Jesus told his disciples that it would be better for him to go, in order that the Father send the Holy Spirit who is present now in all believers. Si helps us to know who the Holy Spirit is, and how we can continue to be filled and see the work of the Spirit amongst us.
Moments before Jesus ascends he commands his followers to wait for the promised gift of the Father - the gift of the Holy Spirit. God's presence is about to be poured out on the church, empowering and transforming people for all time.
When Paul writes to Philippi he makes a bold claim about the future of the Philippian church. Paul says 'I am sure of this…'. How can Paul speak with such absolute certainty - only because of his confidence in the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It seems like just the other day that news was shared of Dave and the McNee family moving on from Life church. In this LifePod episode Si and Dave reflect back on some memories of Dave's time here and talk about their next steps as they continue to seek and follow God's call together.
1 Corinthians makes clear that the gift of prophesy is available to all believers. It is a gift for building up God’s church. Alex helps us to trust God in both using and receiving prophecy for our good, and for God’s glory.
This Easter Chris Kilby considers Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, and shows what this means for us by looking at what it meant for the three men on crosses that day.
Simon considers the fear, humility and joy with which King David brought the arc to Jerusalem in the Old Testament. How much more liberated are we in the very presence of God, now we have been brought near in Christ and freed from condemnation through His sacrifice!
This powerful message teaches us that through prayer and by faith we able to see life’s circumstances differently, fight spiritually and gain prophetic insight.
God speaks to those we’d least expect through dreams that are windows into reality and they need interpretation through prayer, community and scripture. These dreams can encourage or warn and should be responded to in faith and will be used by God for His good purposes.
When you have an awe-inspiring authentic meeting with God, you will be changed. Si unpacks Isaiah’s response to God and helps us to consider our response when we have our own encounters with God.
Nehemiah’s prayer and fasting was an act of surrender, repenting from living life his own way and acknowledging that he couldn’t resolve the issues before him in his own strength. We can also sit before God and cry out about situations we face, surrendering ourselves in prayer and through fasting.
In this message, Annie considers the difficulty of Mary's circumstances and her response to them in Luke 1. We see how prayer and praise are of highest importance when we face all kinds of trials and difficulties.
Who's the main character in your life? Through the story of Simeon meeting the baby Jesus in the temple, Si explores what it looks to wait on God and to trust him.
On our final One Church Sunday, as we look ahead to being together in one place from the 25th February onwards, we welcome Guy Miller to continue our series about prayer. In Exodes 33 we read that God spoke with Moses ‘as a man speaks to his friend’. Guy helps us to see what this kind of prayer life looks like for the church?
If you are Christian, and if you encounter God the way Jacob encountered God, you are blessed - even though you may walk with a limp. In this message, Dave explores what it means for us to have a meaningful encounter with God as we learn more about prayer.
Jabez prayed and followed through with faith and obedience. God honoured this and Jabez stood out in his generation. As we pray, we too can be heard and honoured.
The disciples saw something in the way that Jesus prayed that caused them to seek him out and ask him 'Lord, teach us to pray.' Si helps us to see how asking the same question today is essential to for Life Church.
Jon considers the journey God's people made when He lead them out of Egypt toward the promised land. Our own journey following God does not always go the way we might expect, nor does it always happen in the expected time frame, but God has good purposes in all that He does, so we can trust Him as we follow His lead.
The genealogy presented in Matthew 1 traces Jesus' ancestry, emphasizing his connection to King David and ultimately to Abraham, demonstrating that Jesus is the anointed Saviour promised from the beginning.
This week, whilst the children at Life Church enjoy a Christmas Party, the grown ups are left to consider the difference between knowing what we commemorate at Christmas and why these things happened.
Jesus left us with what can seem like an overwhelmingly large task and responsibility - to go and make disciples of all nations. The good news, as Alex unpacks in this message, is that Jesus has left us with the greatest of gifts, the empowering Holy Spirit!
We celebrate the great diversity of the church, because we are united in Christ! During the service we read God's Very Good Idea Storybook - A True Story of God's Delightfully Different Family, which you can discover for yourself and your family here: https://www.thegoodbook.co.uk/gods-very-good-idea-storybook
The Bible’s instruction for us to care for the poor is clear. This Sunday we consider what the Bible says, talk about our involvement with people who find themselves in debt and offer some practical steps each of us can take to serve others in need.
“The church talking about money again." Why does this cause a reaction in us? Si explores our attitude towards money and whether the gospel makes a difference to us in this area.
What does the world say a 'good life' looks like? This may vary according to the culture but in this message Chris explores the Bible's ingredients of what makes a good life.
In this message the world's idea of 'If it feels right then do it' is held in comparison to the biblical idea for His people to 'Be Holy, as God is Holy'. Dave explores why it is that people, at times, seem to disagree so much and how hard it can be to reconcile those differences.
We hear it said all over the place that we should be true to ourselves and the world responds as if this is good news. But is it? The Word seems to say otherwise. Maybe true hope for fulfilment and fullness of life is found elsewhere?
The world tells us to follow your heart, love yourself, believe in yourself and be true to yourself. Jesus says, 'follow me', 'love the Lord your God and your neighbour', 'deny yourself' and 'believe in me'. How do we respond when the word and the world say very different things?
Between 23rd October and Christmas 2023, James Hatcher, Life Church Operations Manager and Elder, shall be taking a sabbatical. Hear James talking about this with Dave and Si on the latest LifePod episode, and read Chris Kilby’s blog post on the biblical reasoning which underlies our values of appropriate rest, here: https://www.lifesouthampton.org/james-sabbatical/
Living a full life is important to most people, but what the world tells us is a life of meaning, purpose and value is very different to what we see in the life of Jesus and the Bible.
