St Jude's Mapperley Archive Blog

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! Numbers yesterday were down due to the return of the ice (just in time for Easter!), but those of us who made it to church had a great time. At the 11am service, we remembered Jesus coming into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. The story Jesus tells just before he comes into Jerusalem in Luke 19 is about how people respond to someone becoming king. We can respond by trying to reject his kingship and rule over our lives, but that will not end well because one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. We can respond by serving him grudgingly, not really wanting him to be king, but going along with it – the response of those who watch him from the sidelines. But once again, when every knee bows before him, we will end up looking stupid. Or we can respond to Jesus by following him in risk-taking worship – throwing down our cloaks (security, provision)...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! It's been another busy week at St Jude's. Many thanks to all who came along to the men's breakfast on Saturday, and even more thanks to those who brought friends! One of the things I'm really passionate about for the life of St Jude's is that we get better at building friendships and inviting folk along to events where they can meet other Christians and hear more about Jesus. But more of that anon... If you'd like to hear the talk I did on "Does Jesus fit with science?", there's a link here or listen via the church website . Yesterday morning we finished our morning series on Leviticus 1-7 with a look at the instructions for the priests in Lev 6-7. If we ever have the privilege of meeting the Queen, she has the right to say how we should dress, bow and so on. And in the same way, when we come to worship God, he has the absolute right to say how we s...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! On Saturday, three of our young people were confirmed at Southwell Minster. It was a great occasion, and thank you very much to all who came! Do be praying for Sarah, Samantha and Catrin in the days, weeks and months to come! Yesterday was also Mothering Sunday, and with that in mind, here are some reflections about God and motherhood from Isaiah 49 . In v5, we are reminded that motherhood is a gift from God. God forms us in the womb, and he formed Jesus in the womb of Mary to be his servant. God knows the plans he has for us, and he has given us everything we need to do what he has called us to do. In v15, God compares his love for his people to a mother's love. A mother's love for her children is one of the most certain things in this world, but God's love for his people is even more sure and certain. He will never never never forget us – it's like our ...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Dear all, Yesterday morning, we were working towards the end of our series in the first few chapters of Leviticus, focusing on the Guilt Offering in Lev 5:14-6:7. What really struck me was that we often see guilt as quite a negative thing, but actually it is a gift of God, which should drive us to the cross. So often we try to run away from guilt, or make excuses that we didn't mean to do something, that we didn't know, or that it was an accident. Leviticus doesn't let us get away with that, because it is clear that sin which we don't intend and don't know about is still sin. Instead Leviticus encourages us to own our guilt, to see that it is more than we could ever pay, and then to leave it at the cross and know that Jesus has paid the price that we could not pay so that we can be forgiven. I have quite a few favourite songs, and it was great to sing several of them yesterday....