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St James has evening services at 5pm and 7pm. The sermons at 5pm are podcast in high quality audio (and are also available on iTunes). In general, there is usually a single sermon series in the evenings, which all the preachers – full-time ministers, lay preachers etc share. However, these are interspersed with one-off topical sermons from time to time, according to the needs and calendar of the church. Sermons are listed historically below, while past series are also available from the menu-bar. Finally, if you specifically want the 7pm version of the evening sermons, you can subscribe to the 7pm podcast. |
1 Kings 22:41-50: The Key to Reform - Sun, 1 Aug 2010
Jehoshaphat was the son of Asa, the first of the reformer-kings. And like his father, Jehoshaphat is given a rosy commendation: “he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD”. Jon takes us into his back-story, where we find a distinctive kind of reform – one based on the systematic teaching of God’s people from his word.
1 Kings 22:1-28: Distinguishing True Prophecy - Sun, 25 Jul 2010
Barry tells how it is important to seek wisdom from God in the decisions we make in our whole life as well as decisions made about Christian work. He looks at the distinguishing marks of the false and the true prophecies made in the passage - the true prophets are generally a minority who believe the truth, speak what needs to be heard and confront people with the reality of God and what He requires.
1 Kings 20:1-21: Battles with Ben-hadad - Sun, 18 Jul 2010
Barry comments that God reveals himself through creation and miracles and other ways, but that He also shows himself to be the Lord with a display of power as when He gave Ben-hadad's army into the hands of Ahab. It is generous for God to convincingly show himself to be who He is so that we can be certain in our faith - we are still fighting in the battle that God will win for his Glory.
1 Kings 21: Naboth's Vineyard - Sun, 11 Jul 2010
Larry explains that Ahab sinned and was covetous of Naboth's vineyard because he had no love in his heart for the living God. We also look for pleasure in sin because we don't trust that Jesus is all we need. The choices we make reveal how much we love Jesus, if we are humble and repent we will be shown mercy as Ahab was.
1 Kings 19:1-18: How to Deal with Failure - Sun, 4 Jul 2010
Barry speaks on how to deal with depression brought about by a sense of failure about ministry work and life lived serving the Lord, examining the time Elijah felt this way about his work for God.
1 Kings 18:16-40: The Contest on Mount Carmel - Sun, 27 Jun 2010
Jon explains how an international drought, a widow's son raised from the dead, and the impending defeat of the prophets of Baal are all part of God's plan to woo his people back to him. He does this in three ways: by disciplining his people, by defeating his enemies, and by demonstrating his power.
1 Kings 17:1-16: Minority Rules - Sun, 20 Jun 2010
In around 880 B.C., the prophet Elijah was the minority, because the bulk of Israel had switched to worshiping Baal. So in 1 Kings 17 the author asks if Yahweh is the right god to be backing, and if so, who speaks for Yahweh? For Christians feeling more and more in the minority Jon issues a timely reminder that safety is not always found in numbers.
1 Kings 15:25-16:34: Seven Good Lessons from Seven Bad Kings - Sun, 13 Jun 2010
Drew preaches his last sermon at the 5PM Service, part of the series on Kings. He takes a large slab of the book - explaining the lessons that can be learned from the bad examples set by the kings from Nadab through Ahab.
(The Bible reading is not included since it was not recorded because it was read off-mic)
1 Kings 15: 9-24: Reformation under King Asa - Sun, 6 Jun 2010
In our passage this week, we meet Asa, the first reformer king. Despite his failings, the overall comment on Asa is that he was ‘fully committed to the Lord all his life’. With that model before us, Jon helps us look at how a commitment to reform is at the heart of commitment to God.
1 Kings 14:21-31: The Weakening Under Rehoboam & Abijah - Sun, 30 May 2010
Barry affirms that being in the powerful presence of God is pleasurable and good, the Jews could experience this because He put His Name in Jerusalem. However, Rehoboam and Judah abandoned the Law of the Lord, doing evil that seemed attractive and popular but that weakened and compromised them, provoking the Lord to jealousy.
