Redlands Christian Church

Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 9 Last week we saw Paul begin to wrestle with the problem of how new Christians should deal with the idolatry that continued around them. In short, he tells them not to do anything that would encourage a believer who is struggling to escape their past idolatry to fall back into that idolatry. Though we might be free to act in a certain way, we are to restrict ourselves fo...

Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 8 In this chapter Paul moves on from addressing the Corinthian's questions about marriage and singleness and looks at a question regarding meat offered to idols. Some of the Corinthians had decided that it was fine, because 'idols are nothing'. The problem was that for some this was leading back into idolatry. Their knowledge might have been correct, but their...

Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 7:25 -40 This week we come to the last section on Paul's discussion of sex, marriage and singleness. His focus is on singleness and the advantages of it. This might seem an odd thing, given that marriage was created by God and is used as a picture of Christ union with the church, but says that marriage brings with it particular burdens, whereas singleness gives you fr...

Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 7:10 -24 This week we pick up the verses that got left last week that look at the topic of divorce. Paul is still looking at human relationships through the lens of 'we belong to Jesus', but in the second half of our passage he broadens that out to a more general principle, 'Each person should remain in the situation they were in when God called them.' Eve...

Ps Jono Deenick Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 7:1-16 Last week we looked at the way the truth of the gospel shapes our view of our bodies and by association sex. Key to all of it was that we belong to Jesus, we are bought at great price. This week Paul goes on to discuss various issues around marriage and in coming weeks, singleness. As he does so this concept, that we belong to Jesus, still guides hi...

Ps Jono Deenick 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 It's fair to say we are surround by all manner of messages and beliefs regarding sex. We know in many cases they are wrong, but we are perhaps not clear on what God teaches. Or to put it another way, we know the rule, but we don't understand why God told us that. We don't understand God's beautiful plan and design. In our passage today, as Paul...

Pastor: Bill Berends Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 5  We continue this week in Corinthians. Paul is looking at problems in the Corinthian church and their attitude towards the sin.  

Ps Jono Deenick Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 4 We live in a world where the idea that 'bigger is better' is accepted, felt and believed for many things at least. But what about when it comes to the gospel? Without a doubt having large numbers of people coming to faith is a good thing, but how do we measure gospel success? It seems this was a bone of contention between Paul and the Corinthian...

Preacher: Juhan Klooster Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 3:1-23 What happens when we lose sight of what’s important? All the small land trivial things start to look more important than they truly are… and if we allow yourselves to get distracted for too long then the small things that are trivial can eat up and replace what is important. Here we see the Corinthian’s desire for “wisdom and knowledge” (go...

Ps Jono Deenick Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 2:6-16 In recent weeks we have done a little thinking about the Spirit. On Pentecost Sunday we saw that Jesus sent His Spirit to enable His people to carry out His mission. Last week, Paul laid out the need for the Spirit to open our eyes to the wonder of the gospel. This week he continues in a similar vein as he explains the great privilege and wonder of...

Ps Jono Deenick Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 1:10 -2:5 As we saw last week, one of the problems in the Corinthian Church was division as different factions favoured different leaders. In these verses Paul addresses that problem directly. However, he does so in an unexpected way. He speaks about the nature of the gospel, of the sort of people that are often saved and the way he preaches because of the...

Ps Jono Deenik Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 This week we begin a new series working our way through the book of 1 Corinthians. We'll take some time today acquainting ourselves with the church in Corinth and some of the problems that led to Paul writing this letter. We'll also begin to look at the core truths he uses to teach and correct them. At the heart of it all however will be one c...

Ps Jono Deenik Bible Text: Acts 2:1-13 Today is Pentecost Sunday, the seventh Sunday after the resurrection of Jesus. It was the day when the Holy Spirit was first poured out on the Church. It's not something we pay particular attention to every year, but it is a world changing event. Perhaps not quite at the same level as Jesus' death and resurrection, but close to it. Why is that the cas...

