St. Luke's, Ramsgate

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come." (Matthew 24:42)Do we see Jesus when we see someone in need? If we say we are a Christian now, if we believe that Jesus gave his life, so that we can have the hope of eternal life, then how would we not help Jesus in need? Jesus says the way we need to do that is to help those we come across who find themselves in need.

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come." (Matthew 24:42)Last week we saw that Advent is a season for making sure we are ready. Not just to celebrate Jesus’ first coming at Christmas, but more importantly to be ready for when he returns again to bring both judgement and a new heaven and new earth. During this time we are encouraged to think about whether we are living lives that will please Jesus he returns. One of the questions I said we need to consider is: “Am I using the gifts and talents God gave me as I should?”

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come." (Matthew 24:42)Why not take time this Advent to prayerfully consider whether you are ready for Jesus’ return? The sermons will help. Over the next few weeks, we will be looking at three of the stories Jesus tells to help us in our Advent reflection. They pose the following questions for us to consider: Am I prepared to follow Jesus for the whole of life or is it just a fad? Am I using the gifts and talents God gave me as I should? Do I treat other people, as though they are Jesus?

"For the Lamb at the centre of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." (Revelation 7:17)He is also our shepherd. ‘Shepherd’ was a common image in the ancient world for kings. They led the people as a shepherd leads his flocks. In this verse, however, in imagery echoing Psalm 23, we are told that Jesus as our shepherd king will lead us to springs of living water. His rule brings us life, a life where God will wipe every tear from our eyes.  Why not recommit to making Jesus the king of your life, accepting his sacrifice for your sins and allowing him to lead you to eternal life?

"And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good." 2 Thessalonians 3:13Are you tired of doing good? There are all kinds of reasons why people might answer, ‘Yes’ to that question. Continuing our short series of talks on 2 Thessalonians

Job 19:25: " I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth."This Sunday is Remembrance Sunday, when we celebrate the courage and bravery of those who risked and gave their lives protecting our country and freedom. It is also a time to remember the horrors of war, which helps to encourage us to do all we can to avoid war breaking out in the future.

"We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thes. 1:12)This week we begin a mini-series on the short letter of 2 Thessalonians.

Psalm 51:1: "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions."This week is the last in our series on ‘Stories Jesus told’. This week we look at the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18: "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."This Sunday we will be looking at the parable of the Persistent Widow.

Luke 15:32: "But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found."This week we continue our series on the stories Jesus told, with a look at one of the most famous parables of all, the Parable of the Prodigal Son.

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich." (2 Corinthians 8:9)Jesus tells a parable to challenge the Pharisees of his day, who were themselves lovers of money. In the story, there are two characters, a rich man and a homeless man who sleeps at this gate, called, Lazarus. The rich man has clearly lived a life that is all about gaining all you can and spending all you can. He did nothing to help Lazarus, he did not take seriously the teaching of the Bible to be generous, he was nothing like Christ. Jesus is blunt. The rich man ends up in hell. Let’s not make the same mistake. Rather than, ‘Gain all you can to spend all you can,’ let’s be those who, ‘Gain all we can, to give all we can.’

"The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it;" - Psalm 24:1Let us remember the ultimate source of our food. The verse above reminds us that everything in the earth belongs to God, he is the creator and source of all things. Ultimately, he is the one who provides the food we enjoy, so it is only right that we stop to thank him!

"No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." Luke 16:13Money is a part of life, but it does not need to be master of our life. Christians, of course, want to serve God. We are called to follow his good commandments. But do we allow Money to be another master in our life? Ultimately, we need to choose who we serve. Will we serve the hard taskmaster of Money, or the loving and gracious God, who made us and gives to us freely? The choice is yours.

"I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." (Luke 15:7)This week we continue our series on the stories Jesus told, we will be looking at the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin.

When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God." (Luke 14:15)This week we begin a series looking at the stories Jesus told. This week’s story is about invitations and excuses.

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)Today is the last in our series of talks on 1 Thessalonians.

“He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.” (1 Thessalonians 5:10)

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 "Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words."

“Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.” (1 Thessalonians 4:1)

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)