Sermons on Menno Simons:

The Eighth And Ninth Beatitudes Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Mar 26, 2022

Like it or not, being persecuted is in Jesus' list of the characteristics of the Christian. If we follow Jesus, it's inevitable that we'll be persecuted. But the persecution proves the genuiness of our faith. And it leads to great reward.

Jesus starts the Sermon on the Mount with nine Beatitudes – sayings that start ‘Blessed are’. Jesus wants us to be blessed – meaning, happy or fortunate. In the Beatitudes, Jesus presents us with the key characteristics of the Christian. Some people have said they’re the blueprint of the ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:10-12

Denomination: Baptist

Ackowledge Your King Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Apr 10, 2022

Palm Sunday reminds us that the message of the cross, the message of salvation, must be set in the context of Jesus being king. And we must recognize Jesus as the king he is, not the king we might like him to be.

In a typical year about 3.5 million people visit Jerusalem. It’s one of the most historic cities in the world. It has been continuously inhabited since about 1,800 B.C. So it’s been worth visiting for a VERY long time! But in the time of Jesus, there were certain times of the year when Jews had ...read more

Scripture: John 12:12-16

Denomination: Baptist

Maundy Thursday Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Apr 14, 2022

Maundy Thursday reminds us of Jesus 'mandate' - his new commandment. Not just to love one another, but to love one another as he has loved us. It can be humiliating, demeaning and messy. But it brings blessing.

The Friday when Jesus was crucified is called Good Friday. On Good Friday we remember that Jesus offered himself as the final, complete sacrifice for our sins, freeing us from a slavery we could never have freed ourselves from. The day before Good Friday is called Maundy Thursday. That Thursday, ...read more

Scripture: John 13:34, John 13:14-15, John 13:17

Denomination: Baptist

Stand Firm And Work Hard Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Apr 16, 2022

'Stand firm and work hard' might seem a very strange Easter message. But it's Paul's key message in 1 Corinthians 15 - the longest passage on the resurrection in the Bible. The resurrection gives us hope - and that hope gives us reason to stand firm and work hard.

Easter Sunday is the day when we celebrate the fact that God raised Jesus from death. When I say WE celebrate the fact that God raised Jesus from the dead, I mean, WE IN THIS CHURCH celebrate it. Clearly, a lot of other people DON'T celebrate it. A few years ago the Daily Telegraph conducted ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, 1 Corinthians 15:58, 1 Peter 1:3

Denomination: Baptist

How To Stand Firm

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Oct 24, 2021

Paul's key charge to Timothy in his letter is to stand firm for the gospel. In chapters 1 and 2 he's focused on why we should stand firm. In chapter 3, he gives attention to the how.

[SLIDE] I’d like to start today’s talk by showing you a picture. There is a crowd, going one way, and there is a man going the opposite way. The crowd aren’t giving him a hard time; it’s all quite peaceful. In the Christian life, we sometimes have to go against the majority. Quite often, in ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Preach The Word

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Nov 1, 2021

Paul gives Timothy one of the most solemn injunctions in scripture: 'preach the word'. He is talking about preaching God's word to God's people rather than sharing the gospel with people outside the church. It's a solemn message to us too, to hold fast to God's word.

INTRODUCTION (EARLIER IN THE SERVICE) Today is our last week on 2 Timothy. Over the past three weeks we’ve looked at chapters 1 to 3. Today, we move on to chapter 4 – the last chapter in 2 Timothy. I’m going to do a short recap on what we’ve looked at so far before we turn to chapter 4 later in ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:1-8

Denomination: Baptist

Remembering God

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Nov 13, 2021

On Remembrance Sunday we remember conflicts and we remember members of the armed forces who gave their lives. But above all, we need to remember God.

Talk for Remembrance Sunday, 14 November 2021 Today is Remembrance Sunday. In the UK we observe Remembrance DAY on the 11th of November and we observe Remembrance SUNDAY on the second Sunday in November. On both of those days we REMEMBER members of the armed forces who gave their lives in the ...read more

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 20:1-9

Denomination: Baptist

The King Long-Awaited Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Nov 27, 2021

Old Testament prophecies build our faith that Jesus is really God's anointed. We look at prophecies which give us the where, when and who of Jesus' birth.

