NewSong Community Church Mediahttp://www.newsong.co.ukInsight by Endisnom_46964Sun, 04 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=46964&fullpage=TrueJohn Notmanm_46439Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=46439&fullpage=TrueJohn Notman01:00:00Friendship with the world means enmity or hostility with God. Is it possible for a believer to become an enemy of God? James say it is, and it’s all tied up with the warning he gives here against committing adultery . . . not sexual adultery but spiritual adultery. m_41657Sun, 14 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=41657&fullpage=TrueFriendship with the world means enmity or hostility with God. Is it possible for a believer to become an enemy of God? James say it is, and it’s all tied up with the warning he gives here against committing adultery . . . not sexual adultery but spiritual adultery. John Notman00:26:00The power of speech is one of the greatest powers that God has given us. With our tongues we can praise God and we can praise one another; but we can also quickly change and use the same tongue, to curse, to slander, to nag, to undermine, to ridicule, to gossip, to hurt, to bully, and so on. James gives us some graphic pictures that illustrate what our tongues can do. These pictures are not just to amuse us, but to remind us, and hopefully to help us, to do something about the ways we use our tongues. m_41355Sun, 07 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=41355&fullpage=TrueThe power of speech is one of the greatest powers that God has given us. With our tongues we can praise God and we can praise one another; but we can also quickly change and use the same tongue, to curse, to slander, to nag, to undermine, to ridicule, to gossip, to hurt, to bully, and so on. James gives us some graphic pictures that illustrate what our tongues can do. These pictures are not just to amuse us, but to remind us, and hopefully to help us, to do something about the ways we use our tongues. John Notman00:34:00This passage from James has caused much controversy in the church. At the time of the reformation Martin Luther, the great reformer, held the view that James should not be included in the Bible at all. He called it an epistle ‘full of straw’ and his misgivings about James focussed on the whole debate concerning faith. They centred on the question ‘How is a person saved, or put right with God?’ m_41083Sun, 28 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=41083&fullpage=TrueThis passage from James has caused much controversy in the church. At the time of the reformation Martin Luther, the great reformer, held the view that James should not be included in the Bible at all. He called it an epistle ‘full of straw’ and his misgivings about James focussed on the whole debate concerning faith. They centred on the question ‘How is a person saved, or put right with God?’ John Notman00:33:00Do you show favouritism? If we’re honest, most of us do. It’s something that’s so much part of our culture today. We want to be accepted; we want to fit in. We want to be respected; we want people to like us. But for this to happen, it may mean fitting into a group that by its very nature excludes others. And often, even in churches, the ways of the world dominate in the area of discrimination. And it’s so interesting to see which areas James highlights as areas of discrimination in his time because it lom_40395Sun, 14 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=40395&fullpage=TrueDo you show favouritism? If we’re honest, most of us do. It’s something that’s so much part of our culture today. We want to be accepted; we want to fit in. We want to be respected; we want people to like us. But for this to happen, it may mean fitting into a group that by its very nature excludes others. And often, even in churches, the ways of the world dominate in the area of discrimination. And it’s so interesting to see which areas James highlights as areas of discrimination in his time because it loJohn Notman00:35:00Is God working in our time? If so, is He working in our country? In our town? Or down our street? Guest speaker Martin Goldsmith examines part of the prophesy of Habakkuk, revealing that God is indeed working, more powerfully than we may ever realise.m_40087Sun, 07 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=40087&fullpage=TrueIs God working in our time? If so, is He working in our country? In our town? Or down our street? Guest speaker Martin Goldsmith examines part of the prophesy of Habakkuk, revealing that God is indeed working, more powerfully than we may ever realise.Martin Goldsmith00:51:00How’s your prayer life? Few of us, if we were honest, would describe our prayer lives as dynamic; but prayer is vital in the life of our church and in our individual lives as Christians. If you have a way of praying and it’s working for you, then continue with it. But if not, the model I want to suggest you try is the model suggested