} stickyFooter(); $(window).resize(function(){ stickyFooter(); }); });

Teach the Bible

Apr 27, 2023

As we approach our Annual Church Meeting next Sunday 7 May, we’re reflecting on what kind of community that we want to be by revisiting our church values. Our second church value is ‘Teach the Bible’.

God’s Word must be central in our lives as individuals and as a church because God’s Spirit uses God’s Word to create faith in us and to grow faith in us. Jesus replied to Satan, quoting from Deuteronomy, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). On the night before he died, Jesus prayed for his disciples, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17). God’s Word not only gives life, it also gives us direction as it shapes and moulds us into the image of the God who speaks to us.

we need to be regularly nourished by God’s Word

So, in what practical ways do we prioritise listening to God’s Word at St Andrew’s?

Firstly, we are committed to expositional preaching at our Sunday services. Expositional preaching takes the main point of the sermon from the main point of a passage of Scripture. It is usually taken in contrast to topical preaching, which takes a subject and talks about it, rather than taking a particular Bible text as its subject. A topical sermon can sometimes be expositional in that a passage is selected and preached. However, it’s still topical, as the preacher has first selected a subject and then sees what the Bible is going to say about. At St Andrew’s, we’ll occasionally preach topical sermons, but our main diet is expositional sermons, as we preach through books of the Bible. As we do so, we let God’s Word, not the preacher, set the agenda as God challenges us in often unexpected and difficult ways.

How can you respond to the preaching of God’s Word? Read the Sunday passage before you come to church to listen to the passage explained. Talk and pray with friends about what you’ve learned afterwards. Develop habits of asking questions of the text itself. Cultivate humility, as God’s Word challenges your thinking, assumptions, and habits.

Secondly, we are committed to studying God’s Word together in small groups. Our Growth Groups are vital contexts for exploring the Bible more deeply, asking questions, discussing its application to our lives, and praying through the issues raised. It’s in these intimate groups that we can more easily speak the truth in love to one another, growing in maturity as a body whose head is Christ (Eph. 4:15).

Thirdly, we are committed to studying God’s Word individually. Let’s face it, we all live busy lives and it’s easy to let daily Bible reading get crowded off our schedule. Our habits form our character. To grow in spiritual maturity, we need to be regularly nourished by God’s Word. Otherwise, we’ll be spiritually malnourished and stunted, taking our cues from what the world tells us, rather than what God’s Word says. A habit of even just fifteen minutes of reading a passage, reflecting on it, and praying about it, makes all the difference. We’ll be able to say with the psalmist, “Your word is a lamp to feet and a light for my path” (Ps 119:105).

Alex McCoy
Vicar

Latest stories

Zechariah: purpose and comfort

Zechariah: purpose and comfort

How do you deal with setbacks and disappointment? For Christians, there are three options: you can do everything you can to improve your situation; you can be overwhelmed by your situation and let it rob you of joy and peace; or instead of focusing on your situation,...

read more
Conviction vs. Condemnation

Conviction vs. Condemnation

As Christians, we often encounter a paradox: we are promised complete forgiveness for our sin, yet we are called to be acutely aware of our sin and strive for holiness. Jesus himself told his disciples that the presence of the Holy Spirit would bring conviction of sin...

read more
Serve the City

Serve the City

Over the last month, we have been reflecting on the values of our church. We love Jesus, teach the Bible, build community and share the gospel. Today we come to our fifth and final value: we serve our city. Our desire to bless the city of Hong Kong is borne out of the...

read more

Weekly Email
If you would like to learn more about what’s happening in our community, receive stories, scripture reading, prayer points and catch up on previous sermons, click to subscribe.