Posts by John Stasse (Page 2)

Dear Congregation,  In coming into the church building we should be conscious that we are coming into a place of prayer – as God in Isa 56:7a assures those whom He saves, and which Jesus takes up in Matt 21:13 “Even them I will bring to My holy mountain,And make them joyful in My house of prayer.”  We do not come into church as an audience gathering for an event as…

Dear Congregation, As we enter the church, we come with anticipation that is marked by joy but also by the seriousness of the occasion. We quietly greet one another, thankful for the encouragement of seeing other believers and the renewal of fellowship experiences that the public gathering of God’s people on the Lord’s day brings. But then we settle in to further prepare…

Dear Congregation, Once again we find ourselves travelling along the road to public gathering for worship as the people of God, with up to 16 people able to join those who have been managing the livestream broadcast services. The DHHS has set in place procedures that must be followed in terms of social distancing, wearing of masks, and registration as per the PCV approved…

Dear Congregation, Much of what the Reformation was about, and which distinguish historic Protestantism from other expressions of the Christian faith is defined in five short statements which we have been considering: sola scriptura, sola fide, solus Christus, sola gratia, and now fifthly, soli Deo gloria –  ‘the glory of God alone.’  This one sums up the point…

Dear Congregation, Today is Reformation Day – the 31st October or ‘All Saints Eve’ as it was known, the day that Martin Luther woke the world from its darkness by holding up the light of Christ in the Gospel – in which he was joined by many others rejoicing in and making known the wonders of God’s grace in Jesus Christ which had all but been lost and…

Dear Congregation, We have seen that the heart of the Reformation can be captured in the watchword phrases – Sola Scripture – Sola Fide which means according to Scripture alone, by Faith alone. But to say that requires us to say more. The Scriptures reveal that we are sinners under condemnation through the original sin of Adam in which we share by…

Dear Congregation, The pivotal truth at the heart of the Reformation was the truth of justification. It hinged on the question of how can one be just in the sight of a holy God. It is still a vital question for people to wrestle with today. The Medieval Church taught that justification is an ongoing internal transformation by which a person is becoming more and more…

Dear Congregation, October is Reformation month, in which Luther’s action of nailing 95 points for discussion on the The pivotal action of course was much earlier when in the midst of his own personal struggle with God and seeking peace with God from a troubled and troubling conscience he found that the church could not help. However, he did find help where the church…

‘How’s your appetite?’ A question that a doctor might ask you. But it is also a question a Pastor should ask from time to time. Now appetite is an interesting word – well when it is satisfied or anticipating so, but not so much when it is not. I’m talking about the word ‘appetite’ which has come into our language through old French from ancient Latin appetitus, literally…

Will it be ‘single-figure-Sunday’? It was not so Friday or Saturday… despite hopes. Is this the new ‘game’ to sweep over Melbourne, a game borne of increasing optimism albeit subdued? If not Sunday will it be ‘mono-figure-Monday’? Yet we dare not expect too much as here in Melbourne we wait with some anticipation for the Government’s response tomorrow as it adjusts the…