1 Kings 14:1-20: Ahijah's Prophecy Against Jeroboam - Sun, 23 May 2010
Barry continues the series on Kings, observing how Jeroboam turns back to the God whom he knows to be true when he really needs him but his long-term unfaithfulness is repaid. We must consistently trust in the one true, living and powerful God who loves us and provides for us.
Special: Stephen Lungu - Wed, 19 May 2010
Stephen Lungu is the International Team Leader of African Enterprise. When asked "What do you do?" he says without hesitation "I am an evangelist and I preach the word of God to bring people to Christ." On Wednesday, 19 May 2010 he spoke at St James Croydon whilst he was visiting Australia from Malawi. Stephen Preached from Mark 10:46ff and gave his testimony about how God miraculously took his life as a gang leader and terrorist and transformed him into the passionate believer and missionary he is today.
1 Kings 13:1-25: The Man of God from Judah - Sun, 16 May 2010
Barry speaks on the prophecy by the man of God from Judah against the idolatry that was taking place under Jeroboam, highlighting the importance of obedience to God even when it appears by human standards to be disadvantageous. It is important to be convinced of the truth of the Gospel and to be always be guarded against temptation to fall into sin.
1 Kings 12:1-17: The foolish choice of Rehoboam and the division of the kingdom - Sun, 9 May 2010
Barry reflects on the failure of Rehoboam to make a wise decision resulting in devastating consequences and considers what the principles should be that will guide us in the decisions we make. Advice should be sought from wise, older people, it is important to listen to people and understand how they feel and to have an attitude of service.
1 Kings 11:1-13: Solomon is led astray - Sun, 2 May 2010
Phil preaches in the series on Kings. Solomon, having seen the highest point in the nation of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord because his heart had turned away from the Lord. The challenge is put: what do we value most?
1 Kings 10:1-13: The visit of the Queen of Sheba - Sun, 25 Apr 2010
Jon talks about the mission of attraction that is the major Old Testament mode of evangelism – outsiders being attracted to God’s people and being drawn inward to join in the covenant. In the New Testament, of course, the gospel spreads outward with the apostolic missionaries, but at the same time, there is still an in-drawing mission, as Christians live attractive lives which cause people to ask the reasons for the hope that they seem to have.
1 Kings 9:1-9: The Lord appears to Solomon a second time - Sun, 18 Apr 2010
Jon expounds the answer to Solomon's prayer over the Temple where God warns Solomon that, if he wants Israel to remain within the covenant and experience its blessings, he should continue his faithfulness both in his character and his actions. Ominously, however, God also lays out the path of apostasy, which foolishly invites destruction and exile, along with mockery from all those who witness such a leap from grace.
1 Kings 8:22-66: Solomon's Prayer of Dedication - Sun, 11 Apr 2010
Returning to the series on Kings, Jon studies Solomon's prayer of dedication over the temple, explaining how the temple is a reminder that God keeps his promises, is the focus of God's attention on Earth and is the way to access God with prayers of repentance. He discusses how this is relevant now under the new covenant.
John 21:15-25: The Risen Jesus asks "Do You Love Me?" - Sun, 4 Apr 2010
Barry speaks topically for Easter Sunday on the passage at the end of John when Jesus asks Peter three times whether he loves Him. He challenges us, do we love the Risen Jesus?
1 Kings 5:1-6: The Significance of the Temple in the Life of Israel - Sun, 28 Mar 2010
Barry speaks about how the Temple allowed Israel the opportunity to marvel in the presence of the Glory of the Lord. All the energy, work and activity that goes into running a church is in vain unless it causes people to experience God and delight in His presence.
1 Kings 8:1-21: The Most Significant Day in the History of Israel - Sun, 21 Mar 2010
Phil Britton takes us on a tour through history from Abram until the Ark was placed in the Most Holy Place in the Temple to provide a sense of how significant the latter moment is to Israel. The ultimate glory of the Lord was with his people in its right place, but now we are the temple where the Spirit manifests the same presence in us and with us.
Ruth 1: Facing Tragedy - Sun, 14 Mar 2010
Alan Mugridge examines the first chapter of Ruth, a story of how two women faced tragedy, and discusses what we can learn from the way they did this. Naomi and Ruth put their faith in the Lord and had hope in spite of the hard times they faced.
