G’day and welcome to Partakers Christian Podcasts! Join us for uplifting Bible teaching, inspiring readings, heartfelt worship, powerful prayers, and fascinating church history. Whether you’re new to faith or growing deeper in your journey, we’re here to encourage and equip you. 🎧 Tune in, interact, and be inspired—wherever you are in the world.
Episodes
Monday Oct 13, 2025
Monday Oct 13, 2025
Church History Part 3
Church Begins!
Today in Part 3, we look briefly at the beginnings of Jesus’ church and its rapid spread across the Roman empire and beyond. History is the story of the human family. From the Christian perspective all of history is encompassed in 2 statements “In the beginning…” and “I will come again…” Christianity is a historical religion, which stands or falls on the basis of historical fact that God entered into history in the person Jesus Christ. His life, death and resurrection are open to investigation. Disprove and of those facets and Christianity falls. The history of the Church is one of both glory and failure, depending on how closely if followed the teachings and practice of Jesus Christ.
Paul writes in Galatians 4:4 “When the time was right, God sent His Son.” How was the time right for when Jesus came?
- Common language through much of the Roman Empire (Greek) allowing good communication.
- There was relatively free travel throughout the Empire allowing the quick spread of God’s Good News.
- There was discontent with the religions of the day.
- Many Jews expected the Messiah!
Key thinking about the Church!
- The Church's Foundation - Mt. 16:17-20 "On this rock, I will build my Church...". Christ loves the Church, builds the Church and nothing will prevent the building and growth of the Church.
- The Church's Commission - Mt. 28:18-20 "Make disciples of all nations..."; Acts 1:8 "Be my witnesses..."
- The Church's Mission - Acts 1:8...Jerusalem (Home), Judea (Home State/Province), Samaria (Neighbouring State/Province), Ends of the Earth (Overseas).
- The Church's Authority - Matthew 28:18 - All authority is given to Jesus, He is with us as witnesses.
With the Church’s Authority established the Church spreads The Gospel Message (Acts 2:36-38) that Jesus is the Lord and the Christ; Acts 20:21 "Repentance towards God and faith in Jesus Christ. As we saw last time, the Holy Spirit came at what is called Pentecost! (Acts 2:8). There the Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ was preached to an international audience as Jews from every nation under heaven was there to witness this great event! Many were saved and thus returned to their home nations with this good news that Jesus was their Messiah! WOW!
In Jerusalem alone, according to Acts 4:4 5000 men were added to the Church in Jerusalem. Persecution & scattering come upon the early Church as it would have been normal for the Christians to make Jerusalem the focus of their ministry. For whatever reason, they still did not understand that the Gospel was also for the Gentiles. However, they soon discovered that the Gospel was indeed for the Gentiles and for throughout the world! How did God achieve this with His church? For the answer to that, you will have to wait for the next in our series HAHA where we will see the Church spreading and getting organized! ~ ~
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Sunday Oct 12, 2025
Sunday Oct 12, 2025
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1-2 God, come close. Come quickly! Open your ears-it's my voice you're hearing! Treat my prayer as sweet incense rising; my raised hands are my evening prayers.
3-7 Post a guard at my mouth, God, set a watch at the door of my lips.
Don't let me so much as dream of evil or thoughtlessly fall into bad company.
And these people who only do wrong- don't let them lure me with their sweet talk!
May the Just One set me straight! May the Kind One correct me!
Don't let sin anoint my head. I'm praying hard against their evil ways!
Oh, let their leaders be pushed off a high rock cliff; make them face the music.
Like a rock pulverized by a maul, let their bones be scattered at the gates of hell.
8-10 But God, dear Lord, I only have eyes for you.
Since I've run for dear life to you, take good care of me.
Protect me from their evil scheming, from all their demonic subterfuge.
Let the wicked fall flat on their faces, while I walk off without a scratch.
(From the Message)
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Sunday Oct 12, 2025
Sunday Oct 12, 2025
Church History Part 2
Birth of the Church
The Promised Holy Spirit Comes!
~ G’day and welcome to Partakers and to our series, HAHA – Heroes and Heretics Abound. Together we will look at the story of the church from its origins to the Age of Reasoning in the 18th century. Today we look briefly at the coming of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the church – the start of its history.
Jesus has ascended back to the right hand side of the Father! The apostles have been commanded to go make disciples! But they were first told to wait. Wait for what, or rather, who? They were to wait for the coming of God the Holy Spirit who was being sent! Throughout His ministry Jesus had talked about how after He had departed that God the Holy Spirit would be sent to indwell those who follow Him (John 15v26). This would be in fulfilment of Ezekiel 36:27 “And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Here is the start of the church! A wow moment in church history – the birth of the church – the body of Christ! Acts 2:1-2 “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.”