Bible Text: Genesis 35 After a good few weeks we have come to the end of our series focusing on God's work in Jacob's life. Here again we see great kindness from God and His promises of blessing. Jacob obeys God and returns to the place where it all began. It is a high point, and yet this account is also full of sorrow. Why? Why is it there is still much suffering, when Jacob is doing well...

Ps Jono Deenik Bible Text: 1 Corinthians 4:1-5 Today is Mother’s Day, a day we like to set aside to celebrate our mothers. It's also a day we like to encourage our mothers because being a mother can be a weary task. It is full of joys, but also full of pressures. Pressures that are perhaps exacerbated because we are surrounded by images and examples of the ideal mother, with the ideal children...

Preacher: Jesse Gollan Bible Text: 1 Peter 2:18 -25 Does your life act as an advertisement for Jesus? Have you ever wondered how to respond as a Christian when you are mistreated? Is Hungry Jacks better than McDonalds? How can our very lives declare the glory of Jesus? Join us this Sunday as we explore these questions with Jesse Gollan, our guest preacher.

Bible Text: Genesis 34 As we continue in Genesis this week, we come to a very difficult passage. Here Dinah is raped by a young ruler from Shechem, Jacob is passive in response and the brothers take a terrible revenge. What are supposed to take away from an account like this? Certainly there isn't any example to follow. But it does force us to wrestle with the reality of sin, and our response...

Bible Text: Genesis 33 Last we saw a turning point in Jacob's life. God wrestled with Jacob and demonstrated His power and Jacob finally realised he needed to cling to God for blessing. No longer would he try to use and control God, he would submit to Him and rely on Him. This week we begin to see how this changed Jacob. He is, to a large degree a new man. He acts in new ways. And yet he still...

Bible Text: Genesis 32 This week we return to Genesis and the life of Jacob. We have seen over previous weeks how God has been working in Jacob's life to bring him to the realisation that God himself is our true prize. This week that comes to a culmination as we see Jacob wrestling with God. It is a strange episode to say the least and yet it helps us to see the lengths God often needs to go t...

Bible Text: Luke 24: 1-35 Three days and three nights after Jesus was dead and buried, on the road to Emmaus 2 men encountered Christ on the first day of His resurrection.  This conversation which happened 14,000 km away from Ormiston and over 2000 years ago in fact reflects accurately the status of our individual relationship with the resurrected Christ. Only this time, He has returned not as a l...

Bible Text: Luke 23:26 -49 Good Friday is both a day of sadness and of joy. Sadness because it was our sin that held Jesus to the cross, and yet joy because He took the punishment we deserved so that we might be reconciled to God. It is also the day Jesus established his new kingdom. With His death the way is now open for His people to draw near to God. In that sense, as Jesus died He is crowned....

Last week Jono led us through passages from Luke 18 which left us asking the question “Will you follow the King?”. And continuing on from that, Ben will be taking us through Jesus’ Triumphal Entry where the King comes to Jerusalem. Jesus is praised with a great commotion as he rides his donkey towards the city ruled by the despised Romans. The people praised Jesus as he approached Jerusalem becaus...

Ps Jono Deenik - Bible Text: Luke 18:9-42 This week we switch gears from Jacob and what God was doing in and through him, to Jesus and what He was teaching as He made His way to Jerusalem. Easter is only a few weeks away and so we want to focus in on His death and resurrection for our salvation. This week we will look at most of Luke chapter 18 and ask the question, 'who will follow the king?&...

Ps Jono Deenik - Bible Text: Genesis 30:25 - 31:55 As we continue examining the life of Jacob this week we see him pit his wits against another deceiver, his uncle Laban. Laban has already got the better of Jacob once, but now Jacob is determined to win. Only, Jacob has once again forgotten that he has the God of the universe in his corner. He strives to do it on his own, but God is faithful to Hi...

Ps Jono Deenik - Bible Text: Genesis 28:31 - 30:24 Last time we were in Genesis, we saw that Jacob had made a mistake. It seems he thought that because promised to bless him and care for him, those things were the true prize. But they aren't, God is our true prize. We were created to prize Him above all else. This week we will see the ways the people around Jacob continue to make that mistake....