15th February 2015.

 1 Corinthians 13: 11-13 and Isaiah 40: 28-31. Faith, hope and love. The text of this talk can be downloaded but it was not recorded because of technical difficulties. JTH

8th February 2015. 

1 Corinthians 13. The absence of love. The Bible claims that God defines love. What world a world without love look like and sound like? Without love I am nothing, I am no one, I have no real humanity. Paul says that in his day love remains. Agape love is essential for people and the world to thrive. JTH

Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the  website

1st February 2015.

 John 15: 1 – 17. Stable love - Rooted love. The vine as an allegory of God’s people growing in the earth. Consider the rootedness and visibility of God’s work in the earth. Jesus was planed – incarnated in the earth and we too are to be planted and rooted in Jesus and in the earth. I am part of the people of God and not just a grape! We are commanded to love one another as Jesus has loved us and to live in Jesus. JTH

Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the  website

25th January 2015.  

Matthew 13: 31-35. Patient love – Slow church. God has worked patiently with humanity since its creation and through thousands of generations. He is our loving vine-dresser – John 15. The parables of the sour dough and others demonstrate that speed is not the most important thing – something that we need to remember in the 21 century in our slow build of relationships in church and community. What are the implications of this theology for the way the church works? JTH

18th January 2015.

 2 Corinthians 5:14. Constrained by the love of Christ. How can I continue or begin to love the world? Paul says that it is Christ’s love that motivates him and shapes his actions. Christian service is at personal cost. What is our attitude to the world?  Some have accused Paul of being crazy. We cannot rely on our love alone to motivate us to love and serve the world. JTH

11th January 2015.

 John 3: 1 -18 esp. verse 16. Jesus as Saviour of the whole world. Why do we doubt the love of God? The world in opposition to God? Communion meal is a celebration of God’s Salvation. What does the Bible mean when it talks about Salvation? Do I have a personal story to tell of how God rescued me? Songs of deliverance. JTH

 

Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the  website

04 January 2015. 

Theme for 2015 Loving the World. John 3: 13 – 21 esp. verse 16. Journey of the Magi as demonstration of God’s love for the whole world. The distinctive meaning of Agape love and also what the “world” refers to. As followers of Jesus what is our attitude to the world. JTH.

 

Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the  website

28^th December 2014

 This is the last Sunday of 2014 and the final in the series of “Jesus and the prophets. ” It is also, within this, the final talk on the seven signs in John which is the raising of Lazarus from the dead in John 11:17-44. The talk explores some of the symmetry between events in Bethlehem and Bethany and that as part of unwrapping the meaning of Christmas is the understanding of the whole of the Jesus story.  The talk also raises questions as to what the practical implications are for us today in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Geoff Thorington-Hassell.

Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the website

25th December 2014 –Christmas Day. 

Hospitality and welcome of stranger. We don’t have to have a large and luxurious home to show hospitality to others. The Bible is full of exhortations about hospitality and the Christmas story is full of examples of this in practice. The film Paddington as an amazing tale of welcoming strangers. JTH

 Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the website

21st December 2014

Luke 2: 1 – 20. The Journey of Advent. Journeying is in the Bible a metaphor for life. The Magi were called out of their situation somewhere in the East – like Persia or Arabia and arrived shortly after the birth of Jesus. Mary and Joseph had also had a tough journey and these journeys pre-figured the very tough life journey that Jesus would have to take towards Golgotha. Jesus made the greatest journey ever made from the presence of glory down to the earth and even the depths of hell. He calls us to journey too. JTH.  

 Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the  website

14th December 2014

Due to a technical fault there was no recording this week.

Notes will usually be available on the downloads section of the  website