Vision Church Podcast | Christian Church in Canberra

Andrew Baker | Jonah 1:1-4-16 — When a violent storm threatened to destroy the ship he was aboard, Jonah was fast asleep. And only after the pleas of the sailors did he recognise his rebellion as the storm’s cause. Like Jonah, we too can become so absorbed in our privilege and problems that we are blinded to the plights of those around us. And like Jonah, we are called to precisely the opposite re...

Andrew Baker | Jonah 1:1-3 — Having been called by God to preach to the city of Nineveh, the prophet Jonah instead chose to flee. More than just a Sunday school story, the account of Jonah reveals to us - even in its first few verses - a God who is not distant and removed; but rather, a God who seeks out the lost for redemption. And all the while, invites us to partner with Him as His purposes are...

Martyn Ritchard | Psalm 119:89,105 — The world we live in is prone to constant change. To what then, are we to ground and establish ourselves? Nothing less than the powerful, everlasting, immovable, unshakeable Word of God. Filled with more than 6,000 promises, His Word to us establishes every area of our lives as we anchor ourselves to it. And as we do so, we too will find ourselves continually s...

Kathryn Hartley | Matthew 28:1-10; Revelation 21:1-5 — As those living ‘Post-Easter’, it is easy to view Jesus’ resurrection as the happy ending that simply resolved the horror of The Cross. But, viewed rightly, The Resurrection is much more like a new beginning - pointing us with confident hope to God’s ultimate and eternal redemption of all creation.

Adam Ritchard | Isaiah 53:3-6; Luke 23:1-49 — On the very first Good Friday, the perfect Son of God was mocked, scorned, and executed without charge. But as Isaiah’s prophecy proclaims, Jesus’ crucifixion served an everlasting purpose: Our sin, for His innocence. Our condemnation, for His forgiveness. Our rejection, for His acceptance. Our death for His eternal life. Once, for all, Jesus made The...

Steve and Ros Lazar | Romans 12:15-16 — More than ever, the world is desperately in need of connection. And a united, Jesus-centred Church should be at the forefront of filling this need. As the Apostle Paul instructs in his letter to the Romans, we as Christians are called to interact with all people: to be Jesus’ hands and feet as we open our hearts to feel what others feel. Hear from Steve and...

Adam Ritchard | Romans 5:1-11 — The generosity of God is proclaimed right throughout scripture, but nowhere more so than at The Cross. As Paul’s letter to the Romans reminds us, Christ died for us while we were still sinful and powerless to change; redeeming our past, present, and future by His peace, grace, and hope. Whether through trial or ease, such an indescribable gift should fill us with in...

Andrew Baker | Luke 6:37-45; Prov 4:23 — In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus likens us to a tree which produces either good or bad fruit according to its health. When the challenges of life come, they can cause our heart to become clogged with resentment and unforgiveness. The natural result? Bad fruit. But as believers we are called higher - to deal with these issues and guard our hearts against their i...

Peter Steicke | Matthew 5:14-16; Phil 2:14-16 — Without intention, our Christianity can easily turn into religiosity. Our eyes turn dull, and the eyes of those around us become dulled to Christ as a result. But Paul and even Jesus himself emphasised that believers ought to ‘shine’ for others to see. What if we had shining eyes, and caused the same in those around us? Starting from a place of hope...

Andrew Baker | Luke 7:18-28 — Despite being the very one who proclaimed Jesus’ coming, even John the Baptist encountered such disappointment that he doubted Jesus’ identity. As believers, we too can end up focusing on all that God isn’t doing in our lives. But the sure result is doubting our foundation. Only once we let go of our offence at Him can we see the big picture: there is no other like Je...

Andrew Scarborough | John 13:5-10; 21:5-17 — For many, the last two years have been an incredible challenge - dragging us down into sin, or even into denial of Christ. But no one is ever too far gone for Jesus. Just as He washed the filth off His disciples’ feet, so He has for you. Just as he restored Peter from denial, so He has for you. By Jesus’ death and resurrection alone, we are washed and r...

Andrew Scarborough | 2 Kings 4:1-7; Matthew 25:1-13 — Throughout scripture, oil is used to symbolise the power, anointing, and presence of God - the Holy Spirit. But too often we only ask God for a drop at a time. God’s desire is that we would each be filled to overflowing with His Spirit. And, as we learn to steward the oil in our lives, we will truly see that our ‘nothing’ plus His Spirit equals...

