Trinity Chippenham

God's promise of the seed of the woman came to fruition when the fullness of times had come . . . so why did God take so long? In fact, why does God take so long in fulfilling his purposes in our lives today? This message looks at the Old Covenant to understand what was going on with the law, the tabernacle and the sacrifices . . . and sees how it is only in Christ, via the new covenant that...

The Bible is The Story - the story of a giving God whose giving nature spilled over in creation, and then, in the face of rebellion and hatred, gave again. Human's rebel, and God does not reboot everything, but instead gives the Promise of the Seed - the One who would come and conquer death, pay for sin, and win the hearts of many back to God. This is part 1, the Promise.

Is God's love and mercy to undeserving sinners true? Or is it too good to be true? Mike points us to the story of the Lost Sons in Luke 15 for an answer.

Fraser Kay, pastor of North Swindon Baptist Church, spoke to Trinity Chippenham from 2 Corinthians 4 on the subject of leadership.

Paul gives a clear list of qualifications for those who should be recognised officially as leaders in the church. As we move toward recognising our own leadership, what are we to make of these qualification lists?

What do church leaders do? Church leadership is not about "lording it over," "getting things your own way," "getting rich," or even "doing the work of ministry." Church leaders are shepherds who lay down their lives as they feed, lead, care, protect and equip.

Why does the local church need leadership? Titus 1:10-16 gives insight into the dangers from which a leadership protect a local church. Leadership is given for the gospel and for the faithful.

The environment that allows for a community of authenticity is one saturated in the grace of Christ. How can we be part of creating a community of grace? In Colossians 3 we have the source - our gaze on Christ, and our union with Christ, and we also have the description of Christlike grace that will make the church community harmonious. Love, patience, forgiveness, the peace of Christ and the word...

"Investing time to build healthy relationships characterised by authenticity and grace." This week we zero in on authenticity. How can we, as fallen creatures, ever grow in authentic relationships? Peter took us to John 13 to see how in Christ we are able to have our security and identity anchored outside of the room we are in, and therefore be free to give ourselves away to others. Next...

It is the Holy Spirit who takes a group of people and changes it into a supernatural community. What does he do? How do we engage with that? Ron takes us to Ephesians 5:15-21 to continue our series...

It is possible to socially engineer groups of people, but only God can create a supernatural community - one marked by His love, grace, forgiveness and authenticity. In this message we launch a brief values series by looking briefly at 1John 4, followed by the astonishing passage of Jeremiah 3

Jesus' mission and plan was to die and then be raised to life. Mark's resurrection account points us to the truth of the resurrection, and asks us what our response will be . . . fear, astonishment, faith? This is the final message in the series, "A Different Kind of King" . . . and the ultimate difference is that this one conquers death!

Human leaders tend to lead out of a self-concerned motivation. Not Jesus. In this chapter we see how Christianity is not about our commitment or what we are prepared to do for Jesus. Christianity is about Christ. He was the one who followed through on his calm commitment to die for those who didn't deserve it. The day before the crucifixion traced to point us to Jesus, a different kind of Kin...

Jesus faced a barrage of questions trying to trip him up. He handled them amazingly well, seeking to wake up the people to their need of him. We need to beware that the motivations that stopped them from seeing the truth don't do the same to us.

The whole of Mark's Gospel builds towards, and focuses on, Jesus' final visit to Jerusalem. In this chapter he arrives in a great celebration, but quickly shifts gears and turns things around. As the disciples expected a victory over their enemies, Jesus turned against the temple (and a fig tree). Lots for them to learn. Lots for us to ponder. Jesus is not concerned with crowds, but he d...

When Jesus predicted his suffering and death, he was turning the world of the disciples upside-down. We need to experience the same if we are to be gripped by what it meant for the Son of Man to come and give his life as a ransom for many.

What kind of follower does King Jesus want? The wealthy? The successful? The person who has achieved goodness? No, only God is good, and only God can give true goodness. The Rich Young Ruler stirred the disciples, and invites us also to chase after Jesus in our situation.

What kind of kingdom will this different kind of King establish? It is a kingdom where fearful competitiveness is not the driving feature. Instead, the lowest and smallest are welcomed as if they are God Himself. The disciples needed to learn this. So do we.

How does Sunday connect with the rest of the week? Do we rely on Sunday experience of Jesus to get through the week? This section shows Jesus on the mountaintop - a glimpse of the glory of the majesty of Christ, followed by Jesus dealing with the weak faith of a needy Dad and weak disciples. The infinitely glorious Jesus is involved in the grittiness of real life!

We start a new series by jumping into the mid-point of Mark's presentation of Jesus. Jesus makes huge claims, but is patient with slow to learn disciples. Like them, we can easily bring our own expectations to Jesus and then discover that his plan for us is infinitely greater! We want a king on our terms, but Jesus is a different kind of King!

If the Gospel is going to make a difference anywhere in our lives, it has to offer some hope in this area. Many struggle with a variety of difficulties that seem tied to this inner drive for intimacy, a drive that often feels more like a curse than a blessing. Does God understand? Did God really design us this way? How can we find help and hope in the midst of guilt, confusion, shame and struggle?...

Our culture celebrates excessive busy-ness and laziness in almost equal measure! Why do we struggle with our use of time so much, and what is the solution? Andy takes us to an Old Testament prophet to get at the real heart of the issue. The message is followed by a Q&A.

Money might just be the biggest "alternative god" we face in life . . . so what should our perspective be? Looking at Matthew 6, David points us to Jesus' teaching on this critical and everyday subject.

The Gospel is an invitation to the Father's love, revealed in the Son and poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, and that Gospel transforms lives! In this church anniversary message, Peter looks at 1Thessalonians 1 to see the vision of Trinity Chippenham being lived out in another young church all those years ago. 2015 can be a year of transformed lives, but it won't be down to o...