The Message from Hermese

Sermon based on Psalm 51:1-13, the Psalm for Lent 5B

As we go deeper into the solemnity in Lent, Jesus beckons us towards His Light. Enjoy this week's message - the message for Lent 4, Year B.

Reflection on the Gospel for the Third Sunday in Lent, Year B (John 2:13-22) . We are easily distracted...ever thought you had sent a message only, hours later to find the fully drafted message unsent? Or, ever been in church and gotten totally distracted during the sermon and not have a clue about what was being said? Well, beloveds, that's distraction. But, thankfully, we have a Saviour who...

When God is fulfilling His covenant with us, He does it gradually. He knows that we can’t withstand the change included in that fulfilment all at once, so He must do it bit by bit. Perhaps the final step in that fulfilment is the change in name. Beloved, what is the new name that God has created for you?

Sermon for Lent 1B based on the Lesson, Genesis 9:8-17

No one likes to be pulled aside. Your mind begins to race from the moment you’re pulled aside. Sometimes, it’s good news, but most times, it’s not a good thing when you get pulled aside. What about when Jesus pulls us aside? Is it any different?

‘Lord, open our hearts that we may discern your presence, go where you lead us and act in the power of our baptism.’ This prayer spoke to me from the moment I first heard it last year during my studies. It captivated me. It touched something deep inside of me. As I continued reflecting on the prayer, I realised that the words that spoke to me most powerfully were ‘the power of our baptism’. So wha...

God makes His marvellous works to be remembered by creating memories for us. He is mindful of His covenant with us, He feeds us, has shown us the power of His works, redeems us and ensures that what He does stands fast forever. Let us give thanks to the Lord with our whole heart in the assembly and in the congregation. (Inspired by Psalm 111)

Dear ones, repentance opens the door to the fulfilment of God’s promises to us. Repentance removes the barriers that separate us from God. Repentance is in fulfilment of God’s will that we will be reconciled to Him. Remember, we pray in the Lord’s Prayer: 'Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven'. As such, when we pray these words, we are reminding ourselves of the need for us to repe...

God invites us to come and see so that we can be moved from doubt to belief.

Assume your status! You are chosen!

Make note of what the Lord has done, and continue to believe!

We can and we shall, but only by the grace of God.

God seeks a relationship with us. For that, we need to be separated from the noise.

Jesus used parables to provide insight into the kingdom of heaven. Why was this important? This week's Message gives us some insight!

I encourage you, as you experience challenges in life, as you make your way through your wildernesses, as you cross your River Jordan into the territory that has been promised to you by the Lord, to cry out, ‘Surely, the Lord is in this place!’ I encourage you to affirm, like Paul did in Romans 8:18, ‘I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about...

The Gospel passage this week is Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23: the Parable of the Sower. I know this text well. Prior to this week's message, though, I had never given much thought to whether the four categories of soil could apply to one person. Perhaps it’s the wording, perhaps it’s my ignorance. I always assumed they were four discrete categories relating to different people. Never did I stop to th...

Today’s Gospel passage, Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 ends with Jesus telling the crowds of Israel that His yoke is easy. Who would consider a yoke, an instrument of control could be considered easy? Who would think that the yoke, and instrument that bruises and is heavy to support could be considered light? Perhaps it might help if we considered the definition of a yoke. According to the Oxford Concise...

As Christians, we are called to make that choice every day. We are called daily to choose to continue to follow Christ, even when the tests and trials overwhelm us and seem endless. It is in those moments our Father calls us to buckle down in prayer, recognising that, while what we face is greater than we are, it certainly isn’t greater than He is. In buckling down in prayer, God calls us to prais...

Understand this, without fear of God, our lives are out of balance. Without fear of God, what we do quickly dissipates and yields limited fruit. Without proper fear of God, we lose membership in church, our resources are depleted, our relationships suffer, the state of our personal, communal, and national lives deteriorates and everything we do is empty. Beloveds, without fear of God, everything i...

Dear ones, we are being called to bring in the sheaves after we have been prepared. We will find ourselves at different stages of the process. The beauty of community is that there are those who will always be greater, and those who will always be lesser than we. We will always have someone to help; and there will always be someone to help us. Take advantage of your community so that you may grow...

Beloveds, faith is difficult. But we move forward for we trust Him, as I encouraged in the message entitled ‘Faith’. We move forward. We do not let go, even though everything presses against us, testing our strength, challenging our resilience. We do not give up, regardless of what we see, the failures we have endured, the disappointments that assail us. We do not give up, for in perseverance lies...

The Creation account is a manifestation of the order of God. There is an alternating sequence between separation and production. The liturgical calendar of the Church is a manifestation of God's holy order. Disciples of Christ, how is that order reflected in our lives? How is the order of things in our lives an image and likeness of God? How does God’s order of things manifest itself in the wa...

The Spirit, in like manner to the Father and the Son, is known by many names. The Spirit, the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, is the manifestation of the power of God. Jesus was the incarnation of the Word of God; the Holy Spirit is the manifestation of the Power of God. It is for this reason that there is no single response to the question, ‘What is the Holy Spirit’, or more appropriately, ‘Who...

Have you ever felt ‘ghosted’? You’ve been calling, IM’ing, even emailing and DM’ing, but there has been no answer from the other person – not even an acknowledgement. You’ve been scoping out their social media pages and they’ve been happily posting, updating their statuses, so it isn’t that they’ve been out of circulation. In fact, they are very much in circulation…to the point that they’re re-pos...