Vision Church Podcast | Christian Church in Canberra

Andrew Baker | Genesis 11:1-9,28 12:1-3, 22:15-18; Matthew 24:35; Deuteronomy 32:8-9; Joshua 24:2; Galatians 3:7-9,16,28-29; John 11:49-53 — In the Abrahamic covenant we see God fulfil an incredible promise: through an aged, idol-worshipping, faithless man (and his barren wife), God established a people of His own through whom all nations would receive salvation. From Abraham to Christ, God’s cove...

Andrew Baker | Genesis 6:1-8; 2 Peter 2:4-9; Acts 17:30-31, 10:42; James 2:13, 5:11; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:4; Hebrews 3:7-8, 4:16; Romans 8:1; Luke 18:9-14 — As early as Noah’s Ark, human history shows that the natural result of free will is brokenness, evil, and rebellion. Across scripture we see that God is a just and righteous judge who does not let human sin go unchecked. But likewise we see...

Kathryn Hartley | Psalm 37:3, 51:15-17; Hosea 6:6-7; Matthew 23:23; 2 Timothy 2:11-13 — God is unrelentingly faithful to us, and as followers of Christ we are called to grow in faithfulness to Him. But this is not simply achieved by willpower and acts of devotion. Cultivating true God-honouring faithfulness is a work of the Holy Spirit. We are to trust in and seek after Him (not our own efforts),...

Andrew Baker | Genesis 3:1-22 — Out of the perfection of Eden, we see the ‘twist in the tale’ of God’s created order: the temptation of the serpent causes Adam and Eve to fall into sin. But even in the midst of human guilt, futile cover-ups, and blame-shifting, we see a God who pursues us, promising hope and providing a means for our redemption.

Andrew Baker | Luke 24:25-27,45-47; Genesis 1:1,27-28, 2:7; Romans 1:20, 5:8; Ephesians 1:5-6; Psalm 19:1 — From Creation to Christ we see a God with a heart of love for mankind, like a Father tenderly holding His newborn child. And it is nothing less than this love that is the central longing and need of every human heart. We were created and predestined for loving relationship with our Creator.

Steve Lazar | 2 Kings 5:1-14 — Naaman’s account is one of despair turned to hope; pride turned to humility; and sickness turned to health. Like Naaman, our greatest need is to come in simplicity to the river of God’s grace, receiving the healing only He can bring. Hear reflections from long term missionary to Mozambique, Steve Lazar.

Andrew Baker | Luke 24:13-32,44-49; 4:16-21 — On the road to Emmaus, Jesus came alongside His downcast disciples and ‘interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself’. In the Bible we see a single unified story which points to God’s great redemptive plan weaved throughout time. Like His disciples, may delving into His Scriptures anew cause our hearts to ‘burn within us’ as...

Dave Lamerton | Matthew 18:21-35; John 19:28-30; Luke 7:36-38 — Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant should be a sharp reminder to us of the importance of forgiveness. Truly forgiving others from our heart is possible (and necessary!) because God has forgiven us of an infinitely greater debt. If we can’t forgive others, then we have not fully appreciated the immensity of God’s mercy to us at...

Andrew Baker | John 2:13-22, 1:14, 4:19-26; Isaiah 9:7; Luke 19:46; Acts 3:4-8 — In John’s gospel, we read of Jesus clearing the temple courts, consumed with ‘zeal’ for the Lord’s House. This righteous passion was not for the building itself, but rather for God’s people to come to Him without hindrance. May we return to that which we were created for: living with an unhindered, passionate zeal for...

Andrew Baker | John 4:3-38; Matthew 24:6-7; Hebrews 12:27 — After the Samaritan woman’s testimony of meeting Jesus, many from her town came to see if He was the Christ. At this, Jesus proclaimed to His disciples: ‘see that the fields are white for harvest’. As we ask for His eyes to see and a hunger to do His will in whatever season of life we’re in, may we too see the great desire and need for Je...

Adam Ritchard | Luke 17:11-19; Psalm 50:7-15,23; 2 Chronicles 20:21; Romans 1:21; Isaiah 1:4-6; Colossians 3:15b — Of the ten lepers who cried out and were healed by Jesus, only one returned to give thanks. This account should provoke us to consider our own hearts and lives: like the one leper, will we intentionally come to Jesus with gratitude even in the mundane and ordinary ‘every-day’ of our l...

Kathryn Hartley | Luke 2:21-38 — Even as the parents of the promised Messiah, Mary and Joseph’s first year after Jesus’ birth was filled with light and shadow. Amongst the light and shadow in our lives, how do we reflect on 2024 in such a way that finds and carries deposits of hope into the new year?

