Sermons on Simon On Cyrene:

The Gospel. Part 4: What Happens If We Reject Jesus?

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Nov 24, 2020

Without Jesus in our lives, sin takes hold; weeds start to grow up in the garden of our lives. But the consequences for eternity are much more serious. However, does scripture really lead us to expect the 'pains of hell for ever'?

Please note. The passage for this talk is Matthew 25:31-46, however the main focus of the talk is v.46. Part 4: What happens if we reject Jesus? Today we have the fourth and last talk in my series on the gospel. We’re thinking about the question, ‘What happens if we reject Jesus?’ Quite a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:31-46, Matthew 25:46

Denomination: Baptist

Christmas: Reason To Hope

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Nov 28, 2020

Simeon hoped to see the messiah before he died and he did. His story teaches us something about why we hope and how to hope.

We’ve just sung that great song by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend, ‘In Christ alone my hope is found.’ That’s quite a declaration! Getty wrote the music and Townend wrote the words. Townend isn’t merely saying that Jesus is A source of HOPE. He’s saying that Jesus is the ONLY source of hope! ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:22-35

Denomination: Baptist

Jesus, Prince Of Peace

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Dec 5, 2020

Peace is central to Christmas. Jesus came to heal the age-old fracture and bring us peace with God and he's the only one who can.

What does Christmas mean to you? What do you like best about Christmas? Spending time with family and friends? Christmas trees? Turkey roasts? Christmas puddings and brandy butter? Stockings? Santa? Presents? Carols? A season of goodwill when we put past hurts aside? I certainly like all ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:8-10, Isaiah 9:6-7, John 14:27, Luke 2:29-30, Luke 2:14, Luke 12:50-52, John 16:32-33  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

The Siege Of Jerusalem

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Feb 1, 2022

We probably don't like to think about God's justice. The siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, in A.D. 70, forces us to. In this event we see God's justice but we also see that God protected his people in a time of wrath.

Note: this was a talk I gave to a small afternoon congregation. I wouldn’t give it in our main morning service. INTRODUCTION We’re presently following the theme of discipleship, picking up some of the big things that are part of being a follower of Jesus. But it’s good to have some variety so ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 21:33-41, Luke 19:41-44, Luke 21:2-24

Denomination: Baptist

You Can Resist A Lion Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Feb 12, 2022

We may imagine that we could never resist a lion. But lions will cross our path and Peter tells us to resist them.

[N.B. Earlier in the service we had a short presentation on Rosa Parks.] Today we’re continuing our series of ‘Great Messages of Encouragement’. We’ve had four talks so far. We’ve remembered that God will be with us. That he will strengthen those who wait on him. That there’s a glory to come ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:8-11

Denomination: Baptist

God Restores Elijah / The Heart Of The Problem

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Aug 15, 2020

To help Elijah out of his depression God needs to reach a point where Elijah is willing to listen to him. He then needs to resolve Elijah's sense of failure and hopelessness. We see how God did that.

1 KINGS 19, GOD RESTORES ELIJAH INTRODUCTION Today we’re returning to the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19. 1 Kings 18 tells us about Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. In 1 Kings 19, we find that Elijah has become very depressed. He thinks he’s a failure, but God ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

God Heals Naaman

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Aug 23, 2020

The story of God healing Naaman is full of lessons, for example, about opportunity, courtesy, humility, and greed. But the key message must be the one Jesus drew from it. That is, that if we wish to see God's miracles, we must accept his word.

NAAMAN’S HEALING We’re continuing in our series ‘Bible Stories for Grown-Ups.’ Today we’re looking at one of the most famous stories in the Book of Kings. It’s the story of the healing of the Syrian general, Naaman. It’s a great story for Sunday School, because one of the key characters is a ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

God Saves Jonah, Nineveh, And Us.

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Aug 29, 2020

The story of Jonah tells the story of God rescuing Jonah, not FROM a whale, but BY a whale. It tells of God reaching out to one of the cruellest people in history, the Assyrians. And it prefigures the story of God reaching out to us, through Christ.

GOD SAVES JONAH, NINEVEH, AND US We’re in a series ‘Bible Stories for Grown-Ups.’ Today, we’re looking at the story of Jonah. I’m going to assume most of us are fairly familiar with the story of Jonah and not spend time revisiting it. I’m going to look at the story under three headings: the ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

God's Great Compassion

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Jun 19, 2021

Jesus calls us to be merciful as God is merciful, and in the way God acted towards the people of Nineveh, he set the bar very high. The Assyrians were among the cruellest people in history.

INTRODUCTION Jonah is one of the shortest books in the Bible. It’s just 48 verses long. That’s shorter than a lot of chapters in the New Testament. Because it’s such a short book, when Bible translators begin work translating the Bible into other languages they’ll often start with Jonah. They ...read more

Scripture: Jonah 1:1-3

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

Joy To The World

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Dec 12, 2020

The angel proclaimed ‘good news of great joy.’ Sounds great! But what exactly is this good news? What kind of joy should we experience? Do you have that joy?

In the lead-up to Christmas this year we’re focusing on four great themes: hope, peace, joy and love. Many churches have Advent candles and they associate these four themes with the first four Advent candles. The fifth candle is for Jesus. The last two Sundays we looked at hope and peace; today ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:8-11, Luke 2:23, Luke 1:50, Luke 1:54, Luke 1:72, Luke 1:76-78  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

In God's Throne Room Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Sep 22, 2022

A time will come when God will convene his court and pass judgement on the world. Justice will be done. God, in acting justly, will be glorified. Satan’s dominion will be destroyed, and the saints will possess the kingdom. It starts in a court room.

INTRODUCTION Revelation is a difficult book. We can’t deny that. The fact that it’s difficult might put us off reading it. But as well as being difficult, many Christians don’t like Revelation’s message. Among other things, it talks about tribulation and wrath and judgment. Other parts of the ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Talk 2. The Great Tribulation Series

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Sep 22, 2022

In the days before his crucifixion Jesus warned his disciples of what lay ahead. Here in Revelation, Jesus warns us of what lies ahead. The Great Tribulation will be painful. But it is a step on the way to a glorious future. Our task will be to remain faithful.

In Revelation 7, John sees ‘a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

What The Angel Told The Shepherds

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Dec 6, 2025

Do you believe that Jesus’ birth is ‘good news of great joy’? When we hear about some offer, we often subconsciously ask three questions. ‘Is it good?’ ‘Is it true?’ And, if it is good and true, ‘What should I do? We ask what Jesus' birth means.

At the time of Jesus’ birth, there were some shepherds out in the field, watching their flock in the night. An angel appeared to them and told them: ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David A ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-11

Denomination: Baptist

A Gift For Jesus

Contributed by Simon Bartlett on Dec 13, 2025

At Christmas, we celebrate Jesus's birthday. He gave US a great gift! What was it? And what gift would he like from us?

This was the talk for our 2025 carol service. The children would stay in, and it needed to be a maximum of ten minutes. On a particular day every year, my family makes a big fuss of me. They blow up balloons. They get a cake and put some candles on it. They sing a song. They give me cards. They ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:10-11, Mark 10:45

Denomination: Baptist