Partakers Christian Podcasts

A Christmas Thought By Gregory of Nazianzus (329 – 390) Christ is born, glorify Him. Christ from heaven, go out to meet Him. Christ on earth, be exalted. Sing to the Lord all the whole earth; and that I may join both in one word, let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad, for Him who is of heaven and then of earth. Christ in the flesh, rejoice with trembling and with joy; with trembling because of your sins, with joy because of your hope. Come on in to hear more of this person of the ancient Church! Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file

Nativity Sermon By Isaac the Syrian (613 – 700) Today we continue our Christmas series with a Nativity Sermon By Isaac the Syrian. O God, This Christmas night bestowed peace on the whole world; So let no one threaten; This is the night of the Most Gentle One - Let no one be cruel; This is the night of the Humble One - Let no one be proud. Now is the day of joy - Let us not revenge; Now is the day of Good Will - Let us not be mean. In this Day of Peace - Let us not be conquered by anger. Today the Bountiful impoverished Himself for our sake; So, rich one, invite the poor to your table. Today we receive a Gift for which we did not ask; So let us give alms to those who implore and beg us. This present Day cast open the heavenly doors to our prayers; Let us open our door to those who ask our forgiveness. Today the Divine Being took upon Himself the seal of our humanity, In order for humanity to be decorated by the Seal of Divinity. Amen Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file

Psalm 39 For the Chief Musician. For Jeduthun. A Psalm by David. 39:1 I said, “I will watch my ways, so that I don’t sin with my tongue. I will keep my mouth with a bridle while the wicked is before me.” 39:2 I was mute with silence. I held my peace, even from good. My sorrow was stirred. 39:3 My heart was hot within me. While I meditated, the fire burned: I spoke with my tongue: 39:4 “Yahweh, show me my end, what is the measure of my days. Let me know how frail I am. 39:5 Behold, you have made my days handbreadths. My lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely every man stands as a breath.” Selah. 39:6 “Surely every man walks like a shadow. Surely they busy themselves in vain. He heaps up, and doesn’t know who shall gather. 39:7 Now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in you. 39:8 Deliver me from all my transgressions. Don’t make me the reproach of the foolish. 39:9 I was mute. I didn’t open my mouth, because you did it. 39:10 Remove your scourge away fr

Holiness I wonder what the biggest fence, wall or barrier is that you have either seen or that you know about! Perhaps one of the biggest walls in the world is the Great Wall of China. It is seen from space and is over 4000 miles long, about 25 feet high and up to 30 feet thick! It is huge and enormous!! It was built to keep out invaders – for that is what walls and barriers do: Keep out enemies! Holy Barrier However big the Great Wall of China is, there is one barrier that is even bigger! I wonder if you know what it is!! The biggest barrier to exist is the one, which separates God from all His creation. This barrier is holiness, for God is a holy God. Ezekiel 1:27-28 gives us a vivid picture of the holiness of God and is seen in the fire, light, radiance, full of glory and majesty. What is holiness? Holiness is what separates God from all His creation. For God alone is holy and full of glory. Exodus 15:2 “Who is like you, O God, glorious in holiness!” Or Isaiah 60:25 “To whom will you liken me, or shall

Psalm 130 A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. 1 From the depths of despair, O Lord, I call for your help. 2 Hear my cry, O Lord. Pay attention to my prayer. 3 Lord, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? 4 But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you. 5 I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on him. I have put my hope in his word. 6 I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn, yes, more than sentries long for the dawn. 7 O Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is unfailing love. His redemption overflows. 8 He himself will redeem Israel from every kind of sin. Right mouse click to save/download this Psalm as a MP3 file

WOW Word - Truth ~Today Alphy the WOWChurch Cat shares about the WOW Word - Truth!   Truth! What is truth? Today we hear consistently that there are no absolute truths anymore! We hear all the time that for twenty first century people “What is true for me may not be true to you! What is true for you may not be true for me?” So what is truth? Truth in the Old Testament was used in two ways…. Firstly, facts may be either true or false – an intellectual truth. An example would be that Moses existed as a person. That is a true fact. Or it could used to define a characteristic of a reliable person, such as Joseph’s brothers in Genesis 42:16. These are also used to describe God as a true God, rather than the pagan gods belonging to the nations around Israel. Truth, or being true, is described as a characteristic of Yahweh, the God of Israel. He is consistently true and therefore trustworthy in all His ways. His loving care is trustworthy and seen in His dealings with Israel. In the New Testament, Christianity,

