438.1K
Downloads
3359
Episodes
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
Wednesday Jan 31, 2024
Wednesday Jan 31, 2024
Sermon - 1 Peter 1:1-2; 2:11-12
1 Peter 1:1-2 - Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to God’s elect, exiles, scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
1 Peter 2:11-12 - Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
Sermon Outline
The verses we have today, 1 Peter 1:1-2 and 1 Peter 2:11-12 may seem an odd combination but they both start respect natural halves of the letter. 1 Peter 1:1-2 is obviously the beginning of the letter and the first section. 1 Peter 2:11-12, structurally speaking, is the beginning of the second section.
Our title for today is “Living in the face of alienation and its cure”.
Part 1. God (1 Peter 1:1-2)
Trinity is Love Indivisible
God is made of one indivisible essence or substance, and this is expressed in three persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Trinity is a Love Relationship
Salvation is a co-ordination within, and by, the Trinity (Hebrews 10:7-17; Ephesians 4:4-6; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6).
- God the Father foreknew!
- God the Spirit sanctifies!
- God the Son sacrifices.
Part 2. Therefore (1 Peter 2:11-12)!
Peter reminds the sojourners!
- They are God’s dear children – beloved of God!
- They are in exile – maybe physically but certainly spiritually because their permanent home was not in this world.
- They were travelling towards the heavenly city.
- They were to abstain from sinful desires and go to battle spiritually!
- They are to live lives so innocent, clean and good, that their very lives, were to be a living testimony to the God they had their hope in
So What?
If you have not responded to the Father’s call, talk to somebody or leave a comment here! We will get back to you!
If you are already a Christian
- Remember who you are! A person chosen as an object of love by God the Father, sanctified by God the Holy Spirit through the obedient sacrifice of God the Son.
- Remember your permanent home is not on this earth.
- Remember to persevere through all your suffering and persecutions.
- Remember to keep short accounts with God.
- Remember in all aspects of life, as a Christian you are to be seen as different - “counter-cultural”!
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Tuesday Jan 30, 2024
Tuesday Jan 30, 2024
Correct thinking leads to correct action!
1 Timothy 1
Introduction
I am sure that some people here when they heard I was preaching tonight were expecting some obscure passage from the Old Testament or even something from that wonderful book of Leviticus. I know that Chris and Sue Cook were! But no! A change! Did I catch you out? Our passage tonight, wonderfully read for us, is found in the New Testament. The little letter of 1 Timothy, where the aged Paul is reminding and instructing Timothy, his much younger disciple, who is probably about 40 years old now. The whole of the New Testament church is growing and spreading far and wide away from its starting point in Jerusalem. Most scholars agree that this letter was written about 64AD, so it is now about 8 years after Paul's 3 year stay in Ephesus came to an end. Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like to be a first century Christian. The original followers of Jesus, the apostles have either died or will be soon, so who will ensure that good teaching and guidance will be given to me and others around me? Who will ensure that sound doctrine of salvation through Jesus alone by grace alone through faith alone will be preserved? Some of these concerns are met by the apostle Paul in what we call the Pastoral Epistles - 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus. Paul is getting on in age now. He is in Macedonia, but his representative, Timothy, was left in Ephesus, and by all accounts was undergoing a particularly torrid time. The church in Ephesus was still made up of small groups of believers and each group had a leader with some experience, knowledge and therefore influence. So you can imagine the turmoil if their understanding of the Gospel would become twisted, contorted and infected with false teachings and myths. The turmoil would act like a virus going from group to group, person to person. The records we have of the early church show that when false teaching had been encountered elsewhere, it had usually come from outsiders to that local church. However, here in Ephesus, the false teachers had come from within the church in Ephesus. Even some of the house leaders setup by Paul! Was Paul surprised? Not at all! Paul had predicted this would occur. We read in Acts 20, written much earlier than this letter, Paul saying "I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears." So Paul has delegated his authority to Timothy, his personal representative in Ephesus. Timothy is encouraged to counter with sound doctrine any false teaching, particularly in regards to the Mosaic Law. It seems from this letter, that the leaders were mixing Jewish ideas and pagan myths into Christian thought. We read about those things in v3 and 4. These things were distracting the church from doing God's work and were instead promoting fantasy, controversies and meaningless talk. So Paul writes to Timothy. He had already written his letter to the church in Ephesus - that was a few years ago now. This letter is a personal one. He didn't write to the church itself again. He did this in order to bolster Timothy's authority and position against those who were spreading false teaching. That's probably why Paul puts forward his credentials at the start. Paul is saying to the church in Ephesus "I, Paul, am an apostle because God has commanded me to be so! Timothy is my ambassador, my man, so wise up, church - you Ephesians! Listen to him and you won't go astray from the truth." Timothy would have shared this letter with the church there.