No more waiting! The Holy Spirit came and the church was born and empowered! That is how the church has maintained a presence for the past 2000 years – only because of the presence of God within the believers. So what is the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church? ~ The Holy Spirit’s prime role is to see that Jesus Christ the Son of God is praised and glorified (John 16v13-14). The Holy Spirit testifies for Jesus Christ (John 15:26) and witnesses for Jesus Christ and His salvation (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit is the Paraclete, the Comforter! The Holy Spirit is one who is called to stand alongside Christians (John 14v16). Jesus said it would be better for Him to go away and send the Holy Spirit to live within his followers (John 16v7). The Holy Spirit ministers to Christian in the same way as Jesus would be to us if Jesus were here in person. Declares God’s Word: The Holy Spirit has a prime role in revelation and declaring the Word of God. It was He that spoke through the prophets (Ezekiel 2v2) and it was He who inspired the Bible (2 Peter 1v21).
Further to this, the Holy Spirit interprets and illuminates God’s Word (John 16v12-15; 1 Corinthians 2v10-16) to people!
Conviction: The Holy Spirit is sent to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (John 16:8)
Salvation: Christian Disciples are born of the Holy Spirit and are known as regenerated (John 3v3-8)!
Indwelling: God lives inside each Christian Disciple through the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, a person cannot be a Christian Disciple (Romans 8v9; Gal 2v20; Colossians 1v25-27)! WOW! God is a personal God, lives within His people and is not merely a statue to be placed on a shelf.
Sealing / Ownership: The Holy Spirit indwelling the Christian Disciple is assured proof of being God’s possession (2 Corinthians 1v22; Ephesians 1v3)
Security: The Holy Spirit is a deposit, guaranteeing our future redemption, salvation and inheritance (Ephesians 1v13; 2 Corinthians 1v22).
Filling: This speaks of the Holy Spirit’s control or domination of our lives. The imperative here is that we are to be filled (Ephesians 5v18), and go on being filled. He gives power to enable Christian Disciples to evangelise (Acts 1v8; 4v8, 31).
Sanctification: The Holy Spirit transforms us into the likeness of Christ (2 Corinthians 7-18), as we walk, live in, and are led by the Spirit (Galatians. 5v16; Romans 8v13).
Baptism: This expression occurs 7 times in the New Testament. It occurs 4 times in the gospels, referring to Jesus baptizing with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 1 Corinthians 12v13 states that we are all baptized with the Holy Spirit into one body.
Service: The Holy Spirit equips us for service. God is working in you to will and to act accordingly to his purpose (Phil. 2v13), to be my witnesses (Acts 1v8).
As we look together at the church down through history, we will see evidence of the Holy Spirit being at work in people’s lives, the global spread of Christianity and the development of the Church over time.
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Saturday Oct 11, 2025
Saturday Oct 11, 2025
Psalm 139
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I'm far away.
3 You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do.
4 You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.
5 You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!
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7 I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence!
8 If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the deepest hell, you are there.
9 If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
10 even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.
11 I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night-
12 but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.
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13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous-how well I know it.
15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16 You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
17 How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!
18 I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!
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19 O God, if only you would destroy the wicked! Get out of my life, you murderers!
20 They blaspheme you; your enemies misuse your name.
21 O Lord, shouldn't I hate those who hate you? Shouldn't I despise those who oppose you?
22 Yes, I hate them with total hatred, for your enemies are my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
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Saturday Oct 11, 2025
Saturday Oct 11, 2025
Church History Part 1- Introduction
~ Together we will look at the story of the church from its origins to the Age of Reasoning in the 18th century back to its origins. One aim of this series is to give a broad overview of church history to those who know very little or perhaps none of it. Of course there will be a Protestant European bias as that is my church background, but we will also include looks at other denominations including the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox streams of church. Another aim is so that we as the church of today and tomorrow, can learn some of how the church has developed, avoid the mistakes made and embrace the joys which can be found. We start today by leaping straight into the 18th century. We will see together how the Church’s practises and theology has developed.
Jesus’ Authority
Throughout the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus’ authority is a major theme. Where Matthew records Jesus doing miracles, this is to highlight Jesus authority in action and not just merely in words. Matthew records Jesus’ authority to forgive sins (Matthew 9v6) and He imparted authority to His disciples for a short time when they went on a mission in Matthew 10. Jesus has authority (Matthew 28:18) over all things, all people, all circumstances and happenings. Jesus has authority over all spiritual beings, whether angels or demons. Jesus has authority over all nations, governments and rulers. Jesus has authority over all earthly and spiritual authorities. Jesus has the authority. ~ This means regardless of what ever the Christian Disciple faces, Jesus is in control. Therefore, as Christian Disciples, we can obey him without fear of retribution from those who would seek to harm us. We can obey Him regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in. It is a great comfort to know, that He is in control of everything!! Through His death on the cross and His rising from the dead, Jesus has conquered all enemies. Now people sometimes confuse authority with authoritarian. Authoritarian means severe, rigidity and a dictator. None of these apply to Jesus. The authority of the church is a common theme down through history as we will see. ~ The early church exploded numerically as the twelve disciples exercised Jesus’ authority and His power. We read about the growth of the early church in the Book of Acts. Christianity is a faith whereby all Christian Disciples are to tell others of the goodness of God. Indeed God Himself is a missionary God.
