St. Luke's, Ramsgate

"These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come." (1 Corinthians 10:11) In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul is concerned that the Christians of Corinth will lose their faith. He is worried that some of them are so complacent about the strength of their own faith, that they are in danger of slipping into idolatry without realis...

"Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone to win as many as possible." (1 Corinthians 9:19) Paul is concerned to win. But he is not after the prestige of winning for himself. His concern is to win people for Christ. That is to share the good news or gospel of God’s salvation through Jesus, so that they might believe and so be forgiven for their sins, be reconci...

"Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up." (1 Corinthians 8:1) Paul shows that love is the eternal value that builds up Christ’s church. When we grasp this, then knowledge can be used for building up others rather than justifying our own freedoms and pride.

"Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud. 'This is my Son whom I love, 'Listen to him!'" (Mark 9:7) Who do you listen to? The modern super-connected world hurls a tidal wave of different voices at us day after day, bombarding us with a multitude of news, opinions and stories. How do we choose what to listen to when we are faced with such an enormous selection?

"God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24) This week is the last in our series on Nehemiah and we are thinking about Holy Worship. The work is completed, the community gather, the word is read, praise to God is given, and they commit themselves again to being the people of God. Yet in ch. 13 Nehemiah returns as the people have not maintained the call to l...

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honours him. (Proverbs 14:31). In our series on Ezra-Nehemiah we have reached a point in the narrative (in Nehemiah ch5) where the conflict that has come from opposition to the rebuilding of the walls, and the work of rebuilding itself, takes a back seat and a new problem emerges – the problem of hunger and exploit...

When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and morurned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven (Nehemiah 1:4)

For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to do it and to teach the statutes and ordinances in Israel (Ezra 7:10)

Then the heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred—got ready to go up and rebuild the house of the LORD in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:5)

For many people Christmas is the time when family and loved ones visit to enjoy the festivities together. It is also a time when Christians celebrate the greatest visitor of all: Jesus Christ. As the Son of God, he visited us from heaven to reconcile the world to God.

We might feel very familiar with the Christmas story and the reason we repeat it every year is because there is real treasure in Jesus and the gift he was that first Christmas

One of the key traditions of Christmas is the giving and receiving of presents. But how easy is it these days to buy the perfect present? To give a gift that is truly worth giving?

This third Sunday of Advent is traditionally one where we remember John the Baptist as the modern prophet who came to testify about who Jesus was. John's part in God's stroy was to come and be a witness. He invited people to come and be ready to receive the truth about Jesus in their lives, and to believe in him.

Last week Paul challenged us in this season of Advent to commit to what will last. We want to be prepared for eternity, Jesus is going to come back and we want to encourage others to be prepared to meet with Him too.

Jesus said "...Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away." (Mark 13:31). Advent is more than just the lead up to Christmas. It is an opportuniy to reflect on our lives from the perspetive of eternity.

How does God guide us? If we truly love God and are serious about being disciples of Christ, then we should always want toact and make decisions in line with what God wants.

As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. (1 Peter 1:14)

The Last Enemy to be Destroyed is Death

Dealing with Disagreements How are we to deal with disagreements in church?

Our Bible reading today is about church discipline. It is not an easy topic, because if immediately brings to mind incidences of where church discipline goes wrong or fails.

Esthers Plea

“Honour your Father and your Mother as the LORD your God commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” (Deuteronomy 5:16)

"Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh is the sabbath to the LORD your God." (Deuteronomy 5:13-14a) Many people today worry about work-life balance. How can you avoid work taking up so much of your time and energy that little is left for other important aspects of life? We recognise that work should not be allowed to dominate our lives, yet increasingly we live in a socie...

Harvest - An opportunity to give thanks to our Lord for the good things we receive from him.

You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.