Deepcreek Anglican Church

In an attention-hungry world, this message unpacks 1 Corinthians 13 to show how giving attention, rather than getting it, forms a community of patient, kind, co-agency love. Hear how reordered loves free us from control and approval seeking, making space for others and revealing that God is really among you. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul resets our expectations: the Spirit truly gives diverse gifts, but their purpose is unity and lifting up Jesus, not spiritual showreels. This message invites us to trade a consumer mindset for mutual service, honour the weaker parts, and ask a new question: How can I bless others with what Gods put in my hands? Listen in and be encouraged to be the gift you already are, for the good of all. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

In John 8:3136, we explore how Jesus words expose the lies that enslave us and point to the only freedom that lasts. Abiding in his teaching unmasks false masters and welcomes us as sons and daughters. If the Son sets you free, youre free indeed. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

Jesus declares, I am the light of the world. In this message from John 8, we explore what it means to walk in the light of Christwhere darkness is banished, life is given, and forgiveness is real. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

In Galatians 6, we meet a community of the free: people yoked to Christs easy burden, carrying one anothers loads, and sowing to the Spirit. Hear how boasting only in the cross forms a church that rises, serves, and does good without growing weary. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

Freedom isnt just freedom from, its freedom for. In Galatians 5, we explore how faith expressing itself through love becomes visible as the Spirit grows real fruit in us. Hear how serving one another, resisting the flesh, and walking by the Spirit makes freedom unmistakable in everyday life. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

Are you living like a slave or a son? In Galatians 4 we unpack how Jesus not only redeems but adopts usso we cry Abba, live free from fear, and inherit with Christ. Hear why going back to old chains makes no sense when everything the light touches is ours in Him. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

Only faith brings freedom. In this message on Galatians 3, Megan traces Gods promise to Abraham, why the law cant make us right, and how Christ became a curse to redeem us. She closes with ten quick, practical ways we slip into law livingand how grace sets us free. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

From the school cafeteria to the Lords tablewhy fear shrinks our circles and grace blows them wide open. In Galatians 2:1121, discover what it means to be justified by faith, clothed in Christ, and seated at freedoms table. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

What are you carrying? In Galatians 1, Paul shows how Jesus frees us from people-pleasing, striving, and guilt. Come hear how the cross lifts the weight. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting.

From coffee aroma to Christs presence, Nick shares how a simple morning ritual became a cue to behold God, moving from performance to intimacy. Anchored in Mark 8:2226, Matthew 6, and Luke 9:23, this talk invites you to seek the kingdom first and begin again after every distraction, one honest prayer at a time. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript Pursuing Gods Good Purposes Welcome Bible Reading (Mark 8:2226) Today's Bible reading comes from the book of Mark, and we're reading chapter eight, verses 22 to 26. If you have the Read Bible that is on page 1570. They came to Bethsaida, and some people bought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he put when he had spit on the man's eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, do you see anything? He looked up and said, I see people. They look like trees walking around. Once more, Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. Jesus sent him home, saying, don't even go into the village. This is the word of the Lord. Opening Coffee Illustration Morning church. How are we going? You all right? Okay. All right. Don't mind me. I'm just going to. While I kick things off for us. I'm just going to, make a coffee because I'm really thirsty, and I need one. No. Why am I making a coffee on stage? Well, I'm sure, like many of us, this is how our day starts. Maybe it's tea. Maybe it's coffee. Maybe it's something like this. But I think it's reasonable to assume that we're doing something fairly routine. So usually at home, actually, to confess, make an espresso machine. But I thought that would be a little bit difficult to try and bring down here. Then make that on stage would be a little bit more distracting, but that is okay. this is how my day starts, and in this space, I am intentionally wanting to invite God into my life as it's the first thing in my day. I make filter coffee. I make it all the time at church with the staff team. It's been really fun to share, you know, fun brews, really expensive beans, all these kinds of things. It's been a pleasure to show that to the staff team. Well, most of the staff team, I would like us maybe to take a moment to pray for Rachel at some particular point today. That would be great. No. In this space, I don't say the same thing every day, but what I do is say something along these lines. loving God, I welcome you in my life today. You are welcome in this place. I want to do what you have planned for me. I'm going to pray. Opening Prayer Church. As we get into our message today. Loving God, thanks for this time. Thanks that you are wonderful. That your works are wonderful. And. Yeah. Help us to seek you for your good purposes. Amen. Intentional Morning Practice So, as mentioned, this is my daily desire that I invite the Lord into my life through making coffee. you know, sometimes even say things like the Lord's Prayer, the Apostles Creed, all these kinds of things. I invite God to have his will in this place at the start of my day, and then to speak in for the rest of my day. so why am I preaching? Why am I talking about coffee today? Well, at the start of the year, the staff team we were talking about when we might like to preach and I really, really confidently stated that I would like to preach in the Stay Weird series and why I think it's just because I'm really happy to be associated with being weird. I feel like it's in my blood, in my DNA. No, not not just that. Also, because our October last year, Rachel, Mike, Nikki and I, we went to a conference called Renaissance where it was a really great weekend. We went in sort of like a ministry experience, and then we did a lot of things. So much of it was great, but I think the particular highlight was hearing from this man, this eyes, he's so gorgeous. I love this man. His name is Strawn Coleman. he's a musician. he's from he's from New Zealand. He's a beautiful man with a beautiful accent. but he actually didn't do any singing. He actually spoke on prayer and what it means to have an intimate prayer life with God. He's the founder and director of the Commoners Communion. It's called He's also involved with practicing the way, which is what a lot of our growth groups are going to be doing this term. So to be sure to get into that. Beholding Prayer (Strawn Coleman) this was his main message across the weekend. He wants prayer to be more than a mental dialogue, but as a way of existing with God in our everyday, ordinary lives. He calls this beholding, which is the title of one of his books, Beholding Prayer. So did I come out of this conference absolutely gushing on this man? Well, I'm not going to comment or deny that. is that weird to say? I don't know. I don't think it's weird. Maybe that's weird. I don't know who it is anyway, but I was inspired, right? I was inspired to read what he said. I came out of that weekend making a conscious effort to explore a deeper prayer life and all that comes with that. Intimacy, vulnerability, silence, prayer. And I set myself on the journey of seeking this. And I thought by the time, you know, maybe like six, eight months down the line, I thought, by the time I get to church today, I'd be like, great. I'm so excited to stand up here and share everything that I have learned. Well, that day is here, and I think it's fair to say the journey didn't go as planned, but I also think that is for the better. Taste and See Coffee as a Cue So morning starts. I make my coffee and as I said, the intention is to invite the Lord into this space. Psalm 34, verse eight. Taste and see that he is good. This is not me preaching a theology of coffee, by the way. although that sounds like a really good idea, someone should do that. This is me. What I love about coffee is mostly the smell, amongst the taste. Because. And actually, to do with my prayer life, I use the aroma, particularly. Filter coffee is particularly potent. I use that as kind of a way to connect back with God. I find in my prayers I'm deeply distracted all the time, and I use the aroma to function as an incense, and I want the smell to draw me back to the father. And then from there, my morning looks like hopefully some prayer, some Bible reading. At the moment I've been working through a podcast which just sort of does a little devotion on a particular part of the Bible each day. And yeah, that's been my intention to pray with God. And honestly, I don't I don't nail this every, every day. Habits, All-or-Nothing, and Grace And for my whole life for routines and habits. I've struggled with a bit of an all or nothing complex. And what I mean by that is I want to do a habit and I really want to do it well. And then I miss a couple of days, I slip up and then I just crash out of doing it. And it wasn't just for prayer and following God. It's kind of been for everything. To be honest, it's been for for trying to, like, practice a musical instrument, whether it's trying to do exercise. It's kind of just been with me and I don't really know why, but that's okay. It's been there. And in my journey of seeking Christ this year, he's actually shown me that. And God has shown me the lies in this thinking. In all of our shortcomings. God is ready to welcome us back with open arms like the prodigal son. You know, he looks down on us with so much grace. You know whether I'm coming back to God later that day. The next day. The day after. He simply just desires an intimate friendship with me. I love this quote from Rich Villegas. Also in practicing the way, as I learned from week one of our session just this Tuesday, a thousand distractions in prayer. A thousand reasons to come back to God. Seeing God in All Things So, through a single daily task, I invite the Lord into all of my life. And slowly and softly, I'm just seeing him more in in all things. So looking back now that looking back at October, it's clear when I set the goal of doing this, seeking God more. If I'm honest, I went in with my heart in the wrong place. I was seeking God, yes, but it kind of began with seeking him for my purpose. To learn to be better, to be more like Strawn. And I am relieved to say this did not go the way that I planned. You know, God, even in my wrong ideas, God kind of did. Just God in here is he's going to do. He got into my heart, my body and mind and and he showed me the ways of this, even in selfish pursuits. He can use your prayer and your life for good purposes. And Matthew chapter six teaches us this. Seek First His Kingdom (Matthew 6) So do not worry. Saying, what shall we eat? What shall we drink, or what shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things. And your heavenly father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you. To seek his kingdom and his righteousness is to seek first God for his good. Purposes. And this call from Jesus sets us apart. In our world, we're in one where we're encouraged to think for ourselves, whether it be for material gain, our own sense of purpose, power, influence, emotional gain, security. Even in my prayer life, I was using prayer for just gaining, you know, spiritual knowledge and and wisdom and thank the Lord that he showed me the errors of that. Deny Yourself Find Freedom (Luke 9:23) And what is Christ say about this? Well, he calls us to deny yourself, deny gain for your purposes. Luke 923 Jesus said to them all, whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themsel

