Vision Church Podcast | Christian Church in Canberra

Adam Ritchard | Matthew 5:1-9; Romans 12:18, 15:13; Philippians 4:6-7; Hebrews 13:20; Colossians 1:20; Ephesians 2:13-14; 2 Corinthians 5:18; John 14:27; Isaiah 53:5 — Biblical peace is not simply the absence of conflict. Rather, it is the God-given wholeness that we as His children may know in every circumstance of life, and actively pursue in every situation. As we sow and carry this kind of peace, may those around us see the God of all peace reflected in us.

Kathryn Hartley | Matthew 5:1-12; Ephesians 2:4-9 — The mercy that typified Jesus’ ministry was more than a charitable act or a withheld punishment. In countless encounters (not least the Crucifixion), Jesus delighted to move towards the helpless, suffering, and sinful - you and me - in unrestrained kindness. As we seek to live ‘the Jesus way’, may the reality of our continual need for His mercy propel us towards our fellow sinners in love and compassion.

Andrew Baker | Matthew 5:1-8,48, 15:10-20, 23:27-28; Proverbs 4:23, 20:9; Psalm 51:10; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 12:15 — Jesus’ mission wasn’t concerned with external appearances. Rather, He came to do what we could never earn or achieve for ourselves; to create in us a pure heart, that we might see Him for all that He is and overflow with passion for Him.

Andrew Baker | Matthew 5:1-6 — Beneath all the brokenness, rebellion, and sin in the world, the deepest need within every human heart is to be made righteous; to be welcomed as sons and daughters into the arms of our heavenly Father. Will we follow Jesus’ instruction to hunger and thirst after this our true and greatest need, or will we instead seek after what will never satisfy?

Adam Ritchard | Matthew 5:1-5, 11:28-30, 26:50-54; John 2:13-17; 2 Timothy 3:1-4; Mark 10:35-45; Philippians 2:5-8; Galatians 5:22-23; 1 Peter 1:3 — In a cultural context that celebrated power, Jesus’ description of the ‘meek’ being blessed would’ve sounded just as strange to His original listeners as it does today. But true Biblical meekness is not weakness, and we are not to be spineless pushovers. Rather we are called to live as Jesus did: God-yielded strength manifested in humility and gentleness.

Dave Pellowe | Luke 4:16-19; Matthew 6:9-10; Ephesians 6:4; Proverbs 24:3-4; Exodus 12:3; 1 Timothy 5:8; Deuteronomy 11:18-21, 4:7-10 — Families are the fundamental unit of our society and of God’s good created order, and the role of God-honouring fathers to this design is indispensable.

Hear from Dave Pellowe, Director of Church and State, a ministry founded to educate Christians about the Scriptural and historical basis for Christian influence in society & politics.

Andrew Baker | Matthew 5:1-4; Luke 15:7 — In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus describes that those who mourn are blessed. While we’d all prefer a life with only beauty and joy, mourning is central to the Christian life. As we mourn the reality of brokenness in the world around us and deep inside every human heart, we see our great need for a saviour like Jesus: the One whose mission and delight is to reach down to comfort and redeem those in the dust.

Andrew Baker | Matthew 5:1-3; 4:17, 23; 11:2-5; 12:22-25; Mark 1:14; Genesis 1; Leviticus 8; Exodus 25:8; John 1:14; 2:13-22; 14:23; Colossians 2:13-15; Psalm 2:1-4; 24 — Jesus’ first beatitude describes that it is the poor in spirit who are blessed to receive the kingdom of heaven. But what exactly does Jesus mean when he refers to this kingdom? And how are we to respond that we might be blessed to receive it?

Andrew Baker | Matthew 5:1-16; John 3:17 — As we seek to live the ‘Jesus Way’, what does it look like to engage with the cultural influences that surround us? In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus instructs us to be ‘salt and light’; a preserving and illuminating influence present in the very midst of the world, for its benefit and flourishing. For God did not come to condemn the world, but rather do His greatest work in the very midst of the world’s greatest need.

Adam Ritchard | John 17:13-19; Romans 12:2; Matthew 5:13-16 — Living this earthly life can be painful and disheartening; something that we Christians just ‘grit our teeth’ through while waiting for Heaven. But, Jesus specifically prayed that we would not be taken out of the world. Instead, we are to live remembering who we are and whose we are; set apart and sent on mission into the world. We are to live the Jesus Way.