God, ourselves and other people. What would it mean to live this truth out in community today?

In our last 2 messages from the book of Galatians we’ve seen Paul rebuke Peter (2:11-14) and then the Galatians (3:1-5) for going back to obedience to the laws of Moses. Is this such a bad thing? According to Paul, absolutely! In between these rebukes (2:15-21) Paul sums up the message of this whole letter. In clarifying the purpose of the law he helps us to understand the doctrine of sin, which is essential for us to understand if we are to appreciate the value of our Saviour. This message is far more than a correction for a group of people who were struggling to transition from Judaism to Christianity. It’s a message for every human being who needs to understand the root of our common problem and the source of our common hope.

The Galatian churches had fallen into a critical error by adding obedience to the mosaic law as an essential component of the Christian life. Paul explains why this is such a grave mistake and recalls how it has been dealt with elsewhere in chapters 1 & 2. In chapters 3 & 4 he goes on to present 6 arguments to convince the Galatians that they have made a foolish choice in turning away from a salvation that is by faith alone in Christ alone. The first of these arguments is a personal one. He reminds them of their own experience of salvation. He takes them back to the wonderful news of Christ’s death and resurrection and the priceless gift of the Holy Spirit who they received when they placed their trust in Christ. Why would we turn away from such a wonderful gift of grace and start placing conditions on God’s acceptance of us and on our acceptance of one another that are based on our worthiness instead of on Christ’s?

As we celebrate Father’s Day we take some time to think about God’s design for Dads who make a difference in their families, churches and communities. Australian research published by the Fathering Project illustrates that all fathers are making a difference – it’s the type of difference they’re making that counts! We look at the top 5 risks for children with disengaged or dysfunctional dads to understand the importance of not neglecting our God-given roles; but also to encourage us that we’re probably making more of a positive difference than we realise! We also rejoice in God’s plan for community which means there’s always father-figures who can help us grow as Dads as well as providing fathering support for children.

1 Timothy 6:18-19 describes a blessed life, where we are free to use what God has given us to overflow with good works, being generous and willing to share. This is not only a blessing in this life but it lays a great foundation for the life to come where God will reward every act of faith. These verses describe what we are free for, but not what we are free from. That came in verse 17, which also revealed what it is that frees us. In this message we spend some time exploring the power of the two “don’ts” and the one “do” of 1 Timothy 6:17. We examine how tempting it is to look for our identity and security in wealth, but how liberating it is when we find our identity and security in God. We conclude by recognising that religious leaders and institutions have not always done well in this area. The Bible is very realistic about that, so we take care to notice the way Paul addresses Timothy’s motives before his message and recognise that leaders and institutions need to be especially careful about the love of m

Guest speaker Peter Warren challenges us from the story of Moses in Exodus 3 & 4 about how we respond to God’s call.

The Church is amazing when it functions the way God designed it to, but as long as there are people in it there’s going to be dysfunction too! Hebrews 12:1-2 gives us that great picture of running the race of faith with our eyes on Jesus; and urges us to get rid of the things that hinder us and the sins that trip us up so we can run that race. But how do we do that? We take a closer look at Paul’s approach when his fellow Apostle Peter got caught up in dysfunction and tripped up others in the process. It’s a really helpful model for those times when we can either be part of the problem or part of the solution!

Whenever we cross from our own culture into another one there’s sure to be some challenges. After sharing some of his own experiences in unfamiliar cultures, Mike takes a look at the challenges the Early Church faced as the gospel spread beyond Jewish communities into Gentile regions. The hostility many Jews of the time felt toward Gentiles was deeply rooted in centuries of oppression. It caused the Jews of Jesus’ hometown to become furious with Him when He foretold the blessings that God wanted to bestow on Gentiles through the Messiah. When Jews and Gentiles were united through faith in Christ a new community began to take shape. Galatians 2 tells the story of how even the Apostles Peter and Paul, who were completely united in the gospel, came to be at odds while trying to navigate the new territory of how Jews and Gentiles come together as followers of Jesus. It’s a great lesson in discerning how our culture of origin is shaping our obedience to Christ; it highlights the subtle danger of “acceptable” sins