Sermons on Simon On Cyrene:

The Word Became Flesh

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Dec 24, 2024

At the beginning of John's gospel John makes many striking claims about Jesus. One is that he was Logos, the word. Another is that he became flesh. Isn't 'the flesh' bad? Why did Jesus take on flesh? And should we do anything?

At Christmas, Christians think of the fact that Jesus, though he was God, became man. But John expresses things differently. Rather than saying that God became man, John tells us that THE WORD – in Greek, Logos – became FLESH. John starts his gospel by talking about ‘Logos’ – the word. John ...read more

Scripture: John 1:14

Denomination: Baptist

A Storm Called Fear

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jan 4, 2025

Fear is one of the most common things Christians have to face. We need to distinguish between the enemy or danger and the fear that the enemy or danger produces, and know how to deal with the fear.

INTRODUCTION Today is the first Sunday of 2025. Happy New Year! I thought that at the start of the year I would review a couple of the most basic aspects of Christian life. I have given the title of today’s talk, ‘A storm called fear.’ It’s about fear, worry and anxiety. Next Sunday, we’re ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 64:1, Isaiah 41:10

Denomination: Baptist

Going The Wrong Way - Faster

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jan 25, 2025

We look at some recent news items about global warming. The world is going the wrong way - faster. How should we respond?

Today, we’re continuing in the series we started last week, looking at items that have been in the news recently and thinking about how we respond to them as Christians. This week, we’re going to look at some items that have been in the news recently, related to global warming. I’ve titled this ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 24:1-4, Revelation 9:4, Revelation 11:18

Denomination: Baptist

Camels And Needles

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Feb 8, 2025

Jesus said that it is harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. Totally impossible - and yet, not for God. We explore the idea in a children's / family service with the help of some glass ships in glass bottles.

THIS WAS A TALK FOR A FAMILY SERVICE, GIVEN IN THREE PARTS. PART 1: A glass ship in a glass bottle Perhaps you have a jug at home that’s made of Pyrex. [EXAMPLE.] This kind of jug can withstand high temperatures. You can put it in the oven and you can put it in the freezer. That’s because it’s ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:16-26

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 Last Three 'fruit Of The Spirit': Faithfulness, Gentleness And Self-Control

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Aug 5, 2023

How can we be more like God? By demonstrating God's character. We look at three more wonderful qualities of God that the Holy Spirit wants to produce in us.

INTRODUCTION Today, we’re having the last in our series on the Fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5. We’re going to look at the last three fruit in Paul’s list: faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I thought I’d do something a bit different to usual today. I’m going to look at three true ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23

Denomination: Baptist

Saul's Conversion Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Aug 27, 2023

Saul's conversion shows us that God can reach anyone and change anyone. Ananias' acceptance of Saul is a wonderful example. And Paul's reflection on the event reminds us of just how important it is to be baptized.

I don’t often think about Nottingham. I can’t remember ever visiting it. It’s 200 miles away and we haven’t had reason to go there. But Nottingham is an up-and-coming city. A few years ago, The Times newspaper named it as the most improved city in its survey of the best places to live. ...read more

Scripture: Acts 9:1-19

Denomination: Baptist

The First People The Church Sent Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Sep 2, 2023

Jesus sent his disciples out on mission. But Acts 13 is the first time THE CHURCH sent people out on mission. They were Barnabas and Saul. It wasn't all plain sailing. But it was still totally worthwhile.

INTRODUCTION / LEAD IN I wonder if you’ve read The Lord of the Rings. In the first volume, The Fellowship of the Ring, Bilbo Baggins throws a party. Then, he suddenly vanishes! Gandalf the wizard knows how he’s done it: Bilbo has a ring with very special power, a ring that is gradually gaining ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

God's Power At Work Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Sep 18, 2023

Luke starts Acts with, 'In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus BEGAN to do and teach...' Now he's going to talk about what Jesus CONTINUED to do. In Acts 16 we have a great example of Jesus witnessing to himself - and Paul and Silas fitting in.

Acts 16 God’s power at work Let’s suppose you hear God speaking to you, telling you to do something. You do what God tells you. But then, within a short time, the situation looks a complete mess. What would you think? Did you hear wrong? Has God let you down? Let’s suppose God calls you to ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

What Motivated Paul Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Sep 23, 2023

Paul was extraordinarily determined to take the gospel to the Gentile world. He was full of passion and drive. He got knocked down but he got up and kept going. Why? What motivated him?

WHAT MOTIVATED PAUL We live in a world where a lot of people don’t believe in God. But not only that, many people who do believe in God are not exactly passionate about telling those who don’t believe in God about him. What will motivate us to tell people about Jesus? That’s our subject ...read more

Scripture: Acts 17:16-21

Denomination: Baptist

Jesus On Adultery And Lust

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Feb 10, 2024

Jesus teaches on lust. It isn't something preachers generally like to speak about but it's really important. Jesus shows how God's commandment on adultery needs to be practised and he tells us how we can do it.

Western society is completely comfortable talking about sex. Most people think a lot about sex. Especially men. The Bible talks a lot about sex too. Most preachers, however, do not like to talk about sex. When preachers preach on the Sermon on the Mount, they talk about the Beatitudes. There ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:27-30

Denomination: Baptist

Paul’s Charge To The Ephesian Elders Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Oct 14, 2023

Paul sees the elders of the Ephesian church for the last time. He gives them a charge: 'Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock.' It's a message the church needs to hear today.

Today’s passage has a lot to tell us about the job of a minister or pastor or elder. Maybe you think, ‘I’m not a minister or pastor or elder. This doesn’t apply to me’! But all of us have responsibilities towards other people. This passage has something to say to all of us. Before I get ...read more

Scripture: Acts 20:17-38

Denomination: Baptist