In this powerful Second Sunday of Advent reflection, Fr Sam asks a deeply searching question: Why does the Church exist? As St John the Baptist Church prepares to welcome hundreds of people through its doors for the Barnet Christmas Fair, this sermon reframes community activity not as tradition or visibility but as mission.

Drawing on the fierce preaching of John the Baptist and the theology of St Paul in Romans, Sam challenges the danger of religious complacency. Just as the crowds at the Jordan assumed their birthright as children of Abraham made them secure, we too can fall into the trap of believing that history, culture, or status make us the Church. But John’s warning is clear: belonging to God is not about heritage it is about faith and relationship.

Through the story of Abraham, Sam traces the widening circle of God’s covenant: from one man, to a family, to a nation, and ultimately to the whole world. Faith, not background, is the true foundation of righteousness. This means that anyone with even the smallest spark of belief belongs and the Church exists for precisely those people who think they might be on the outside.

The Barnet Christmas Fair becomes a living parable of this truth: the Church does not exist for itself, its building, its history, or even its traditions it exists to make Christ known, to make people feel they belong, and to make strangers feel like family.

This episode is a stirring reminder that Advent is not only about preparation for Christmas, it is about recommitting to the mission of welcome, grace, and outward-looking love.

In this Advent Sunday episode, Fr Sam invites us to rediscover the season not as a gentle lead-up to Christmas, but as a wake-up call. While we may picture the nativity as a comforting scene with children’s costumes and soft candlelight, Sam reminds us that the real story was anything but safe or sentimental. God entered the world through poverty, scandal, political oppression, and refugee displacement — and this shocking reality shapes what Advent truly means.

Drawing on Matthew 24, Isaiah’s prophecy, and Paul’s exhortation in Romans, Sam explains that Advent begins not in the manger but with urgency: “Be ready.” Jesus’ title “Son of Man” ties His birth to ancient prophecy, reminding us that God’s work in the world is always bigger, more surprising, and more disruptive than our expectations.

Through this sermon, we’re confronted with a three-fold Advent calling:

1. Be ready for God’s new, unexpected work — in refugees, the poor, the overlooked, and the places we least expect to find Him.
2. Live differently because Christ entered our world — letting the nativity reshape our actions, words, priorities, and compassion.
3. Rely on grace, not self-reliance — trusting God to clothe us with righteousness rather than trying to earn it.

Advent becomes a season of awakening — a summons to look for God among the vulnerable in our own community, to embody hope for the hurting, and to join the Holy Spirit’s work of drawing all people into God’s peace.

In this deeply honest and pastoral reflection, Fr Sam unpacks one of Jesus’ most challenging teachings, forgiveness without limit. Drawing from Matthew 18, where Peter asks how many times he must forgive, Fr Sam explores what it really means to live out forgiveness “seventy times seven.”

Through a powerful personal story of betrayal and hurt from his time as a pastoral assistant, Fr Sam illustrates how forgiveness is not about ignoring pain or pretending everything is fine. Instead, it begins at the altar,“Drown them in the chalice,” his priest once told him, meaning that true forgiveness starts in the presence and grace of Jesus.

Fr Sam reminds us that forgiveness is not weakness, denial, or instant healing. It’s a journey of grace, often slow and painful, where we bring our hurt to God again and again until mercy begins to reshape us. Forgiveness, he says, is not something we manufacture; it is something God does within us.

In a world where many wounds run deep, in relationships, communities, and faith, this episode invites us to rediscover forgiveness not as obligation, but as the path to freedom and peace.

In this moving Remembrance Sunday reflection, Fr Sam challenges how we imagine heaven and the life to come. Too often, he observes, we picture heaven as “earth but a bit better”. A continuation of our current joys without the pain. But, as Fr Sam powerfully reminds us, that vision cannot hold for those who have seen or suffered the worst that humanity can do. For them, heaven must be something entirely new and not an extension of this world, but its transformation.