Developing Intimacy With God 12. Jesus’ Teaching About Prayer (Part 2) “9 ‘This, then, is how you should pray: ‘“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” Amen.” (Matthew 6:9-13) Last week in our Saturday series, we started looking at Jesus’ Teaching on Prayer in what we call the Lord’s Prayer and we continue that this week. Forgiveness: Forgiveness, of course, is a major part of the Christian faith and Christianity. Both in the way that God forgives me when I come to Him in penitence and repentance, but also in the way that I forgive others and themselves! Asking for forgiveness, particularly from other people, can be one of the hardest things I need to do. When those times come upon me, I n

Psalm 12 For the Chief Musician; upon an eight-stringed lyre. A Psalm of David. 12:1 Help, Yahweh; for the godly man ceases. For the faithful fail from among the children of men. 12:2 Everyone lies to his neighbor. They speak with flattering lips, and with a double heart. 12:3 May Yahweh cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that boasts, 12:4 who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail. Our lips are our own. Who is lord over us?” 12:5 “Because of the oppression of the weak and because of the groaning of the needy, I will now arise,” says Yahweh; “I will set him in safety from those who malign him.” 12:6 The words of Yahweh are flawless words, as silver refined in a clay furnace, purified seven times. 12:7 You will keep them, Yahweh. You will preserve them from this generation forever. 12:8 The wicked walk on every side, when what is vile is exalted among the sons of men. Right mouse click or tap here to save this Podcast as a MP3.

Developing Intimacy With God 11. Jesus’ Teaching About Prayer (Part 1) “9 ‘This, then, is how you should pray: ‘“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” Amen.” (Matthew 6:9-13) This is, quite possibly, the prayer that is most frequently used, and repeated, by those professing to be Christians, as well as those who are not. It is often called the “Lord’s Prayer”. This is not, however, because Jesus would have prayed it. As He was without sin, He would have had no need to have asked God for forgiveness of sin. It is the Lord’s Prayer, because it was given by Jesus, to serve as a model for His Disciples to know what prayer is to be like, hence Jesus saying, “How You should pray” (Matthew 6:9).

Developing Intimacy With God 10. The Function of Prayer The function of prayer, which is the act of communicating and conversing with God, reveals a constant hunger for God’s help. An inner yearning, just as a child yearns for its parent. It is consolidating my desire towards the ultimate goal, of eternal life, joy, worship and knowledge of God – and of being fully known by God. It is also through the Bible that my desire to know God and be known by God, evolves and develops. That is why prayer and Bible reading go hand in hand. Prayer emits my words and thoughts to the God I seek to know, in response to His reaching out to me. Through prayer, God can comprehend the Christian Disciple, regardless of language, grammar or oratory skill, if the Christian Disciple approaches with a correct attitude. Words, however, are not just to be a mental action but also an emotive act, conveying emotions and feeling. Prayer is a way for me to convey my deep emotions, feelings and expressions to God, regardless of my langu

Developing Intimacy With God 9. Prayer - Some Thoughts As Christian Disciples, followers of Jesus Christ, we are engaged in spiritual warfare. That can easily be seen in the prayer Jesus taught His disciples, what we call the “Lord’s Prayer”, which we look at together later in this series. If you and I are engaged in spiritual warfare, that means we are to have weapons. Prayer, along with studying and reading the Bible, are our weapons of spiritual warfare! Prayer is at the centre in the relationship between God and the Christian Disciple, consequently building friendship and intimacy between God and ourselves. Prayer is to be the major action of fellowship between God and humans – of you and I communicating with God, both in talking and listening (Genesis 18:33) – as individuals and with other people. Not just as certain times of the day but also throughout the day – constant communication and not just for 30 minutes in the morning. Prayer is also a way of “letting God in” to the life of the Christian Di

Developing Intimacy With God 8. The Bible Helps You To Get To Know God’s Will God has a program for the universe and it is revealed only in the Bible. The overall will of God, is that all people should come to believe and trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and their Saviour. After starting the Christian life, you discover God’s program by humbly reading his written word, the Bible. You become aware of how God wants you to live and what God wants you to do. God’s initial will for those who believe, is the changing and conforming of the believer into the likeness of Jesus. But this is only the beginning of God’s work in the believer! This serves as merely an elemental introduction into the lifelong process of becoming like Jesus Christ, the Son of God – your Saviour. Paul writes “being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ;” (Philippians 1:6). God will not abandon you, but he will keep working in you, transf

Psalm 125 A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. 1 Those who trust in the Lord are as secure as Mount Zion; they will not be defeated but will endure forever. 2 Just as the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, both now and forever. 3 The wicked will not rule the land of the godly, for then the godly might be tempted to do wrong. 4 O Lord, do good to those who are good, whose hearts are in tune with you. 5 But banish those who turn to crooked ways, O Lord.Take them away with those who do evil. May Israel have peace!   Right mouse click or tap here to save/download this Psalm as a MP3 file

