Matthew 5:1-16 All of us want to make our short lives count. We don’t want to just fill in time on the planet. We want to make an impact, leave a legacy, make a difference. But how? In this passage Jesus tells us how to make the biggest impact – an eternal one.
Matthew 4:12-25 In the selfie, self-obsessed culture in which we live, the danger is that the Christian message gets distorted and becomes all about me. But Jesus’ message was about the kingdom of heaven, and ours should be too. This coming reality should shape everything.
Luke 1:77-79 The prophet Malachi foretold that one day ‘the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings’. At Christmas we celebrate the coming into this dark world of that promised sunrise in Jesus, and we give thanks for the blessings which radiate out in the heavenly sunbeams.
Luke 2:10-11 To many people the Christmas story feels very remote – angels appearing to shepherds; a virgin giving birth. It feels a very long way from our experience. But there’s an emotional bridge between us and those distant events – fear and joy. We have plenty of fears, and we would like more joy. This passage tells us how it can be ours.
Matthew 4:1-11 When were you last tempted? How did it go? Did you give in, or did you stand firm? All of us struggle with temptation, and if we’re looking for help, this passage is an obvious place to go. And we’ll look at that, but ‘tips for facing temptation’ is not the main point. To find out what is, have a listen!
Matthew 3:1-17 Some people think that our world has no future. If they’re right, then nothing we do ultimately matters. But John the Baptist said that the future is the kingdom of heaven, and so what we do now matters hugely. We need to repent and come to Jesus.
Matthew 2:13-23 Fleeing to Egypt; narrowly escaping being killed in Bethlehem; returning to live in obscure Nazareth – it’s not an impressive start in life. But this was God’s plan for his Messiah. This is how God worked then, and still works today.
Matthew 2:1-12 On his recent royal tour of Australia, King Charles got a mixed reception. So did King Jesus from the moment he came into the world, but how we respond to him is a good deal more significant, given who he is. In this passage we encounter three responses. Which best represents our own?
Matthew 1:18-25 We’re born, we live, we die. We all conform to this universal pattern. If we’re going to get out of the hole we’re in, it’s going to have to be an outside job. We need someone who breaks the chain. Someone not ordinary but extra-ordinary. And that is what we find in Jesus – a unique birth producing a unique baby.
Matthew 1:1-17 ‘Go and tell everyone everywhere they need to become my disciples and start following and obeying me’. That’s where Matthew’s Gospel ends. An outrageous thing for anyone to say, never mind a carpenter from Nazareth. Why should we take him seriously? Who even is he? That’s where Matthew’s Gospel begins.
