Spiritual Growth

Ephesians Part 1 : Reasons to be thankful

Welcome to our seven week series on Paul's letter to the Ephesians. Pastor Steve Rilley begins by reminding us that Ephesians is unlike many of Paul's other letters which were written to address specific challenges and issues. Ephesians is a letter for every church - a letter for us. Chapters 1-3 focus on who were are in Christ and on all He has done for us, interspersed with prayer and praise. Chapters 4-6 focus on how we should live out of who we are. Commentator Warren Wiersbe puts it like this - we are to walk (Chs 4-6) out of our wealth (Chs 1-3). In the original Greek of today's passage - Chapter 1:3-14 - we see a single unpunctuated sentence, a breathless outpouring of praise, adoration and wonder. Look out for the Paul using the words chosen, adoption, forgiven, blessed, lavished, redemption and guaranteed inheritance. A key idea - repeated 11 times - is Paul talking about us being "in Christ" or "in Him." Jesus is the focus and source of all these blessings and of our new life and we are called to walk in a way that brings glory to His name. Pastor Steve picks out a number of "reasons to be thankful" - truths that define our identity. Before God even began His work of creation we were chosen in order to be holy and blameless. God, in His foreknowledge saw where we would be born, where we would live and what we would do. Pastor Steve invites us to marvel that the God who foresaw all our sin and rebellion still chose to pursue us so that we could be adopted as His children. All this is done in love the motivation for all He does towards us. Paul goes on to say we are redeemed and forgiven as Jesus has paid the price of our freedom. And we are sealed by the Holy Spirit the guarantee of our inheritance. By the same power of the same Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead - to ascend above every name, power and dominion in creation - we too are given complete assurance that the grave is not the end of our story. As Pastor Steve reminds us "God's guarantee is as certain as His word is true." As we will go on to see next week, Paul moves from praise to prayer, praying that these truths will really get hold of us and that, through His wisdom and revelation, we will come to know Him more and more, confident that our future (our inheritance) will far surpass any and all of our present circumstances. Pastor Steve asks us to reflect on what we are drawn to in the passage and for which great truths are we most thankful. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Spiritual Growth

What does God look for in us as we grow spiritually? Pastor Bawa Leo reminds us of Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 13.11 "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things." Pastor Bawa uses the analogy of our human growth to cause us to reflect on our own stage of spiritual development, and what priorities we need to focus on, consistent with that phase of life. From Luke Chapter 2, Pastor Bawa explores what it meant for Jesus to "increase in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and men." Pastor Bawa notes how Jesus followed customs of His society that supported the work of redemption, and how Jesus grew in obedience to His parents. We see, as Jesus holds discussions with teachers in the temple, that He is discovering His own life's priorities. Mental growth, Pastor Bawa reminds us, enables us to set Godly priorities and to make good decisions. Jesus combined this with physical growth - developing the strength he needed to work in Joseph's carpentry business, to train His speaking voice for public ministry, and to develop His stamina both for the journeys he would make around Israel, and for the long days of preaching and teaching. Jesus gives us a wise example that we too need to follow to make the most of the life God has gifted us. Jesus also grew socially - in favour with God and man - which enabled Him to cross barriers of generations (welcoming little children) of race (relating to Samaritans and Gentiles as well as Jews) and of gender (interacting appropriately with women). Finally, Pastor Bawa warns of the dangers of not growing spiritually. We may become un-taught - it is only the fully trained disciple who becomes like his master. We may be un-tested, failing to learn from the tests Jesus sets us as He did with Philip before He miraculously fed the 5000. We may be un-tried and miss the growth we experience when our faith is tried in the circumstances of life. And we may become unstable, as Peter reminds us (2 Peter 3.16) distorting, to our own harm, the Scriptures and godly teaching. Pastor Bawa encourages us to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen." ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

The Fruit of the Spirit

What does being a follower of Jesus look like? Pastor Jacqui Redmond explains how the transforming work of the Holy Spirit is expressed through His nine fruit as we walk by the Spirit, keeping in step with Him as we follow Jesus. To help us both remember the nine fruit, and how they can be grown in our experience, Pastor Jacqui speaks about them under three headings. 1.The Holy Spirit transforms us from the inside out.  Everything flows from love the new commandment Jesus gives us in John 13. Love is our distinctive characteristic as believers, expressed most powerfully in forgiveness. Pastor Jacqui shares a moving and powerful story of forgiveness from the life of holocaust survivor and missionary, Corrie ten Boom, as she came face to face with one of her former prison guards. Whilst forgiveness is a challenge, God walks with us in our forgiveness journey. We are also transformed by joy which we can find even in the midst of trials. Happiness depends on circumstances, but joy is a heavenly gift. Peace, says Jesus in John 14, is given to us and left with us. As nineteenth century preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon reminds us “Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows. It empties today of its strength.” Growing the fruit of peace is the Spirit’s answer to the anxieties of life. 2. The fruit is our witness to others. Jesus’ love in us, is shown through our own love to others, and this comes out most powerfully when we are put under pressure. Patience is a powerful witness in an impatient world. Pastor Jacqui reminds us that “God is working when we are waiting.” Kindness expresses love in a way that genuinely benefits others and not just ourselves. The great example of kindness in Jesus’ parables is the Good Samaritan. We hear Jesus’ exhortation to us: “Go and do likewise.” Goodness is the quality of moral uprightness, or integrity, revealing the character of God in us. 3. God is developing in us a lasting character. God is faithful, and faithfulness is our response to Him - staying true to God. Pastor Jacqui shares an example of how a small act of kindness was part of evangelist DL Moody’s journey to faith in Jesus. We are encouraged never to underestimate small acts of kindness. Gentleness is not weakness, but rather controlled strength. We are encouraged, in particular to remain gentle when we speak truth to one another. Finally, Pastor Jacqui reminds us that self control is like a wall that protects our souls. As Proverbs 25.28 reminds us “Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control.”  Pastor Jacqui invites us to reflect on this - what kind of fruit is your life producing? She encourages us with this: “Fruit is not produced by striving harder. Fruit is produced by staying close to Jesus - and the Holy Spirit will shape us and mould us.” We welcome you to Bridge Community Church, Leeds! 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Living Stones