Today we’re starting our Christmas series of talks. I’ve given the series the title ‘NOT YOUR USUAL KING’. After Jesus was born, magi – astrologers – came from the east to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is he who has been born KING OF THE JEWS?’ [Matthew 2:2]. After the magi found Jesus, ‘they fell ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 9:6-7, Daniel 9:25-26, Micah 5:2

Denomination: Baptist

What King Is Announced By A Star? Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Dec 4, 2021

Stars cause us to wonder. What was the star that appeared when Jesus was born? Was it a comet from a remote part of the solar system which happened to arrive at just the right time? Or was the universe itself acknowledging the coming of its creator and king?

Last Sunday we started our Christmas series of talks. I’ve given the series the title ‘NOT YOUR USUAL KING’. There are lots of ways in which Jesus is NOT your usual king. Last week we looked at some prophecies in the Old Testament that gave us the when, where and who of Jesus’ birth. No king ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12

Denomination: Baptist

2 A Cup Of Coffee

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jan 28, 2020

Jesus sees what we’re doing; he values our service to him, even in things that might seem very small to us; and he will reward our service.

A cup of coffee *** Background: my second service as minister; the interim minister is leaving. At the start of the service I make a cappuccino coffee and cut a piece of cake. I invite Jo, the church secretary, to come to the front and then serve the coffee and cake, explaining that it is a ...read more

Scripture: Mark 12:41-44, Luke 12:35-37

Denomination: Baptist

3 The Good Samaritan, Part 2

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jan 30, 2020

The lawyer asks, 'Who is my neighbour?' We should not take 'neighbour' to include everyone! But Jesus' parable warns us against excluding people from the group of people we regard as 'neighbour'.

3 The Good Samaritan, Part 2 Note: this talk is the continuation of ‘1 The Good Samaritan, Part 1’, which is also available on Sermon Central. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the expert in the law in the story had two questions. His first question was, ‘What must I do to inherit eternal ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

Denomination: Baptist

4 The Parable Of The Talents

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jan 30, 2020

What does this parable mean? Who is the man with the servants who goes on a journey? What are the talents he gives his servants? And how does the parable apply to us?

Matthew 25:14-30 What does this parable mean? Who is the man with the servants who goes on a journey? What are the talents he gives his servants? And how does the parable apply to us? What does the parable mean? An important rule when we’re looking at Scripture is to look at the context. ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:14-30

Denomination: Baptist

5. Is Baptism Important?

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jan 30, 2020

We often don't give baptism the importance we should. We look at why baptism is important.

5 Is Baptism important? Mark 1:1-13 Mark's gospel starts with John the Baptist baptising and then goes straight onto Jesus being baptised. So, it’s natural to talk about baptism! Baptism is a somewhat controversial subject as different churches and denominations hold different views on ...read more

Scripture: Mark 1:1-12

Denomination: Baptist

6. The First Preacher And The First Sermon

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Feb 6, 2020

The message Jesus drew from the story of Noah is that his coming will be as unexpected as the flood was for the people of Noah’s day. But most people don't believe his coming will be like the flood.

6. The first preacher and the first sermon Sermon on 29 Sept 2019 PM, at Rosebery Park Baptist Church, Bournemouth, UK. According to the Bible, who was the world’s first preacher? And what was his sermon? The answer is Noah! We know Noah was a preacher from this verse in 2 Peter: ‘…if he did ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 24:36-39

Denomination: Baptist

The King Of Glory Comes In

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Sep 12, 2020

The earth is the Lord's. The Lord will return and enter our world as king of glory and mighty warrior. Ancient doors should lift up their heads in anticipation, and so should we.

Psalm 24 INTRODUCTION This month I’m going to take a look at three psalms: Psalms 24, 69 and 119. Today, we’ll look at Psalm 24. The words of the psalm are really moving: ‘Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in…’ We can ...read more

Denomination: Baptist