what's on
Sunday 12 October - Bible Study (after the 9:00am service)
Sunday 26 October - Bible Study (after the 9:00am service)
Wednesday 29 October - Young at Heart (10:30am)
Sunday 26 October - Bible Study (after the 9:00am service)
Wednesday 29 October - Young at Heart (10:30am)
Unworthy Servants: Millstones and Mustard Seeds (5 October)
Luke 17:1-10 confronts us with a stark warning: temptations to sin are inevitable, but woe to those who cause the little ones to stumble. Imagine a millstone tied around your neck, plunging you into the sea's depths—preserved in eternal torment, silenced forever. This isn't a gentle nudge; it's Christ's fierce threat against harming the vulnerable, whether through abuse, neglect, or twisting God's promise. We dare not soften this—it's aimed at us, exposing how we tempt others by withholding the faith that children so naturally trust. Turn inward: what do you find? Not partial flaws, but total condemnation, 110% under the law's crushing weight.
Yet Jesus demands more: if your brother sins, rebuke him; if he repents, forgive—even seven times a day. Provocative, isn't it? The law screams for punishment, teaching us not to repeat our wrongs, but Christ flips it—forgive without limit. Disciples begged for more faith to handle this offence, but Jesus mocked: if you had any, like a mustard seed, you'd uproot trees. We think faith powers obedience, earning rewards; wrong. The law destroys desires, plans, self-trust—it never blesses, only curses from Eden onward. God never intended salvation by law; it's a mirror showing our utter unworthiness.
Enter the parable: a servant ploughs all day, then serves supper without thanks or table seat. "We are unworthy servants; we've only done our duty." Brutal truth—no master rewards mere obedience. We slave under law, dressing as servants, banished outside. No "well done" for good works; they're duty, not merit. Provocatively, this shatters illusions: law doesn't sanctify or perfect—it kills. Theoretically or practically, God wills no coexistence with it. Why? To drive us from self-righteousness to Christ's table.
But here's the turn: outside the law lies the gospel's creative power, birthing faith from nothing. Christ gathers children, showing trust in his promise alone. He bore the millstone, plunged into death for us—his cross kills the old sinner, his resurrection uproots our despair.
Beloved, you've been crushed, exposed, unworthy. Yet hear Christ's promise: I forgive you all sins, not for your works, but my finished cross. You are free, seated at my table—trust it, and live eternally.
We Pray For:
† Those who preach the word of God, that it may not be bound in chains but openly proclaimed.
† All baptised children and those who teach them in faith.
† Bible study groups, and those who may Bible reading a part of their personal and family life, that love for the Scriptures will grow.
† Those under attack from the evil one, that they may be saved.
† Those who rely on charity, that they may not lose their dignity.
† All who have cared for us when we were sick, especially family members and health professionals.
Yet Jesus demands more: if your brother sins, rebuke him; if he repents, forgive—even seven times a day. Provocative, isn't it? The law screams for punishment, teaching us not to repeat our wrongs, but Christ flips it—forgive without limit. Disciples begged for more faith to handle this offence, but Jesus mocked: if you had any, like a mustard seed, you'd uproot trees. We think faith powers obedience, earning rewards; wrong. The law destroys desires, plans, self-trust—it never blesses, only curses from Eden onward. God never intended salvation by law; it's a mirror showing our utter unworthiness.
Enter the parable: a servant ploughs all day, then serves supper without thanks or table seat. "We are unworthy servants; we've only done our duty." Brutal truth—no master rewards mere obedience. We slave under law, dressing as servants, banished outside. No "well done" for good works; they're duty, not merit. Provocatively, this shatters illusions: law doesn't sanctify or perfect—it kills. Theoretically or practically, God wills no coexistence with it. Why? To drive us from self-righteousness to Christ's table.
But here's the turn: outside the law lies the gospel's creative power, birthing faith from nothing. Christ gathers children, showing trust in his promise alone. He bore the millstone, plunged into death for us—his cross kills the old sinner, his resurrection uproots our despair.
Beloved, you've been crushed, exposed, unworthy. Yet hear Christ's promise: I forgive you all sins, not for your works, but my finished cross. You are free, seated at my table—trust it, and live eternally.
We Pray For:
† Those who preach the word of God, that it may not be bound in chains but openly proclaimed.
† All baptised children and those who teach them in faith.
† Bible study groups, and those who may Bible reading a part of their personal and family life, that love for the Scriptures will grow.
† Those under attack from the evil one, that they may be saved.
† Those who rely on charity, that they may not lose their dignity.
† All who have cared for us when we were sick, especially family members and health professionals.