Why do we keep saying ancient creeds and prayers? In this message, we explore how set words teach us to pray, anchor our belief, unite our community, and help us witness to Jesuslike a melody line we improvise ondrawing from Exodus 34, 1 Corinthians 15 and Revelation 12:11. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript below Bible Readings Old Testament Exodus 34:18 Good morning church. This morning we are privileged to be having two or rather three readings, one from the Old Testament and two from the new. And I'm going to read from you from the Old Testament, Exodus 34, verses 1 to 8. The Lord said to Moses, chiseled out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets which you broke. Be ready in the morning and then come up on Mount Sinai. Present yourself to me there on top of the mountain. No one is to come with you or be seen anywhere on the mountain. Not even the flocks and herds may graze in front of the mountain. So Moses chiseled out two stone tablets like the first ones, and went up mount Sinai early in the morning, as the Lord had commanded him, and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him, and proclaimed his name the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming the Lord the Lord. The compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished. He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation. Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. May we too, I think, be like Moses, worshiping this God who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love and faithfulness. Amen. New Testament Readings 1 Corinthians 15; Revelation 12 And now Sam will bring us the two New Testament readings. Our New Testament readings for today are from one Corinthians chapter 15 and revelation chapter 12. Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preach to you which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved. If you hold firmly to the word I preach to you. Otherwise you have believed in vain. For what I received, I passed on to you as of first importance, that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the 12. After that he appeared to more than 500 of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. And last of all, he appeared to me also as to one abnormally born are now for revelation. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say, now I have come to the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of this Messiah of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters who accuses them before our God. Day and night has been hurled down. They triumphed over him by the blood of the lamb, and by the word of their testimony. They did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens, and you who dwell in them. But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you. He is filled. He is filled with fury because he knows that his time is sure. This is the word of the Lord. Sermon Well. Good morning again. Thank you so much for the privilege of being with you. to be part of the Staying Weird series, finding the weirdest people around to come and talk about a weird and wonderful thing, which is Christian faith and and to listen to a sermon. A 'Creed' for Listening So I've prepared, just a brief, creed for listening to a sermon. And so I wonder whether we just might encourage each other as we begin with this, this morning, so you can respond in the, in the bold type. All Scripture is God breathed. Congregation replies: And is useful for teaching, correcting, rebuking, and training in righteousness. We listen to sermons so that we might hear from God. I am really, really, looking forward to the sermon today! And even if it goes a bit too long, I wont mind at all. However, I do wonder, whats the point of reciting things that have been written for us by someone else? Wheres the authenticity in that? Which is a really great question. The 'Age of Authenticity' I'm glad you asked. We live in what sociologists call the age of authenticity, and that's what it means to be truly human, to make sure that you, you do you and you live your life in a way that aligns with with your heart, you, you, you don't just submit to what other people tell you to do, what other people say that you ought to be. You need to be authentic. Be true to yourself. Except, of course, when you come to the Anglican Church and what you do is what is in bold type on the screen. So what do you believe? Don't bother thinking. Just read these words off the screen. Would you like to confess your sins to Almighty God? No need to search your heart. Just repeat after me. would you like to, know what to say when you wake up in the morning? Well, open your prayer book and read Morning Prayer. As an advanced Anglican, there are prayers for the morning. The evening for the middle of the day, for before you go to bed, there is a special prayer to say every week of the year we've got you covered. No need to think. And is that perhaps the point of this? Adolf Hitler said, what luck for leaders that men do not think. But that's not the point, is it? Let me say very clearly that's not the point. All right, we come. We come to church so that we might think deeply about our faith. We come so that we might bring ourselves to this, that we might grow in an authentic, real Christian faith so that who we are would be what we confess to one another and to the world. And we do that joining with centuries of Christian people, theologians, philosophers, artists who have thought reflected deeply on what it means to be Christian, and many of them who also have said these prepared words of creeds and prayers. So how does this go together? How do we understand the significance, the value, the point of coming to church and saying things that someone else has written for us? Point 1 Saying what we dont know how to say I for four points as I as we go through today. The first is this why do we say prepared creeds and confessions and prayers, so that we are enabled to say what we don't know how to say? The Apostle's Creed that we said earlier that that was originally sort of from the earliest references around the fourth century, in wide use by the eighth century. These were a set of words that people would use when they are being baptised. So brand new Christians, what is the faith that you are confessing? And his. Here are the words to say it. It was a way of teaching new believers. How do we speak about God and so many of the creeds? They came out of controversy in the early years of the church. As Christians try to work out, how do we talk about God? What is God like? Where does Jesus fit? Who is the Holy Spirit? How do we answer those questions? Should we say that Jesus is created by the father? Or should we say that Jesus is sort of similar to the father? Is Jesus like a second God? That there's the father who's God? And then there's another God who's Jesus, and the Holy Spirit fits in somewhere. Like how? How should we answer? And they're deep questions, right? And so that the church elders, they got together and they thrashed this out over centuries, they worked this out. One of the great creeds of the church is having its birthday this year. The Nicene Creed was written in 425. 1700. I'm not good at maths, right? I'm employed to do different things. 1700 years ago. That's how long Christian believers have been answering the question, What is God's? What is God like? We say that God is the father, the Almighty creator of heaven and earth. God is the one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made of one, being with the father. There is a weight of theology and understanding in those tight words. And if only there was a college that you could go to. You could learn about what it all means. Talk to me afterwards. This sermon is not an advertorial, but there is so much to, to, to reflect on, to grasp. And that's been captured in these words for us so that we can say what we don't know how to say. And it's the same when we pray. The disciples came to Jesus and they said, Jesus, teach us to pray. And so he gave them words. In Luke's version, it's it's explicit. It says, when you pray, say this, here are the words to say when you pray. And as Anglicans, there are prayers that we have been given. Prayers that enable us to say what we don't know how to say. One of my favorites is the is the Thanksgiving. The general Thanksgiving. Megan has very helpfully printed out a number of the sort of the set prayers of the Anglican tradition. I think they'll be out in the foyer somewhere afterwards, or here at the corners of the stage. How do you say thank you to God? Well, the Anglican reformers, they knew that that English Christians weren't very good at being thankful. All right. So here are some words. Glorious, gracious God, we humbly thank you for life, for health, for safety, for freedo

