What should Christians expect when following Jesus means standing apart from the world?

In this passage, we see how Jesus prepares his disciples for hatred and persecution – but he doesn’t leave them without help. This sermon explores why the world may reject Christians, what it means to share in Christ’s rejection, and how the Holy Spirit empowers us to respond with faithful witness.

The people who oppose us aren’t the enemy – they’re the mission. Our calling isn’t to retreat, retaliate, or win the culture war, but to depend on Christ and boldly bear witness to him.

Jesus says, “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” (John 12:25)

The question for today is, “What kind of glory are we really living for?”

In this sermon we see that, as the nations begin coming to Jesus, He speaks not of earthly victory, but of the cross. In this message, we explore why our hearts are drawn to temporary glory, why we often seek approval over obedience, and how the cross reveals the true glory of God. Looking at John 12 alongside Isaiah 6 and Isaiah 53, we discover that the King enthroned in glory and the suffering Servant are one and the same. As we behold Christ high and lifted up—on the cross and on the throne—every lesser glory begins to fade.

This morning we come to the penultimate week of our series on the ‘I am’ sayings, where Richard unpacks the meaning of Jesus as ‘the Way, the Truth and the Life’.

What does it mean to be generous, and as Christians how can we instill this discipline in our lives? In this sermon Richard explores this topic showing us that we can be a generous people because our Father in heaven has been and is always generous towards us.

In this sermon Richard reminds us of the importance of the church. We exist firstly to praise God, we praise Him because He has saved us through Jesus and is worthy of our praise. The church is important because our spiritual needs and growth can only happen in the context of a church. It is important because it is a place where unbelievers can walk in and meet with the living God.

God has given each of us gifts to use for the building up of His kingdom. In this sermon Richard talks about the variety of gifts that are set out in scripture, and encourages us to earnestly desire them so we can walk in the fullness of God’s plan for us.

In this sermon Richard reminds us that Jesus is the only one we can find our satisfaction in. He also reminds us that we are called to enjoy Him in all aspects of life.