Sermons by Andrew Latimer

Hot topics: What does God think of religion?

Philippians 3:1-11 One of the key accusations of the New Atheists is that religion isn’t simply irrational, but that it’s dangerous and that it leads inevitably to intolerance and violence. Then, of course, the pro-religion voices try to protest by demonstrating the strong correlations between religion and many desirable outcomes such as stable mental health, and happiness, and altruism. And the debate rolls on. But what about God, what does God think of religion? Listen in as we consider this question from the Bible, and as we discover that God is not nearly so pro-religion as we might have expected…

Be thinking: Where is God when life hurts?

Daniel 3:19-30If it hasn’t happened to us already then it’s very likely to be just a matter of time before we experience painful, seemingly pointless, tragedy. When this happens the question: “Where is God when life hurts?” becomes not just a philosophical question but a real and practical one. Listen in as we consider what anchors we need to put in place before the storm hits.

Why are we so busy and stressed?

Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 The proliferation of labour-saving technologies like washing machines and even supermarket deliveries means that jobs which would have taken our forbears the best part of a week now take us only minutes, and yet somehow we’re busier than ever. In fact it’s suggested that some technologies can even make things worse: emails have multiplied the amount of communication we have to engage with, and mobile phones mean we’re now under greater pressure to reply immediately, and can never leave our work behind. Listen in as we reflect on some ancient wisdom to help us with this very contemporary issue of why we are so busy and stressed.

I’m glad you asked: Will God send people to hell for not believing in a Jesus they’ve never heard of?

Jeremiah 25:3-16 In 2011 Pastor Rob Bell released a New York Times best-seller called “Love Wins”. In his book he calls into question the traditional Christian teaching about the existence of hell, and one of the objections he brings is that it’s unjust for people “to suffer in eternal agony because they didn’t believe in the Jesus they never heard of.” Listen in as we consider this highly emotive and crucial topic.

The Real McCoy: 2 of 2: The Message

2 Corinthians 5:16-6:2 Children’s books and TV programs categorize people into goodies and baddies, but as we grow up we discover that the world is more complicated than that. Rather than seeing everything as “black and white” we discover instead “50 shades of grey”. This is why, for many people, they can’t accept the Bible with its simplistic categories of good and evil; heaven and hell; saved and lost. Listen in as we consider this issue together.