1 Kings 4:20-34: The Prosperity and Peace of Solomon's Wisdom - Sun, 7 Mar 2010
Barry looks at the prosperity and security of Solomon's reign that resulted because he and David put God first, and concludes that if we make God our top priority He will be with us and we will prosper.
1 Kings 3:16-28: The Beginning of Wisdom - Sun, 28 Feb 2010
The wisdom of Solomon is universally celebrated, but the Bible is clear that it is God-given. Solomon's real wisdom is that he asks for discernment in order to serve God faithfully. And so God rewards this godly motive with a God-like gift of wisdom, as well as great prosperity.
1 Kings 2: The King Requires Everyone to Submit - Sun, 21 Feb 2010
Jon expounds David's final words to Solomon, where he urges Solomon to fulfil his responsibilities to maintain the spiritual and political stability of the kingdom.
1 Peter 4:7-11: The Last Days - Sun, 14 Feb 2010
In his final week at St James, Prash preaches a sermon reflecting on his experiences of Church and considers what Peter has to say about how Christians should live as the end of all things is at hand.
1 Kings 1: God's Annointed King and the Usurper - Sun, 7 Feb 2010
Jon kicks off the series on 1 and 2 Kings studying the competition between the attractive, arrogant Adonijah and the humble Solomon to succeed David as King. Using God-centred criteria is key to evaluating our leaders, but the grace, humility and lineage in the passage all point towards a greater leader to come.
Matthew 25:14-30: The Future part 4 - Sun, 31 Jan 2010
Barry concludes his series on what will happen in the future with a sermon about using the gifts and opportunities that God has provided for his glory.
Luke 21:29-38: The Future part 2 - Sun, 17 Jan 2010
Barry continues with the second sermon in his four-part series on what will happen in the future.
Luke 21:5-38: What Will Happen in the Future - Sun, 10 Jan 2010
Barry commences a brief series on what the Bible has to say about what is going to happen in the future. Jesus tells in general terms what we need to know about what will happen at the end times so we can live then as people of Christ - there will be signs that the Judgement for the rejection of Christ is coming, but Christians should not be frightened and should obey and trust God.
1 Samuel 7:1-13: Serving God Only - Sun, 3 Jan 2010
In the first sermon of the new year, Barry proposes a reflection on God's work in the past and a rededication to serving only him. Christians must desire God with all our hearts and minds, mourning and seeking after God - if we are to return to the Lord, we must put away the idols in our way and expect God to work powerfully in our lives.
Isaiah 9:1-7: The Gift of Christmas - Sun, 27 Dec 2009
Phil has an extended post-Christmas reflection on the way the tradition of giving gifts is a response to the fact that Christ was given to us. The correct reaction to the open-armed, free, personal generosity and grace exhibited by God can only be a response in kind.
1 Corinthians 16:19-24: Christian Fellowship - Sun, 20 Dec 2009
In the final instalment in the series on Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, Jon points out that we can learn about the fellowship of the early Church from the greetings at the end of the letter: they value personal, meaningful communication and lovingly tell the truth. The letter ends with a greeting of grace, reminding that it is only by God's strength that anything can be accomplished.
1 Corinthians 16:5-18: Church as Service Station - Sun, 13 Dec 2009
Jon explains how the local church has a role as a service station to Gospel workers. Missionaries need support in various practical and emotional areas and churches need to provide somewhere for them to fill up and stop-revive-survive so that they can carry out their work effectively.
1 Corinthians 15:35-58: The Resurrection Body - Sun, 6 Dec 2009
This week, Jon studies how Paul deals with the question of how the resurrection will happen to Christians. He then goes on to look topically at common questions that people have about what the bodies we will have after death will be like and how that affects the way we should live now.
1 Corinthians 15:12-34: The Resurrection of the Dead - Sun, 29 Nov 2009
Prash tells that we must believe in the resurrection of Christ because the ministry of the Apostles testifies to it and relies upon it; if we cannot accept the physical resurrection of Christ from the dead then we have no assurance of his power over sin or death. If we can comprehend the resurrection, then we understand our place in time and the significance of everything in our lives in comparison to Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:1-11: What is the Gospel? - Sun, 22 Nov 2009
Barry studies Paul's exhortation to the Church at Corinth to hold firmly to the Gospel. For our souls to be saved, we must receive and shape our lives on the truth that Christ died for our sins and was raised again.
