Weekly Talks

By Rev Charlie Lacey | James 1: 9-18 James 1: 9-18 (NIV) Real faith is, steadfast in its pursuit of righteousness, steadfast in its love of God and steadfast in its resolve to fight against sin. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  James 1:1-8 James 1:1-8 (NIV)  Christians are not immune from the trials of life, but even in the midst of them, we can be sure that God is good, the Gospel is true, and God’s plan is still on track. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey | Proverbs 11: 1-31 Proverbs 11: 1-31 (NIV) There are several threads that run all the way through the book of Proverbs. For example, the comparison between wisdom and foolishness or righteousness and wickedness. But, as we read through proverbs, it becomes clear that the prime movers are humility and pride. These are the characteristics that will determine our response to God...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Proverbs 10: 11-32  Proverbs 10: 11-32  (NIV)  The book of Proverbs is made up of short, pithy wisdom sayings, which are attributed to King Solomon. They offer us practical skills for living well in God’s world. And a sizable chunk of them relate to our use of words and language. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey | Colossians 4: 2-18 Colossians 4: 2-18 (NIV) Paul begins his letter to the Colossians by reminding them who they are in Christ; then he explains what their new life in Christ should look like; and finally, he touches on the mission and purpose of the Colossian Church. It’s a mission and a purpose that we share. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Colossians 3: 12-25 and 4:1 Colossians 3: 12-25 and 4:1  (NIV)  Paul urged the Colossians to rid themselves of ungodly and unwholesome behaviours. He then called them to adopt, or ‘put on’ a more godly set of characteristics. From a moral perspective, Paul was encouraging them to take off their filthy old rags and put on fresh, clean clothes. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey | Colossians 3: 1-11 Colossians 3: 1-11 (NIV) The Good News of the Gospel is that those who put their trust in Jesus, died with him and rose with him to be part of the new creation.  Our old sinful nature has died and we have been raised to everlasting life.  That life begins now, as does the process of becoming like Jesus.  That process will involve a lot of changes as we con...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Colossians 2: 16-23  Colossians 2: 16-23 (NIV) When we give our lives to Jesus we move from captivity to freedom. Freedom from sin and death, freedom from religiosity and freedom from the constant search for meaning, purpose and identity; indeed freedom from everything that prevents us from becoming the people we were created to be.

By Rev Charlie Lacay |  Colossians 2: 6-15  Colossians 2: 6-15  (NIV) When speaking about the Christian life, we often say things like: making progress, moving forwards, or our Christian walk. And there's nothing wrong with that kind of language, but it's not the kind of language Paul used. He used the language of being rooted in Christ and growing or being built up in him. Today we expl...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Colossians 1: 24-29  Colossians 1: 24-29  (NIV) Paul was called by God to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and help those who accept Jesus to become mature Christians. It was a huge privilege and Paul was tremendously excited to see God doing a new thing. There were thousands of non-Jews coming to know God through the Jewish Messiah - Jesus. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Colossians 1: 15-23  Colossians 1: 15-23 (NIV) There are so many facets to Jesus. He is fully human, but also the God of creation. He’s the one for whom everything exists, and the one who holds it all together. He is our King, our Saviour and our friend. When we examine who Jesus is and what he has done, we cannot help but see his greatness.

By Rev Charlie Lacey | Colossians 1: 3-4, 9-14 Colossians 1: 3-4, 9-14 (NIV) The more we get to know Jesus, the more we will discover and learn God's will for us, enabling us to live lives that are worthy of the Lord. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey | Isaiah 2: 1-5 Isaiah 2: 1-5 (NIV) The First World War was supposed to be the ‘war to end all wars’ and yet the 20th century ended up being the bloodiest century in human history. War will never result in lasting peace; nor will any other human contrivance, policy or ideology. Our hope for lasting peace lies in the person of Jesus Christ, who will return to make all things ne...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 24: 36-49  Luke 24: 36-49  (NIV) A lot happened on the day that Jesus rose from the dead. Luke recounts three very powerful scenes. Today we focussed on the last of those scenes, when Jesus met with the disciples in Jerusalem. On that occasion, Jesus clearly told them what lies at the very heart of the good news that he commissioned them to proclaim. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 10: 38-42  Luke 10: 38-42  (NIV) Studies have shown that the pace of modern life is accelerating. Most people of working age are busier than ever before. Getting our priorities right has never been so essential - the risk of getting them wrong has never been so great. 

