Acts Part 5: Peter Heals the Man at the Temple Gate

Acts Part 5: Peter Heals the Man at the Temple Gate

Send us your questions or feedback here [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2545356/fan_mail/new] Acts 3 v 1-10 In this podcast we spend time in Acts 3, where Peter and John encounter the man who was unable to walk and who sat at the temple gate every day asking passers-by for money. He had been overlooked for years. In this passage, Peter stopped, paid attention to the man, and became expectant. He looked at the man not simply as a problem to avoid, but as someone God may want to meet. Even so, have you ever considered that if the man had been at the gate all his life had seen Peter passing before? Had even seen Jesus passing before? What does this mean? Why didn’t Jesus or Peter see him before? Or maybe they did, but there was a time for this man, who was deeply loved by God. And here we find his moment in Acts 3 – a moment to glorify God’s kingdom, to confront the leaders of Jerusalem because everyone knew this man was crippled and spent his life at the gates of the temple, whilst encouraging the infant Church and its leaders? Acts is really the continuation of Jesus' ministry through His Spirit-filled church. Jesus had ascended, but His Kingdom continued to break into ordinary life through ordinary people who made themselves available to Him. And that has not changed. As we move through everyday life — conversations, workplaces, streets, homes, church gatherings — we can begin asking: "Lord, how do You want to bless this person? What might Your Kingdom coming look like here?" Sometimes that may be very simple: encouragement, generosity, listening, prayer, practical help, noticing someone others overlook. Sometimes it may be something more dramatic. Acts encourages us to remain open to all of it. Not pressured to manufacture outcomes, but expectant that Jesus is still at work by His Spirit. The invitation is not to become impressive Christians, but attentive and available people — willing to pause, discern, and respond as God leads, trusting that His Kingdom still comes "on earth as it is in heaven." The podcast reflects honestly on healing and suffering. We believe Jesus still heals because Scripture presents the Kingdom continuing to break into the world through the risen Christ. Yet Acts and the wider New Testament are also honest about unanswered prayers, grief, delay, and mystery. We live in the tension between resurrection begun and restoration still coming. That means we pray boldly, but humbly. We trust deeply, but without pretending we have every answer. Delay is not the same as abandonment, and suffering does not have the final word because Jesus Himself entered suffering, carries us in it, and promises ultimate restoration. Peter's invitation in Acts 3 was not simply about miracles, but about repentance and "times of refreshing" from the presence of the Lord. The greater miracle is restored relationship with God — weary hearts renewed, burdens lifted, and lives turned back toward Jesus.  The church is blessed to be a blessing. The Kingdom breaks in not only through dramatic moments, but through ordinary people who become attentive to others, available to the Spirit, and willing to carry the presence of Jesus into weary places. You can see past sermons on the Leominster Baptist Church website at  Leominster Baptist Church - YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@leominsterbaptistchurch] and can contact us directly with your feedback or queries through the Contact Us link at the top of the episode description text. Leominster Baptist Church can be found on Etnam Street in Leominster, Herefordshire. To find out more about us, visit our website leobc.co.uk. If you would like to speak to someone about anything that you have heard on our podcasts please give us a call and ask for a chat.

