St Jude's Mapperley Archive Blog

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! Yesterday morning, we came to the end of our series in 1 John, though due to issues with recording (we're still using technology from last century and I forgot to use my pocket voice recorder) the sermon may not have been recorded, so here's roughly what I remember saying from 1 John 5 ... When we are faced with all the uncertainty of life, how can we know that we will keep going as Christians – how can we know that when Christ comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead he will welcome us into his kingdom? John says that it is all down to whether we have been "born of God" - whether we have been born again and given a new life that can never die. How can we tell is that is us? John's three tests come out again... Do we trust that Jesus is the Christ? – Christ isn't a name it's a title meaning something like "God's chosen and rightf...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! In all of our services yesterday, the idea of genuine faith came out. So yesterday morning, Dom & Guy led us through 1 John 4, where John tells us that if we claim to follow Jesus but don't love other Christians, we are lying (v20-21). Genuine faith loves other Christians. The same theme came out in the evening, when I was preaching on the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector in Luke 18:9-14. The Pharisee has almost everything going for him spiritually – he knows lots about God, lives a life that is pretty good by human standards, gives generously to those in need and remembers to say thank you to God. And yet it's the wicked tax collector who walks away right with God because the Pharisee has got so into living rightly for God that he has forgotten that he needs to come to God on his knees – that he can't earn God's love but still needs to ask for God'...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! Yesterday morning we had our All Age Remembrance Service. It was great to see so many folk there (over 150), including lots of children and young people and our Brownies as well as representatives from the Army, Navy and Air Force. The Remembering Service in the afternoon was 10% up on last year as well and had a great atmosphere of loving and supporting one another. Thanks so much to all of those who helped out at either or both services! But for today's thought I'd like to think back to the evening service, where Andrew preached on the first few verses of Luke 18. Jesus told his disciples a parable to show that they should always pray and not give up. What sometimes makes us give up praying? There are some good reasons for giving up praying for something – like if God gives us what we ask for, or if we see that it isn't what's best for us. But a lot of ...