Right mouse click or tap here to save/download this Sermon as a MP3 file
Read the rest of this entry »
Saturday Jan 20, 2024
Saturday Jan 20, 2024
Psalm 78
A maskil of Asaph.
1 O my people, hear my teaching;
listen to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter hidden things, things from of old-
3 what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children;
we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD,
his power, and the wonders he has done.
5 He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children,
6 so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,
and they in turn would tell their children.
7 Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands.
8 They would not be like their forefathers- a stubborn and rebellious generation,
whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him.
9 The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows,
turned back on the day of battle;
10 they did not keep God's covenant and refused to live by his law.
11 They forgot what he had done, the wonders he had shown them.
12 He did miracles in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.
13 He divided the sea and led them through; he made the water stand firm like a wall.
14 He guided them with the cloud by day and with light from the fire all night.
15 He split the rocks in the desert and gave them water as abundant as the seas;
16 he brought streams out of a rocky crag and made water flow down like rivers.
17 But they continued to sin against him, rebelling in the desert against the Most High.
18 They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved.
19 They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the desert?
20 When he struck the rock, water gushed out, and streams flowed abundantly. But can he also give us food? Can he supply meat for his people?"
21 When the LORD heard them, he was very angry; his fire broke out against Jacob, and his wrath rose against Israel,
22 for they did not believe in God or trust in his deliverance.
23 Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens;
24 he rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven.
25 Men ate the bread of angels; he sent them all the food they could eat.
26 He let loose the east wind from the heavens and led forth the south wind by his power.
27 He rained meat down on them like dust, flying birds like sand on the seashore.
28 He made them come down inside their camp, all around their tents.
29 They ate till they had more than enough, for he had given them what they craved.
30 But before they turned from the food they craved, even while it was still in their mouths,
31 God's anger rose against them;
he put to death the sturdiest among them, cutting down the young men of Israel.
32 In spite of all this, they kept on sinning; in spite of his wonders, they did not believe.
33 So he ended their days in futility and their years in terror.
34 Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again.
35 They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.
36 But then they would flatter him with their mouths, lying to him with their tongues;
37 their hearts were not loyal to him, they were not faithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them.
Time after time he restrained his anger and did not stir up his full wrath.
39 He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return.
40 How often they rebelled against him in the desert and grieved him in the wasteland!
41 Again and again they put God to the test; they vexed the Holy One of Israel.
42 They did not remember his power- the day he redeemed them from the oppressor,
43 the day he displayed his miraculous signs in Egypt, his wonders in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their rivers to blood; they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of flies that devoured them, and frogs that devastated them.
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper, their produce to the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore-figs with sleet.
48 He gave over their cattle to the hail, their livestock to bolts of lightning.
49 He unleashed against them his hot anger, his wrath, indignation and hostility- a band of destroying angels.
50 He prepared a path for his anger; he did not spare them from death but gave them over to the plague.
51 He struck down all the firstborn of Egypt, the firstfruits of manhood in the tents of Ham.
52 But he brought his people out like a flock; he led them like sheep through the desert.
53 He guided them safely, so they were unafraid; but the sea engulfed their enemies.
54 Thus he brought them to the border of his holy land, to the hill country his right hand had taken.
55 He drove out nations before them and allotted their lands to them as an inheritance; he settled the tribes of Israel in their homes.
