St Andrews Church Geraldine‘s Podcast

The Golden Rule (“Do to others as you would have them do to you”) can roll off our tongues very easily. We like to obey it (most of the time) and quickly encourage others to do the same in their circumstances. However, this command is sandwiched between a much harder command that Jesus instructs us to obey at the beginning and end of this passage of Scripture: “Love your enemies!” To do this is perhaps the most challenging aspect of imitating God’s love to others. It doesn’t mean that justice is waivered for the offender and the victim remains as the victim. Yet, when someone decides to be your enemy, there is a spiritual war going on. To keep ourselves free of such spiritual oppression we respond with love rather than revenge and hatred. In doing so we act as ‘Children of the Most High’ (v35) and are reminded that we were once enemies of God due to sin infiltrating our lives, and yet He loved us in return, sending His son, Jesus Christ, to reconcile us to Him and break down all spiritual barrierLuke 6:27-36

The Gospel of Luke recounts the beatitudes and the woes with a reminder that it is not just about being poor or rich – it is about having the right heart attitude towards God and those around us, and what we do with our time, possessions and interactions with others.  How we live now (in the present) affects how we live then (in the future coming Kingdom of God).  The Beatitudes taught by Jesus in his sermon, prepare our hearts to be attentive to Jesus’ words throughout the rest of the Gospel of Luke.
Luke 6:20-26

Luke (Part 25)
Chain Reaction

BUT GODPhilippians 1:3-11

In Luke 6 Jesus declares himself Lord of the Sabbath and challenges the Pharisees’ understanding of what the day is for. This message asks whether Christians are still commanded to keep the Sabbath as law, argues that the New Testament gives believers freedom from compulsory Sabbath observance, and then considers what we can still learn from God’s gift of rest: stopping work and trusting God, making room for worship and enjoying his gifts, and helping others rest while remaining ready to do good.
Luke 6:1-11

What's in a CreedJohn 11:17-27 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 & Colossians 1:.21-23
 

Jesus uses a wedding, a patched garment and new wine to challenge how we respond to him. We can be busy with religious routines while avoiding the obedience he asks of us. We can also look to him to fix one part of our lives while keeping control of the rest and lastly we need to let Jesus and his Word determine what we hold on to and what we let go.
Luke 5:33-39

Using Caravaggio’s The Calling of Saint Matthew as a visual thread, this message explores Jesus’ call of Levi in Luke 5:27–32. Jesus calls Levi before he has changed, but his grace leads Levi to repent, leave his old allegiance behind and place his whole life under Jesus’ authority. Yet Levi does not abandon the people and resources from his former life; he uses his home, wealth and relationships to bring others to Jesus. Through Levi’s banquet and the later example of William Wilberforce, the message challenges us to consider what we must leave behind, what we must surrender to Christ, and what God has already placed in our hands that can now be used for his purposes.