1 Corinthians 14: Tongues & Prophecy - Sun, 15 Nov 2009
Barry amplifies Paul's argument that the gift of prophecy is superior to the gift of tongues because it increases people's understanding of spiritual things, whereas tongues is unintelligible and should not be used in public meetings. Tongues bring advantage to the speaker's spiritual growth while everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.
1 Corinthians 13: Love is Indispensable - Sun, 8 Nov 2009
Drew confronts us with the truth Paul puts to the Corinthians: that no matter how successful they appear, unless our ministries are built on love they are nothing and they achieve nothing.
1 Corinthians 12: Gifts of the Spirit - Sun, 1 Nov 2009
Barry expounds Paul's discussion of Spiritual Gifts, explaining that all gifts are valuable and contribute to the body of God's people.
1 Corinthians 16:1-4: The Biblical Pattern of Giving - Sun, 25 Oct 2009
Barry explains the biblical basis for regularly giving money proportionally to income in support of Christian people and ministries.
1 Corinthians 11:17-34: The Lord's Supper - Sun, 18 Oct 2009
Jon speaks about Paul's rebuke of the way that the Corinthian Church approached the Lord's Supper with the wrong attitudes. He considers what we declare in the manner we take Communion and cautions against forgetting that we eat and drink in thankful remembrance of the sacrifice of Christ, proclaiming our faith in his death as we do.
1 Corinthians 11:1-16: Propriety in Worship - Sun, 11 Oct 2009
This week, Jon tackles a controversial passage in 1 Corinthians about Propriety in Worship and head coverings. Clothing and the attitudes people dress themselves with can send strong messages, for the Christian, these messages need to glorify their "head."
1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1: Free to Glorify God - Sun, 4 Oct 2009
Returning to the series on 1 Corinthians, Jon explains that Christian freedoms shouldn't be put ahead of love, sharing the Gospel or glorifying God.
Hebrews 1:1-14: Is There a God and What is He Like? - Sun, 27 Sep 2009
This week at 5PM there was a special guest service for the baptism and dedication of many of the children recently born to the congregation. Barry describes the way that the existence of God is revealed to mankind and that He is a God who is an interesting, holy and loving Father who invites us to come to Him.
Luke 11:1-13: Prayer and its Benefits - Sun, 20 Sep 2009
Kicking off this quarterly prayer week, Barry examines the relationship between prayer and the gift of the Holy Spirit put forward in Luke. We can ask for the Holy Spirit and He will be given to us, bringing us the full experience of the love of God and applying His power to the works of evangelism that we carry out.
1 Corinthians 10:14-22: Idol Feasts & The Lord's Supper - Sun, 13 Sep 2009
Barry continues to speak on Paul's warning to the Corinthians to flee from idolatry because it is attractive and dangerous. When we participate in the Lord's Supper, we put our faith in Jesus and our sins are cleansed by his blood, but when involved with idols, demonic influence can be encountered.
1 Corinthians 10:1-11: The Christian and Temptation - Sun, 6 Sep 2009
Barry amplifies Paul's warning to the Corinthians to avoid idolatry and sexual immorality. He warns us to be on our guard as they are strongly seductive and that we not put God to the test by seeing how close we can get to temptation.
1 Corinthians 9:19-27: Flexibility in Mission - Sun, 30 Aug 2009
Jon studies Paul's pragmatic approach of being a slave to all people so that he can make the Gospel accessible to them as well as enslaving himself so that on the final day he may share the prize of being reunited with his brothers and sisters in Christ.
Ephesians 6:10-20: The Armour for Battling Cosmocrats - Sun, 23 Aug 2009
Bishop Rob Forsyth visits and preaches for the confirmation service this week at Sunday@Seven and also therefore at 5PM. He tells that the Christian believer in this world faces serious struggle and conflict of the nature of a spiritual battle, but has the remarkable promise that she or he can withstand it by relying on the invincible power of Christ.