56 But they put God to the test and rebelled against the Most High; they did not keep his statutes.
57 Like their fathers they were disloyal and faithless, as unreliable as a faulty bow.
58 They angered him with their high places; they aroused his jealousy with their idols.
59 When God heard them, he was very angry; he rejected Israel completely.
60 He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent he had set up among men.
61 He sent the ark of his might into captivity, his splendor into the hands of the enemy.
62 He gave his people over to the sword; he was very angry with his inheritance.
63 Fire consumed their young men, and their maidens had no wedding songs;
64 their priests were put to the sword, and their widows could not weep.
65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, as a man wakes from the stupor of wine.
66 He beat back his enemies; he put them to everlasting shame.
67 Then he rejected the tents of Joseph, he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim;
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loved.
69 He built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth that he established forever.
70 He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens;
71 from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance.
72 And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.
Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file
Friday Jan 19, 2024
Friday Jan 19, 2024
Psalm 59
For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” A poem by David, when Saul sent, and they watched the house to kill him.
59:1 Deliver me from my enemies, my God.
Set me on high from those who rise up against me.
59:2 Deliver me from the workers of iniquity.
Save me from the bloodthirsty men.
59:3 For, behold, they lie in wait for my soul.
The mighty gather themselves together against me,
not for my disobedience, nor for my sin, Yahweh.
59:4 I have done no wrong, yet they are ready to attack me.
Rise up, behold, and help me!
59:5 You, Yahweh God of Armies, the God of Israel,
rouse yourself to punish the nations.
Show no mercy to the wicked traitors.
Selah
59:6 They return at evening, howling like dogs,
and prowl around the city.
59:7 Behold, they spew with their mouth.
Swords are in their lips, “For,” they say, “who hears us?”
59:8 But you, Yahweh, laugh at them.
You scoff at all the nations.
59:9 Oh, my Strength, I watch for you,
for God is my high tower.
59:10 My God will go before me with his loving kindness.
God will let me look at my enemies in triumph.
59:11 Don’t kill them, or my people may forget.
Scatter them by your power, and bring them down, Lord our shield.
59:12 For the sin of their mouth,
and the words of their lips,
let them be caught in their pride,
for the curses and lies which they utter.
59:13 Consume them in wrath.
Consume them, and they will be no more.
Let them know that God rules in Jacob, to the ends of the earth.
Selah
59:14 At evening let them return.
Let them howl like a dog, and go around the city.
59:15 They shall wander up and down for food,
and wait all night if they aren’t satisfied.
59:16 But I will sing of your strength.
Yes, I will sing aloud of your loving kindness in the morning.
For you have been my high tower,
a refuge in the day of my distress.
59:17 To you, my strength, I will sing praises.
For God is my high tower, the God of my mercy.
Click or tap here to save this Podcast as a MP3.
Thursday Jan 18, 2024
Thursday Jan 18, 2024
Psalm 73
A psalm of Asaph.
1 Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.
3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.
5 They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills.
6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.
7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity ; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.
8 They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression.
9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth.
10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance.
11 They say, "How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?"
12 This is what the wicked are like- always carefree, they increase in wealth.
13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.
14 All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning.
15 If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have betrayed your children.
16 When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me
17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.
18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin.
19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!
20 As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.
21 When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered,
22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.
23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.
24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.
Right mouse click or tap here to save/download this Psalm as a MP3 file
Wednesday Jan 17, 2024
Wednesday Jan 17, 2024
Psalm 133
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 How good and pleasant it is
when God's people live together in unity!
2 It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron's beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
3 It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD bestows his blessing,even life forevermore.
Right mouse click or tap here to save/download this Psalm as a MP3 file
Wednesday Jan 17, 2024
Wednesday Jan 17, 2024
Exploring The Bible
49. Old Testament
Job
G'day and welcome to our series, "Exploring the Bible" This is also the title of our latest book available on Amazon by clicking here or visiting PulpTheology.com
Key Verses:
- Job 19:25
- Job 42:1-6
The Book of Job is perhaps the earliest book in the Bible according to scholars. It tackles the always difficult question - “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Set during the time of the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob & Joseph), it is the story of a man who loses everything - his wealth, family & health and wrestles with the question “why?”