In this moving sermon, Richard Boonstra from Prison Fellowship shares stories of hope, redemption, and the radical love of Jesus for those society often overlooks. Reflecting on John 4 and his own experiences in prisons across Australia, Richard challenges us to stay weird by following Jesus into uncomfortable places, where the harvest is ripe and lives are being transformed. Tune in to hear how God is working in prisons, and how were all invited to partner in the Kingdom work of rescue, restoration, and redemption. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript Our Bible reading today comes from John chapter 4, verses 3442, just after Jesus has been speaking with the Samaritan woman. My food said, Jesus, is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.Don't you have a saying? It's still four months until harvest?I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields.They are ripe for harvest.Even now, the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.Thus the saying one sows and another reaps is true.I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you've reaped the benefits of their labor.Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony.He told me everything I ever did.So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with him.And he stayed two days.And because of his words, many more became believers.They said to the woman, we no longer believe just because of what you said.Now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world. This is the word of the Lord. Introduction Good morning. Thank you for having me here this morning. my name is Richard Boonstra, and I'm the, the state manager for Victoria for Prison Fellowship. apologies to those who are here at the 8 a.m. service. You're going to hear the same things again, but, it's how it goes. I didn't come to the Ministry of Prison fellowship to work. it hasn't been part of my career. My career is, teaching. So I'm a school teacher and a school principal by trade, and I spent many years teaching and leading in Christian schools. However, in 2016 2017 we moved to Melbourne and I felt the need to just get out of Christian school, out of schooling and do something different. But my my passion for Christian ministry started when I was very young, newly married in in the 1980s, and it all started when I was at a small group, and it was a small group for newly married couples, and our small group leader said, hey, I'm a volunteer with Christian Fellowship, and we've got a workshop at Canning Vale Prison in a couple of months. We need some more volunteers. Who's interested? And I felt something in me just thought, yeah, let's do that. So I put my hand up, said, yeah, I'm interested. And my friend next to me, he said, yep, we'll do it. So we had to wait for a little while until the training day comes, because you don't go into a prison without training. By the time the training day came around and I could get the training done, my friend had dropped off. So it was just me. I still went ahead and did the training and, we completed the training. The day arrived of the workshop. I got in my car, drove down to Canning Vale Prison, which is about a half an hour of where I lived. Got out of the car in the car park, looked at the walls, the razor wire and I thought, what am I doing here? I had that moment where you sometimes have where you think if someone told me that they had to cancel it, I'd be okay with that? No worries. But they didn't. They still went ahead, so I thought. Stop it. Swallow it. Come on. So I went ahead. Went through the doors. Bang! No. Two doors in a prison opened at the same time. And they didn't just bang, bang, lock. Click. That was it. I was in, I couldn't get out if I wanted to. Anyway, I went through to the room where we had the workshop, and I'm sitting here thinking, oh, what am I doing? And, the guys came in and started coming in from the different units of the prison for the seminar, and it was like a fog that just the sun came out and disappeared. All that fear and apprehension just went and I thought, huh, I think this is where I should be. This is my happy place. And I just thought I had the greatest time. I had a great day just sharing with the guys. You know, one of the best things is to talk to them and treat them as people. Not to look at the greens that they were wearing, but to think of them as people and to treat them as people. From there, I straight away signed up to join a team and we went in to, Fremantle Prison. Fremantle Prison, if you don't know it, some of you may have been to Perth, may have been for a tour of Fremantle prison because now a museum and now that it's a museum, probably gives you an idea of what it was like. It was built in 1850s and nothing had changed. There were no toilets in the cell. There was just a bucket. And the cells were made for one two people per cell. It was pretty rough and spartan. We were a team of about 6 or 7 of us. There was myself and my friend from the Reform church. There was a Catholic nun who was with us as well, two salvo guys who probably looked like they came off the ark with Noah, a charismatic Baptist lady and a couple of Anglicans. And we worked so well together. And I thought, this is also what God wants to see people from different denominations working together, sharing the gospel. And that's what we did every Saturday afternoon for about five years. We ran a little chapel service in the prison. So that's my story. And that's why I became passionate about prison fellowship and reaching people in prison. So when we moved to Melbourne, the opportunity came up to work for it. I thought, yes, that would be good. So I did that. A Broken World: The Bad News First I'm going to start off with some bad news. There's good news and bad news. I'll start off with the bad news. We live in a broken world. That's the bad news that we know. And I'm sure I'm not telling you anything you already don't know. Both in and out of prisons, people are broken, and they don't treat each other as they should. They've lost sight of what it means to be truly human. To be living in peace with God and with themselves and with each other and with creation, to find that shalom. People have lost sight of it. But there is now I'm feeling, and we feel that in prisons too, the beginnings of a yearning. Dissatisfied with what the Western cultural mindset has led them to believe or has promised them, is not happening. And so they're looking for something different, looking for a different way of living. But first, I'll just show you some statistics from our prisons. As a slice, as a snapshot of the brokenness in our world, you can see that in the prisons at the moment, there are 6551 people in prison. A little bit up from what it was about a year ago. At the end of December last year, we were below 6000, which was really exciting. And I track these numbers, so I'm keen to see the numbers go down. And that's really because of the Victorian Government, the Department of Justice and Corrections Victoria and the prisons have a much more progressive attitude towards the people in prison. I just went on a tour of Western Plains Correctional Centre, which is a new one, opened up, and constantly the staff are talking about the people in our care. People in our care. They adopt a trauma informed and trauma based approach to caring for the people in prison. They're still there. They need to be there. They know that. But while they're there, let's see if we can help them. So that's really the attitude. But they're competing with the government policy. So the numbers are going up a little bit because of the recent controversies around bail and toughening the laws, the bail laws. So it means more people go to prison instead of go out on bail. So that's where we're at 6500 people in prison. 95% are men, a small proportion of women. But for a woman in prison, it's a lot harder. There's a lot more at stake for families and for kids when mum is in prison. So it's a very different kind of situation and scenario for volunteers going there. 40% are unsentenced. Now this is really interesting because we often think, oh, they're on remand. But when you're on remand, there's so much uncertainty and so much anxiety. What's going to happen? Where am I going to go? Because the remand centre that you're in won't be where you'll stay. You'll be shifted to another prison. Will I have a job when I finish my sentence? What's happening to my family? What about my kids and all this stuff? I've sat with a guy in Melbourne Assessment Prison and just I didn't have to say anything. I just sat with him and let him talk, because he needed to get a lot of stuff off his chest, stuff that was swirling around his mind. And just to have someone listen, who empathetically listened, was important for him. 14% of people in prison are Aboriginal. It's still an imbalance when you measure that against what the percentage of the Victorian population is 1% yet 14% of the prison population. So there's a big difference there. And that's multiplied when you look at places like Northern Territory and Western Australia and Queensland; there's a higher proportion of Aboriginal people. The prison I was visiting in Perth, Fremantle Prison, at one stage we were told there were 80% Aboriginal, and so many of them were Aboriginal people who came from way up north in the more cultural tribal a