Drawing from Jesus’ exchange with the Sadducees about marriage and resurrection, Fr Sam shows how Christ reveals heaven not as a continuation of earthly relationships, but as a perfected network of love, where all are united in and through the Holy Trinity. Using vivid imagery and honest theological reflection, he weaves together the themes of war, suffering, love, and divine relationship, reminding us that we were created for connection with God, with each other, and with creation itself.

Remembrance Sunday, then, becomes more than a moment to mourn the fallen. It becomes a symbol in need of fulfilment: a call to live differently now, to build peace, and to embody the divine love that heaven promises.

In this reflective episode, Fr Sam explores one of the most profound dimensions of faith — the kind of faith that we can hold for others. Drawing from the Gospel story of friends bringing a paralysed man to Jesus, Fr Sam challenges listeners to see evangelism not as a performance or a pressure, but as an act of love, hope, and quiet courage.

He begins with a candid question: “Is there any point in telling people about Jesus?” In a world that’s indifferent or even apathetic toward faith, sharing what we believe can feel daunting. Yet, as Fr Sam reminds us, faith is not about results — it’s about bringing people to Jesus and trusting Him to do the rest.

Through this sermon, Sam paints a vivid picture of what it means to be a “city on a hill” and “a light in the darkness.” Like the friends who carried their companion through a crowded house just for the chance that Jesus might heal him, we too are called to carry others to Christ through our prayers, presence, and love — even when we don’t know how He’ll respond.

The message is both liberating and empowering: our role isn’t to convert, convince, or control outcomes. It’s simply to make the introduction — to believe that the meeting itself can change everything.

In this sermon for the 18th Sunday after Trinity, Fr. Sam Rossiter-Peters invites us to a deeper, more courageous engagement with Scripture. Rather than reading the Bible in black and white, we are called to wrestle with it — to question, to study, and to seek God’s living truth within its complexities.

Drawing from passages that challenge our understanding and our times, Fr. Sam reminds us that faithful interpretation means holding Scripture, tradition, reason, and experience together — trusting the Holy Spirit to guide us into a fuller vision of God’s justice and love.

Cyril Awere shares his story as part of celebrations of Black History Month at St. John the Baptist Church, Chipping Barnet.

In this episode, we reflect on what it truly means to be satisfied — not just physically, but spiritually. Drawing from John 6:25–35 and the story of the feeding of the 5,000, Fr Sam explores how Jesus invites us to move from seeking mere provision to encountering the Provider Himself.

Using the relatable story of his young daughter learning to communicate her needs, Fr Sam illustrates how, like children, we often sense our hunger or longing but misdiagnose what we truly need. The crowds following Jesus wanted more bread, but Jesus offered something far greater — Himself, the Bread of Life.

As we celebrate Harvest Thanksgiving, this message reminds us that gratitude for our “daily bread” is only the beginning. We are called to move from thanksgiving to transformation — to receive the Bread of Life in the Eucharist, and then to give back our first fruits in worship, generosity, and service.

Fr Sam invites us to see giving not as an obligation, but as an act of worship. Whether through money, time, kindness, or prayer, every offering is a response to God’s abundant grace.

Whilst Christianity is often thought of as a dualistic religion which says that the spiritual is Godly, and the world of matter evil, in fact God cares a lot about the material world. In this sermon for the 14th Sunday after Trinity, Fr. Sam Rossiter-Peters narrates how Jesus and St Paul simply advise us to orientate our concerns properly, putting God before the world.

In this sermon for the 14th Sunday after Trinity, Fr. Sam Rossiter-Peters reflects on the difference between knowledge and wisdom, drawing from the insights of philosophers like Socrates and Aristotle, and the deeper call of Christian faith. Through the story of Matthew the tax collector, we see how true wisdom begins with recognising our need for God and seeking Christ the Physician, who welcomes, heals, and transforms all who come to Him with humility.