All Gospel No Germs

Jean-Louis Péchèr, Planting Curate at St Luke's Holbeck, preached on Matthew 10:40-42 on Sunday 28 June 2020. The reading was given by Jade Belton.

In this sermon, Jean-Louis speaks of the Missio Dei (the Mission of God) to make his love known to the world. We're called to continue the mission of Jesus - as he was sent, so we are too. As we have love poured into our hearts, so we are to pour love on a waiting world.

But if I want to embrace this mission, I need to be known as a disciple of Jesus. How will people know that I am a disciple?

Rolf spends time offer some additional reflections on Alistair's sermon from Matthew 10:24-39. Rolf explains where the passage appears, coming as it does after Matthew 9 and its focus on Jesus healing and teaching ministry, and then the opening of Matthew 10 when Jesus selects his 12 disciples who he promptly sends out to the lost sheep.

Rolf considers the way that Jesus doesn't cover up or airbrush away the pains and challenges of being a Christian, drawing on the example of advertisements for the army.

And while there is challenge, the passage also points to the promise of being known and loved by God.

Alistair Kaye, Vicar of St Luke's Holbeck preached on Matthew 10:24-39 on Sunday 21 June 2020. In this sermon Al wants to encourage each and every one of us to trust that, though there is challenges when following Jesus, we are all, individually, called, known and empowered by God. Being a disciple is an adventure with God. The reader is Liz Pennington.

Jean-Louis Péchèr, Planting Curate at St Luke's, preaches on Matthew 5:33-48 on Sunday 14 June 2020. Jean-Louis speaks about the sermons that have preceded this Sunday - over a few months from Easter we've been hearing about the goodness and grace of God. But we think today about our behaviour as God's children - the call to follow the Family Values. Jean-Louis encourages us to inconvenience ourselves for the sake of others. How are we to make a difference in the world? By pursuing our holy and loving Jesus. The reading is given by Barbara Hardy.

Barbara Hardy, Reader at St Luke's,  preaches on Matthew 28:16-20 on Sunday 7 June 2020, which was Trinity Sunday. This is often seen as the sermon preachers want to avoid, but Barbara (on limited time due to the online nature of the sermon) delivers a brilliant summary of the different aspects of the three persons of the Trinity. Barbara turns to Paul's prayer of blessing in 2 Corinthians 13 and elaborates on how God is grace, love and fellowship - the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The reading was given by Sue Richardson.

Barbara, Emily and Josh chat about Rolf's sermon from 31 May, Pentecost. The reading was Acts 2:1-21 with lots of fun place names and races! This discussion came amidst the protests and demonstrations across the world in response to the murder of George Floyd, which Rolf picked up in his sermon. After Emily offers a summary of the sermon the team consider the need to be one in Christ, the way crowds are seen by Jesus, how they've made connections to other Christians in the past, what Jesus might do in the current climate, and the real focus of Pentecost - is it about Jesus or the Holy Spirit. The team are honest about the fact that though St Luke's is a diverse church the three contributors are all white and therefore their contribution to the wider debate around race is limited, though it does open up an opportunity to listen, to learn and prayerfully consider what ways we can intervene.

Rolf Mason, Curate at St Luke's, preaches on Pentecost 2020, 31 May, based on the reading from Acts 2:1-21. This sermon came amidst the protests and riots in the USA, which had begun to spread to other countries. The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis has been described as murder. This sermon picks up the universal nature of the gospel - the Holy Spirit, the spirit of Jesus, was poured out on all people. There is no place for racism in the church or amongst Christians. Pentecost is also a day chosen by God because of its relationship to harvest and the law - things Jesus talked about.

The service also included a self-penned monologue by our Reader, Barbara Hardy, read from the perspective of Peter. 

Alistair Kaye, Vicar of St Luke's, preaches on John 17:9-11,20-23 on the seventh Sunday of Easter. This is the Sunday between Ascension Day (Thursday 21 May) and Pentecost (31 May). Al preached this on Sunday 24 May 2020. He had asked children from St Luke's to send in pictures of the disciples which had been shown on a slideshow as part of our online service. Alistair preaches about unity and the way God calls us into his family. He reflects on Jesus' prayer in John 17 and the strange fact he doesn't ask for his followers to agree but to be united in love. He goes on to explore the place of prayer in our life together. The reading is by Olu Adenkule.

Rolf Mason, Curate at St Luke's, preaches on John 14:15-21 on Sunday 17 May 2020. He examines the way Jesus addresses our sense of hopelessness and fear. He also notes that thought this is taken from the teaching Jesus gives on the last night of his life, he chooses to teach the disciples about the nature of God - that God is Trinity. Within this there is the theme of Ascension too, where Jesus refers to returning to his Father - from where he will ask for the Spirit to be poured on us. The reading is given by Barbara Hardy.

Barbara Hardy, Reader at St Luke's, preaches on John 10:1-11 on Sunday 3 May 2020. She explores the role and importance of being a Shepherd, but also suggests that in this season of lockdown we can also be comforted by the knowledge that Jesus is not just shepherd but also a sheep. Josh Barwick reads the passage for us.

Alistair Kaye preaches on Luke 24:13-35, focusing on verse 27 on Sunday 26 April 2020. In this sermon Al suggests some questions to ponder and the importance of Scripture. The passage is read to us by Barbara Hardy.

Josh, Emily and Barbara discuss Rolf's sermon from 19 April. The reading was John 20:19-31 and in his sermon Rolf spoke about Jesus as the one who brings life, bears scars and breathes peace. This discussion explores these ideas and the practical outworking of seeking the Peace of Christ.

Jean-Louis Péchèr preaches on Matthew 28:1-10 on Easter Sunday, 12 April 2020, while the church remained in shutdown amidst the Coronavirus pandemic.

In this episode Emily, Josh and Rolf discuss the story from John 11 of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. In the current pandemic crisis, the trio focus on the experiences and characters of Martha and Mary as they face the shock and sorrow of their brother's death.

In the conversation they consider:

• How they are (0:00)
• the sermon and the passage (1:11)
• the crisis we're in and how it relates: how do we keep faith? (6:17)
• the honesty of the Bible: raw emotions and responses to grief (8:34)
• Jesus response and our response (16:22)
• what impact this passage has on our lives (23:09)

The podcast ends with Emily praying for us (25:42)

The sermon preached by Alistair Kaye on Sunday 29 March 2020

Reading is John 11:17-27, 38-44

In this sermon, Al considers the power of life, even in the face of death and uncertainty. Jesus responds to the request of friends to heal his friend, Lazarus, in the most unexpected way, declaring that he is the resurrection and the life.

In our first full podcast we consider the story of Jesus healing the blind man in John 9.

In our discussion, Rolf, Emily and Josh considered:

• what this podcast is for (1:06)
• Jesus' openness to questions and our inquisitiveness (7:08)
• Jesus attitude to sin in society (12:18)
• Jesus transforms the man but doesn't make his life free from pain (13:40)
• where is the place for healing today and what moral questions might this raise (17:02)
• the man's response is worship in response to the revelation of God's power (20:40)
• practical ideas for how we might pray with more confidence (25:57)

The discussion ends with each person sharing a few prayer requests

Josh closes the podcast off with a prayer

Who are we?

What is the purpose of All Gospel No Germs?

Why have we started this podcast?

How can you get in touch?

The trailer for a new podcast from St Luke's Church, Holbeck.

Trying to figure out what we're doing. A short summary of what we're trying to do!

Welcome to All Gospel No Germs, the podcast for St Luke's Church, Holbeck in Leeds.