Lighthouse Church Durban

The Bible teaches us that God "searches" us and "weighs" us. Some of the things he looks for are our accountability, humility, sanctity and faithfulness. When he reveals a shortcoming and we make the necessary changes, we bring him greater honour! Daniel 5:1-31, Job 31:5-6, Proverbs 16:2, Proverbs 21:2, Luke 12:47-48, Proverbs 8:13, 1 Corinthians 6:18-20, Isaiah 42:8

Jesus is our Advocate - He represents all who put their faith in him! He made a way for us to be declared “not guilty” by taking upon himself the guilt and the penalty of our sin! And, as we live our daily lives, he is constantly available as an advocate to secure mercy and grace for us! We can trust Jesus completely with our sin and our struggles with weakness and temptation - because he is our p...

Jesus is the Light of the world. We have a choice: we can stay in darkness or we can follow him and live in his light. When we are in Jesus' light, we can see things properly; we can see what is true and right. We see who we really are. We see how precious others are. We get a glimpse of our future and the way to go forward. We see the goodness of God and trust him above all others. We see our...

Jesus is the Good Shepherd - and we are his sheep. He loves us deeply - he proved this by coming to earth and by going to the cross for us. He knows us intimately - better than we know ourselves. And he makes himself known to us, so that we can know him and follow him. Because he is the Good Shepherd, we can be secure in his loving care, we can build a relationship with him, and we can learn to fo...

God knows us better than we know ourselves! He sees us exactly how we are, but we can be deceived and think things like: - we have no sin - we don't need to confess anything - we won't be forgiven when we confess So it is good to regularly ask God to search us and show us how we are really doing - and then to deal with it! Psalm 139, 1 Timothy 4:2, 1 John 1:7-10, Romans 8:1-2

As the Lamb of God, Jesus is the perfect sacrifice for sin.  We should trust him - to forgive our sins, - to make us right with God, - to set us free from the penalty of sin, and - to set us free from the power of sin! John 1:29, Exodus 12, Hebrews 9:22, Leviticus 16, Luke 22:14-20, Jeremiah 31:31-34, Hebrews 9:11-15, Romans 3:21-25, Romans 6:5-7

John's gospel introduces us to Jesus as THE WORD: The Word was already existent at creation. The universe was created through the Word. The Word was with God and was God. The Word became human - as Jesus. The Word (Jesus) came to make God known to man and to reconcile man to God. One day every knee will bow to Jesus and every tongue will declare him Lord. Let’s do that now! Matthew 16:13-17, J...

We are living in times of confusion, uncertainty, and anxiety over the many things that are beyond our control. Yet we can find peace of mind and rest for our souls as we: - commit our ways to God - trust him - let our souls rest in the assurance that God works for the good in all things - ask God to guide us into HIS ways and obey him as he guides - have a child-like faith that trusts and obeys o...

We see God through our understanding, our circumstances, our emotional state, our experience of him and our faith. This limited view is often more focused on ourselves than God. Our view of God gets better as we - look to what he has said about himself in the Bible - trust his Spirit more than our humanity - encounter God personally. God is beyond our understanding, yet as we do these things we ca...

The Bible teaches us that we are spiritual beings as well as physical and mental beings - and that our spiritual health affects our life on earth as well as our life in eternity. When we are spiritually fit, we lead effective, productive lives. We become spiritually fit when we work on the following: -Goodness -Knowledge -Self- control -Perseverance -Godliness -Mutual affection -LOVE 1 Corinthians...

The Bible teaches us that every follower of Jesus is a member of God's  priesthood. We are royal priests doing God-given work. We are Christ’s ambassadors to the world. Our lives are lived as worship offerings to God. We can do these things because God works in us and through us - and trains us for ministry through gifted leaders. 1 Peter 2:9-10, Ephesians 2:10, 2 Corinthians 5:20, Romans 12:1...

If our view of God is smaller than our view of our problems, dangers and needs: - we'll become stressed and fearful - we'll become selfish - we won’t step out in faith to make disciples But if we realise that God is far greater than our greatest thought of him: - we'll enjoy peace of mind - we'll be generous - we'll step out in faith to make disciples of all nations!   Job 38:3...

The parable of the prodigal son is a wonderful picture of God’s amazing grace & love! We can be God’s children, yet we can think like servants instead of sons & daughters. We can get resentful, feel entitled & make demands - or we can think like responsible family members. The Father provides generously for the children who are with him, but we lose this when we walk away from him. But...