From Peter's first letter, Pastor Steve explores what it means for us to be living stones in God's spiritual house. Jesus was the rejected stone who is now the cornerstone and capstone. If we ever feel rejected, abandoned or excluded, we know that we are now chosen, not discarded by Jesus. We are people with a threefold hope. For the past, our sin is wiped out, in the present Jesus is with us, and we have the future hope that death is defeated. 1 Peter chapter 2 speaks to the core of our identify in Christ, and pastor Steve draws out four dimensions. * We are accepted - God's special possession. As Pastor Steve reminds us: "People may have written you off. Jesus has written you in." * We are chosen. God originally chose Israel to reveal Himself to the world. Now we are also chosen to share in the same vocation - chosen not on the basis of merit, but because of His great love for us. * We are a holy nation - set aside and marked out for God's special purpose. As holy people we live to please and honour God through lives of love. * We are a royal priesthood. In the Old Testament the priesthood was limited to men - and only men from a certain tribe and of a particular age range. Now we all get to share the privilege of being part of God's ministry team. * Our priestly privileges and responsibilities flow upwards in prayer and praise, inward towards each other as we share the gifts God gives us to promote the common good, and and outwards and priests and mediators between God and people. "You will be at your most fruitful when you take up your place as a royal priest and intentionally minister in, and minister out." Reject rejection, and take your place as a member of God's royal family! We welcome you to Bridge Community Church, Leeds! We invite you to join our online community! Like us on Facebook: https://bit.ly/BCCLeedsFacebook [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbXU0RDJ0SHFVN3lRUmVPWXZuQkJKSlpSZ1R3UXxBQ3Jtc0tuZk0wbXF0NUprVXRGeG5UUDhOeG5Zc2RnYjQ5WlFYcm9RMW1YTXo1eWYxMEFXMUgwd3dJMWlERDdxMVlfWnNmS2x5S1hDV0Z6RDNfVHFOdjI3eTV5MnZ0TWNfREpaTWlYWmR1ZHJ5UDlVbTVNbnR4WQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCLeedsFacebook&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Join our Facebook Group: http://bit.ly/BCCOnlineCommunityGroup [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbm0wM2NIcE9MRGprT0l5ZEpZaWF1MlRzb1RjZ3xBQ3Jtc0ttVm5lM1RQVW1KM01ka1dVQ2h1LTMtNG1lT3V6SnpkeEM0VjBJaEs1elBYdFBEcGgtT1RxUm0ySWtEekNOUGVSSGhKN25KSjc2STdWOWJnV2dEYjdhQW1JS1F1YnZXZ0ZSNVZyX0ExNHdGWXdlM3dmdw&q=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCOnlineCommunityGroup&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Follow us on Instagram: https://bit.ly/BCCLeedsInstagram [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbWNlR05CSmNqQkhrOEVQRGNGYTg0OWVxQXg4d3xBQ3Jtc0trVmp6TVlVOEx1dXNnY08tYXlvVXJpTTZuSzVrN3RJZHBQeTl0aUtrSDg1YnBOdWRseTM2YXhjUU9CR0tqM3BrY0FqMTJ5WW1TNkJQRFEwVFdUUl9YN0J0TUZvdlBTVTFvbjR1U0IyUk55UEpIcjhQYw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCLeedsInstagram&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/BCCLeedsTwitter [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbi1ncWVORHNhYmpXXzZqRWI4RXR4RkdqUi14d3xBQ3Jtc0trSDgwcVMyRkJZQl8zQkU3akhTRE5Fdm5rb1pXeXdwSEJaeWhkX2FIWWFUUDFseXhubXZUN3Rsb2Zuek9SSVJObnFrcXNOX2RCbnZkbXdKT19LcnhObHBHU0VwUUtFQkVrak8zYWxQckRaZnFuU3pjZw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCLeedsTwitter&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Visit our Website: https://www.bccleeds.org/ [https://www.bccleeds.org/] If you would like to give to further our work. You can use the link below: https://bit.ly/GivingtoBCC [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbGxTaUs3bVlwSVByQzl6MjBKM1VGX0IzckFJd3xBQ3Jtc0tsRWVGU1E5U1hPQ1JHWF9nT3F3ZzZNby1yaUhRX1AyWXpqRWRsUUM3Qk5LV1hoMHc5ODBPOUtlNTBNdmE5ME5VQWRKcTNhYW93MjBESjMyZ1p3NjdVaTBIWVcxUUdXaFpWQXlDTGktYmpnT3hmdHZOdw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FGivingtoBCC&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] #EveryoneWelcome [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/everyonewelcome] #ChurchOnline [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/churchonline] #Leeds [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/leeds] #Burmantofts [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/burmantofts] #LincolnGreen [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/lincolngreen] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Faithfulness of God