Professor Kuruvilla George from MST explores Jesus parables of the sower and the weeds to reflect on the inner thorns of anxiety and stress, and the outer tests of difficult relationships. With warmth and insight, this message invites us to be honest about our mental health, find hope in Gods grace, and learn practical ways to grow in faith amid lifes challenges. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript I feel like it's a bit weird to people limping on and off the stage. Good morning.This morning I'm reading from Matthew chapter 13, verses 1 to 17. That same day, Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore.Then he told them many things in parables, saying, A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it.Some fell on rocky places where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow.But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.Other seed fell among thorns which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop 160 or 30 times what was sown.Whoever has ears, let them hear.The disciples came to him and asked, why do you speak to the people in parables?He replied, because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have even what they have will be taken from them.This is why I speak to them in parables, though seeing they do not see, though hearing they do not hear or understand.In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.For this people's hearts have become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. This is the word of the Lord. Thank you for reading that, and it's a pleasure to be with all of you.thank Megan for inviting me to come and be with you today. And also, Lisa Jacob is the one who made the first introduction so I could meet Megan and have some time with her. So it's good to be with you.So, let's pray, and then I will look further into the word of God. Father, we thank you for today. We thank you for your goodness, your mercy, your love.You're a good God, Father. We just want to reiterate that you're a good God.Father, I just thank you for your word and pray that you will open our eyes our eyes to understand.Listen, Father, and also be Father. We ask this today in Jesus name. Amen. Now, I you heard a bit of my story but I retired from public service. I never did any private psychiatry. Public sector psychiatry.I was working for Eastern Health for many years before I retired. And following my retirement in 2020, just before Covid. God's timing.And I then have been working on an honorary basis with the Melbourne School of Theology, where we started five years ago. Exactly. We started a Centre for Theology and Psychology, integrating theology and psychology. So that's where I do some work. And always open for ministry in churches and other groups in this area.So because, as you're well aware, there's still a lot of stigma and lack of understanding about mental health in the faith community. Now, many have told me, well, in the West it's so much better. Certainly it is compared to Eastern and developing countries. You know, the Western nations are much better in the area of awareness and reducing stigma, but it's still there. And I give my own example to show that things may not have changed as much as we think they have. I say, well, just after I retired in 2020 in 2021 I had cancer of my bladder. And I said, well, I can share that with anyone in the faith community, in the church. I've got cancer. Please pray for me. But if I was suffering from schizophrenia or bipolar affective disorder or an anxiety disorder, would I be as free to share that with anyone? even in the faith community, to say that that's what's happening? So the question that I often have is why not? Why not?Why do we make that distinction between a mental illness and a physical illness? And we have still quite a bit of stigma, even though we think there isn't. And so my passion since retirement has been to try and break that down bring that down as much as I can. So wherever there are opportunities, I will say a bit more about the Center for Theology and Psychology at the end, and some of the resources that we have. But going to the passage that we just read from Matthew chapter 13 it's a well-known passage, we all have, I'm sure, read it many a time. But I just wanted to share a few things with you from that. So from Matthew 13, the part that we read. This is the parable of the sower. And then if you go on from verse 18 onwards, Jesus explains the parable to his disciples because they wanted to know a bit more. In verse 18 it says: a man hears the message of the kingdom and does not grasp it. The evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in the heart. This is like the seed sown by the roadside. The seed sown on stony patches represents the man who hears the message and eagerly accepts it, but it has not taken root in him and does not last long. The moment trouble or persecution arises though through the message he gives up his faith at once. And the seed sown among the thorns... This is what I want to concentrate a bit on today. The seed that is sown among the thorns represents the man who hears the message. And when the worries of this life and the illusions of wealth choke it to that, so that it produces no crop in his life, there's no fruitfulness because of the worries of this life and the illusions of this life that cause the problem. So the message that I have today is really about what's called thorns and tests. Thorns and tests. I'm looking for my notes here, and I will go on to the next... see in this chapter. There are a few things about agriculture a few parables that Jesus mentions about agriculture. The next one is also about agriculture. And he says in verse 24, Then he put another parable before them. The kingdom of heaven, he said, is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.When the crop came up and ripened, the weeds appeared as well.Then the owner's servants came to him and said, Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where did all these weeds come from?Some blackguard has done this to spite me, he replied.Do you want us then to go and pull them all up? said the servants.No, he answered. If you pull up the weeds now, you will pull up the wheat with them. Let them both grow together till the harvest, and at harvest time I shall tell the reapers: collect all the weeds first and tie them up in bundles ready to burn. But collect the wheat and store it in my barn. So we see two parables. Wheat about what you call weeds. One is thorns and the other is tares. Now, as we all know when we do gardening in this country (I was just sharing in the first service) I just came back from the UK after two and a half weeks, visiting my wife's family and some of our good friends. And yesterday I spent most of the afternoon gardening, and what was most of the time spent on? Weeding, isn't it?When we say we are going to do gardening, most of the time we spend on weeding. So Jesus, when you read these two parables, it looks as though there's a discrepancy. In one parable, Jesus is saying the weeds will cause you to be stifled and you won't be fruitful so we think Jesus is saying you need to get the weeds out if you want to be fruitful. But in the second parable, Jesus is saying, leave the weeds alone. I will take care of that. So it looks as though Jesus is giving two contradictory you know, come on two contradictory teachings to his disciples. But then when we look more closely, there is a difference. One is thorns and the other are tares. So thorns are a special kind of weed which is very difficult to pull out. We all know when we are weeding how difficult it is. It takes a lot of effort and needs to be done regularly if we don't do it, weeds take over. (As we all know from our gardens, it's amazing: when we have got fruitful flowers or plants that we've put in our garden, we have to put in the effort to produce the flowers. We have to water them, feed them, look after them, tend them. But weeds we don't have to do any of that! It just seems to grow, isn't it amazing? Its amazing how you don't have to care for them; it just grows.) But in the second parable, tares are weeds called darnel, and darnel has a similar appearance to wheat. It is often difficult to make out, during the time of growth, whether it is wheat or darnel. And that's why Jesus said in the parable, No, leave it, because if you pull out the darnel, you might be pulling out the wheat. Let it grow together, and at the end then I (or God, the farmer) will take care of it pull out the weeds and burn them while the wheat is gathered to feed us. So wha

In this final sermon from our Job: The Mystery of Suffering series, we explore God's unexpected response to Jobs criesa revelation not of condemnation, but of connection. Through vivid imagery, ancient wisdom, and modern reflections, we see how Job moves from despair to restoration. Can we be humbled and honored at the same time? What does it mean to suffer yet remain secure in God's love? Join us as we consider how revelation, repentance, and restoration still shape our stories today. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript Good morning. Today's Bible reading is Job 42:117 (page 838 in the red Bibles). Scripture Reading: Job 42:117 Then job replied to the Lord: I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.You asked, Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.You said, Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.After the Lord had said these things to job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, Im angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant job has. So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant job has.So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite did what the Lord told them; and the Lord accepted jobs prayer.After job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.The Lord blessed the latter part of jobs life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemima, the second Kezia, and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as jobs daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers. After this, job lived 140 years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so job died, an old man and full of years. This is the word of the Lord. Now. Thanks for those beautiful prayers, Bridget, and the Bible reading, Sarah. My name is Megan. If you haven't met me before. I'm the senior minister here at Deep Creek, and if you haven't been here during this series (and I didn't want to look around to see who had or hadn't), that's okay. It's okay. You don't need to know the entirety of the book of Job to hear from the Lord this morning. Revelation Well, two days before I was born, something that has shaped my life was released for the first time. It was the radio play of Douglas Adams Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. A year later, it was published as a book. It's been extremely popular to the point that these are all the different covers as it's been republished in new editions over and over again over the past 47 years. Its a sci-fi satire comedy, and it explores ideas about infinity and leadership and just high jinks around the galaxy. And it connects me always to the book of Job. I'll tell you why. In The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, someone invents something called the Total Perspective Vortex. The purpose of this invention was to prove to the inventors wife that the most important thing for a human being was to never have a sense of proportion about themselves in the midst of the vast universe. So, extrapolating from the atoms in a piece of fairy cake, he invents this device which when a being is plugged into one end of it shows them as they truly are in the vast infinitude of all creation. It says that when you are put into the Vortex, you are given just one momentary glimpse of the entire unimaginable infinity of creation. And somewhere in it, a tiny little marker a microscopic dot on a microscopic dot says, You are here. Now, in the Hitchhiker's Guide universe, this invention becomes a torture device, because any being who actually experiences their smallness their minuscule insignificance in the vastness of all that exists well, they are exploded. Their brains just cannot handle it; they are destroyed as a person. The only person in the book who is not destroyed is someone described as having an ego the size of a planet. The only way to combat seeing yourself as you really are this tiny, infinitely small speck in the universe is to puff your ego up as big as it can possibly be, so that you know you really have a place. When it comes to the end of the Book of Job, I've often wondered: is God plugging Job into the Total Perspective Vortex when He comes to respond to Job? Job has been suffering unjustly, and he has these interactions with his friends who say, This is how God's world works if you're suffering, you must be a bad person. And Job is saying, I'm not! I'm a righteous person. I've always followed God. Why is this happening to me? Hes calling out to God throughout the book for God to answer his case to prove that God is a just God. Why is this happening? When God answers Job, He speaks of the vastness of all creation. Job sees this, and he replies: I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?Surely I spoke of things I did not understand things too wonderful for me to know. Its as if God has shown him the entire cosmos everything in reality and Jobs part in it: a microscopic dot on a microscopic dot with a little marker saying You are here. Will Job be destroyed by this revelation of God? Jobs worries are part of a much grander scheme. The text speaks of God coming to Job and speaking to him out of a whirlwind. (This is a picture of a place in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand, that had a cyclone go through you can see it's recognizable as a house and a car and an orchard, but it's basically destroyed by the whirlwind that came through.) So when Job replies to God, we're wondering: is this what has happened? God has revealed Himself to Job will Job be utterly destroyed? Well, the first thing to say is that there is a difference between the Total Perspective Vortex and God's revelation, because against all odds the revelation has come with connection. Andy Prideaux, who was with us a couple of times through this series, has written a commentary he's been working on the Book of Job for a long time. This is from one of his articles (published in the Reformed Theological Review in 2011). He said: Before such a God, Job can only acknowledge his smallness before the majesty of his Creator who, against all odds, has reached out and spoken to his creature. The Total Perspective Vortex put someone in the midst of a vast universe isolated, insignificant, unconnected no personality at the heart of reality, just cosmos after cosmos and you. But against all odds, the Creator of the vastness that there is the being at the heart of reality has reached out here and connected with Job. Now, centuries before I was born, someone else had an experience of the total perspective of the universe. Julian of Norwich, a great saint and mystic in the 14th century, was praying and received a vision from God. I'm going to read to you what she wrote: He showed a little thing, the quantity of a hazelnut, lying in the palm of my hand (as it seemed to me), and it was as round as any ball. I looked therein with the eye of my understanding and thought, What may this be? (Very normal, if you have a vision from God, to say, God, what is this about?) And I was answered generally thus: It is all that is made. I marveled how it might last, for it seemed to me it might suddenly have fallen into nought (nothing) for its littleness. And I was answered in my understanding: it lasteth and ever shall, because God loveth it. And so hath all things being by the love of God. It lasts and ever will because God loves it, and all things do so by the love of God. Julian of Norwich had an opportunity to see the total perspective of creation, and in God's vision it was as tiny as a hazelnut, and yet it was not isolated or insignificant. It was loved. It was held together by a Creator who is personally connected to it, who values it, and gives it such dignity that He would hold all things together, even small though they be. So when God reveals Himself to Job, He doesn't simply reveal Himself as so much higher (you could never understand). He reveals Himself as the One who desires to connect, who also holds all things together with great love and tenderness. At the start of chapter 38, God had just talked about all the stars in the sky He holds the storehouses of the hail and all those incredible things that humans have no power over whatsoever. He keeps going: Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens? Big. And then He says: Do you hunt the prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of the lions when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in a thicket? Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander ab

