“BOOK OF ACTS”

THE POWER OF THE CROSS

Redeemed, Reconciled, Restored

“Jesus Christ appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God” Acts 1:3

“For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him.

He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ –with all boldness and without hindrance!”   Acts 28:30

All through His teaching ministry and for 40 days after His resurrection Jesus made it very clear that the central theme and hope of the ‘Good News’ was the inbreaking of the ‘Kingdom of God.’ At the very beginning of Acts, the risen Christ specifically instructs his disciples to take this good news of the kingdom of God to the ends of the earth. In the very last verse of Acts, we hear that St Paul spent his final days in Rome fulfilling this global calling by proclaiming the Kingdom of God with all boldness and without hindrance. One of the stand-out big picture themes of the Book of Acts is the breaking down of tribal, cultural and language barriers by the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In this new sermon series we want to explore how this world-wide mission of the early Church, to proclaim the Kingdom of God, can speak into our world today. Never in the history of humanity have people lived with such means of comprehensive connectivity that we now have at our fingertips with the world-wide web. The internet is the equivalent of a planetary nervous system, that provides an opportunity to break down language and cultural barriers. In an instant we can access deep levels of expertise and knowledge, we can contact loved ones and strangers alike with a click on our devices. But with this huge potential comes the opportunity for blessing and curse. Every gift given by God carries with it the potential to be used to enhance or diminish life. To heal or to harm.

• How can God’s Church rise to these new challenges and possibilities presented to us?

• How and where is the Holy Spirit at work in these new paradigms of communication and connection and how do we negotiate the tricky terrain of both blessing and curse?

• How do we re-envision and re-imagine how we communicate the Good news of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God through the new mediums available?

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