Sermons at St Aidan's

We continue our short series in 1 Peter considering God’s vision for his church. As God has given us new birth through the gospel, we are born into a new community marked by love. Today we consider how this reality plays out among us at St Aidan’s.

We begin a short series considering God’s vision for his church. 1 Peter is written to believers calling them to live out their faith as God’s new people in the world, we are now to live for His praise, glory and honour as we treasure Christ and look forward to our certain heavenly inheritance.

As we come to the end of Hebrews, the author gives a final word to encourage the Hebrew Christians to endure in their faith as they remember the faith of their leaders and remember their saviour, even unto death, as we offer a sacrifice of praise through the only one who can make our sacrifice acceptable: Jesus!

As we come to the final chapter of Hebrews, we are shown what it practically looks like to live in a way that worships God and is pleasing to him. Three ways we express our love for God is by loving others in the church, avoiding sexual immorality, and keeping ourselves from the love of money.

The salvation we have received in Christ brings us to God, we have come to the new church of that God is creating that will remain forever. 

What does the life of faith look like with our eyes fixed on Jesus? As we walk with our saviour he calls us to faithful endurance.

Like  God’s people in the Old Testament who went before us, we are called to live by faith in a world where we will endure rejection, suffering, and difficult circumstances. Unlike them, we have seen God’s promises of salvation fulfilled in Christ and can look to him for hope and perseverance.

None of us knows the future, but we do know the promises of God and His character. Like the Old teTestamentstament examples of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph we are called to live and act by faith as we look forward to heaven trusting the faithful God who through Christ fulfils his promises.

The well-known figures in the Old-Testament were saved in the very same way we are: by faith in God. New Covenant believers receive salvation by faith in the same way, and therefore, should emulate those who came before us.

Obedience, endurance and faithful living are crucial for the Christian who places their faith in Christ. Through trials and persecution and temptation, our confidence must be in the saving work of Jesus, whose promise of return fills us with great hope so that we might strive to be obedient, endure and remain faithful to the end.

Hebrews' great statement on the priesthood of Christ concludes by focusing on how the sacrifice of Christ makes us Holy. Having received this new status as a gift, we are urged to draw near to the God who has served us and to give ourselves in service to one another.

How can we come near to God? How can we be cleansed from our sin? How can we have security for eternity? There is much that is uncertain in our world, but in Hebrews chapter 9 we are told of the certain hope that we have through the sacrifice that Jesus made for us which has obtained eternal redemption. 

As we return to our series in Hebrews, we look in chapter 8 at the difference between the Old and New Covenants. The human priesthood anticipates the priesthood of Jesus, who serves in heaven! The New Covenant is superior and will reveal to us the grace and forgiveness of God in Jesus Christ.

Last week Paul reminded us that the Old Covenant has been fulfilled in Christ and we fulfil it in our loving submission to one another....

This week, Paul explains how we can submit to Christ while reflecting his loving submission to everyone, not just our governing authorities.

Regardless of our level of interest in politics the presence of governing authorities in inevitable. Should we view this as a burden a blessing or...

In Hebrews 7 we return to the theme of Jesus being our great high priest. We’ve heard of Melchizedek earlier in Hebrews, now we see...

God is a promise making and promise keeping God. His character is unchanging, and his promises are sure. They are made sure through the priestly...

Today we hear the exhortation to keep growing as Christians. Our salvation in Christ is full and free, and at the same time we are...

We come to a major section in Hebrews revealing to us that Jesus is our great high priest. Because of our sinfulness humanity requires a...

In Hebrews 4 we see the great encouragement Christians have of the rest that God gives us through the finished work of Jesus. To enter...

In Hebrews 3 we see the faithfulness of both Moses and Jesus. If Moses was such a great and faithful servant, then how much more...

In Christ, we have a full salvation, for he is the supreme Lord of all who in mercy comes to save us. He does this...

This week we begin a new series in the letter to the Hebrew’s. It is a book of the Bible that helps us to see the supremacy of Jesus, and how the whole of God’s plan of salvation through history finds its climax in Jesus Christ. As we begin today we see how Jesus is God’s best and sufficient word to us, as we have heard God speak to us in Christ we are encouraged to pay close attention as we liste...