TalkBack: Social Justice

As the church, our priority is to tell the gospel. The kingdom of God is those who are under the rule of king Jesus and not those who have better living or working conditions. However, the gospel changes us to be people who passionately believe and work for social justice - treating people fairly. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Christ's Church: Welcoming Strangers

God in Christ welcomes us into his eternal kingdom even though we were enemies. The provides the pattern for our hospitality welcoming strangers in to the church and into our homes to eat and to stay. To listen to Graham Nicholls preaching at Christ Church on Sunday morning 24th June 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Revelation 2:18 to 29 - Letter to Thyatira

In Thyatira it seemed that the false teaching had really taken root and Jesus uses strong words to condemn the false teachers and those who follow them and to encourage those in the church who were making progress in love, service and witness to keep going. To listen to Mark Ventham preaching from Revelation 2:18-29 at Christ Church on Sunday evening 17th July 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Philippians 1:21 - to die is gain

In the second half of our verse of the year Paul turns conventional wisdom upside down and says that dying is not a loss or a dead end but gain. It is better because it is where we belong in the presence of Christ awaiting the final resurrection. This should affect our view of life and death and the way we live sacrificially and give generously because we live for Christ and look forward to being with him. To listen to Graham Nicholls preaching from at Christ Church on Sunday morning 17th June 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Revelation 2:12 to 17 - Letter to Pergamum

Pergamum was at the centre of the Emperor worship cult with eating, food sacrificed to idols and indulging in immorality. Even some people in the church were teaching that compromise was acceptable. Against that background, the Christians are called to remain faithful as they had been in the past because Jesus is the ultimate judge and king. To listen to Mark Ventham preaching from Revelation 2:12-17 at Christ Church on Sunday evening 10th July 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Christ's Church... remembering the Cross

The church of Christ should be characterised by joyful but serious celebration of the Cross of Christ. A great way Christ has given us to help us remember this is the Lord's Supper - the communion time when we remember the body of Jesus broken and the blood poured out for us. As we take the bread and wine we remember, proclaim and anticipate. To listen to Graham Nicholls preaching from Acts 2:42 at Christ Church on Sunday morning 10th June 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Revelation 2:8 to 11 - Letter to Smyrna

Smyrna was a prosperous and prominent city, 2nd to Ephesus in local importance, well connected to the Roman Empire and worship cult, and probably with a sizeable Jewish population amd with a church probably planted by Paul. The letter has no condemnation of their behaviour but encouragement to keep going in suffering, hardship, imprisonment and perhaps even having to give up their lives for their Saviour who is victorious and will protect them from the second death of God’s judgment. To listen to Graham Nicholls preaching from Revelation 2:8-11 at Christ Church on Sunday evening 3rd July 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

Christ's Church... constant in prayer

The church of Christ should be characterised individually and corporately by prayer. Prayer expresses our relationship and dependence on God, following the pattern of Jesus and his apostles. To listen to Mark Ventham preaching from Acts 2:42 at Christ Church on Sunday morning 3rd June 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy

TalkBack - We are Charismatic

This was a talk by Graham Nicholls speaking at Christ Church on Sunday evening, 27th May 2012, followed by a question and answer session. The normal links to listen are just below. As there was a lot of information and references, we have included the bullet points from the PowerPoint slides in the text below plus a simple description of our current practice as a church. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy   Greek word Charismata = gifts “any capacity of the believer including aptitudes present before conversion brought under the controlling power of God’s grace and functioning in his service” The Contentious Charismata

• Speaking in tongues
• Prophecy
• Miracles including healings and other signs and wonders

Some key texts James 5:13 Acts 2 (2 Cor 12:12) Acts 8 Acts 10 (Are these normal experiences we would expect in the church?) Hebrews 2:4 (This seems to suggest that the confirmation of the testimony about Jesus by signs and wonders is now in the past?) Ephesians 4:7-13 (Apostles and prophets are foundational – are they continual?) Matthew 8:16-17 (Does this imply Jesus takes away NOW all our sicknesses as part of redemption) Focus on 1 Corinthians 12-14 Not written to give a model of church but to correct  chaos & pride Chapter 12 – Gifts

• The Holy Spirit leads people to confess that Jesus is Lord
• The Spirit works in all sorts of different ways in different Christians equipping them for the common good (analogous to the body)

Chapter 13 – Love

• Greatest virtue
• Gives all other spiritual gifts value
• Outlives prophecy and tongues, but when do they cease?
• At Christ’s return
• At the end of the apostolic age

Chapter 14 – order

• Understandable speech builds up the church
• In their context prophecy more useful than tongues
• Tongues may be interpreted to become plain speech but without interpretation, it does nothing to build up the church
• In their meetings there could be only interpreted tongues in an orderly way, weighed carefully by the church
• There is a distinction between what is personally helpful in private and what is helpful in the church

  Four views (forgive the over-simplification) 1.       Pentecostal

• All the gifts of the Spirit mentioned in the NT are for today
• Baptism in the Holy Spirit happens after conversion and should be sought by all
• Tongues are a sign that you have been baptised in the Holy Spirit
• Expectation of healing as the right of salvation proportionate to faith

2. Charismatic (third wave)

• Baptism in the Holy Spirit comes at conversion (some differ)
• Acceptance and encouragement of tongues speaking but not for everyone or is essential
• Proclamation of the gospel should be accompanied by apostolic ministries including
• signs wonders and miracles
• expectation of healing, possibly idea of gifted “healers”
• Prophecy: predictions and directions into many situations personally and corporately

3. Cessationist

• the miraculous ceased around the time the Bible was completed
• the miraculous were part of salvation history which is past
• the miraculous were clustered around the time of the apostles and were signs that their message was authentic

4. Open But Cautious

• Generally the view as Christ Church leaders
• Sympathetic to the cessation argument but not fully convinced
• Cautious about current practices and abuses and wary causing division
• Believe that the miraculous gifts not normal or essential
• Modern tongues speaking may not be same as NT as it does not appear to have the structure of a language but may be practiced privately for personal benefit
• Open to reality God does bring “prophetic” words. Not sure this the same as NT prophets, certainly not authoritative
• Do not see gifted healers in NT or that healing should continue as a sign but recognise our lack of faith and setting expectation God can heal
• See charismatic movement as God’s way of shaking up the 21^st century church
• Seeking fellowship and mutual learning with our charismatic brothers

  What does being open but cautious mean in practice for us as a church?

• Wanting to encourage multiple contributions in some of our meetings so we can all benefit from each other’s wisdom, insight and testimonies
• Although not persuaded that the miraculous gifts necessarily ceased at the completion of the NT, we are equally not convinced that they are an essential part of public meetings or that modern practices are equivalent to the NT or that they are now necessary to authenticate the word of God
• We therefore would not encourage or organise the exercise of gifts of tongues or directive and predictive prophecy and healing as an essential part of our corporate meetings
• We do not see a distinct healing gift but want to encourage much prayer for people to be healed and a real expectation that by God’s grace this will often be the outcome.

Christ's Church...shaped by the word of Christ

The church of Christ, just like creation, is brought into being by God’s word and God’s word continues to mould us and to keep us. We want to be a church who do not worship words, but who shape our worship by the words given us by God. To listen to Mark Ventham preaching from Acts 2:42 at Christ Church on Sunday morning 27th May 2012 use the link below. Click here to listen in your own player or save a copy