This week in Galatians 2:11-21 we hear of a time when Paul confronted Peter for being ‘out of step with the truth of the gospel’. What may have seemed to be a simple case of changing one’s behaviour to suit different company, was in fact a matter of utmost significance. Paul saw Peter’s conduct for what it was – a distortion of the gospel of grace and a return to the law for justification. There was no way Paul could just stand by and watch Peter contradict the gospel and lead others astray. All of us long to be accepted […]

Thank God for choosing a rugged man like Paul who would not move for a moment away from the gospel that he had been commissioned by God to proclaim. Meeting the other apostles after years of independent ministry only confirmed that his gospel was no different than theirs – they were on the same page but simply entrusted with different spheres of ministry. There is only one apostolic gospel for the whole world. To be sure of this will keep us free from being intimidated by the many alternative gospels that seek to avoid our total need for a total […]

This week in Galatians 1:11-24 we hear how Paul’s apostleship and the gospel he proclaims are not some man-made fairytale or fiction, but come from God himself. They therefore carry all the weight and authority of the Lord. To reject this gospel of grace from God, or to distort it in any way, is not simply a matter of choice, it is a matter of life and death. This is not one way among many, but the only way to life and true freedom. The glorious good news of this gospel of Christ, is that it is the power of […]

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” How would life be if all we did began with the grace and peace of God? How would life be if forgiveness flowed freely in all our relationships? What freedom we would have! And what trouble we would avoid! Such freedom and grace are ours to be enjoyed through faith in the gospel of Christ. As we commence this series through Galatians entitled ‘True Gospel : True Freedom’, we hear of Paul’s astonishment and anguish towards the Galatians who knew this grace and enjoyed this freedom, […]

This week, in the last message of our ‘Abide In Me’ series we will hear of the great goal of all creation and the culmination of all history – when ‘the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people.’ ‘Heaven’ has little to do with clouds and harps and angels, and much more to do with the dwelling place of God and his people. And it is not merely ‘heaven’ which is our hope and goal, but the new heaven and the new earth, where we will abide with Christ […]

This week David Powell will bring the ninth message in our ‘Abide In Me’ series – “Abiding in the End”.  The readings are from Revelation 4 and 7:9-17 revealing the throne of the Father and the Lamb that was slain. Here we reach a glorious end to our abiding – eternal worship of the Father, Son and the Spirit. We will see how we are dwelling, and will dwell with God before His throne and He with us. We do this not as individuals, but as a great multitude from every nation, tribe and tongue. This provides us with an […]

This week, in John 15, we come to the passage from which the title of our series appears – ‘Abide in me, and I in you,’ says Jesus to his disciples. The vine imagery used by Jesus is a reminder of Israel’s failure to produce the fruit the Father desired. In the last of Jesus’ ‘I am…’ statements, we hear that HE is the ‘true vine’. Only in him can we ‘bear fruit’ which remains. However, for this take place, there is much cutting and pruning – no branch is spared the gracious, yet sometimes severe, tending of the vinedresser […]

It is often said that we live in a ‘free country’, but I wonder how many of us truly feel free. There is much in this life which seems to restrict and overwhelm us, let alone the matters of sin, the world, the devil, our consciences and God’s law and his wrath. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be free of the bondage and tyranny of any, let alone all of these? Jesus promises us complete liberation – “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). This freedom is found only when we abide in the […]

This week, from John 6:22-59, we will hear how doing ‘the work of God’, coming to Jesus, looking to him and feeding on his flesh are all one and the same – belief in him. And all who do this will be ‘raised up in the last day’ and have eternal life. Yet, unless the Father draws us to Christ and grants to us the gift of faith, we can do none of these. Without this faith and revelation, we may see the sign and want more of it, but not see or seek the object it is pointing to […]

Last week we were shown something of the holiness of God that Israel, and others such as the Philistines, saw and experienced, particularly with regard to the Ark of the Covenant. God was determined to dwell among his people, and graciously provided the means by which this could take place. However, very few were able to come near to the Lord’s holy presence and to even touch the Ark brought about dire consequences. How is it then, that we could ever hope to dwell in God’s holy presence, and he with us? How could we ever ‘abide in him’ and […]