Ngāruawāhia Village Church Podcast

What is success? What does God say about it? Nathan looks at God's definition of "the good life" and how it might factor into our aspirations and five-year plans.

If we are to live skilfully we must have a sense of justice, according to Proverbs. Its a heavily-loaded word. Byron explores some of the surprising facets of Justice.

Shane takes a stroll through the teaching of Proverbs as it addresses the matter of desire. It turns out we are directed by our gut instincts more than we are by our brains.

The wise sayings in Proverbs deal with no subject more than the words we use. As Ronan Keating taught us, we say it best when we say nothing at all.

Proverbs is all about living skilfully. And the skilful person pays attention to the condition of the heart. Ignore the inner life at your peril.

The book of Proverbs is a catalog of observations about the way God made the world, and how to sand with the grain. Living generously sands with the grain.

Pentecost has deep connections to Sinai. Both are major interventions in the story of God's saving work in this world, and Dave wonders out loud if we have managed to keep up with the program.

The word church dials up a mixed bag of reactions depending on our experiences. Despite knowing all its shortcomings, the Apostle Paul seems to maintain a staggering optimism about the essential nature of the church. And if we lower our defences a bit, its kinda catchy.

The messy stories of the Patriarchs leave us scratching our heads at times. Taking a big step back helps to see that in the midst of those messy moments, God is carrying a deep story forwards that reaches its resolution in Jesus. Don't be derailed by the messy stuff.

Jacob married two women, and fathered children by two others. The result is 12 sons, and a lot of envy and bitterness. Nathan reflects on the names of the 12 sons and what they expose about the messiness of Jacob's life.

One of the side-quests in the story of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, is the dark episode of the destruction of the cities of the plain. Dave throws caution into the wind and offers some reflections on this strange tale of fire and judgement.

Jacob's early life leaves us a bit conflicted. His story seems to involve trickery, deception, and ambition. Shane looks at the man who's name means "grasper" and guides us in reflection of the ways we can pursue good things with questionable methods.

Key events of the Easter story happen in gardens. Coincidence? Maybe. But the Gospel of John invites us to consider that the resurrection of Jesus in the garden is the beginning of Creation 2.0, the new world God is making through his new-creation co-gardeners.

A woman draws water at a well and a wedding follows. Sound familiar? It happens a number of times in Scripture and is a theme Angus traces from the first appearance in the wedding of Isaac and Rebekah.

The stories of Hagar, Sarah, and their sons are leveraged by the apostle Paul to teach us what makes a person a true heir of Abraham's promises: covenant life with God. Texts : Genesis 16, 17, 21; John 3; Galatians 4; Revelation 21, 22.

This recording was truncated at the halfway point and missed a great second-half. Our apologies for this. Shane begins with a look at the idea of "covenant" to understand the strange ritual Abram encounters in Genesis 15.

After receiving a series of outrageous promises from God, Abram immediately wanders into a number of spoilers to those very promises. The land, his lineage...even his own life are all in jeopardy. What does faith do?

Abraham (actually, Abram at this stage of the story) is called out of Ur, and travels through the land of promise, building altars as he goes.

Another sermon from the back-catalogue. This time Shane looks at the fiery predictions of Jesus in Mark 13 and the variety of ways this chapter has been understood.

We needed a first episode to kick this podcast off and this one seemed as good as any. Enjoy.