Adam Ritchard | Luke 2:1-20, 22:19; Isaiah 7:14, 9:6; John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8; Philippians 2:6-8; Genesis 3:15; 1 Corinthians 6:20; John 1:11-12 — Jesus was given as God’s great gift to mankind. Like all earthly gifts, the gift of Jesus was marked by anticipation and cost. It came in the midst of the mess to bring great joy. And most importantly, it was given that it might be received; for all th...

Adam Ritchard | Isaiah 8:22-9:7; Genesis 5:3-29; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Judges 6-7; Matthew 2:1-2; 11:28-30 — The weariness of our world is not simply the product of seasonal tiredness or a frenetic modern lifestyle. Every human heart is weary from the weight and depravity of our sin. But as Christ came to earth, so came the ‘thrill of hope’; the confident assurance that Jesus came as the present and...

Kathryn Hartley | Matthew 1:1-16, 9:12-13; Deuteronomy 7:9; Psalm 145:3-4 ; Ephesians 3:21 — Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus might seem an odd preface to the Christmas story, but in it we find a testament to the unending goodness of God. From Adam to Christ, God was faithful through the generations to deliver His promised Messiah. And so too will His faithfulness endure from Christ’s birth to His sec...

Andrew Baker | Luke 2:8-16,20; Isaiah 9:6-7, 53:5; Romans 5:1 — At the birth of Christ, the heavenly host appeared proclaiming "Glory to God" and "on Earth peace". This angelic proclamation did not mark the absence of earthly strife. Rather, God's greatest gift achieved something even more significant: Jesus came in human flesh to restore peace between humankind and God. This peace is our greatest...

Andrew Baker | Hebrews 10:19-25; Ephesians 1:22-23; Acts 9:4-5 — As we take stock of 2024 and with gratitude recall all that God has done, may we heed the encouragement given by the writer to the Hebrews: in all things fix your eyes on Jesus, seeking to live out love and good works as the Body of Christ.

Adam Ritchard | Habakkuk 3:2; Psalm 27:4; Revelation 3:14-20; Romans 12:11; Matthew 3:8, 24:12; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Acts 2:37-38 — If we truly desire awakening then we must continually seek after it. In order for us to sustain this cry for awakening, we must heed the call of Jesus given to the Laodicean church: to fuel the fire of God in our hearts; to humble ourselves in repentance; and to make ro...

Andrew Baker | Ephesians 4:1-16; John 17:22-23; Acts 2:42-47 — There are few things more effective at thwarting the work of the Spirit than disunity. It is no wonder then that the Apostle Paul, the Early Church, and Jesus himself all call us to prioritise unity with our fellow believers. As we press in to see God move, may we put aside our personal preferences to pursue the great uniting call of t...

Adam Ritchard | Luke 18:1-8; Mark 11:15-17; James 5:16b-18; Nehemiah 4:15; 1 Kings 18:1,41-45 — If awakening is the fire, then prayer is the spark. Through the parable of the persistent widow, Jesus’ listeners were encouraged to always pray and never lose heart. But they were also challenged: will Jesus find this kind of faith on the Earth? As we cry out for awakening in our day, will we persist i...

Andrew Baker | Mark 10:46-52; Luke 8:40-48 — The healing of Bartimaeus’ blindness was not remarkable compared to many of Jesus’ other miracles. But what does stand out is the desperate hunger with which he cried out for Jesus. As the rumblings of revival go on in our midst, will we be spectators or participants? Will we too cry out ‘all the more’ with an unusual hunger for God’s will, that He woul...

Matt King | Psalm 107:9; Matthew 5:3; Psalm 42:1 — When God says that revival is coming, what is our response? Do we hunger and thirst for deeper relationship with Him, crying out for Him to move? Or are we lulled into comfortable, secure, spiritually apathetic lives? God is too good to leave us where we are. His invitation today is to “Come away with me”; to go deeper with Him in the secret place...

Andrew Baker | Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:4,14, 3:1-2,17-19; Acts 19:8-20 — While an awakening of belief in the world around us is ultimately a work of God, we as believers have a critical role to play: Like Habakkuk, our hearts must be deeply moved by the brokenness of our world, and our faith must be restored by the permanent promises of our Living God. As we enter 40 days of prayer and fasting as a chur...

Andrew Baker | Matthew 5:1-12; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18; James 1:2-3 — Jesus’ ministry and death show that the Christian should not be surprised to suffer persecution. In fact, Christ says that those who are mistreated on His account ought to rejoice, for they are blessed to receive the kingdom of heaven. If and when we endure persecution, it is to this promise - the only promise that will not fade -...

Adam Ritchard | Matthew 5:1-9; Romans 12:18, 15:13; Philippians 4:6-7; Hebrews 13:20; Colossians 1:20; Ephesians 2:13-14; 2 Corinthians 5:18; John 14:27; Isaiah 53:5 — Biblical peace is not simply the absence of conflict. Rather, it is the God-given wholeness that we as His children may know in every circumstance of life, and actively pursue in every situation. As we sow and carry this kind of pea...