Acts Part 4: Peter's Sermon

Send us your questions or feedback here [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2545356/fan_mail/new] We continue to explore Acts 2 and the truth that the gospel is far bigger than simply "going to heaven one day." The gospel is the announcement that Jesus is King, heaven has come near, and the Holy Spirit is forming a people who embody the life of God together now. We reflected on how Scripture tells the story not of humanity escaping earth, but of God continually coming near — from Eden, to the tabernacle, to Jesus, to Pentecost, and ultimately to the renewal of all things. Acts 2 shows heaven invading earth through a Spirit-filled community. Peter's sermon does not end with private spirituality. It creates a people. Strangers become family. Generosity explodes. Meals become sacred. Prayer becomes central. The church becomes an outpost of heaven — a living picture of the Kingdom of God in the world. We consider how easy it is to approach church like a hotel rather than a home: evaluating, consuming, and remaining disconnected. But the New Testament vision is of a family where people carry burdens, forgive one another, serve sacrificially, and remain planted even when things become difficult. Isolated Christianity simply does not work. We were never meant merely to attend services, but to participate in the life of God together. We explore Jesus' words at Caesarea Philippi: "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it." This verse can be imagined as the church under attack, but Jesus does not speak of the swords of Hades, the armies of Hades, or the arrows of Hades. He speaks of gates and gates don’t attack! This is a picture not of a frightened church hiding from darkness, but of a Spirit-filled church advancing into places ruled by sin, despair, and death itself: the gates being unable to withstand the life of Christ. Death cannot prove stronger than resurrection. Darkness cannot overpower light. The risen Jesus is building a people that don't cower from the darkness but through whom heaven pushes back the darkness. We reflect on Jesus standing in the synagogue in Luke 4 and reading from Isaiah 61 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me to…" * Bring good news to the poor. * Freedom for prisoners. * Sight for the blind. * Freedom for the oppressed. * The year of the Lord's favour. Jesus announces that this mission is now being fulfilled in him. Then in Acts 2 that same Spirit is poured out upon the church. Meaning the mission of Jesus becomes the mission of his people. The Holy Spirit is not given merely for spiritual experiences, but so the life and ministry of Jesus continue through his body on earth. The church is meant to become: * good news to the poor, * hope for the lonely, * family for the unwanted, * light in darkness, * truth in confusion, * a channel for healing to the sick, * compassion in suffering, and, * freedom for those in bondage. Acts does not show a church hiding from the world. It shows ordinary people filled with the Spirit going out and "punching holes in the darkness" with the life of Jesus. The church must be marked not by pride or performance, but by humility, love, compassion, and service. The goal is not simply better church services. It is a different kind of humanity: a people shaped by the presence of Jesus, filled with the Spirit, living as a preview of the coming Kingdom. Until then: * Be planted. * Carry one another. * Stop merely attending. * Live the gospel. * And let the world see what the reign of Jesus looks like in human form. You can see past sermons on the Leominster Baptist Church website at  Leominster Baptist Church - YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@leominsterbaptistchurch] and can contact us directly with your feedback or queries through the Contact Us link at the top of the episode description text. Leominster Baptist Church can be found on Etnam Street in Leominster, Herefordshire. To find out more about us, visit our website leobc.co.uk. If you would like to speak to someone about anything that you have heard on our podcasts please give us a call and ask for a chat.

Acts Part 3: Pentecost

Send us your questions or feedback here [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2545356/fan_mail/new] Acts Chapter 2 In this podcast we consider Pentecost and what it really means to live a life with God. Christianity does not simply offer a moment, an encounter, or even a powerful experience—it offers relationship. Not just, "I met Him," but "I walk with Him." Not just a spiritual high, but an ongoing, daily life with God. That matters, because many of us quietly build our understanding of the Holy Spirit around moments—times of emotion, power, or clarity. And while those moments can be real and significant, they are not the whole picture. A wedding may be unforgettable, but it is not the same as a marriage. In the same way, the Spirit is not just the giver of moments, but the One who brings us into ongoing fellowship—relationship, closeness, and familiarity with God. He is the giver of life. The Bible speaks of this as the great promise of the new covenant: that God would pour out His Spirit on all people. No longer limited to a few, but given to all who belong to Jesus. This is the age we are living in—the age of the Spirit. Not because the Father has stopped working or Jesus has stepped aside, but because the risen Christ has poured out His Spirit to dwell within His people. This also reshapes how we understand things like prophecy. In Scripture, prophecy is not mainly about predicting the future, but about speaking God's heart and will into the present. Some of it points forward, but much of it speaks into what is happening now. The Spirit means we can know God—not just know about Him, but know His heart. This is what was promised in Jeremiah: a day when people would truly know the Lord. And yet, like the disciples in Acts 19, many believers today live with a quiet gap. Faith is present, but awareness of the Spirit feels distant or unclear. The invitation is not to strive for something we don't have, but to recognise the One who is already near. So how do we know the Spirit is at work? Often not through the dramatic, but through the steady signs of life: a cry for God, a growing thirst for Him, a quiet transformation of character. Scripture tells us that no one can truly say "Jesus is Lord" except by the Spirit—and even that is evidence of His work within us. The Spirit also reshapes our practices. It's not just that we pray, but that we begin to want to commune with Him in prayer. It's not just that we read the Bible, but that we feel a pull to hear His voice in Scripture. It's not just outward holiness, but an inward desire to leave sin behind so that we might be set apart and draw closer to Him. These are not things we manufacture—they are signs of His presence at work in us. If you belong to Jesus, you are not empty, and you are not alone. You may feel like you are in the shallows—unsure, learning, or even dry—but you are still in the water. And so the invitation remains: don't settle there. Go deeper. You can see past sermons on the Leominster Baptist Church website at  Leominster Baptist Church - YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@leominsterbaptistchurch] and can contact us directly with your feedback or queries through the Contact Us link at the top of the episode description text. Leominster Baptist Church can be found on Etnam Street in Leominster, Herefordshire. To find out more about us, visit our website leobc.co.uk. If you would like to speak to someone about anything that you have heard on our podcasts please give us a call and ask for a chat.

