Bringing some Christmas joy

The Cape Town philarmonia choir bringing some Christmas joy to the old and forgotten. Some of our members have been part of blessing these folk at the Presbytery Project for the aged at Mowbray , many of whom have no longer got family with whom to share the season.

What have you done to bring hope to hopeless this season? May you bring Jesus hope to those who have little hope left.

'whatever you did for the least of these my brothers, you did for me' - Jesus

Conversations for discipleship 7

This is the last post in the series of conversations to have with a young follower of Jesus. They are conversations that will bolster their faith, draw them to Jesus and then will equip them to go out into the world.


This conversation is about mission

As image bearers of God we are sent on a mission just like God. God is a sent and sending God. The Father sent the Son on a rescue mission for us, and the Father and Son send the Holy Spirit to help us and to glorify the Father and the Son.

The woman at the well in John 4:1-26 can't help but tell her friends, family, and neighbors about Jesus after meeting and talking to Him. In the same way, we get to share the good news about Jesus with everyone in hope that they too will give Him their sin and experience new life in Him.

"Many Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony, `He told me all that I ever did."" (John 5:39) One of the very first things that will happen after someone becomes a Christian will be evangelism. Just like the woman at the well after someone encounters Jesus they will want to go back to his or her friends, telling them the good news about Jesus.

Therefore we should do whatever we can to help someone understand how to share the Gospel. If the person is a Christian, they know the Gospel already. However, many of us are afraid that we will not "do it right." The Samaritan woman was not theologically sophisticated, her message was simple—"He told me all that I ever did"—and people believed because of her testimony.

Successful evangelism is taking the initiative to share the Gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results up to God.

task:
Share some examples of how you have shared your faith with friends and family.
Explain: Successful evangelism is taking the initiative to share the Gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results up to God.

Questions to ask:

• Do you have friends or family that don’t know Jesus yet?
• What do you think it will look like to talk to them about what He has done in your life? 
• What are some of your fears about sharing your faith?

Christmas carols

Our worship team pulling out all the stops to bring Jesus glory.

Well done team you are awesome!

May Jesus name be known across all the world!

Conversations for discipleship 6

Conversation 6 is about walking in the light

We need the Gospel all the time because we sin. Learning what to do with sin as a new Christian is really important. The Holy Spirit transforms us as we learn to think like Jesus, act like Jesus and love like Jesus.

One of the first conversations a new Christian needs to have is about how God forgives past sin before we were Christians and future sin we commit after we become Christians. We're going to keep sinning even as we mature and we need to know how we can be strong in the face of temptation and how we can keep repentant when we fail.

task:
Read 1 John 1:5‐10 and prepare to explain what it looks like to “walk in the light as He is in the light” and how “if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

True fellowship with God and with one another comes from “walking in light”—being honest about where we are at in our walk with God, knowing that we are forgiven and that we can be cleansed from our sin.
Meet up to read through 1 John 1:5‐10 and to discuss this concept.

Questions to ask:
(Be sure to give examples and answers from your life. How confessing sin to others helped bring freedom and cleansing. Walking in the light yourself is the best way to teach this concept.)

• How are you doing with believing that God forgives you? 
• What do you do after you are convicted of sin?
• What does it look like for you to walk in the light in community?

Conversations for discipleship 5

Conversation 5 is about community.

Many people think that community is an optional extra to the faith and for most of us it was for a long time. Without Christian community there is no maturity of faith. It is in community that we learn from others, use our spiritual gifts and where we are sent out into the world to be Jesus' witnesses.

As image bearers of God (Genesis 1:26), we are made to be in community just as God is in community. Note the "us" in Genesis 1:26. Even in the perfect world Adam was created in, the one thing that was not good was for man to be alone. (Genesis 2:18)

Our sin had separated us from God and one another (Isaiah 59:1-2). But in Christ we are given a new identity individually and given a new identity communally. We are adopted into a new family: the Church. (John 1:12, Ephesians 4)

Conversation 5: walking in community
When we become Christians we get a new identity individually, as children of God, and we get a new identity corporately, as we are brought into God's family—the church. The Bible uses the illustration of a body where each part is interdependent on the others, this is what Jesus envisaged when he called us to follow him.