Andrew Baker | Ephesians 1:3-10 — Elevating ourselves to God’s place, modern society claims that human worth and purpose are found through individual self-curation. But this idolatrous version of identity is far from the truth. As Paul declares to the Ephesian church, we have each been created in the very image of God Himself, predestined to be His beloved children, and saved by the redemptive pow...

Andrew Baker | Galatians 4:3-9 — In his letter to the Galatian church, Paul describes how Christ has redeemed us from slavery to freedom - a freedom very unlike that idealised by our modern world. Far beyond what our fleeting wills could ever curate for ourselves, Christ has won true freedom for us: liberty from the captivity of our brokenness and sin, and life as sons and daughters of the living...

Andrew Baker | John 8:53-59 — When questioned about His identity by the Jews, Jesus made the boldest assertion imaginable: that He was the divine, all-creating God of the universe - the ‘I Am’. Like many who heard Jesus’ claim, modern secularism has rejected this ‘I Am’ in favour of the ‘i am’ - the elevation of the inner self to play the role of God. As Christians, our lives must be fundamentally...

Andrew Baker | Matthew 7:24-27 — At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus likened those who hear His words and put them into practice, to a man whose house was built upon the rock. What have we built our lives upon? A partial foundation of human wisdom? Or, upon the One firm foundation that truly endures through every storm.

Adam Ritchard | 1 Samuel 30:1-8; 1 Peter 1:3-7 — When David and his company were totally plundered, and their families captured by the Amalekites, David became greatly distressed. But, rather than despair, David responded in faith and ‘strengthened himself in the Lord’. As believers we too will endure times of testing. But how we navigate these seasons is of crucial importance. Will we react in fe...

Andrew Baker | Exodus 17:1-7 — Despite experiencing God’s miraculous deliverance from Egyptian slavery, a shortage of water soon caused the Israelites to stir up conflict and doubt whether God was with them at all. As believers today, this account should convict our hearts: in what areas of life have we lost sight of God’s provision, or sought to stir up contention? We are called higher than this:...

Matt King | Jeremiah 29:10-14; Isaiah 55:10-13 — Prophesying to a nation in exile, the words of Jeremiah and Isaiah reveal a God who fulfils His promise - a future filled with hope. For many, the last months and years have drained our ‘hope’ levels. But no matter our circumstances, we too can take these prophecies to heart: it is in His very nature to restore the hope of His people.

Kathryn Hartley | Hebrews 12:1-3;11-13 — The writer to the Hebrews describes our journey of faith as a ‘race’ requiring endurance. But real endurance is not built by simply accepting life’s challenges, or by our willpower alone. As Christians, God works to build endurance in us as we run together in pursuit of Jesus: the prize whom we seek, the Saviour who carries our burdens, and the companion we...

Andrew Baker | Psalm 24 — Thanks to Christ’s enabling sacrifice, ‘Who may ascend the hill of the Lord?’ does not describe our great distance from God. But it does remind us that His kingdom is far higher than that of this world. At the beginning of this new year, God’s invitation to us is to ‘ascend’: to leave earthly distractions behind, and let Him be the one who shapes our perspectives and purs...

Adam Ritchard | Colossians 3:1-17 — As we come to the end of 2021, we have an opportunity to look back, look ahead, and recalibrate our lives. As Paul encouraged the Colossian church, we ought to live in light of what Christ has done for us: putting to death the sins that weigh us down, and clothing ourselves with the attributes of Jesus.

Andrew Baker | Matthew 1:18-23 — Matthew’s gospel emphasises Jesus’ birth as the undeniable orchestration of the sovereign, promise-making, promise-keeping God. No matter what we may face in life, the reality of a God who keeps His word gives us purpose, calling, and a foundation that will never fail.

Andrew Baker | Matthew 1:18-25 — Celebrating the hope and joy of the Christmas season is a wonderful thing. But making a big deal of Christmas is only right when placed upon its true foundation: Jesus. The extravagant, undeserved, incomparable gift. The God who came to save. The real big deal of Christmas.

Adam Ritchard | Luke 2:8-21 — On the night Jesus was born, the angel announcing His birth carried a simple yet profound message to the shepherds: ‘fear not, there is good news of great joy’. In a world increasingly typified by fear and bad news, these words ought to encourage and challenge our hearts. And as they did for the shepherds, to spur us on to behold Christ himself.