Rather surprisingly when Job acknowledges the sovereignty of God in His life, he received everything back that he had lost and even more – which is not the solution to the difficult question! In so far as there is a solution, it is that we must trust ourselves wholly to the Lord however surprising and mysterious His ways are.
Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file
~
You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!
Tuesday Jan 16, 2024
Tuesday Jan 16, 2024
Psalm 134
A Pilgrim Song
Come, bless God,
all you servants of God!
You priests of God,
posted to the night watch
in God's shrine,
Lift your praising hands to the Holy Place,
and bless God.
In turn, may God of Zion bless you-
the God who made heaven and earth!
Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file
Tuesday Jan 16, 2024
Tuesday Jan 16, 2024
Spiritual Armour (Armor)
- Truth - know, understand and live truth. Your life is to be controlled by truth as revealed in the Bible. When you know truth, you will be able to recognize the lies of the enemy! Righteousness - live a righteous life. As a Christian Disciple, you have been granted the righteousness of Jesus Christ! But that righteousness needs to be lived out in every aspect of your life!
- Gospel - be ready to share it and rely upon it. You have peace with God if you are a Christian, but you are to exhibit peace with others. Where peace is, the discord of our enemy cannot prevail!
- Faith - show total trust in God for your life. The faith you have is a defensive weapon against the mistruths that come into our head: lies, blasphemy, lust, greed, selfishness are all little darts thrown at us by satan. By maintaining our trust in God's promises and God's power, these little darts are extinguished.
- Salvation - assurance of salvation. Be assured! Let your mind be controlled by the Holy Spirit, so that you will not be led astray. Your salvation rests in nothing apart from God's promises and Jesus' righteousness!
- Bible - read and study God's Word. The Word of God, the Bible, is your attack weapon! Allow the precious Holy Spirit to lead and reveal it to you as you read it! Read it and grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus!
- Prayer - talk to God. This is how we are energized! When we talk to God, we strengthen our relationship with Him! Prayer is a sign of intimacy between God and yourself! It develops your relationship with Him! When we ask other Christian Disciples to pray for us, Church unity is strengthened!
Right mouse click or tap here to save this Podcast as a MP3.
Monday Jan 15, 2024
Monday Jan 15, 2024
Psalm 55
For the Chief Musician. On stringed instruments. A contemplation by David.
55:1 Listen to my prayer, God.
Don’t hide yourself from my supplication.
55:2 Attend to me, and answer me.
I am restless in my complaint, and moan,
55:3 Because of the voice of the enemy,
Because of the oppression of the wicked.
For they bring suffering on me.
In anger they hold a grudge against me.
55:4 My heart is severely pained within me.
The terrors of death have fallen on me.
55:5 Fearfulness and trembling have come on me.
Horror has overwhelmed me.
55:6 I said, “Oh that I had wings like a dove!
Then I would fly away, and be at rest.
55:7 Behold, then I would wander far off.
I would lodge in the wilderness.”
Selah.
55:8 “I would hurry to a shelter from the stormy wind and storm.”
55:9 Confuse them, Lord, and confound their language,
for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
55:10 Day and night they prowl around on its walls.
Malice and abuse are also within her.
55:11 Destructive forces are within her.
Threats and lies don’t depart from her streets.
55:12 For it was not an enemy who insulted me, then I could have endured it.
Neither was it he who hated me who raised himself up against me,
then I would have hidden myself from him.
55:13 But it was you, a man like me, my companion, and my familiar friend.
55:14 We took sweet fellowship together.
We walked in God’s house with company.
55:15 Let death come suddenly on them. Let them go down alive into Sheol.
For wickedness is in their dwelling, in their midst.
55:16 As for me, I will call on God. Yahweh will save me.
55:17 Evening, morning, and at noon, I will cry out in distress.
He will hear my voice.
55:18 He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me,
although there are many who oppose me.
55:19 God, who is enthroned forever, will hear, and answer them.
Selah.
They never change, who don’t fear God.
55:20 He raises his hands against his friends. He has violated his covenant.
55:21 His mouth was smooth as butter, but his heart was war.
His words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.
55:22 Cast your burden on Yahweh, and he will sustain you.
He will never allow the righteous to be moved.
55:23 But you, God, will bring them down into the pit of destruction.
Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in you.