By Rev Trevor Adams | Isaiah 53: 1-7, Matthew 26: 57-58 and 63b-67, Matthew 27: 11-31,Luke 23: 26-27 and 32-43, Matthew 27: 45-52a, 54, 57-60 Isaiah 53: 1-7, Matthew 26: 57-58 and 63b-67, Matthew 27: 11-31,Luke 23: 26-27 and 32-43, Matthew 27: 45-52a, 54, 57-60 (NIV) At night he was arrested, instantly tried and falsely found guilty, spat upon! Sentenced to death, he was tortured and executed in h...

By Rev Bev Bell | Matthew 26: 17-19, Mark 14: 17-25, John 13: 3-17, Mark 14: 32-42, Luke 22: 47b - 53 Matthew 26: 17-19, Mark 14: 17-25, John 13: 3-17, Mark 14: 32-42, Luke 22: 47b - 53 (NIV) On this Holy night, the night before he died - Jesus gave his disciples 3 final commandments - the most important lessons he needed them to remember and to carry on for him and to teach others, lessons for hi...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 19: 28-44  Luke 19: 28-44 (NIV) On Palm Sunday, the crowds rightly welcomed Jesus as their King, but when Jesus didn’t live up to their limited and foolish expectations, the atmosphere quickly changed. The people were willing to sing a psalm of praise, but only as long as Jesus was doing what they wanted. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 8: 40-48 Luke 8: 40-48  (NIV) Today we saw how a woman with a serious medical condition encountered Jesus when he was on his way to see the synagogue leader’s very sick daughter. After 12 years of suffering, the woman was healed, just by touching the hem of Jesus’ cloak. Reaching out to Jesus was a simple thing to do, but it made such a huge difference to her life! 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 8: 26-39  Luke 8: 26-39  (NIV) In Luke 8, we read about a man who was possessed by an evil spirit, which had completely destroyed his life. His humanity had almost been totally erased, yet Jesus had the power to drive the evil from him and restore his life to him. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 7: 36-50  Luke 7: 36-50  (NIV) In today’s reading someone encountered Jesus whom the Pharisees would have nothing to do with; a woman who was, in all likelihood, a prostitute. Jesus was not ashamed or embarrassed to interact with this woman, nor could Jesus be contaminated by sin. Instead, Jesus gave the disapproving onlookers a lesson in the true nature of sin and for...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 7: 11-17  Luke 7: 11-17 (NIV) Today we heard about a widow who encountered Jesus in the middle of her only son’s funeral procession. Jesus brought her son back to life and her grief was turned to joy. This gives us a sneak preview, not only of Jesus’ resurrection, but of the resurrection of all God’s people, when Jesus returns. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 7: 1-10  Luke 7: 1-10  (NIV)  A certain Roman Centurion encountered Jesus’ power, without actually seeing Jesus himself. Interestingly, he’s the only person in the gospels who surprised Jesus with his high level of faith. The Centurion’s example reminds us to approach Jesus with the confidence that he has both the power and the authority to answer our prayers. 

By Rev Charlie Lacey | Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-21 Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-21 (NIV)  Lent is a time to focus on our spiritual disciplines. It’s like pressing the ‘reset’ button on our relationship with Jesus. But we’re not to be extravagant or showy with our devotion to Christ. The idea of Lent is not to impress people with our piousness, but to devote ourselves to Jesus with integrity, humility and steadfas...

By Rev Charlie Lacey |  Luke 6: 1-11 Luke 6: 1-11 (NIV)  The Pharisees wanted to make sure that nobody did anything that could possibly be construed as work on the Sabbath. To that end, they invented lots of petty and ridiculous rules and regulations. They even thought that they could accuse Jesus of sin if he were to heal someone on the Sabbath.