Sermons from February 2025

In 2018, a reporter asked a prominent Christian leader in America why so many Christians were happy to support political candidates who seem to revel in disobeying Jesus’ teachings. The leader replied that Christians were just happy to have someone “on the playground that is willing to punch the bully.” “What happened to turning the other cheek?” the reporter asked.Replied the leader: “You know, you only have two cheeks.” What if Jesus was serious about calling on Christians to turn…

As I write this, it is Valentines Day. Across our city, people are expressing their love and commitment to one another. It is a wonderful thing to know that you are loved. I would content that humans need to both be loved and love in return. We are social creatures, designed for deep relationship. The absence of love is both painful and malformative. There are doubtless many today who are feeling alone, unloved and deeply hurt. Over the last few…

It’s not nice being around someone who loses their temper at the drop of a hat. I suspect that all of us have some experience of people like that. Say the wrong thing, or say it in the wrong way, and you will soon know that you have caused offence. In the worst cases, people lash out against those who have angered them. In other cases, their simmering anger sets out to make you feel guilty for upsetting them. Even…

There’s an old saying: “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” The idea is that children tend to take after their parents. But this isn’t just in terms of physical resemblance. We learn character from our family of origin. We learn how to relate to other people. It’s amazing how, even if we don’t realise it, we find ourselves echoing the attitudes and approaches of our forebears. These days, I find myself speaking to Daniel about how we do…