Acts Part 2: Let the Silence Speak (In the Upper Room)

Send us your questions or feedback here [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2545356/fan_mail/new] Acts 1: 9-14 It's easy to forget that there was a significant period of time between Jesus' ascension and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Probably 40 to 50 days.  Have you ever had to wait for something? I don't know about you but many of us are really poor at waiting. We are impatient to get on with things, we have plans, we need to do something. Didn't the gospels say, "Go into all the world ..."  They did. But the Bible also says, "Be still and know that I am God," and "Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly." (Psalm 37). It is during this time that God is preparing the disciples to go out and do things. But he is using the space, using the time, to form, to mould, to strip away so that when the disciples go out, so when they go to do the work that has been set for them, they do it relying on Him and not on themselves. Waiting on God often does three things in us: * It refines us – exposing our fears, impatience, and self-reliance while shaping our character. * It teaches us to listen – helping us become more attentive to God's voice through Scripture, conviction, peace, and prompting. * It intertwines us with God – drawing us into deeper relationship with him, not merely giving us answers but renewing our strength through his presence. The challenge is simple: don't substitute activity for dependence. The early Church understood that preaching, planning, serving, and mission all required the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit. Reflection As we continue through Acts, may we become a people who pursue God's presence, wait expectantly, and make room for all that the Spirit wants to do among us. You can see past sermons on the Leominster Baptist Church website at  Leominster Baptist Church - YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@leominsterbaptistchurch] and can contact us directly with your feedback or queries through the Contact Us link at the top of the episode description text. Leominster Baptist Church can be found on Etnam Street in Leominster, Herefordshire. To find out more about us, visit our website leobc.co.uk. If you would like to speak to someone about anything that you have heard on our podcasts please give us a call and ask for a chat.

Acts Part 1: Jesus' Ascension

Send us your questions or feedback here [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2545356/fan_mail/new] Acts 1: 1-12 This podcast is the first in a new series of sermons on the Book of Acts – the second part of Luke’s investigation into the life of Jesus and his ministry. We give a lot of attention to Jesus' birth, death and resurrection, but the ascension is just as vital. Without it, everything Jesus had done would remain unfinished. The ascension is not an optional extra in the Christian faith; it is the moment that launches the next stage of God's mission in the world. The image of a rocket launch is helpful as we consider this passage. The first stage is essential, but it is not the final destination. It provides the thrust needed for lift-off, and then it is released so the mission can continue. In a similar way, Jesus' earthly ministry was not abandoned or made less important by his ascension. It was essential. But if Jesus had remained physically present in one place, the mission would have stayed local and limited. By ascending, he was not ending the mission but advancing it. At first, the disciples experienced the ascension as loss. Jesus was taken from their sight, and they stood looking into the sky. But the angels gently rebuked them. Why were they standing there? Why were they frozen? Because they had not yet realised that what looked like departure was actually release, and what felt like separation was actually the beginning of worldwide mission. The ascension means Jesus is not absent. He is exalted. He reigns at the right hand of the Father as our Prophet, Priest and King. As Prophet, he still speaks through his people as the gospel is proclaimed. As Priest, he represents us before the Father, securing our acceptance and giving us peace. As King, he rules over all things for the good of his people. The ascension changes how we live. It gives us joy instead of paralysis, confidence instead of fear, and purpose instead of passivity. Jesus leaving was not the end of the mission. It was the only way the mission could truly begin. Our Christ is not only crucified and risen, he is ascended, reigning, and at work still. You can see past sermons on the Leominster Baptist Church website at  Leominster Baptist Church - YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@leominsterbaptistchurch] and can contact us directly with your feedback or queries through the Contact Us link at the top of the episode description text. Leominster Baptist Church can be found on Etnam Street in Leominster, Herefordshire. To find out more about us, visit our website leobc.co.uk. If you would like to speak to someone about anything that you have heard on our podcasts please give us a call and ask for a chat.