Sunday Talks

In the letter to the Hebrews there are a series of warnings and in verse 1:5-2:4 the first one is introduced to the reader - We are going to see a strong call to personal commitment to Jesus Christ. Today, the loudest call today is to live your own way, to do what you want- if that's where you are headed - this message is going to hit hard as this passage calls us to something better - to someone...

In our new series we open up the letter to the Hebrews and consider the words of exhortation the author gives to people who are in danger of drifting away from the Lord - to the people who are facing persecution, to the people who are actively rebelling against God and to the people who have fallen away because they are tired and weary.  This letter is a brief word of advice - in it the autho...

For the next number of weeks join us in digging into Psalm 119 as over the summer months some of the men from BCC open up God's Word for us!

For the next number of weeks join us in digging into Psalm 119 as over the summer months some of the men from BCC open up God's Word for us!

For the next number of weeks join us in digging into Psalm 119 as over the summer months some of the men from BCC open up God's Word for us!

For the next number of weeks join us in digging into Psalm 119 as over the summer months some of the men from BCC open up God's Word for us!

For the next number of weeks join us in digging into Psalm 119 as over the summer months some of the men from BCC open up God's Word for us!

For the next number of weeks join us in digging into Psalm 119 as over the summer months some of the men from BCC open up God's Word for us! 

Everyone sings. With mixed results in terms of the sound made, but we all sing something . Christians sing, specifically speaking, because God has made his people sing. The gospel we sing about is that God has rescued sinful, treacherous people like you and me from punishment and hell and given us his underserved grace: eternal life, freedom from sin and death – through the atoning sacrificial dea...

These events - from the time you first heard about them - leave an extraordinary imprint on your mind’s eye. Walls of water, the Red Sea parted, miraculously the people of Israel walking through on dry ground. Followed by the clogged chariot wheels and then the final, terrible destruction of their Egyptian oppressors. Reading it again, here’s what is so surprising about the Biblical text. The spot...

It’s hard to escape from the way this plague – the tenth – is very different from the nine others that came before it. You can’t miss – or at least shouldn’t miss – the fact that the final plague marks a new beginning not just to take note of, but that should never be forgotten. 

Have you ever looked at the skyline of Dublin and noticed some of the dramatic new buildings that have gone up in the last few decades? Powerful cathedrals of wealth and prosperity – vast campuses – look at Dundrum, or the docklands. Each one dwarfing some of the church cathedrals that dominated the landscape for centuries. Like that, sometimes God appears eclipsed in the dazzle of such a displays...

We’ve been learning that Exodus follows the amazing story of God’s rescue. In a very revealing dialogue with God – that we read together last time – God told a very hesitant Moses that this rescue of his enslaved people required not Moses’ prowess as their leader, but rather his intervention. God’s saving presence and action. Moses, though, as we’ll see, hadn’t quite heard this right. Yes, he list...

We saw last time that Exodus is the story of God’s rescue of his people. Moses – who burst onto the scene in chapters 1 and 2 - will definitely take a prominent role in that rescue story. But closely reading these chapters 3 and 4, we can’t miss what else the writer is communicating. The main thing! He wants us readers to know the name, the identity, the character, the authority, the presence, the...

Exodus is the story of God’s rescue of his people. These days, of course, there’s a newer story right front and centre in our thinking: the narrative of the big rescue from Covid-19, led by government and health experts, leading a bumpy roll-out of the vaccinations. Reading Exodus, it's easy to see the similarities in our stories: the people of Israel & us in this moment : both stories of peop...

Luke the gospel writer was determined to provide certainty about Jesus Christ. As he put together the eye witness testimonies, the findings of his careful investigations, he clearly demonstrated that Jesus was on a mission to save people – not in the first instance from social problems like poverty or even terrible physical disabilities like blindness. But more significantly, much, much more relev...

If you were to collect everything ever written in print or digital form about Jesus, you would have an extraordinary, almost inconceivable amount of material. So much has been written you might think that most people should be able to sum up in a sentence or two what Jesus set out to achieve. Despite having a general of who Jesus is, many, many people struggle with that kind of clarity.  But,...

Easter is a highpoint in the Christian calendar. And in a few weeks we’ll be celebrating it again here in Ireland. It was after the very first Easter that people, first in their ones and twos, tens and twenties, and then by their thousands began to define their lives according to the historical figure at the centre of it all – Jesus Christ. Today millions of people mark Easter in some way: some of...

Chapter 3 of this letter to Titus begins with a reminder. Remind them (the Christians) to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work. All along, Paul’s letter has reminded Titus and Christians then and now that we need to close the gap between what we believe and how we behave. In Chapter 1, he spoke about the sphere of the church, in chapter 2 in term...

At the moment our lives seem to be defined by two events , one of which has its first anniversary this week. Two events. One is an event we look back at, that took place a year ago, and one is an event that is still ahead that we are waiting on. Any guesses? I’m talking, of course, about the start of Covid-19 restrictions – which arrived on the scene with the event of the Taoiseach’s announcement...

There’s a very plain challenge that hits us from Titus 2 - Does it fit? And no, Paul isn’t asking his colleague on Crete if his clothes are the right size. There’s a much deeper concern. He wants Titus to challenge the Christians about whether their behaviour matches what they believe. Is your way of life consistent with your way of belief!

We’re all by now familiar with weather warnings. Here in Ireland we get a colour to match the perceived severity of what’s coming. Thankfully, the colours currently active for today are just yellow and orange rather than a Valentine’s Day red! For Christians living on the island of Crete in the 1st Century, the apostle Paul begins to write what could be described as a Status Red cultural warning....

There’s a big gap in our lives as Christians, I know the longing we all feel to be back together – that’s a gap in our experience alright, but not the one I specifically have in mind this morning. There are gaps in our understanding too – I feel them, you feel them. None of us knows all we need to know – but those are not the gaps I’m referring to here. Neither is it the gap in our lives left by l...

There was utter devastation, with vast areas of scorched, burnt bushland left behind, following the Australian bushfires in 2019. Then some photographers captured an amazing sight. Vibrant green and pink shoots were seen rising up in the middle of blackened forests! The photographers described the hope they felt – seeing shoots of life in the middle of all the charred mess. And they shared the pic...

We’re in the middle of a repeat of lockdown so maybe you’re back into a repeat of home schooling or working from home. This section of Isaiah has the feel of repetition about it too, as this Biblical prophet calls God’s people to respond to God’s word. Here’s the thing about repetition : it gives us an opportunity to respond differently. There’s scope to change our thinking There’s another go at c...