Getting to know God ...
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... as GOD-WITH-US
If it is true that God is always with us, in what ways is this true? What difference does the presence of God make? I’ve been pondering this for myself, and I have come up with three answers to this question. Three ways I picture this in my mind. God is with us: a) like music is around us, b) in a constant conversation, and c) through signs of God at work. Esp for Christmas (Immanuel!) |
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... as TRINITY of one substance
If a child asked you what God is made of, how might you have a go at answering the question?
… go on, give it a go. What is God? What is God made of?
I’m going to have a go this morning. In 10 minutes. Wish me luck.
So what's with the 3-in-1 or is is 1-in-3? This sermon explains how God is one being, one substance, with 3 ways of communicating with us.
If a child asked you what God is made of, how might you have a go at answering the question?
… go on, give it a go. What is God? What is God made of?
I’m going to have a go this morning. In 10 minutes. Wish me luck.
So what's with the 3-in-1 or is is 1-in-3? This sermon explains how God is one being, one substance, with 3 ways of communicating with us.
... as a spring of LIVING WATER
In John 4, Jesus met a woman in Samaria at a well, and he asked her for a drink. She could have just quietly done as he asked, but she was bold, she spoke her mind, she asked questions. She teased him: So, she said, you’re a high and mighty Jew eh, but you still need water and I have the bucket. Well, well, fancy that.
And he responds by telling her about a different kind of water. She might have the bucket and access to the well water, but he can provide the very Spirit of the living God. Living water.
Living water is good, sweet, flowing water.
The Spirit of Jesus is alive with spiritual power. It is the essence of life itself. It flows from the very heart of God.
One of the highlights of my trip to Israel was visiting this well ...
This sermon has a powerpoint to go with it:
Photo gallery of Jacobs Well (powerpoint)
In John 4, Jesus met a woman in Samaria at a well, and he asked her for a drink. She could have just quietly done as he asked, but she was bold, she spoke her mind, she asked questions. She teased him: So, she said, you’re a high and mighty Jew eh, but you still need water and I have the bucket. Well, well, fancy that.
And he responds by telling her about a different kind of water. She might have the bucket and access to the well water, but he can provide the very Spirit of the living God. Living water.
Living water is good, sweet, flowing water.
The Spirit of Jesus is alive with spiritual power. It is the essence of life itself. It flows from the very heart of God.
One of the highlights of my trip to Israel was visiting this well ...
This sermon has a powerpoint to go with it:
Photo gallery of Jacobs Well (powerpoint)
... through HUNCHES
two stories, two people whose lives were touched by God, two people with hunches, two people who stood up ... The old woman who was hunched over, bent, burdened, oppressed, who was set free by God at the touch and word of Jesus, free to stand tall. And the young man, Jeremiah, who found the courage and the wisdom to listen to his own hunches - in the pictures in his mind, in an inner determination to stand up
two stories, two people whose lives were touched by God, two people with hunches, two people who stood up ... The old woman who was hunched over, bent, burdened, oppressed, who was set free by God at the touch and word of Jesus, free to stand tall. And the young man, Jeremiah, who found the courage and the wisdom to listen to his own hunches - in the pictures in his mind, in an inner determination to stand up
... as CELTIC KNOT: 'The Strong Name of the Trinity'
I bind unto myself today
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
(Prayer of St Patrick)
What kind of God don't you believe in? We have a thing or two to learn from the ancient Celts about how to believe in God. Theirs is an intimate God, a safe God:
I lie down this night with Spirit
And Spirit will lie down with me.
The Three of my love
will be lying down with me.
Theirs is a God of mystery and unity more than rational logic. The Three in One and One in Three is "deeply embedded in daily life"
(Jan Richardson: www.paintedprayerbook.com)
John 16:12-15
Romans 5:1-5
This sermon is an invitation to reflect on the model of God you grew up with, and to allow space for the closeness and mysteriousness and loving power of the Trinity to flow more in your life.
It also comes with a print-out of Celtic prayers and Celtic Knot pictures (which are great to colour in!)
Download Celtic Trinity Prayers
I bind unto myself today
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
(Prayer of St Patrick)
What kind of God don't you believe in? We have a thing or two to learn from the ancient Celts about how to believe in God. Theirs is an intimate God, a safe God:
I lie down this night with Spirit
And Spirit will lie down with me.
The Three of my love
will be lying down with me.
Theirs is a God of mystery and unity more than rational logic. The Three in One and One in Three is "deeply embedded in daily life"
(Jan Richardson: www.paintedprayerbook.com)
John 16:12-15
Romans 5:1-5
This sermon is an invitation to reflect on the model of God you grew up with, and to allow space for the closeness and mysteriousness and loving power of the Trinity to flow more in your life.
It also comes with a print-out of Celtic prayers and Celtic Knot pictures (which are great to colour in!)
Download Celtic Trinity Prayers
... as FATHER: 'Living the Father's Love'
Luke 10:21-28
2 John 1:6
How do you see God? When someone says ‘Heavenly Father’ what comes to mind? How do I honestly feel about God the Father? What masks is he wearing? What emotion shows on his face? How does God the Father feel about me?