Ever since Genesis 3 and the fall of mankind, God has been on a mission to bring and call people back to Himself. That was the purpose of the nation of Israel, to be a light to all nations of the goodness and glory of God! That was purpose when God, who is outside of time and space, entered human history taking on human flesh and restricted Himself in a human body as the man we know as Jesus Christ. Jesus whole mission was one of calling people back to life in God. That was the message told by the early church - showing and telling others of God’s message of reconciliation for them. It was also to be the role of the church in history. It never was meant to be forcing people to adopt Church standards (1 Corinthians 5:12) or to a message to simply join the church as a symbol of good works (Ephesians 2:8-10). ~ The coming of the Holy Spirit was prime for the explosive growth of the early church and His hand is evident throughout church history, as we will see. ~
Jesus' church...
- The Church's Foundation - Matthew 16:17-20 "On this rock, I will build my Church...". Christ loves the Church, builds the Church and nothing will prevent the building and growth of the Church.
- The Church's Commission - Matthew 28:18-20 "Make disciples of all nations..."; Acts 1:8 "Be my witnesses..."
- The Church's Mission - Acts 1:8 .Jerusalem (Home), Judea (Home State/Province), Samaria (Neighbouring State/Province), Ends of the Earth (Overseas).
- The Church's Authority - Matthew 28:18 - All authority is given to Jesus, He is with us as witnesses.
- The Church's Message - Acts 2:36-38 - Jesus is Lord and Christ; Acts 20:21 "Repentance towards God and faith in Jesus Christ.
~ Thanks for reading and listening! This series continues next Saturday! Come back every day where there is something new added to aid your development as a Partaker of Christ. Thank you. ~
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Friday Oct 10, 2025
Friday Oct 10, 2025
Psalm 118
2 Let all Israel repeat: "His faithful love endures forever."
3 Let Aaron's descendants, the priests, repeat: "His faithful love endures forever."
4 Let all who fear the Lord repeat: "His faithful love endures forever."
5 In my distress I prayed to the Lord, and the Lord answered me and set me free.
6 The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?
7 Yes, the Lord is for me; he will help me. I will look in triumph at those who hate me.
8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.
10 Though hostile nations surrounded me, I destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
11 Yes, they surrounded and attacked me, but I destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
12 They swarmed around me like bees; they blazed against me like a crackling fire. But I destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
13 My enemies did their best to kill me, but the Lord rescued me.
14 The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.
15 Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things!
16 The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things!
17 I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done.
18 The Lord has punished me severely, but he did not let me die.
19 Open for me the gates where the righteous enter, and I will go in and thank the Lord.
20 These gates lead to the presence of the Lord, and the godly enter there.
21 I thank you for answering my prayer and giving me victory!
22 The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.
23 This is the Lord's doing, and it is wonderful to see.
24 This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Please, Lord, please save us. Please, Lord, please give us success.
26 Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord.
27 The Lord is God, shining upon us. Take the sacrifice and bind it with cords on the altar.
28 You are my God, and I will praise you! You are my God, and I will exalt you!
29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.
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Friday Oct 10, 2025
Friday Oct 10, 2025
40. Hebrews 13:20-21 - Farewell greetings.
(Unfortunately the NLT translation uses a word in the middle of this passage that is not exactly every day English, so I have used the ESV instead.)
The word that is common to nearly every New Testament benediction (literally a good word, finishing a letter or other writing) is peace. As this brief comment goes out from Dave’s web site it may be read, or listened to, by people in many different situations. Some of you will be able to live a quiet and peaceful life with little difficulty. But some of you may be reading this in situations that are far from peaceful. It is almost impossible to write anything to both groups.
Let those of us who dwell in peaceful parts of the world, offer our prayers for those who do not know peace. Our hearts go out to you. You may be struggling to relocate to another country hoping to find a great deal more peace than you are able to in the country of your birth and life so far. You are therefore a refugee. May you be sure of the Lord’s purposes for you and may you be able to follow him through thick and thin until you can find a reasonable amount of peace. Even as I write that I am aware that I should be exhorting you to find peace even in the most difficult of circumstances through your reliance on Jesus as your champion who initiates and perfects your faith. Remember he too suffered greatly for his faithfulness to the terrible task that his Father had sent him to complete. That is the theory. To actually put it into practice is no easy thing. May you be able to do so in rich and richer measure in the days ahead.