When Job demands answers from God, hes met not with explanations, but with awe. In this powerful sermon, we explore how God responds from the storm, lifting Jobs eyes from suffering to the wonder, wisdom, and wildness of creation. Discover how Gods care is both cosmic and personal, and why we are never alone, even in the chaos. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript The word of the Lord is being read from the Book of Job, Chapter 38, verses 1 to 21. Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said,Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge?Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand.Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know. Who stretched a measuring line across it?On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstonewhile the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb,when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness;when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place,when I said, This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt?Have you ever given orders to the morning or shown the dawn its place,that it might take the earth by the edges and shake the wicked out of it?The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features stand out like those of a garment.The wicked are denied their light, and their upraised arm is broken.Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep?Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness?Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside?Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings?Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years. Good morning everyone. We could probably have some light, I think. It might help you. I don't know if it'll make you go to sleep or not, but anyway. We are looking at, actually, four chapters in Job today, although we just had the start read. If you've got a Bible or something on your phone, you're welcome to follow along. But a lot of the material I'll have up on the screen or read out for us. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for the richness of your word. And we thank you, Lord, that your kindness to us is in revealing who you are, who we are, and our place in this creation. We thank you, Lord, for your goodness to us this morning and every day, in providing all that we need for life and showing us the way to salvation through Your Son, Jesus Christ. We pray that you'd open our hearts today to all that you would say to us in Your Word by Your Holy Spirit. Amen. Left on Read with God Well, the young people have an expression: to be left on read. It means that you've sent a message to someone and they have clearly seen it. A read receipt has come through. It says delivered and read in whatever, you know, WhatsApp or Messenger or whatever. But they have not responded. So it's not like, you know, they haven't seen the message. Oh, they've seen it. But something about their life your message, your priority in their life means that you've been left on read. Well, at this point in the book of Job, Job is feeling like he is left on read with God. We've had speeches back and forth. We've had lots of human words. But in all the chapters between chapter 3 and 37, we've not had a word from God. Job has been crying out to God because of his suffering. All that he has lost, the changes in his life. Everything good that he had seems to have been taken away. And he believes that God is in charge of the world, and so he cannot understand the justice behind a righteous man such as himself receiving such terrible treatment at the hands of a good God. He had done good. Why had he not experienced good in his life? And he knew that he did not deserve this suffering, this change in his fortunes. So why was God doing it? He cries out to God. In fact, more than just sending God a message, he's actually longing to take God to court, if you like. He's kind of moving from just messages between friends to an episode of Law and Order. He is in the courtroom and he is crying out for God the defendant and the judge to answer him. So you actually see lots of courtroom imagery throughout the whole book of Job. We see at the beginning God, the heavenly Judge on the throne, and the angels coming before Him. The accuser comes and says, What is the justice in this man's life? You are saying he is worshiping you and being righteous, and yet he has so much. It's unjust. He doesn't really love you for you; it's because of all the stuff he's got. And so the whole scenario of Job's change in life and his suffering is set up in this sort of courtroom assembly. But Job himself then starts to style himself as a plaintiff in a court case, calling out to God to take his case and also to answer him as his opposition. He longs for there to be someone a witness, an arbiter, a mediator in the courtroom between him and God. And actually, when he calls for a Redeemer and says, I know there must be someone, he's still using this picture. I want someone to stand on my side, to be my legal advocate. To provide what I need. As I stand before God the Judge. God Speaks from the Storm So when we come to God speaking in chapter 38, we actually see God begin His own cross-examination of Job. God speaks. And yes, He will engage in this courtroom scene and these questions of justice. Now, what He says in answer to Job's complaints may be very unexpected. But when we see the beginning of chapter 38, we can imagine exactly a defense attorney standing there saying, Brace yourself. Are you ready for my questions? So God answers Job. In our NIV translation, we just have, Then the Lord spoke to Job. That's appropriate. I'm not a Hebrew scholar, but what I do know is that there's a difference between the way that God speaks here and the way God has spoken the only other times we've seen Him speak (in chapters 1 and 2). In chapters 1 and 2, God speaks to the Satan the accuser, the adversary and He does not... (the Hebrew doesn't use the normal everyday sort of reply form of the word). It's not like this is a dialogue between God and Satan. Satan says something and God speaks, but He doesn't "reply" in the sense that they are equals. Here, however, the language is back to normal. God answers Job, as you and I would answer or reply to one another in conversation. He has now brought Himself into dialogue with Job. Not that either one's character or essence has changed, but that God is willing to have a conversation with this human being. Face to face. But it's not really face to face. It's not equal. God speaks to Job out of the storm. Throughout the book of Job, Job has been using this imagery of God Himself. You might have heard that we are expecting a "weather bomb" off the east coast of Australia this coming week. And you think to yourself, Ah, do you need to just really escalate this imagery? It'll probably be quite rainy and windy. However, the picture of God speaking out of the storm is that escalated "weather bomb" language. This is power. This is threat. And Job knows this about God, because Job has used this language of Him before. In that first courtroom scene in chapter 9, when he's saying, You're the Judge I want to bring my case before You. But I feel so powerless. If He does come to me, He would crush me with a storm and multiply my wounds for no reason. And then, towards the end of the speeches, just before the final human arbiter (Elihu) speaks, Job says to God, You snatch me up and drive me before the wind; You toss me about in the storm. Elihu, in his speeches (before God finally speaks in answer), says this too about God: His thunder announces the coming storm. All the threat that you experience when a weather bomb is on its way... This is the power and holiness and otherness of the great God of the universe. But God, out of His great power and otherness, does not destroy Job when He speaks to him out of the storm. He says, Who is this that obscures My plans with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man. Like a warrior. I will question you, and you shall answer Me. And so we wonder, what will God say in response to Job's suffering and his request for justice? Will He go into the explanation of Satan coming before God in chapters 1 and 2? Will He say, Actually, you werent as righteous as you thought. Everybody gets tough times? What is He going to say? The Vastness of Creation Well, God begins His answer to Job by lifting his eyes to the vastness of creation. He lifts Jobs eyes above Jobs own human story, and He tells Job just how vast and indescribable how unfathomable and transcendent God really is. He begins by saying, Were you there when I laid the earths foundation? He pictures Himself as a builder and an architect. He says, Were you there? Who marked off its dimensions? Who stretched a measuring line across it? Did you lay the concrete footings? No, I did that. And more than just doing a building for you humans. This was set in a vast heavenly realm: ...the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy. God doesn't give a lot of insights into the heavenly realm in these chapters, but it's always there God's ways are ancient, transcendent. There were beings around

