Listen to some great sermons series, based on Bible books, originally presented at Narrabri Anglican Church.
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Talk 3 - 30 Aug 2026
Talk 2 - 29 Aug 2026
Talk 1 - 29 Aug 2026
Arrogance. I don’t know anybody who likes an arrogant person. Two things stand out about arrogance: it is so self-serving and it is so corrosive of unity within a group of people. Adam and Eve were tremendously arrogant toward their creator when they did not listen to his warning, disobeyed and committed that first sin. They put themselves over God and it resulted in broken fellowship. As Paul has responded to the report of division among believers in the Corinthian church, he has reminded them of their humble beginnings. He has reminded them of the contrast between God’s way and the world’s w
Paul’s argument – that the Corinthians have let Corinth back into God’s church, and so undermined the message (‘Christ crucified’) and job (‘proclaim him to the world’) given them by God – is being examined in the context of God’s mob becoming divided by buying back into the culture of personality leadership (‘I follow Apollos…’). His dealing with this first manifestation of ‘Corinth back in’ goes all the way to the end of chapter 4. In this section – 1 Corinthians 3 – Paul wants God’s mob to get a right view of their leadership. Their unwillingness to grow in maturity as God’s mob (vs.1-4) an
In the first chapters of his letter to the Corinthian church, Paul locates the source of their ungodly behaviour in their failure to marvel at the wisdom and power of God displayed in the cross of Christ. For as long as they continue to be impressed by human wisdom and power instead, they will remain immature in their faith and persist in worldly living. It’s by the grace of God through his gift of the Spirit that anyone comes to truly see the glory of God displayed in the crucified Christ.
Corinth is the place you came to, to make your name, to disappear, to gain your fame. It was a town built on commerce, on the deal, on being connected to the right people. It was a town renowned for its cosmopolitan life, for its ability to make you, for its connections. Paul came to this town with a message which was none of these. As a travelling tentmaker, who was an eyewitness of Jesus, there was not much to recommend Paul. And his message didn’t help: that Jesus is THE Christ, that he died and rose again, and this can restore any person who trusts in him to God, bringing them into God’s m
There is a certain particularity about winning the World Cup – it is an exclusive club, with not many members. It makes you a part of human history in a pretty special way. It changes your life, your identity. But, let me be blunt, it is one of many particular and ‘unique’ clubs in this world. Being a Christian – one of God’s mob, part of the eternal community called the ‘church’ – well, that is particular in a truly unique way. It means that you describe God as ‘Father’. It means that Jesus is your ‘Lord’. It means that you are set aside to relate rightly to God. It means that you can relate
In Philippians 4:11-13, Paul says it is by learning the secret of contentment ie. that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us because, through a relationship with Christ, Christians learn to have confidence in God and in his promise of salvation. In Philippians 1:12-30, Paul says that the purpose of learning this secret of contentment is that we might follow in the example of our Lord Jesus and suffer all things for the sake of the gospel, to the glory of God.
Paul’s secret to contentment is that he can do all things through Christ who strengthens him. Because through Christ, Christians have been given access to the riches of the glory of God, the fullness of his character that makes him worthy of praise. However, life’s hardships and opposition to the gospel undermine our confidence in God and in his promise to share his glory fully with us on the day when Jesus returns. In Philippians 3, Paul shares his testimony of finding this confidence in his relationship with Jesus and therefore pursuing the glory of God instead of the passing glory of earthl
How do Christians endure opposition and hardship in the service of God? Christians are commissioned to proclaim the gospel to all nations and to do so in the face of opposition and hardship. The apostle Paul endured strong opposition and hardship in his gospel ministry and in his letter to the Philippian church offers tips for endurance. In Phil 4:11-13, Paul shares with the church the secret of being content in all circumstances that has allowed him to persevere in gospel ministry. Paul is able to do all things through Christ who strengthens him. We examine the rest of Paul’s letter to unders
The question of the future of humanity has occupied the minds of both the religious and non-religious alike throughout history. Both camps envision a utopian future for humanity but disagree on what it will look like or even how to get there. However, both camps agree that key to unlocking that future is overcoming the problem of death. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul argues that the resurrection of Jesus guarantees bodily resurrection for all Christians because it solves the cause of death and sin. Jesus’s resurrection also guarantees the condemnation of all God’s enemies and ushers in an eternal r
In a culture with ‘fur babies’, and calls to limit population growth by having no children, we must keep remembering God’s view of children: they are a blessing from God, part of his creation blessing and command, and they bear his image. Children are the fruition of God’s command to ‘be fruitful’ and to ‘fill the earth’ (Gen.1:28) and are born out of the ‘one-flesh’ of the first marriage (Gen.2:23-25). And, they are affected by the fall – a child of Eve will crush the snake (Gen.3:15), their birth is painful under judgement (Gen.3:16), and they are sinful from birth in every part of their bei
The first humans lived in the first garden, walking daily with God. The first humans lived in the first marriage, gardening-in-relationship by God’s word. The first humans lived in the first church, on a high place from which four rivers flowed, resting with God in perfect fellowship. To realise that all three ‘spheres’ – human existence, the first marriage, and the first church – all happened in one moment, in one place, at the start of all things is to also recognise that the thread that runs through all three is the same: God’s created order brought about by his word. Over the last few week
An interview with Neil and Seamus Hunt
Being human: Man and woman in relationship The question of how men and women should relate to one another is a live issue in our society today amplified by social media access. On this question, the Bible’s teaching focusses mainly on two areas of marriage and the church. This is helpful because marriage is the basic unit of a society and so ideas about how men and women relate to each other that are adopted within marriage, trickle down to the family, the community and, in time, define how men and women relate in society. It’s no wonder, that as God sets the foundations of humanity in Genesis
As we examine what the Bible says about being a man and being a woman we enter into culturally-contested areas. We all know this. What is said is freighted with meaning. And who says it is freighted with meaning. To even have the speaker on this topic a man is loaded! Moreover, as a man, I recognise the strangeness of me standing and speaking on what it means to be a woman. That is why it is good and right to return to God’s word and God’s creative design. Our aim today is deal directly with what God says in his word, to deal with it plainly, and to understand it in its totality, in a way that
What does it mean to be a ‘man’? It is an important question because gender – male and female – is part of the gifted embodiment of God at creation. It is external to humanity. It is part of human identity, connected to bearing the ‘image of God’. And, we have to ask what it means to be ‘male’ (and ‘female’), because that is who we are. The answers proliferate. Everything from ‘toxic masculinity’ through to ‘sensitive new age guy’, from ‘putting food on the table’ through to ‘whatever you make it’. What does it mean to be a ‘man’? God’s word doesn’t complicate things too much. And the answer i
What does it mean to be ‘human’? It is a massive question, a question that we don’t often spend time reflecting on – it is a question we answer, often, by not reflecting but by doing, by living. In this sense, it is worth slowing down and starting to grasp what God’s word says about being ‘human’. It is a question that is prompted by two movements in our wider culture: the advent of Artificial Intelligence, and the influence of social media. Both of these wider cultural moments challenge how we think of ourselves as ‘humans’. But, we must not make this a purely modern question – it is the ques
The overwhelming sense of these last two verses of Psalm 23 are generosity – abundant, overwhelming and extravagant generosity. It captures the shepherd who lays a table for his sheep, in the wilderness, when the enemies gather – and in the future, when the enemies are vanquished. This table is not stingy or abstemious but overflowing and fattening (literally!). It captures the shepherd who pursues his sheep – he is goodness and faithful love, and he pursues his sheep in such a way that, as they look back on their lives, they are convicted of his eternal and constant goodness. It captures the