This sermon is a personal reflection about my own Dad and my relationship with him, as well as exploring how Jesus related to his 'Father in Heaven'. How can we grow more into this closeness?
Luke 10:21-28
2 John 1:6
How do you see God? When someone says ‘Heavenly Father’ what comes to mind? How do I honestly feel about God the Father? What masks is he wearing? What emotion shows on his face? How does God the Father feel about me?
This sermon is a personal reflection about my own Dad and my relationship with him, as well as exploring how Jesus related to his 'Father in Heaven'. How can we grow more into this closeness?
... as GLORY: 'Lord of Glory'
Exodus 19:16 – 20:3
Luke 9:28-36
Can we relate to the idea of 'glory' in our practical 'de-sacralised' world?
BY GERARD MANLEY HOPKINS ...
The world is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil
Exodus 19:16 – 20:3
Luke 9:28-36
Can we relate to the idea of 'glory' in our practical 'de-sacralised' world?
BY GERARD MANLEY HOPKINS ...
The world is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil
... as LIGHT: 'Light of the World'
Acts 9
John 21:1-14
How is Jesus the Light of the World? How is God like light?
This sermon goes with a dramatic reading of Paul's encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, written for 5 people. Download Dramatic Reading of Acts 9
Also links in Peter's encounter with the risen Jesus by the lake at dawn.
" ... experiences of God’s light breaking into a place of darkness. Light burst forth, light burst through, into the mind and heart and soul. What happened for Peter and Paul was not just a warm fuzzy moment when they felt loved and affirmed. The inbreaking of light from heaven was confronting, demanding. We are loved not just for our own sake but for the saving of the world!"
Acts 9
John 21:1-14
How is Jesus the Light of the World? How is God like light?
This sermon goes with a dramatic reading of Paul's encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, written for 5 people. Download Dramatic Reading of Acts 9
Also links in Peter's encounter with the risen Jesus by the lake at dawn.
" ... experiences of God’s light breaking into a place of darkness. Light burst forth, light burst through, into the mind and heart and soul. What happened for Peter and Paul was not just a warm fuzzy moment when they felt loved and affirmed. The inbreaking of light from heaven was confronting, demanding. We are loved not just for our own sake but for the saving of the world!"
... as FIRE: the Spark of Pentecost
Psalm 104:24-35
Acts 2:1-21
NZ Anglican Prayer Book, Night Prayer:
"The blessing of God, the eternal goodwill of God, the shalom of God,
the wildness and the warmth of God,
be among us and between us, now and always."
Christian theology says two quite contradictory opposite things about the Spirit of God, both deeply involved with this metaphor of God as fire. The first claim is that God has made everything, is in everything, and sustains everything ... all matter, all life. We don't do things by halves - this is the biggest claim that can ever be made, that our God is universal, bigger than the universe, containing the universe, but more than that - the claim that the universe itself can only exist at every level of its existence because of the spirit of God.
The second claim is quite different. This claim is that God's Spirit works in very particular ways in particular people in particular places. ... for it is the spirit of Jesus who chooses ordinary people like you and me to bring to new life with the fire of his love.
This sermon takes you deep inside the impossibilities of the atom, as well as seeking the unique characteristics of the spirit of Jesus at work.
Psalm 104:24-35
Acts 2:1-21
NZ Anglican Prayer Book, Night Prayer:
"The blessing of God, the eternal goodwill of God, the shalom of God,
the wildness and the warmth of God,
be among us and between us, now and always."
Christian theology says two quite contradictory opposite things about the Spirit of God, both deeply involved with this metaphor of God as fire. The first claim is that God has made everything, is in everything, and sustains everything ... all matter, all life. We don't do things by halves - this is the biggest claim that can ever be made, that our God is universal, bigger than the universe, containing the universe, but more than that - the claim that the universe itself can only exist at every level of its existence because of the spirit of God.
The second claim is quite different. This claim is that God's Spirit works in very particular ways in particular people in particular places. ... for it is the spirit of Jesus who chooses ordinary people like you and me to bring to new life with the fire of his love.
This sermon takes you deep inside the impossibilities of the atom, as well as seeking the unique characteristics of the spirit of Jesus at work.
... as MUSIC: "perfect spiritual music"
Psalm 146
... perhaps God is also like music … 'Sing to the Lord a new song', writes the Psalmist. To sing is a primeval, instinctual response to the divine … and maybe our own singing is simply an echo of God’s song. Maybe the very being of God is itself music, a harmony deeper than the universe. Maybe all creation is sustained by the beat and rhythm of God, tunes vibrating at frequencies too slow or too fast for the human ear, but which we can sense with our souls.
Maybe God is like music. Maybe God is song.
Psalm 146
... perhaps God is also like music … 'Sing to the Lord a new song', writes the Psalmist. To sing is a primeval, instinctual response to the divine … and maybe our own singing is simply an echo of God’s song. Maybe the very being of God is itself music, a harmony deeper than the universe. Maybe all creation is sustained by the beat and rhythm of God, tunes vibrating at frequencies too slow or too fast for the human ear, but which we can sense with our souls.