by Jesus, in the Lord’s Prayer. m_39764Sun, 31 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=39764&fullpage=TrueHow’s your prayer life? Few of us, if we were honest, would describe our prayer lives as dynamic; but prayer is vital in the life of our church and in our individual lives as Christians. If you have a way of praying and it’s working for you, then continue with it. But if not, the model I want to suggest you try is the model suggested by Jesus, in the Lord’s Prayer. John Notman00:53:00The Bible talks about two different kinds of testing. One is called trials. The other is called temptation. Both of them use the same word in Greek -- "peirasmos". Sometimes it's translated "trials", sometimes "temptations". It doesn't matter because sometimes a situation can be both a trial and a temptation. But to distinguish them -- trials are situations designed by God in order to help us grow. Temptations are designed by the devil in order to cause us to sin. Are you tempted?m_39377Sun, 24 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=39377&fullpage=TrueThe Bible talks about two different kinds of testing. One is called trials. The other is called temptation. Both of them use the same word in Greek -- "peirasmos". Sometimes it's translated "trials", sometimes "temptations". It doesn't matter because sometimes a situation can be both a trial and a temptation. But to distinguish them -- trials are situations designed by God in order to help us grow. Temptations are designed by the devil in order to cause us to sin. Are you tempted?John Notman00:36:00The letter of James is one of the most practical Books in the whole Bible. The underlining premise for the whole letter is: “God is more concerned about our character than our comfort.” And unless we get to grips with this we’ll never understand James. When the Holy Spirit takes up residence in our lives his agenda is the same as God the Father’s. He wants you and me to become remarkable people. He wants us to be like Jesus. So James starts by talking about how we can profit from our problems. m_38746Sun, 10 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=38746&fullpage=TrueThe letter of James is one of the most practical Books in the whole Bible. The underlining premise for the whole letter is: “God is more concerned about our character than our comfort.” And unless we get to grips with this we’ll never understand James. When the Holy Spirit takes up residence in our lives his agenda is the same as God the Father’s. He wants you and me to become remarkable people. He wants us to be like Jesus. So James starts by talking about how we can profit from our problems. John Notman00:41:00One of the purposes of our church here at NewSong is to help everyone grow spiritually; to grow into mature Christians. But what is maturity? How do we know if we are mature? Maturity has nothing to do with what age you are. Maturity doesn’t automatically come with age, and neither is it dependent on how long you’ve been a Christian. Do you not think that some people just look mature? They have a mature demeanor. You can look spiritually mature and still be immature. Maturity isn’t appearance. So what is itm_38744Sun, 03 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=38744&fullpage=TrueOne of the purposes of our church here at NewSong is to help everyone grow spiritually; to grow into mature Christians. But what is maturity? How do we know if we are mature? Maturity has nothing to do with what age you are. Maturity doesn’t automatically come with age, and neither is it dependent on how long you’ve been a Christian. Do you not think that some people just look mature? They have a mature demeanor. You can look spiritually mature and still be immature. Maturity isn’t appearance. So what is itJohn Notman00:20:00Hope is part of our makeup, so it’s not surprising that God wants to speak to us concerning hope. What is hope? Where does hope come from? Can we buy it? Manufacture it? Pretend we have it? How do we get hope? Hope is a gift of God. We’ve seen over the last couple of weeks that God wants to give the gift of power at Christmas. He wants to give us the gift of joy at Christmas. And God also wants to give us the gift of hope. In fact the Bible actually describes God as the God of hope.m_38510Sun, 27 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=38510&fullpage=TrueHope is part of our makeup, so it’s not surprising that God wants to speak to us concerning hope. What is hope? Where does hope come from? Can we buy it? Manufacture it? Pretend we have it? How do we get hope? Hope is a gift of God. We’ve seen over the last couple of weeks that God wants to give the gift of power at Christmas. He wants to give us the gift of joy at Christmas. And God also wants to give us the gift of hope. In fact the Bible actually describes God as the God of hope.John Notman00:29:00We finally found a way of getting John to speak for just 5 minutes! We introduced a 'Countdown' to create