Developing Intimacy With God 7. The Bible Helps You To Get To Know God Better One of the very key teachings from the Bible is that God is love and that he can be known personally. That is why we know that he has spoken to humanity through his two WOW Words – Jesus Christ and the Bible. People are not naturally born possessing this knowledge, even though they know that God exists. That knowledge is not the same as knowing God personally. In the same way that I know about Queen Elizabeth II, I don’t know her personally. That is the same state that some people are in with regards to God. Personal knowledge of God is ultimately crucial however, since knowing God personally and developing that relationship is what being a Christian is all about. As a Christian believer, you should be rejoicing that God earnestly desires you to gain this knowledge of Him, and to know him more and more. For this reason, He has spoken to you through his written Word, the Bible, revealing Himself and disclosing how you may know

Friday Prayers 4 May 2018 Order of Service! Opening prayer Praise time Prayers for those grieving and lonely Prayers for justice and peace Prayers for those facing challenging situations Prayers for churches and Christians worldwide Prayers for healing Time of silence for your own prayers Benediction 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!

Developing Intimacy With God 6. The Bible Helps Equip You To Serve God One of the main ways that the Bible helps you, is by equipping you for active service! There are at least four ways, in which the Bible does this in your Christian life! Firstly, the Bible also equips you for doing battle with Satan and resisting temptation. Paul likened this believers’ spiritual armour to that used by Roman foot soldiers (Ephesians 6:11-17). In Paul’s pen-picture here, the Bible is compared to a soldier’s sword. A sword is not only used to defend, but also used to attack. Jesus defended Himself from satan’s attack by using Scripture to show the devil how wrong he was (Matthew 4:3-4). Secondly, is that the Bible equips, and is useful for, evangelism and pointing others to Jesus Christ. In Acts 8 we read that the Ethiopian was puzzled by Isaiah 53. It was in explaining about that, that Philip could talk to him about Jesus Christ and bring him to faith. (It is also thought by some that he was responsible for starting

John's Story "Feeling on the path to nowhere but there is a light at the end." Today our testimony is from John... John is 32 years old, lives in the UK with his wife Nicole and has learning difficulties and epilepsy due to Tuberous Sclerosis... Play or download the mp3 file to hear how John came into a dynamic relationship with God because of Jesus Christ. John - a 21st century Christian because of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Why not make a comment below to encourage John? Right mouse click to save/download this testimony as a MP3 file   You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!

Developing Intimacy With God 5. Keys To Understanding The Bible You may well be asking a particular question by now. Just how does God the Holy Spirit illuminate the Bible to you. What is it that the Holy Spirit uses to help make the Bible easier to understand? The answer is prayer. Pray and ask that the Holy Spirit will help you as you read. That is a major part of his role in your life as a believer. He will use the Bible to enlighten and illuminate your mind, heart and will as you seek to be obedient to the Lord. Remember the Bible is inerrant and infallible. That is, it does not mislead in matters of faith and practice. It does not contain errors or mistakes in its original form. It is the Bible that God intended us to have. God speaks through it so it is totally trustworthy. That statement strictly speaking, only applies to the original manuscripts and languages. Because of that, we are to maintain the Bible as our final authority over all things. We can do this because if any part of the Bible a

Psalm 22 (as read by Kathrine D) For the Chief Musician; set to “The Doe of the Morning.” A Psalm by David. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning? My God, I cry in the daytime, but you don’t answer; in the night season, and am not silent. But you are holy, you who inhabit the praises of Israel.   Our fathers trusted in you. They trusted, and you delivered them. They cried to you, and were delivered. They trusted in you, and were not disappointed. But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised by the people. All those who see me mock me. They insult me with their lips. They shake their heads, saying,   “He trusts in Yahweh; let him deliver him. Let him rescue him, since he delights in him.” But you brought me out of the womb. You made me trust at my mother’s breasts. I was thrown on you from my mother’s womb. You are my God since my mother bore me. Don’t be far from me, for trouble is near. For there i

Developing Intimacy With God 4. God Speaks By Illumination   God has spoken and he has communicated his Written Word to us. Firstly, by revelation when God spoke to the writers. Secondly, through inspiration as the writers were divinely guided by God, in the process of writing his message. However, to understand God’s revealed and inspired message, illumination is required. This is where God causes the Bible to be understood by both the human heart and the mind. Why do we need illumination? Without illumination, the reader is blinded both by their own nature and by satan. Just as a light bulb needs power to give light, so the Bible needs somebody to provide the power! The person, who does this illuminating, is God the Holy Spirit. He was promised by Jesus to illuminate the Bible to the hearts and minds of all those people willing to listen, both Christian and non-Christian. Take for example the event recorded for us in Acts 2. This is where the Holy Spirit uses God’s Word to illuminate sinners at Pentec