To Know Jesus and to Make Him Known
Previous Sermons
(oldest content first)
We Can Trust in the Great I AM! (Exodus 3)
Although Moses, God’s chosen deliverer, was inadequate for the task, God is entirely adequate, and His limitless power and sufficiency would be with him. God, as part of His unfolding plan of redemption, will call and equip His servants to fulfill His purposes, which cannot be thwarted either by their unwillingness or by opposition from His enemies.
Because everything rests on God and on Him alone, we can trust in the great I AM;
God is unstoppable, God is our deliverer and God is faithful. Amen!
"The main tasks of the Holy Spirit" - John 16+Acts 2
Michael Grant spoke to us on the two main bible texts on the Holy Spirit - first when Jesus himself explained to his disciples why he would be sent into this world and secondly, on Pentecost, when Peter also details the purpose of this event. In short, here are the main tasks of the Holy Spirit:
1. To bring people to salvation through Jesus Christ - to convict them of their sin,
2. To enable us to study and understand the Word of God whose main topic is the Lord Jesus,
3. To glorify the person and name of Jesus Christ.
So he centers everything on the Lord Jesus Christ and wants to deflect any attention away from himself onto the Son of God. Are you willing to let him fulfill these tasks also in your life?
Jesus in John 16:13+14: - "But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you."
Jesus' power in the middle of a storm (Matthew 14:22-36)
Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a storm of life and are beginning to doubt whether God is able to deliver you? In this deeply moving sermon, Michael encourages us to stop focusing on the storm and keep looking to Jesus, and say:
Yes, truly, He is the Son of God, and I'm ready to follow Him, no matter the cost!
The Power of God for Salvation (Acts 2:1-21)
We are blessed to have Phil back to speak to us about this timely topic.
The central theme of the text in Acts 2 is that the promised coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost enabled and empowered Jesus's disciples, His followers, to begin to fulfil His commission to witness boldly to people far and wide.
Luke wrote this text to encourage all believers to share their faith, to bear witness and to preach the gospel in Holy Spirit power. It is God's promise to give you the power to proclaim the good news of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
What Is The True Meaning Of Christmas?
It's easy to loose sight of what Christmas is really all about as we are surrounded by all the the traditions that have sprung up around the festive season. It can be quite easy "to switch off Jesus" in a manner of speaking. But from reading Zachariah's prophecy (Luke 1:67-79), we are reminded that Christmas means that God sent us the Saviour in the person of Jesus Christ.
Also, salvation is God’s doing, not our doing, and finally,
salvation means the forgiveness of our sins by God’s mercy.
Conclusion: Zachariah's prophecy tells us the true meaning of Christmas:
That God sent us a Saviour in the person of Jesus Christ.
What is the chief end of man? (Malachi 1)
The first question in the Shorter Catechism is this:
What is the chief end (or: main goal) of man?
Answer: Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
In this context Michael answers the question why we even go to church meetings and what might be the reasons and consequences when we miss out on this:
Are you of Cain or of Christ? (1 John 3:9-4:6)
In this passage we see that there are only two types of people: children of God, true believers, and children of the devil who oppose them. John wants his readers to see that as children of God, they are to demonstrate practical love in the face of opposition and to stand firm in the truth despite attempted deception. If you are a child of God today, you will be able to love your brothers and sisters in a very real way and you will be able to reject false teaching with Christ's help.
The message brings out three main points:
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There can be no sitting on the fence
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There is no need for doubt
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There must be no listening to error
God is My Refuge (Psalm 142)
David is writing this Psalm in a cave as he is fleeing from Saul.
He begins by telling God what the situation is really like:
He feels trapped, alone and with no escape. He looks to others for help but there is none there.
So after looking within and around he now looks upwards
and sees God as his deliverer and in anticipation of his deliverance he praises God!
The Gospel of the Tri-une God (Romans 1:1-7)
Paul's letter to the church in Rom is a letter that has been used by God over the centuries to bring many to salvation. The great Augustin, an early theologian, Martin Luther, John Bunyan and John Wesley were all people who came to know the Lord and were borne again by the Holy Spirit through reading the book of Romans.