For those of us who do not labour under such difficulties the word from our writer is that we should do the Lord’s will, working on things which are pleasing in his sight because he has equipped us to do so. In many ways that is a much easier task. It is also a much easier task to avoid, to slide by, to overlook, to pretend we have not seen and understood what we should be doing.
None of us will ever be completely satisfied in our own eyes by what we have done in the days and the circumstances he has given us. He will be even less satisfied with us. Fortunately these are not the criteria by which he accepts us and loves us. Those things happen because the great shepherd of the sheep was seen to have completed (confirmed, or as the NLT has it ratified) his work through the blood of the eternal covenant.
May God’s grace be with you all.
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Thursday Oct 09, 2025
Thursday Oct 09, 2025
Psalm 91
91:1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
91:2 I will say of Yahweh, "He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust."
91:3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly pestilence.
91:4 He will cover you with his feathers. Under his wings you will take refuge. His faithfulness is your shield and rampart.
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91:5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day;
91:6 nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that wastes at noonday.
91:7 A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it will not come near you.
91:8 You will only look with your eyes, and see the recompense of the wicked.
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91:9 Because you have made Yahweh your refuge, and the Most High your dwelling place,
91:10 no evil shall happen to you, neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.
91:11 For he will put his angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
91:12 They will bear you up in their hands, so that you won't dash your foot against a stone.
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91:13 You will tread on the lion and cobra. You will trample the young lion and the serpent underfoot.
91:14 "Because he has set his love on me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him on high, because he has known my name.
91:15 He will call on me, and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him, and honor him.
91:16 I will satisfy him with long life, and show him my salvation."
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Thursday Oct 09, 2025
Thursday Oct 09, 2025
39. Hebrews 13:1–7 - Keep on … don’t forget … remember …
Give honour to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.
Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said,
“I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
So we can say with confidence, “The LORD is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?” Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith.
There is no one outstanding highlight in these verses but they constitute a brief but important part of the whole writing. So I have to sweep them together into a little pile and say - look at this! The book of Hebrews is crammed full of teaching about our Lord, Jesus, who he is and why we should follow him. Only now, late on in his writing, does the author comment on what it should all mean in hard significant facts about our daily lives.
He is particularly anxious that we should:
1. Be very aware of the need to offer loving support to our fellow Christians through hospitality, special support to any who have fallen foul of anti-Christian authorities;
2. Be very careful about our sex lives. They will have been living in a situation in which it was as difficult to stay sexually pure as in any modern one. Our sexual appetites can be very strong and difficult to resist. But both within marriage and without we should stay pure;
3. Be aware of the dangers of living a life distorted by too great a concern for money and what it can buy.;
4. Be prepared to give full honour to those who work hard in the gospel, particularly through the pastoral ministry.
We all particularly in the West, are living in a society which in historical terms is rich beyond the wildest dreams of people from earlier societies. Even for ordinary citizens with no exceptional sources of wealth - Our houses are bigger, our kitchens are full of wonderful machines, we mostly own a chariot which will take us faster and in much greater comfort than any that have existed before, we holiday in greater comfort and in many more places than any but the very richest used to do.
Just imagine what our writer would have said to all that! What would he have expected us to do with all that in terms of support for the kingdom?
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Wednesday Oct 08, 2025
Wednesday Oct 08, 2025
Psalm 65
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. A song.
65:1 Praise waits for you, God, in Zion. To you shall vows be performed.
65:2 You who hear prayer, to you all men will come.
65:3 Sins overwhelmed me, but you atoned for our transgressions.
65:4 Blessed is one whom you choose, and cause to come near, that he may live in your courts. We will be filled with the goodness of your house, your holy temple.
65:5 By awesome deeds of righteousness, you answer us, God of our salvation. You who are the hope of all the ends of the earth, of those who are far away on the sea;
65:6 Who by his power forms the mountains, having armed yourself with strength;
65:7 who stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations.
65:8 They also who dwell in faraway places are afraid at your wonders. You call the morning's dawn and the evening with songs of joy.
65:9 You visit the earth, and water it. You greatly enrich it. The river of God is full of water. You provide them grain, for so you have ordained it.
65:10 You drench its furrows. You level its ridges. You soften it with showers. You bless it with a crop.
65:11 You crown the year with your bounty. Your carts overflow with abundance.
65:12 The wilderness grasslands overflow. The hills are clothed with gladness.
65:13 The pastures are covered with flocks. The valleys also are clothed with grain. They shout for joy! They also sing.