Hope Community Church Helensburgh Sermons

‘Caring for Baby’. In his final sermon at Hope Community Church, Kirk preaches a message of encouragement for us in the months and years ahead. Reading from the Book of Acts, he looks at the need for devotion and fellowship in the life of the church. Bible passage: Acts 2:37-47 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (T...

‘Saved by Love’. Kirk explores how salvation is a gift from God to be explored, and which enables us to love fully, but only as members of a community. Bible passage: Philippians 2:8-12 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good...

‘Being Conformed’. This week, Kirk van der Swaagh reflects on God’s purpose in the trials we face, preaching from Romans 8 and the story of Gideon in Judges 6. What does it mean to be “conformed to the image of his Son”? Through fear, weakness, and uncertainty, God patiently shapes His people for glory. Bible passage: Judges 6:1-24, Romans 8:26-30 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: ⁠hopehelensburgh...

‘From Seeing to Believing’. This week, Andy Tamata investigates the evidence for the resurrection, examining the eyewitness testimony and provenance of the gospels, and looking at how the cross is foreshadowed in the Old Testament. Bible passage: Luke 24:1-35 (readings by Alfie Pace & Andy Tamata) Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations ar...

‘The Parable of the Good Samaritan… or the Robbed Man’. This week Niall Munro preaches from the Parable of the Good Samaritan from Luke’s Gospel, providing three interpretations of the passage. What happens when we re-centre the story on the robbed man? Bible passage: Luke 10:25-37 (reading by Edgar Black) Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotatio...

‘Guard the Desposit’. In the final part of his series from 1 Timothy, Kirk explains how Paul has entrusted Timothy with the “deposit” - the Gospel - and to guard its message. Why might we be tempted to depart from Gospel teachings, and what are the consequences of doing so? Bible passage: 1 Timothy 6:20-21 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotatio...

‘The Good Life’. In the penultimate part of his series from 1 Timothy, Kirk looks at attitudes towards money and possessions. What do we need, as Christians, to enjoy the good life? Bible passage: 1 Timothy 6:3-19 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a...

‘A Delicate Balance’. Kirk continues his series from 1 Timothy, this week looking at the relationship between pastor and congregation. What are the implications of an imbalance in power and authority within a church? Bible passages: 1 Timothy 4:1-16 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standa...

‘True to the Truth’. This week, Kirk continues his series from 1 Timothy. Paul tells us that the church is the ‘pillar and buttress of truth’. What implications does that have for the way that we behave as Christians? Bible passages: 1 Timothy 3:13-16 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Stan...

‘Who will Roll The Stone Away’. The significance of Christ's resurrection, as presented in Mark's gospel, is the subject of this week's sermon Bible passages: Mark 15:3-16:8 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: ⁠hopehelensburgh.org⁠⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠Facebook⁠ Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of...

‘Making the Main Thing the Main Thing’. This week, Kirk invites us to take a step back and consider what the church is all about. Bible passages: 1 Timothy 2:1-8 Romans 3:21-26 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publ...

‘Unrighteous Righteousness’. Kirk’s sermon this week examines the ways that we can stray from the Gospel, either through ‘unlawful lawfulness’ - additional requirements over and above God’s law - or by ‘lawless lawfulness’: disregarding the law to appear ‘nice’ to others. Bible passages: 1 Timothy 1:3-17 Acts 9:1-17 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scriptur...

‘Aiming for the Bullseye’: Kirk preaches on the centrality of love to Christian discipleship, using the example of gossip to show how easily we fall short when we do not properly consider our actions and motives. Bible passage: 1 Timothy 1:1-20 Additional material from How the Gossip Machine Turns Desire into Sin by Joe Carter: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/how-the-gossip-machine-turn...

This week, Kirk explores two concepts that we often find difficult to reconcile: justice and grace. He uses three episodes from the life of Moses to illustrate. Bible passages: Exodus 3:1-8 Deuteronomy 34:1-6 Matthew 17:1-8 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Cr...

Mr Niall Munro brings to us a message of hope from God from 1 Kings 9. Bible passage: Romans 11:33-36 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: ⁠hopehelensburgh.org⁠⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠Facebook⁠ Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © Hope Community Chu...

Kirk concludes his series on the Lord’s Prayer by explaining the purpose and history behind the doxology, and summarises what we have learned over the last eight weeks. Bible passage: Romans 11:33-36 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing min...

This week in Kirk’s series on the Lord’s Prayer, we have reached the last of the three ‘us’ petitions: ‘Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.’  Bible passages: 1 Peter 1:3-9 1 Corinthians 10:13 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a pub...

This week, Kirk is considering the second of the three ‘us’ petitions: Forgive Us Our Debts . What does the Bible teach about forgiveness? How should we act towards those who commit sin toward us? Bible passages: Matthew 18:21-35 Romans 13:8-10 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Ve...

Kirk continues his series on the Lord’s Prayer by looking at the first ‘us’ petition: Give us today our daily bread . He uses the example of God feeding the Israelites in the wilderness to show why we need to rely on His providence. Bible passages: Exodus 16:1-26 Matthew 6:25-34 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (...

In the third part of his series on the Lord’s Prayer, Kirk explains the line ‘Your Kingdom Come’. What do we mean when we talk about God’s Kingdom? Bible passages: Matthew 3:1-12 Matthew 5:1-12 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry...

In the second part of his series on the subject of the Lord’s Prayer, Kirk speaks about the significance of the phrase ‘Hallowed Be Your Name’. Bible passages: Jeremiah 9:23-24 John 17:1-12 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of G...

In a new series for 2025, Kirk is leading us through a deep dive into the Lord's Prayer. This week: what are the implications of the first line - 'Our Father in Heaven' ? Scripture passages: Isaiah 66:1-2 Matthew 7:7-11 Romans 8:28-32 Find out more about us: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by C...

This week, Kirk van der Swaagh preaches on the topic “Desirable Love” from the passages Psalm 103:8-18 and 1 Corinthians 13

This week, Kirk van der Swaagh preaches from 1 Peter 1:3-7 and John 14:1-3 with the title “Living hope”

This week, Niall Munro preaches on the birth of Christ from Luke's Gospel, asking the questions: Who is Jesus? How do we respond? What did Jesus come to do? Bible passage: Luke 1:26-56 Find out more about us: ⁠Website: hopehelensburgh.org⁠ Instagram Facebook Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good N...