We need good governance in our lives. Some things we can't control, but some things we can - and we need to govern these things. This includes our faith, family, friendships, finances and future. We need to deal with lies such as: - I can't control anything, I can't change anything - There's no coming back from this - My life makes no difference to others If we will make godly deci...

God has prepared good work for every one of his children to do; we can all be wonderfully used for his glory. The question is, will we do these things? Will we be “useful to the Master”? Our usefulness is determined by the condition of our heart - this directs our lifestyle. God looks into our hearts to see our character, values and priorities. If our hearts are “clean”, then we will be useful to...

In days of uncertainty, insecurity & stress, it’s tempting to shrink back, retreat or hide. But this is not who we are as the children of God! Let’s not lose confidence because of circumstances! Our Father is God Almighty! Our priest is Jesus Christ! Our Lord is ever-faithful! Instead of shrinking back, let’s step out in faith! God has more for us! Let’s ask God to help us to grasp this overwh...

When we put our faith in Jesus, we received a new nature. But this new nature needs to mature for us to become the new creatures we are intended to be. If we would: -Be quick to listen (for what he is saying to you) -Be slow to speak (your own opinion) -Be slow to anger (take offense at God’s words) -Put God’s words into practice -Humbly submit to the working of God’s word in us Then we will be bl...

When we know who we are, we live accordingly! We are: -chosen by God and precious to him -Royal priests -citizens of the Kingdom of God -free from the dominion of the devil -secure in Jesus’ grip -good influences in our communities -Christ’s ambassadors Matthew 4:3&6, Matthew 27:40, 1 Peter 2:9-10, Colossians 1:13-14, John 10:28&16:33, Matthew 5:13-16, 2 Corinthians 5:17-20

When we put our faith in Jesus, we are not only rescued from sin and given new life as God's children, we are also made priests. Our primary duty as priests is proclamation (by word & example); we proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God & invite people to submit to the King. Our good lives and good works bear witness to the goodness of the King & his transforming power in our...

Jesus does not promise his disciples an easy time; he warns us that we will have trouble. Sometimes we may feel defeated - like the battle is lost. Sometimes we may feel disappointed - what we’d hoped & prayed for did not happen. Sometimes we may even feel like the devil has won. But it’s not over until JESUS says it’s over! And resurrection into eternal life with Jesus is our ultimate end! Lu...

Jesus' miraculous feeding of over 5000 people demonstrates what Jesus can do when we give him what we have - even though it clearly is not enough. Jesus involved his disciples in the miraculous feeding; he offers us the privilege of being part of his miraculous work in people's lives. As we step out in obedience, Jesus takes our "not enough" and makes us "more than enough&qu...

Jesus is a redeemer. He does not only pay the price for our sins, he also restores and transforms our lives! We may look at a person - or a situation - or ourselves - and think "this is beyond redemption; this is too far gone". But no person - and no situation - is "too far gone" for the redemptive work of Christ! Ezekiel 37:1-13, Acts 8:3, Acts 9:1-2, 26-27, 1 Timothy 1:15, 1...

God spoke in the past and he still speaks to his people - all of us! Mankind was not designed to live without the words that come from God - we need to hear from him. But stubbornness, disobedience, preconceived ideas and traditions can prevent us from hearing and obeying his voice. Hebrews 12:25, Revelation 2:7 & 3:22, Matthew 4:4, Isaiah 30:21, Psalm 119:105, Romans 8:14, Hebrews 4:7, 2 King...

In the Kingdom of God: -Greatness is not measured by our power, status, titles or recognition, but by our level of servanthood. -Leadership is not about position, power and control, it is simply another way to serve others. -All ministry is a form of service. -If we want to be great, we must learn the ways of servanthood! Mark 10:35-45, Matthew 23:5-12, Romans 1:1, 2 Peter 1:1, James 1:1, 3 John 1...

Unity is a wonderful thing! Jesus prayed that we would be united - not merely for his sake or our sakes, but for the sake of the lost. Our unity points people to Jesus, the Lord and the Saviour! So let’s be people who build unity! Let’s do it for Jesus. Let’s do it for the lost. Let’s do it for each other. Let’s relate to each other in humility. Let’s relate with gentleness. Let’s patiently bear w...