In this sermonRev. Pedram Shirmast explores Job 19 and the bold hope found in the words, I know that my Redeemer lives. Amid personal and global suffering, we're reminded that God doesnt give us tidy answers. He gives us Himself. Tune in for a message of honest faith, deep lament, and unshakable hope. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript His pain is on full display, but so is his faith. His cry takes us on a journey from desperation to declaration. Here's a quick breakdown of the structure of the chapter: Verses 16: We see that Job rebukes his friends. He's wounded not just by his suffering, but by his friends' words and accusations. He pleads for empathy and understanding. Verses 712: Job expresses his deep sense of God's silence. He turns his attention to God and expresses how he feels abandoned and attacked. He's confused since he believes God is just, yet he feels like he's being punished unjustly. Verses 1322: He lists his total isolation. He paints a picture of complete relational breakdownfamily, friends, servants, everyone, even his wife. Everyone has turned away from him and his social and emotional world has collapsed. Verses 2324: He longs for his words to be remembered and wishes his defense could be recorded forever. He wants future generations to know that his suffering wasn't because of guilt, that there is more to his story than what people can see on the surface. Verses 2527: He declares his hope in a living Redeemer. In one of the most beautiful and faithful passages of this book, Job lifts his eyes and proclaims, I know that my Redeemer lives, and one day he will stand on the earth. Even if he dies, he believes he will see God personally with his own eyes. Verses 2829: He closes by warning his friends not to continue down the path of judgment and condemnation, reminding them that justice ultimately belongs to God, not to humans. As we see, he doesn't sugarcoat his pain. He doesn't offer an easy answer. But somewhere deep inside there is a flame that hasn't gone out. A trust in a God that he cannot see yet, but whom he refuses to stop believing in. There is a crucial reality in our life. The way we understand and interpret God and His character shapes the way we respond to suffering, and the way we experience suffering often reshapes how we think about God. There is a direct and powerful relationship between theology and experience, between who we believe God is and how we live in a valley of sorrow or suffering. So all human societies, even those who are not Christian, have known suffering and evil. I believe we can group people into three major categories based on how they respond to suffering and what they believe about God. The First Category: Those who interpret the existence of suffering as evidence against God This group looks at the world, see all the pain and all the suffering, injustice and grief, and they conclude that there cannot possibly be a good God. Their conclusion is based on two assumptions: If God is all-powerful, He could end suffering. If God is all-loving, He would want to. But the fact is, suffering exists. And the conclusion: Therefore, an all-powerful, all-loving God does not exist. This view is deeply influenced by the visible reality of suffering around them. It makes sense emotionally, but it doesn't account for the unseen dimensions of God's character, His love, His redemptive plan, and His eternal timeline. While this category doesn't so much wrestle with God as it rejects Him, often behind that rejection there is still a deep pain, disappointment, and a yearning for a world that makes sensea yearning for justice that they never experience. The Second Category: Those who believe in God, but whose experience of suffering distorts their view of Him This group does not reject God altogether, but suffering changes how they see Him. Their thinking often goes like this: The first assumption is God exists and He is in control. The second assumption is suffering is a sign of divine displeasure or punishment. And the fact is, suffering exists. They conclude that God must not be good or loving. He must be angry; He must be punishing me or punishing others. Maybe I have to work harder to earn His approval. This is where Job's friends stand. This is their theology. And this view is common in even some other religions for example, in parts of Islamic teaching (where I am from), people are taught that suffering is a sign of punishment from God, a sign of God's wrath and justice. This mindset can be found among some Christians too, especially those from another religious background or others who have grown up with a transactional view of God. They may still carry the idea that if something goes wrong in their life, it must be because God is punishing them. In moments of suffering, they begin to wonder: Maybe I haven't prayed enough. Maybe I haven't served the Lord enough. Maybe I haven't been on the Deep Creek roster enough. Maybe I haven't gone to church enough. Maybe God is angry with me because of all these things. Maybe I failed Him. Maybe I'm facing the consequences of my response to God. Even though they believe in Jesus, the picture of God hasn't fully transformed. They still relate to Him more as a judge than as a loving Father. But the truth is, in Christ, our punishment has already been paid. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. What they need is not more religious effort, but a clearer view of the Redeemer who carried all our guilt and shame on the cross and offers us rest instead of wrath. In this system, people live their lives trying to satisfy God, but the gospel tells us a different story. Jesus came not to pass shame on us, but to carry it. God's response to sin and suffering is not revenge, but redemption. He doesn't demand more sacrifice He becomes the sacrifice Himself. Jesus said on the cross, "It is finished." It is finished. The redemptive work of God it is finished. If we view God primarily as an angry judge, we will live in constant fear, interpreting every trial as punishment. But when we see God's character revealed through Jesus as deeply loving, compassionate, and faithful a suffering God here with us our point of view changes. We see God as a Father: loving, guiding, and refining us even through life's challenges and suffering. The Third Category: Those who trust God even in suffering This group stands in the tension. They know God is all-powerful, they believe God is all-loving, and they also see the undeniable reality of suffering in this world. But instead of rejecting God or reshaping Him into something more manageable, they hold onto Him. An all-powerful God exists, and an all-loving God exists, and the fact is, suffering exists. The conclusion is that God must have a loving reason (which He is able to achieve) for allowing suffering. Let's be honest this is not an easy place to stand. Actually, it's the hardest. It's far simpler to reject God or reshape Him into something easier to accept. But this third way the way of faith requires trust. Even Job is wrestling with that. Job stands on that point of view and struggles. In Job 19:20 he says, "I am nothing but skin and bones; I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth." He laments, "My relatives have gone away; my close friends have forgotten me." The tears are evident from this deep experience he is having. This is not an easy place to stay. Those who stand here don't have all the answers. Like Job, like you and I, like millions of people, they struggle with the same "Why, God?" questions: Why, God why is this happening? They feel the same confusion and frustration. They fail, they grieve, they get angry. But beneath all that, there is a foundation of trust that says, even when I don't understand, I know that my Redeemer lives. Even when I don't see the end of the story, I believe the Author is good. They trust that God is not only sovereign over suffering, but also present in it that He is working all things, yes even the worst things, for the good of those who love Him. They believe in a Redeemer whose redemptive work extends beyond the grave. They live with the hope that one day God will wipe every tear, right every wrong, and renew all things. But let's be honest: standing in this place does not erase the pain and suffering. Not at all. It doesn't give us a tidy answer. The real questions are not "Can God and suffering coexist?" but "Why does God allow it?" and "What has God done about it?" The answer to those questions is not a formula it's a person. That person is Jesus. God did not remain distant from the suffering world. He stepped into it. He suffered with us and for us. He was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, and by His wounds we are healed. So faith doesn't always solve the problem of suffering, but what it offers is an anchor. It reminds us that our Redeemer is alive and He lives and that one day He will stand upon the earth. One day we will see Him face to face. And until then we live not with all the answers, but with a living hope. With all the escalating conflict and pain around us right now, like Job we feel isolated, helpless, and unheard. In that raw place of despair, Job gives voice to the same question we are asking today: Where is God in this? Where is He? His cry echoes our own hearts as we fear for our families, grieve for innocent lives, and wait in silence for news from home. We have moments of helplessness a midnight phone call bearing the worst news, days of no contact with loved