Task:

Read and discuss Acts 2:37-47.
Read and discuss 1 Corinthians 12:12-26. (There are no “lone ranger” Christians. We are all part of the body and when one part is missing the whole body suffers.)
Explain how our Home Groups seek to embody these texts.

Questions to ask:

• What does it look like for you to be in community?
• Can I help you get into a Home Group? (If they aren’t in one already.)

Conversations for discipleship 4

Jesus wants people to follow him and the word the bible uses is disciple from the same root as discipline. Unfortunately discipline has such a negative connotation. I discipline my body when I train it to be strong and fit. I discipline my mind when I learn to understand mathematical formaulae or remember passages of scripture. Discipline is a formative process and Jesus wants us to be formed into his likeness. So here is a 4th conversation you can have with someone to help them mature in their faith.

Conversation 4 is all about prayer

God talks to us primarily through his word, the Bible; we talk to God through prayer. Scripture is full of promises and truths about prayer. The key to understanding prayer is to pray like Jesus. Jesus talks to the Father as a son talks to his dad; this is the key to not over spiritualizing prayer and to having humble confidence in prayer.

task:

Be sure to pray with the person you are discipling on a regular basis. Opening and closing your times together in prayer is something to consider.
Read these verses together to discuss prayer.
   Matthew 6:5‐15
   John 14:13‐14
   James 1:5

Some questions to ask:

• What does prayer look like in your life?
• Do you find it hard to pray? If so why do you think that is?
• How can I pray for you this week?

Good and Angry

Great article by Paul Tripp about being angry for the things that God gets angry about

Good and Angry

Conversations for discipleship 3

Discipleship conversation three is all about worship.

Humans have been made for worship, it is one of teh wonderful things about being created in the image of God. We all worship and so the question is not whether we will or not, but only whom or what will we worship. Some will worship money, sex, power and some will worship family. There is no end to the idols we will place in Jesus' rightful position. Christians worship Jesus because He is holy and has saved us from Satan, sin, and death. All of life is worship and that means our lives become totally immersed in him and his work in the world - this does not mean we must become a missionary to outer Mongolia - your office and home need missionaries too!

This is why Paul says "So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."(1 Corinthians 10:31)

But worshipping God is not just what we do to rightly walk with Him; it is also how we are transformed to be more like Jesus.

"And we all with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18)

Read these verses together to discuss

Read Romans 1:20-28

Read Jeremiah 2:11-13

Read Romans 12:1-2

Some questions to ask:

- How does the idea that we never stop worshipping change the way you view your life?

- What does idolatry look like in your life?

- How do you deal with your sin / idolatry?

Who do you add to your leadership team?

Six things to ask yourself when putting people on your leadership team

Servant hearted leaders bring Jesus glory

We are really privileged to have a team of worship leaders who give if their time effort and energy to lead us into the presence of God each week.

Here is our team giving it stick in preparation for the Christmas event.

Give God thanks for faithful servants who bless his church week after week. All for Jesus glory!

Conversations for discipleship 2

I started posting last week about conversations on discipleship. Every person who follows Jesus should be helping others to follow him too. It's everyone's calling and not just a task for those in leadership to build up the body to maturity. So here is the second conversation to have with a young Christian whom you are journeying with to help them mature (you'll learn loads through the process too) These posts are a set of 7 conversations to be had over coffee to draw people towards a deeper following of Jesus.

Conversation 2: the Bible

Christian identity comes from finding our place in God's great story as he interacts with humankind. History really is His story. God's story is revealed to us in the Bible and therefore we want to get to know the Bible as the word of God and as God's revelation of himself.

As we start walking with Jesus, we start reading our Bibles more. God most clearly speaks to us through scripture. Understanding the Bible is a process that will take the rest of our lives, but studying in community is vey helpful. It is in Scripture that we find out who God is and who we are.

