Clothe Yourself With Compassion // Jaques van Wyk // Compelled by Compassion Part 2

You've been taught that love is earned. This week we ask what happens when it isn't. In the story of the prodigal son, two brothers get it wrong in opposite ways: one runs from the Father, the other stays and resents Him. Both miss the same thing: a Father who doesn't wait for us to get it right before He runs to meet us. Episode 1 of Compelled by Compassion.

Jesus chooses a very specific location for one of the most important conversations in the Gospels. It is not a temple. It is not a synagogue. It is Caesarea Philippi, a place filled with pagan gods, emperor worship and a cave people believed was the gateway to the underworld. And it is here that He asks the question that changes everything: but who do you say that I am? Peter's answer was not a theological exercise. It was a personal revelation. And on the basis of that revelation Jesus begins to unfold three things: who He is, who Peter is, and what Peter's purpose is. That flow is for you too.

When someone hurts you, wrongs you, attacks you online — what rises up in you first? Most of us want to retaliate. That is human. But Jesus sends his people out with a surprising strategy. He says: go like lambs among wolves. And Paul echoes it in Romans 12: do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. That is the power of the opposite spirit. That is how city changers operate. Not by fighting harder, but by living differently. This message will challenge you to see your home, your workplace and your city through a completely new lens

Most of us have a Bible. Many of us have a reading plan. Some of us know verses by heart. But here is the question that changes everything: do you know the book, or do you know the Person? Jesus confronted the Pharisees with a startling truth: you study the scriptures diligently, but you refuse to come to Me to have life. The Bible is not the final destination. It is the revelation of who Jesus is. And when Jesus is integrated into your life, He becomes three things: the lens through which you see everything, the filter that decides which voices get through, and the new standard by which everything is measured. This message will change the way you read the Bible.

As part of the Bible Society in New Zealand, Neels Janse van Rensburg shares some incredibly valuable insights on the impact that Bible Reading has on our society, and why it's important to spend time in the word.

During Bible Month in New Zealand, we are asking the question "Is the Bible still relevant in today's culture?" And why is it important to still believe in the Bible's relevance and authority?

If everything you have is a gift from God, what does it look like to take that seriously? Jesus tells a parable about a master who entrusts his servants with his possessions. When he returns, he does not ask how much did you have. He asks what did you do with what you had. That changes everything. Success is not the size of your account or your house. Success is how faithfully you manage what God has placed in your hands: your time, your talents and your treasure. And the promise is simple: be faithful in the small things and He will entrust you with more.

The Bible says generosity is the fruit of a heart that has seen the grace of God. The Macedonians in 2 Corinthians 8 were poor. Seriously poor. And yet they begged Paul to let them be part of an offering. Not because they had to. But because they had seen grace, and generosity was simply the overflow. This week we begin a two-week journey to understand why generosity is not a budgeting issue. It is a heart issue. And it touches every one of us.

You have a gift. Scripture is clear about that. 1 Corinthians 12:7 says it without hesitation: a spiritual gift is given to each of us. But here is the part we often miss: the gift is not for you. It is in you, for someone else. The Holy Spirit does not only want to live in you. He wants to work through you. And the place where it matters most is not a Sunday service. It is your home, your workplace, your neighbourhood.