Maybe God is like music. Maybe God is song.
The Names of God
This is a helpful summary of the names of God in the Bible and what they mean.
From 'GotQuestions.org'
This is a helpful summary of the names of God in the Bible and what they mean.
From 'GotQuestions.org'
Where is God??
I asked the children and the adults on Sunday this question. How would you answer it? The Cashmere folks answered with
a) God is everywhere
b) God is in our hearts
c) God is love and in our relating ... which as I said are all excellent true answers, but not the one I had in mind ...
OK kids I have a tough question for you today. And it is a question that has lots of right answers, but I have one particular answer in my mind and I am going to keep on asking for possible answers until I get the answer that is in my mind. So it’s a bit tricky. Are you ready? Here it is
Where is God?
A clue – how does the Lord’s prayer start: Our Father in heaven.
So one possible answer to the question ‘where is God?’ is:
God is in heaven.
Which obviously leads us to the next question – where on earth is heaven? Or maybe heaven is not on earth at all. And people have been up into the sky so we know it’s not up there. So where is it?
The answer I always give to this is that heaven is another dimension. Our bodies and everything we can see and touch is in the physical dimension and heaven is in the spiritual dimension.
Heaven is where God is, where God has no limits, where God’s power and beauty and grace and love is all there is.
Once upon a time it used to be that the human world was cut off from God’s heaven – like there was a massive wall in the road. But God sent Jesus to us from heaven, and Jesus’s main job was to break down the wall between us people and heaven … but this was easier said than done. In fact, the only way he could get this job done was to give his life, to die on the cross. It was that difficult. And because Jesus gave everything he had for us, God was able to burst through the wall between earth and heaven, and Jesus is alive both in heaven and on earth at the same time. It’s the greatest most amazing miracle of all time.
And it means that we can know heaven in our lives, just a little bit … and we believe that at the end of our lives here on earth we will step through the wall, easy as anything, into heaven, and there we will see God face to face and live for ever in his power and beauty and love.
I asked the children and the adults on Sunday this question. How would you answer it? The Cashmere folks answered with
a) God is everywhere
b) God is in our hearts
c) God is love and in our relating ... which as I said are all excellent true answers, but not the one I had in mind ...
OK kids I have a tough question for you today. And it is a question that has lots of right answers, but I have one particular answer in my mind and I am going to keep on asking for possible answers until I get the answer that is in my mind. So it’s a bit tricky. Are you ready? Here it is
Where is God?
A clue – how does the Lord’s prayer start: Our Father in heaven.
So one possible answer to the question ‘where is God?’ is:
God is in heaven.
Which obviously leads us to the next question – where on earth is heaven? Or maybe heaven is not on earth at all. And people have been up into the sky so we know it’s not up there. So where is it?
The answer I always give to this is that heaven is another dimension. Our bodies and everything we can see and touch is in the physical dimension and heaven is in the spiritual dimension.
Heaven is where God is, where God has no limits, where God’s power and beauty and grace and love is all there is.
Once upon a time it used to be that the human world was cut off from God’s heaven – like there was a massive wall in the road. But God sent Jesus to us from heaven, and Jesus’s main job was to break down the wall between us people and heaven … but this was easier said than done. In fact, the only way he could get this job done was to give his life, to die on the cross. It was that difficult. And because Jesus gave everything he had for us, God was able to burst through the wall between earth and heaven, and Jesus is alive both in heaven and on earth at the same time. It’s the greatest most amazing miracle of all time.
And it means that we can know heaven in our lives, just a little bit … and we believe that at the end of our lives here on earth we will step through the wall, easy as anything, into heaven, and there we will see God face to face and live for ever in his power and beauty and love.
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Seated at the Right Hand of the Father
One of the main claims made in our Bibles and in our Creeds about Jesus is that he is seated at the right hand of God. Not that God has hands, not even a right hand, literally - so that is this word-picture trying to tell us about Jesus and God and where does the Spirit fit in? In this sermon I explore the common understanding of this metaphor as a ThroneRoom, and argue that Jesus might have preferred the metaphor as a dinner party! I’m still bothered about the throne thing. It just does not work for me very well as a metaphor. I can picture God the Father telling Jesus what to do and Jesus telling the Spirit what to do in a kind of military chain of command … and it just does not feel right to me. How about you? And you know why it does not feel right to have a throne-room metaphor for the Trinity? Mainly because that simply was not how Jesus described the kingdom of heaven. |
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Glimpsing the Glory of God
Isaiah 6:1-10
Mark 9:2-9
Includes a shared journey through 6 steps, including Communion, being open to God's presence in a fresh way.
What place is there in our culture for 'otherworldly' spiritual ideas like glory and holiness? Are they barriers for non-Christians to engage with the faith? Or are they powerful and important points of resonance with basic human needs?
Isaiah 6:1-10
Mark 9:2-9
Includes a shared journey through 6 steps, including Communion, being open to God's presence in a fresh way.
What place is there in our culture for 'otherworldly' spiritual ideas like glory and holiness? Are they barriers for non-Christians to engage with the faith? Or are they powerful and important points of resonance with basic human needs?
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