Paul's Podcast

When we left the nation of Israel last week, they were down & out and crying out to the Lord. We knew God was always going to step in and save them, but what we maybe didn’t know - and what is remarkable about this week’s passage - is how. In response to their plea, he doesn’t deliver them immediately. He doesn’t send a soldier to wipe out the Midianties (yet), he doesn’t send an angel (not ye...

It is often said that the first step to solving a problem is admitting you have one. In the book of Judges, as we looked at last week in our intro, the nation of Israel had a problem. And they were not quick to admit it (or to learn from it). For the most part, us Christians & the church has the same problem too... What is this problem? And why is it so important that we admit it? Let's f...

Today we are going to meet Gideon. His story is told in Judges  6, 7 & 8. We will see Gideon is not strong - far from it. He is a (seemingly) weak man in a time of great trouble... but… then we will see how this weak man is made strong. And how ultimately, he leads his group of men to win one of the most remarkable battles in history. Why should we care? What does this mean for us? Let's...

The life of liberty that Paul has argued for over the last 6 chapters is free from sin & death, is free from the law and religion, but is not free from trouble. What trouble is out there for those that follow Jesus? What marks might it make on us? And what do we do about it? Let's find out... Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

Last week we saw how the religious legalist glories in the flesh; this week we see how Paul glories in Christ. The idea of ‘glorying in Christ’ sounds super spiritual and like a really good idea. We think ‘I want to glory in Christ’ and ‘as a Christian that sounds like something I should do’…but what does it  mean, exactly? We will be encouraged today to discover that we can glory in Christ &...

The religious find their glory in the flesh. Their ministries are motivated by how others see them, how others treat them, and how others behave. Today is a big 'watch out!' 'Watch out!' We might know someone like this. 'Watch out!' We might become someone like this. Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

'We reap what we sow' is something we've all probably thought or said in the past, but how does this truth help us grow our faith and enjoy our relationship with God? Take a listen and find out... Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

There are a few topics in life that we don't like to talk about. Society says we shouldn’t bring these up at a dinner party, we shouldn’t discuss them in the taxi and we shouldn’t chat about them at the hairdressers. The list includes politics, the birds and the bees, death, & religion... but maybe at the top of this list is money. Are you ready to hear a sermon about money? Doesn't...

-Gimme 3 times I can pull my weight at church and know I am being a huge help to the ministry there. -Ok. Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

Over the last few weeks we have been looking at the fruit of the Spirit - and doesn’t it look delicious? A life filled with love, joy, peace & all the others… One of the things we have seen is that, simply, this is THE FRUIT of THE SPIRIT. We can’t manufacture it ourselves, it is dependent on the Holy Spirit. But that doesn’t mean we are not involved in its production. As we finish up our mini...

Packing for a camping trip in England is interesting; you have to pack for every eventuality. (There can’t be that many holiday destinations where you consider taking wellies, suncream, your swimsuit and a wooly hat.) Life as a Christian is similar. We like to be ready, but that can be tricky when we do not know what tests, opportunities & attacks are waiting around the corner. This is where o...

We have all probably been told at some point in our lives that we should treat people how we want to be treated. (Most likely we heard that as a telling off when we were children!) Whilst that it true, today's lesson will put ‘how we should treat each other’ in a different light... As we dig into what the bible tells us about today’s 3 slices, we will understand the longsuffering, gentleness...

If we took a poll of all everyone in the world and asked ‘who wants a life full of love, joy and peace?’ I’m pretty sure everyone would put their hand up. If we then asked ‘who has a life full of love, joy and peace?’ The number to raise their hand would be much fewer. So what are love, joy & peace? What does it look like when someone has them? And how can we get them to grow in our lives? Let...

How does this fruit of the Spirit thing work? Let's take a look... Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

We want to walk worthy. We want to stand fast in the liberty Christ has given us. We want to live fruitful lives. This requires us to understand both the fruit of the Spirit (coming next week) and the works of the flesh (our focus today). Here are three reasons why no believer can ignore the works of the flesh... Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

By the time 1964 rolled around, a young boxer named Cassius Clay was doing a pretty alright job with his boxing career. He hadn’t lost a fight, but still, no one thought too much of him... that is until he won the right fight. (This was against  Sonny Liston.) In our study of Galatians so far, we may have been thinking that the right fight was against the Judaizers - but the fight the Galatians re...

Many people I know like to receive a gift voucher for a birthday present. The reason people like them is this: they get to receive the gift (like any other gift), but then they get to choose how they spend it. The gift is free; how we spend it is a choice. Today, we’ll see the apostle Paul teach that our freedom in Christ is much the same: It is a gift that is free (no one earns freedom from sin a...

Troublesome teachers. All they do is cause trouble. We want to stand fast in our Christian liberty; they are the people who - given the chance -  will take it from us. What do we need to know about them? And how will that help protect us? Let's find out... Find out more about us here - crossroadslondon.org

Sometimes success in a battle means staying where you are. Not advancing forward, not taking an enemy city, just holding onto the position that you already have. This illustrates a spiritual truth from the beginning of chapter 5. Here, the Apostle Paul is going to tell us why it is so important to stand fast in the liberty that Christ has given us. Let's jump in... Find out more about us here...

There are some great combinations out there: tea & biscuits, lamb & mint sauce,  salt & caramel (what genius thought of that?). But there are also some combinations that don’t go well together. In this Tale of Two Children, we see that Issac and Ishmael were too different to ever go well together. They were never going to be compatible. They could never 'play nice'. The Apost...

In his famous novel 'A Tale of Two Cities', Charles Dickens writes a story about a man who lives in two very different places. One city is Paris, where he is imprisoned; the other is London, where he is free. In today’s passage, the apostle Paul gives us a tale of two Jerusalem's that are also very different... Understanding which city is our home city is key to our identity in Chri...

Growing up, I’d hear the phrase ‘the Queen has two birthdays’. And I’d think, ‘man, if anyone doesn’t need two birthdays its got to be her. She already lives in a place, sits on chairs made of gold & wears a crown... and now she gets two birthdays?’ But it turns out, in reality of course, she didn’t have two birthdays - she just celebrated one birthday twice. What we’re reading about today is...

The biggest positive influence on a child’s development and education is the home set-up, specifically the parents. There are many other factors involved, and there are of course exceptions to the rule, but generally speaking, if a child has a stable & supportive parental situation at home, they are much more likely to do well in school. A good teacher can be very helpful, but they cannot repl...

In Psalm 1 we see two types of people: one who is becoming increasing worldly; one who is becoming increasingly godly. This illustrates the spiritual truth that we are always changing - either growing more like Christ, or less like him. In Galatians 4:12-16, we see the Galatians are turning away from Paul, which means they are turning away from the truth and therefore turning away from Christ. We...

Statistics indicate that about one third of people who have been released from prison end up back inside within 12 months. Turns out it is quite easy to give up one’s freedom. After explaining how the Galatians are free - no longer servants but sons - Paul starts an analysis now of how they are giving up that freedom. We will see, by following the example of the Galatians, how we too can live a li...