What does the Bible mean when it talks about the faithfulness of God? What does this look like? How is the faithfulness of God experienced? And how do we, in our own day to day experience, grow in our own journey of faithfulness with God? Pastor Jacqui Redmond draws richly on powerful verses of Scripture from the Old and New Testaments to explore the following truths: * God is always faithful - even in the darkest times and seasons. * God is faithful to all His promises. * Trust and worship is our response to our faithful God. Jacqui inspires us with illustrations from great teachers in Christian history and memorable quotes from people who have demonstrated God's faithfulness through their own experience. As Corrie ten Boom said: "Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God." Whether you are in a period of life where you are feeling tired, challenged, waiting, or worried, the Lord's invitation to us today is to trust again in God' faithfulness. We welcome you to Bridge Community Church, Leeds! We invite you to join our online community! Like us on Facebook: https://bit.ly/BCCLeedsFacebook [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbXU0RDJ0SHFVN3lRUmVPWXZuQkJKSlpSZ1R3UXxBQ3Jtc0tuZk0wbXF0NUprVXRGeG5UUDhOeG5Zc2RnYjQ5WlFYcm9RMW1YTXo1eWYxMEFXMUgwd3dJMWlERDdxMVlfWnNmS2x5S1hDV0Z6RDNfVHFOdjI3eTV5MnZ0TWNfREpaTWlYWmR1ZHJ5UDlVbTVNbnR4WQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCLeedsFacebook&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Join our Facebook Group: http://bit.ly/BCCOnlineCommunityGroup [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbm0wM2NIcE9MRGprT0l5ZEpZaWF1MlRzb1RjZ3xBQ3Jtc0ttVm5lM1RQVW1KM01ka1dVQ2h1LTMtNG1lT3V6SnpkeEM0VjBJaEs1elBYdFBEcGgtT1RxUm0ySWtEekNOUGVSSGhKN25KSjc2STdWOWJnV2dEYjdhQW1JS1F1YnZXZ0ZSNVZyX0ExNHdGWXdlM3dmdw&q=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCOnlineCommunityGroup&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Follow us on Instagram: https://bit.ly/BCCLeedsInstagram [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbWNlR05CSmNqQkhrOEVQRGNGYTg0OWVxQXg4d3xBQ3Jtc0trVmp6TVlVOEx1dXNnY08tYXlvVXJpTTZuSzVrN3RJZHBQeTl0aUtrSDg1YnBOdWRseTM2YXhjUU9CR0tqM3BrY0FqMTJ5WW1TNkJQRFEwVFdUUl9YN0J0TUZvdlBTVTFvbjR1U0IyUk55UEpIcjhQYw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCLeedsInstagram&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/BCCLeedsTwitter [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbi1ncWVORHNhYmpXXzZqRWI4RXR4RkdqUi14d3xBQ3Jtc0trSDgwcVMyRkJZQl8zQkU3akhTRE5Fdm5rb1pXeXdwSEJaeWhkX2FIWWFUUDFseXhubXZUN3Rsb2Zuek9SSVJObnFrcXNOX2RCbnZkbXdKT19LcnhObHBHU0VwUUtFQkVrak8zYWxQckRaZnFuU3pjZw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FBCCLeedsTwitter&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] Visit our Website: https://www.bccleeds.org/ [https://www.bccleeds.org/] If you would like to give to further our work. You can use the link below: https://bit.ly/GivingtoBCC [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbGxTaUs3bVlwSVByQzl6MjBKM1VGX0IzckFJd3xBQ3Jtc0tsRWVGU1E5U1hPQ1JHWF9nT3F3ZzZNby1yaUhRX1AyWXpqRWRsUUM3Qk5LV1hoMHc5ODBPOUtlNTBNdmE5ME5VQWRKcTNhYW93MjBESjMyZ1p3NjdVaTBIWVcxUUdXaFpWQXlDTGktYmpnT3hmdHZOdw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FGivingtoBCC&v=6o9wlVsAaGI] #EveryoneWelcome [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/everyonewelcome] #ChurchOnline [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/churchonline] #Leeds [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/leeds] #Burmantofts [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/burmantofts] #LincolnGreen [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/lincolngreen] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.