First, make sure that the person you are discipling has a good Bible. We highly recommend the English Standard Version. The ESV Study Bible is a great gift to someone starting to read the Bible. There are ESV study bible for sale at the back of the church on Sundays for R400 as well as standard ESV hard covers for R100.

There are a great number of free mobile bibles too:
Android:
   ESV
   Youversion

iPhone:
   ESV
   Youversion

Blackberry:
   Youversion

Windows:
   Youversion

Or you can point your mobile browser to http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/mobile/

Second, pick out one of the Gospels. Begin to read through it together and meet to discuss it. Reading and discussing the Bible should be a fluid part of walking together and become a mainstay throughout your time together. On the New Testament by Pastor Mark Driscoll is very helpful for someone starting to read the Bible and answers many common questions.

Some questions to ask:

• How are you doing believing the Bible is God’s word?
• What has God been saying to you through his word?
• What questions about the Bible can I try and help you with?

On this day in 1517

On this day in 1517 a German monk, Martin Luther nailed 95 statements to a door of the church in Wittenburg, Germany, to protest against and challenge erroneous thinking by the Catholic church. For the most part the reaction was against the church selling indulgences. These are basically 'get out of jail free' cards sold by the catholic leadership that could forgive the sins of a person who had already died. It was a terrible mockery of God's grace that comes through Jesus alone. Luther, inspired by passages in the bible that tell us we are saved by grace alone through faith alone could not bear to see people misled by the church. He wanted people to see that forgiveness, salvation and resurrection was found in Christ and him alone!

There are absolute gems of Biblical gracious Christian truth in his 95 statements, and in memory of what he did in liberating the church from religiousness. I encourage you to reflect on some of  them today:


When our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, said "Repent", He called for the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.


It is certainly possible that when the money clinks in the bottom of the chest avarice and greed increase; but when the church offers intercession, all depends in the will of God.


Any true Christian whatsoever, living or dead, participates in all the benefits of Christ and the Church; and this participation is granted to him by God without letters of indulgence.


Any Christian whatsoever, who is truly repentant, enjoys plenary remission from penalty and guilt, and this is given him without letters of indulgence


The true treasure of the church is the Holy gospel of the glory and the grace of God.


Christians should be exhorted to be zealous to follow Christ, their Head, through penalties, deaths, and hells

The gates of hell will not prevail!

This is from one of our members who was at worship on Sunday, I think it worth some prayerful reflection

Sunday morning I came to worship with a song in my heart.  As we started, I was interceding for various people attending that morning. The Holy Spirit burdened me with an incredible sadness for the church, or for so many people there that morning. The tears were literally streaming down my face as I continued to pray and worship. Then the Lord showed me arms in ancient shackles and the gates of ancient jails and I could hear Him say “the gates of hell will not prevail against My church” and He showed me how the shackles broke open and fell to the ground and how the jail gate just fell forward to the ground, setting free those who were jailed or captured. Yet the sadness remained throughout the service. I was intensely aware of Jesus’ heart for His people and His sadness over so many that claim to be part of His church, but who do not grasp how MUCH, how incredibly much He loves them and that He is right by their side serving them, waiting for them to look up and see Him and be changed.

Conversations for discipleship

I want to do a series of posts using some material that has been borrowed from Marshillchurch.org on discipleship. There will be seven posts in the series and whilst they are helpful for us all in leadership I would particularly like to commend them to the home group leaders.

What is discipleship?
There are many errors we can make in believing in Jesus. In my experience in a room of twenty Christians when asked who is a disciple, less than ten will answer in the affirmative. That seems strange when the instruction given to Jesus church is to make disciples. If we're not making disciples then what are we making? Whilst the answer is worth another post, I believe that we've made converts and not disciples. Converts believe in Jesus, but they dont' follow him or live like him. Jesus calls us and empowers us through the Spirit to follow him as he gives his life up for others and proclaims the coming kingdom of God.

Are we theological bots

Worth reading as it raises some really serious questions about training our minds... Are We Theological Bots?