In this sermon from our Job: The Mystery of Suffering series, we explore what happens when well-meaning words miss the mark. As Job's friends try to explain his pain through a rigid lens of retribution and reward, were invited to reflect on our own assumptions about suffering, faith, and Gods justice. Join us as we wrestle with tough questions and discover the hope found in the innocent suffering of Christ. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript This morning's reading is from Job chapter 22, verses 2 to 30, and can be found on page 811 of the red pew Bibles, if you have those. Can a man be of benefit to God? Can even a wise person benefit him?What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous? What would he gain if your ways were blameless?Is it for your piety that he rebukes you and brings charges against you?Is not your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless?You demanded security from your relatives for no reason; you stripped people of their clothing, leaving them naked.You gave no water to the weary, and you withheld food from the hungry.Though you were a powerful man, owning land, and an honored man living on it, you sent widows away empty-handed and broke the strength of the fatherless.That is why snares are all around you, why sudden peril terrifies you, why it is so dark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you.Is not God in the heights of heaven? And see how lofty are the highest stars?Yet you say, What does God know? Does he judge through such darkness?Thick clouds veil him so he does not see us, as he goes about in the vaulted heavens.Will you keep to the old path that the wicked have trod?They were carried off before their time, their foundations washed away by a flood.They said to God, Leave us alone! What can the Almighty do to us?Yet it was he who filled their houses with good things.So I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.The righteous see their ruin and rejoice; the innocent mock them, saying,Surely our foes are destroyed, and fire devours their wealth.Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you.Accept instruction from his mouth and lay up his words in your heart.If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored.If you remove wickedness far from your tent and assign your nuggets to the dust, your gold of Ophir to the rocks in the ravines,then the Almighty will be your gold, the choicest silver for you.Surely then you will find delight in the Almighty and will lift up your face to God.You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will fulfill your vows.What you decide on will be done, and light will shine on your ways.When people are brought low and you say, Lift them up! then he will save the downcast.He will deliver even one who is not innocent, who will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands. Thank you, Angie. Well, I lost my voice during the week, so I might sound a little bit unusual today. My thanks to Chantelle, who's leading the singing, despite me choosing all the songs and making all the plans to be the person. So thank you very much. And thank you to the staff who've managed while I've been working from home this week. We particularly want to acknowledge that for those who have come from Iran, this is a very difficult time. On Friday, you might be aware that Israel began to send artillery to bomb Iran. That has been reciprocated, and we certainly fear a significant escalation. So we want to say to all of our congregation members who are from Iran and who have friends and family there that we're with you and we're praying for you. Of course, we know that many in Israel also have no control over what their leaders choose to do, and their leaders are making decisions based on all kinds of bad things that have been done on all sides. And so it's a very complex and dark and difficult situation. So, we love you and we're praying for you and for the people of Iran and Israel. Job's Friends We are continuing in our series on the Book of Job, and they tell me that having a raspy voice is kind of good for today because we're looking at some serious challenges in the way that people have spoken to each other and related, particularly around how friends have been together. Now, I didn't invent thissomeone else (awesome) on the internet did. This is an original painting featuring Job and his friends. And for those listening to the podcast, it has the word Friends, which we could say you know, So no one told you life was gonna be this way? (That Friends.) Thank you very much. So, the show Friends, of course, was one of the most successful sitcoms of all time. It started in 1994, and I was really busy doing Year 11 at that time, so I never got into Friends (I know that's horrifying to some of you). But of course, you can't help but know that the teaching and the story of Friends is not really about an overarching arc; it's about how these relationships unfold and how they navigate life together. These friends, living in the US (on the sofa at Central Perk), had 236 episodes of just friends interacting with each other. The way in which human relationshipsand indeed some of the changes that were happening in our society, particularly around intimacy and how we considered moral choiceswere shown through friendships. And you could see that being a friend didn't always mean you were a good one. Sometimes you said things that indicated you had a really different perspective. Sometimes you wounded each other through how you spoke, through how you cared (or didn't). And that's exactly what we find in the Book of Job. The bulk of the Book of Job actually revolves around a dialogue between friends. They go back and forth and back and forth, and it's not so much about getting somewhere; it's about how they speak about life from their perspectives and how they teach one another about what it means to live through the mess. Now, Job's friends here are dressed very finely, and they match how Job would have looked before all the suffering and disaster came upon him and his family. So Job was a great man and a good man. Job was wealthy. Job was prosperous. Job was wise. He had very substantial holdings, with lots of flocks and herds, and a large family with lots of kids. He was well respected, and I suspect this was his crew. This is Job and the boys. (I can say that because we've got the youth in today, and Phoebe's not here, so she can't just die.) And these fellows represent the whole of the ancient Near East. They're not from Israel or Jerusalem; this is a really multicultural crew. I imagine them meeting at the Qantas Club or the RACV Club, or maybe the Melbourne Clubthese are the boys. And we've got Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar: Eliphaz a Temanite (Teman was an Edomite region known for its wisdom). When Eliphaz speaks, he is the most respected, and he comes in quite pastorally. He probably has the highest EQ (emotional intelligence) as he begins. He is kind of a mystical personhe talks about having a vision, and a spirit came past him and he learned some thingsbut he's really representing the broad wisdom tradition in the ancient Near East. Bildad a Shuhite (Shuah was a descendant of Abraham). He is the one who refers to the ancestors: "Don't you know the history of the worldview that we have?" He says no one has ever broken these traditional teachings. Think about what your ancestors taught you. As he says in Job 8, "Ask the former generation Will they not instruct you?" Zophar (we're not exactly sure where Naamah is). He is probably the most impulsive or abrasive of the friends. Everyone's got someone like that in the crew: when they're good, they're very, very good, and when they're grumpy When Zophar speaks to Job, he has the least pastoral sensitivity. He even says to Job, "I think Gods even forgotten some of your sin. I think you're getting a discount on the way you are suffering." So these men come to visit Job, and in chapter 2 we see that they bring with them a full Middle Eastern obligation to mourn with their suffering friend. They set out from their homes and come to him, and they sit in the dust with him. They weep aloud and tear their robesexpressions of shared mourning and griefand they sprinkle dust on their heads. They sit with Job on the ground for seven days and seven nights. This is exactly what you want from your friends. They had lived a life together that was wealthy, prosperous, wise, and high-powered, well respected. But now one of their number has fallenfallen he has. Job was wealthy, prosperous, wise, well respected, and now everything is gone. His children are dead. His flocks and herds have been killed. His servants have been killed. His homes have been destroyed. And now his health is also gone. When one of their friends has fallen, they come to be with him. No one said a word to him because they saw how great his suffering was. But after a week, the dialogues begin. They approach Job's suffering with a desire to fix it, and their solution comes from their worldview and their wisdom. And so they bring these "wise" words, and we see cycles where Eliphaz speaks and Job replies; Bildad speaks and Job replies; Zophar speaks and Job replies. This happens three times. Towards the end of the third cycle, there's a discourse on wisdom (it might be Job replying, or it might just be an indication that the cycle is about to change). Then there is a young fellow who's not part of the boys. His name's Elihu (or Elihu), and he also has a long block of teaching. We're not exactly sure how he fits into the

In this sermon we explore Jobs story of faith in the midst of deep pain with empathy and honesty. This message speaks to anyone who has felt their faith falter amid suffering and unanswered questions. It reminds us that even when our faith weeps, God hears our cries and never leaves our side. Listen in for comfort, hope, and the assurance that you are not alone in your suffering. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Read the transcript It's from Job chapter 3, verses 110 and 2026 (page 786 in the red pew Bibles). If you're following along, Job speaks: After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. He said, "May the day of my birth perish, and the night that said a boy is conceived. That daymay it turn to darkness; may God above not care about it; may no light shine upon it. May gloom and utter darkness claim it once more; may a cloud settle over it; may blackness overwhelm it. That nightmay thick darkness seize it; may it not be included among the days of the year, nor be entered in any of the months. May that night be barren; may no shout of joy be heard in it. May those who curse days curse that day, those who are ready to rouse Leviathan. May its morning stars become dark; may it wait for daylight in vain and not see the first rays of dawn, for it did not shut the doors of the womb on me to hide trouble from my eyes. Why is light given to those in misery, and life to the bitter of soul, to those who long for death that does not come, who search for it more than for hidden treasure, who are filled with gladness and rejoice when they reach the grave? Why is life given to a man whose way is hidden, whom God has hedged in? For sighing has become my daily food; my groans pour out like water. What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me. I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil." Good morning, my name is Leili if we haven't met before. And what a privilege it is to be together on this Pentecost day listening to God's Word. There is a side of faith we don't often talk about It's the kind that doesn't always feel strong or cheerful. It's when we still believe, but we're tired, confused, or hurting. Many of us have been in that place, and maybe some of us are there right now. In 1856, Charles Spurgeon, one of the greatest preachers in church history, collapsed into depression after a tragedy struck during one of his sermons. A prankster shouted "Fire!" in a packed venue and the resulting panic killed several people. Though he was not physically harmed, Spurgeon was never the same emotionally. Years later he wrote, "I have been brought very low. My spirits have been depressed so long that I could weep by the hour like a child." He also said, "I have learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages." That wave is grief. It is fear. It is despair. But even when faith is bruised, it can still cling. This sermon is for those of us who know what it's like to feel that wave crash over our heads and still believe. And while we weep, it's about what happens when we fall on our kneesnot in worship, but in despair. And yet God is still there. Job was blameless and upright The first two chapters of Job tell us that Job was blameless and upright. He feared God and turned away from evil. He had a large family, great wealth, and respect in the community. Then suddenly the bottom falls outone by one, his livestock are destroyed, his servants killed, and his children found dead. Then he's afflicted with painful sores from head to toe. Job ends up sitting in ashes, scraping himself with broken pottery. For seven days, he and his friends sit in silence. Then in chapter 3, Job finally speaks. What comes out is not a prayer, but a cry of anguish: "May the day of my birth perish." It's important to understand that Job doesnt curse God; he curses his own existence. He wishes he had never been born. Let's pause here. Job's words are dark. They are disturbing, but they are honest. And that honesty is faith. Because real faith does not always look like singing praise songs with a smile. Sometimes it sounds like groaning. It sounds like someone saying, "God, where are you?" Sometimes there is a space for anger, even when it's messy or not fully justified. Have we been there? Not doubting God's existence, but feeling lost in His silence. Job asks, "Why did I not perish at birth? Why is light given to those in misery? What I feared has come upon me." Job doesn't pretend to be strong. He doesn't clean up his grief. In our churches and even among pastors and mature Christians, there's often an expectation to stay positive, to give spiritual answers quickly, or to hide our pain. You may have heard things like, "Where is your faith? Aren't you a Christian? You shouldn't feel like this." Or, "As a pastor, aren't you supposed to have peace?" I've heard things like that myself. People have said to me, "Why are you feeling this way? Don't you trust God more than others? You're a leaderyou help people. How can you be in this place?" Well, Job reminds us that even the faithful can feel broken. Longevity as a Christian, and even leadership, does not make us immune to pain. Sometimes it deepens it. Lament is not a lack of faith Job reminds us that lament is not a lack of faith. It is true faithdeep, honest faith experiencing itself in the midst of pain. It's the kind of faith that stays near enough to God to cry out in confusion. Biblical lament is not complaining without direction; it is pain expressed in the presence of God. Over a third of the Psalms are laments. Lament says, "God, I still believe You're there, so I'm bringing You my sorrow." The question "why" is deeply human. Sometimes it comes from curiosity, like when a child wants to understand the world. Other times it grows out of doubt or protest. In Job's case, it arises from the pain of a world that no longer makes sensewhere suffering doesn't match what we thought we knew of God. And sometimes those "why" questions go unanswered. Not every question gets a resolution. Faith doesn't always mean certainty. It often means learning to live with mystery, trusting God in the silence between questions and answers. I remember a few years ago I was in a season of deep uncertainty. In 2016, while we were in Turkey waiting to be sent to another country, Pedram and I were finally supposed to go to the United States after three long years. But just after receiving the good news and waiting for the next step, the door to the US was suddenly shut to Iranians. Once again, I found myself stuck in a place of waiting and uncertainty. I didn't know what the future held and felt unsettled and exposed at different moments. I found myself asking God why. Why am I in this situation? Why did You allow this? Why don't I feel safe? Why am I not where I thought I would be? These weren't questions born out of unbelief. They came from a place of wrestling and pain. Like Job, I wasn't trying to rebel against God; I was trying to find Him in the midst of confusion. I was searching for understanding in a season that felt completely out of control. But something sacred happened through those questions. The Spirit did not immediately answer them, but He led me to pause, to be still, to sit in silence. And then He gently led me into prayer, not always with words, but with a quiet trust forming deep inside me. It was in that silence that I began to sense God's nearnessnot in explanations, but in presence. The Spirit met me in the questions and gave me the courage to stay close to God, even without answers. Job didn't run from God. He stayed near enough to cry out. His questions didn't disqualify his faith; they were his faith. And like Job, I'm learning that the Spirit often leads us through the questions, not around them. We are not alone in our weakness and our confusion. The Spirit meets us there not with quick fixes but with communionsitting in the dust with us and turning our pain into prayer. Throughout Scripture, we see faithful people who wrestled with despair: Jeremiah cursed the day of his birth. Elijah, exhausted and afraid, cried out, "I've had enough. Lord, take my life." Even Moses and Jonah asked God to let them die. These weren't moments of rebellion; they were moments of deep honesty in the presence of God. And just like with Job, God didn't reject them. He met them in their pain. It's worth noting that Job's theology here is not perfect. He sees death as a relief and escape. But this is not the complete truth we now know through Christ. Death is not rest for all; it is a doorway to either eternal life or judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Still, God does not rebuke Job here. Why? Because Job isn't writing a theological essay. He's breaking under the weight of grief, and God receives that grief. Martin Luther once wrote during a time of intense spiritual darkness, "I spent more than a week in death and hell. I was utterly abandoned by Christ." Even spiritual giants have walked through the valley of shadows. And as Paul says in 2 Corinthians, "When I am weak, then I am strong." True faith wrestles; it doesn't walk away Job loses his wealth, his children, his health, his wife's support, his friends' compassion. He is emotionally, physically, relationally, and spiritually crushed. Job stands in every sense naked before God, and still he does not curse God. This is vital. His words are raw; his grief is real. But he speaks it out not in rebellion, but in relationship. He hasn't walked away from God; he just doesn't understand Him. That's a key difference.