Luther thought that the book of Romans was so important that every Christian should know it by heart. It describes to us the wonder of the Gospel.
In this introduction, Michael Grant from Cork explains to us how Paul describes the Gospel that he is going to write on in this letter and shows how it is the Gospel of the tri-une God (Verses 1, 3 and 4). We see how it was the Father's plan that was announced (verse 2) and how the God the Father was intimately involved in this plan.
For this reason, the Father must have all the glory in this salvation plan.
Sermons from the 1st Letter of John
Sun 8th am - God is Light and Christ is the Way (1Jn 1:1-2:6)
Christ revealed that God is light (holiness, purity, moral excellence, divine radiance) and only light can dispel the darkness of unbelief, ungodliness and hate. Because God is light, we must not deceive ourselves, but continue to confess our sin and receive God’s forgiveness and cleansing by Christ’s blood, leading to joyful fellowship with God & each other via repentance & faith in Jesus Christ, His Son, our advocate and the propitiation of our sins.
Sun 8th pm - The Abiding Commandment (1Jn 2:7-17)
True Christians – true children of God – who love one another, have conquered the evil one, have had their sins forgiven and who truly know the Father, must guard against putting anything above their love for God. Do not risk eternal blessings for the sake of earthly satisfaction. In priorities, put God first, in affections put Jesus highest.
Sun 15th - Abide in the Truth and Receive Eternal Life (1Jn 2:18-3:8)
Having come to the truth, we must remain in it; falling away by denying Christ and his work will result in loss of the Father and the promise of eternal life. John wrote this letter to encourage believers in their faith; that they would not be discouraged or deceived but remain (or abide) in the truth, and so receive eternal life in glory. We can look forward to the promises of God to sustain us through times of suffering or hardship.
(NOTE: the first two sermons are recordings from another church, so some local references are not referring to Ennis!)
Jesus’ Authority to Forgive Sins (Luke 5:17-26)
This passage is about Jesus' divine authority to grant forgiveness of sins to all who come to him in faith. The paralytic and his friends were hoping for a physical healing, but Jesus knew his greatest need was to be healed spiritually through the forgiveness of his sins, and the forgiveness of sins remains our greatest need today. Luke's account of the healing of the paralytic encourages us to come to Jesus and to put our trust in Him for the forgiveness of our sins.
The message brings out three main points:
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Faith says, “Whatever it takes!”
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Faith connects to Jesus’ power to forgive
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Faith gives God the glory
How to be Wise People at Christmas (Matthew 2:1-12)
The Magi when instructed by God, started at once on their journey to worship the child Jesus.
It reminds us of the fact that it is God who initiates the calling of fallen man to salvation.
They would have been seen as wise men from a worldly perspective but spiritually they were in the dark until their spiritual eyes were opened when they encountered the child Jesus.
The portion of scripture chosen today reminds us of 3 types of people who when confronted with the truth react in a different way to the Gospel.
To which group do you belong to?
Easter Message - 1 Peter 1:3 - "A Living Hope"
Some 30 years after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, Peter writes a letter of encouragement to the churches in Asia Minor. In the face of discouragement, Peter reminds the church of the living hope we have because of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The Resurrection of the crucified Christ is the vindication of Christ’s sacrificial death on the Cross for our sin and the basis of all Christian hope.
Hebrews 11:1-12:4 - Be encouraged!
1. By looking at the lives of the OT saints, who though imperfect, persevered in faith.
2. By looking at the promises they received by faith which were fulfilled with the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
3. By running with perseverance
(i) Laying aside every weight and
(ii) Looking to Jesus, the Author and perfector of faith.
Pentecost and the Life Giving Spirit
As we celebrate the birth of the Church at Pentecost we pause to reflect on the role and person of the Holy Spirit in John’s Gospel.
John presents the mission of the Spirit as Witness to Christ (John 1:32–34), Giver of New Life (John 6:63), and Helper of the Church (John 14:16–17). Let us ask the Holy Spirit to direct us to Christ, to renew our lives, and the guide and comfort us in this life. This Pentecost we seek the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, and who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified. This same Holy Spirit who spoke by the prophets and Apostles through the Scripture, is He who indwells and sanctifies the Church today.