a "Finish Speaking Now" point! The message of why Jesus came to earth is simply made, but in just 5 minutes! See what you think . . .m_38369Sun, 20 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=38369&fullpage=TrueWe finally found a way of getting John to speak for just 5 minutes! We introduced a 'Countdown' to create a "Finish Speaking Now" point! The message of why Jesus came to earth is simply made, but in just 5 minutes! See what you think . . .John Notman00:05:00Joy is often spoken of in the same breath as Christmas. But we need to think carefully about exactly what we mean by joy, and where it fits in with Christmas.m_38324Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=38324&fullpage=TrueJoy is often spoken of in the same breath as Christmas. But we need to think carefully about exactly what we mean by joy, and where it fits in with Christmas.John Notman00:21:00God says “I want to share my power with you . . . I want to give you some of my resources to help you live your life”. If you can grasp this you’ll begin to see how God being powerful can have something to do with me, and with you.m_37763Sun, 06 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=37763&fullpage=TrueGod says “I want to share my power with you . . . I want to give you some of my resources to help you live your life”. If you can grasp this you’ll begin to see how God being powerful can have something to do with me, and with you.John Notman00:41:00The bad news is that, statistically, second marriages last less than first marriages. Third marriages last less than second, and there's no data for fourth marriages. But, when looking at re-marriage, we need to look at the Biblical model for marriage which, with one or two added dangers, is the same for re-marriage, and re-re marriage. m_37244Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=37244&fullpage=TrueThe bad news is that, statistically, second marriages last less than first marriages. Third marriages last less than second, and there's no data for fourth marriages. But, when looking at re-marriage, we need to look at the Biblical model for marriage which, with one or two added dangers, is the same for re-marriage, and re-re marriage. John Notman00:32:00Divorce is a hard subject, a controversial subject, a subject where even the church at large doesn’t have agreement. It’s also a subject which isn’t as clear cut as some Christians make out; so bear with me this morning as we try to see what God says, and what he doesn’t say, concerning divorce.m_36787Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=36787&fullpage=TrueDivorce is a hard subject, a controversial subject, a subject where even the church at large doesn’t have agreement. It’s also a subject which isn’t as clear cut as some Christians make out; so bear with me this morning as we try to see what God says, and what he doesn’t say, concerning divorce.John Notman00:29:00There will come a day when God will deliberately allow death to have its way in our life, or in the life of someone we love. And we will grieve. And we will feel pain. And we might even blame God, or try to run far from Him. But is death final? m_36094Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=36094&fullpage=TrueThere will come a day when God will deliberately allow death to have its way in our life, or in the life of someone we love. And we will grieve. And we will feel pain. And we might even blame God, or try to run far from Him. But is death final? John Notman00:28:00Shame is the voice that is always there condemning you. We can feel ashamed for the choices we’ve made, the things we regret, the behaviour we’ve adopted. Shame can go way back, sometimes to our childhood. Shame can result from something that someone has done to us, some kind of abuse. But whatever the reason for our shame the Bible tells us that this is not the way we should be, and this is not the way we should be feeling.m_35530Sun, 18 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=35530&fullpage=TrueShame is the voice that is always there condemning you. We can feel ashamed for the choices we’ve made, the things we regret, the behaviour we’ve adopted. Shame can go way back, sometimes to our childhood. Shame can result from something that someone has done to us, some kind of abuse. But whatever the reason for our shame the Bible tells us that this is not the way we should be, and this is not the way we should be feeling.John Notman00:30:00Not every church member is an ordained minister of word and sacrament, but the Bible says that every member is a minister, and every member should be involved in some ministry for Jesus. m_34912Sun, 27 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.newsong.co.uk/Media/Player.aspx?media_id=34912&fullpage=TrueNot every church member is an ordained minister of word and sacrament, but the Bible says that every member is a minister, and every member should be involved in some ministry for Jesus. John Notman00:31:00