What happens when the "great Australian dream" turns into a nightmare? This sermon tackles the age-old question of suffering, not from a philosophical standpoint, but through the raw and practical lens of the Book of Job. Join us as speaker Andy Prideaux unpacks the opening chapters of Job, exploring how a man who was "blameless and upright" faced unimaginable loss. Discover the heavenly drama behind Job's trials and Satan's cynical challenge: "Does Job fear God for nothing?". Learn from Job's profound initial responses of worship amidst devastation and his unwavering integrity even when urged to "curse God and die". This message encourages us to consider how we respond to suffering and reminds us that even in our darkest moments, we can move towards God, who is in control and working for our ultimate good. To catch up on the latest sermons from Deep Creek, go to iTunes, Spotify ordeepcreekanglican.comand check out the website for more info about whats happening. We are a welcoming and growing multigenerational church in Doncaster East in Melbourne with refreshing faith in Jesus Christ. We think that looks like being life-giving to the believer, surprising to the world, and strengthening to the weary and doubting. Transcription Bible Reading: Job 1:1 - 2:10 Bible reading today comes from Job chapter one, verse one through to chapter two, verse ten. In the land of us there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright. He feared God and shunned evil. He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned 7000 sheep, 3000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East. His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. When a period of fasting or feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified. Early in the morning, he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them. Thinking perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts. This was Job's regular custom. One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, where have you come from? Satan answered. Satan answered the Lord from roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it. Then the Lord said to Satan, have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him. He is blameless and upright. A man who fears God and shuns evil. Does Job fear God for nothing? Satan replied, have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face. The Lord said to Satan, very well then, everything he has is in your power. But on the man himself do not lay a finger. Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord. One day, when Job's sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, a messenger came to Job and said the oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabines attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, the fire of God fell from heaven, and burnt up the sheep and the servants. And I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said that the Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels, and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them, and they are dead. And I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. At this Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said, naked, I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. May the name of the Lord be praised. In all this Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. On another day, the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him. And the Lord said to Satan, where have you come from? Satan answered the Lord from roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it. Then the Lord said to Satan, have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him. He is blameless and upright. A man who fears God and shuns evil, and he still maintains his integrity. Though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason. Skin for skin. Satan replied, A man will give all he has for his own life. But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face. The Lord said to Satan, very well, then, he is in your hands, but you must spare his life. So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die. He replied, you're talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God and not trouble? In all this Job did not sin in what he said. This is the word of the Lord. Introduction to the Sermon and the Book of Job If someone else is going to do the clicking. If I did it, we'd end up. I'd be putting the news on or something. It'd be. It'd be very awkward. my name is Andy Prideaux. And thank you for your invitation. Or at least for Megan's invitation to come and begin the series that you're going to be doing on the Book of Job. This really challenging, confronting, but I think ultimately encouraging and helpful book in the Old Testament. it's so wonderful to be able to share with you today. I'm really encouraged seeing the reading up in three different languages. I work with international students at Melbourne Uni, with the Christian Union, and, I they would be if they were here now, they'd be very excited to see their language, up on the screen as, as the scriptures are read. I went to a wedding recently. One of the women in our team, a Chinese woman, I said, oh, will there be any translation in the service? And she said, yes, it will be translated from Mandarin into Cantonese, which neither of which helped me. But the English was up on the screen. But it was a good reminder that that's what it feels like for a lot of the students coming along. You know, I got to feel what it's like for my language not to be the main one. I think that was a really good thing. but I'm always encouraged because God is bringing people from every tribe, language and nation into his family. And, just it's like a small reminder of that, I think, which is great. one of the reasons, or maybe the reason that Megan invited me to come and speak is because I recently had a commentary published on The Book of Job. It's my latest book. It's my only book, actually. and I'll be coming back at the end of the series to do a QA on Job after you've heard Megan and other people teaching. and I'll bring some books there to sell. So hopefully you'll have so many questions. You want to buy a copy? If on the off chance you have to be a salesman, if on the off chance you want to buy one today, I can give you one for the special discounted price of $25. They're usually $30. So yeah, what can you do? anyway, I won't be offended if you don't buy today because it's early days. But just put a little planting the seed, planting the seed. but more importantly, let's actually come to God's word, to Job and the opening section of this book. I'll pray as we do that. Father God, we thank you for your amazing love for us in Jesus that we've already been reminded of today, in our prayers and in the reading and in the songs, in everything that's happened. I thank you, Lord God, that the Lord Jesus has been glorified, that he has been lifted up. Father, as we grapple with your Word today in a very challenging part of your word, help us to learn more of your all sufficient love for us so that when we struggle and when people around us struggle, we keep going. We keep looking to to you, holding on to you, knowing that you are the one who holds on to us. And we ask it in Jesus name. Amen. The Great Australian Dream vs. Life's Realities Well in the not so recent federal elections, not the other election. the made both of the major parties promised to deliver us from our worst nightmares, didn't they? And deliver the great Australian dream. What is what is at the heart of the great Australian dream? Home ownership. But I wonder what is. What is living the dream look like in our lucky country? Maybe we could take a, like a progressive sort of look at that. Maybe it starts with the right birth plan, then the right preschool or kinder, then the the right school, then the right course after school, then the right job, then you find the right spouse, and then you get the right car and you get the home, and then you get the better car, that new car smell. Maybe you even get to enjoy that. You experience overseas travel. You improve your health. Like me. You get to middle age. You realize you haven't done any exercise in the last 20 years. Maybe I should have a look at that. Then you get the better car, then you get the super. Then you got to improve the health again. Then you get the final car. Maybe then you get the retirement, then maybe some more travel, then protect the health. Then you get the