New Creation Church Loughborough

How can we avoid becoming "CINO" - Charismatic In Name Only? We need to stir ourselves afresh to flow together in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, seeking each other's good, not our own glory.

So much has been written about the infamous 1000 years of Revelation 20:1-10. But what does it mean, and how does it help us today? Far from scaring us, this passage should be a tremendous encouragement, producing confidence in the power of the gospel and the authority of the believer in Christ, assuring us of God's victory (and ours), and providing reassurance to persevere, knowing that the struggles we presently face will one day come to an end.

It is easy to lose the sense of God's abiding presence - not that he leaves us, but we can crowd him out or forget he is personally with us. But God is calling you to another level, where you live in the unbroken sense of his intimate presence. The Holy Spirit then will not be merely an occasional influcence, but an abiding comforter and guide, and you will experience not just the visitation but the ongoing habitation of God in you.

Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice" (John 10:27). You can listen to the voice of Jesus! But he also wants to hear your voice. The way this works best is when you thoroughly devote yourself to him. In this message, Samantha suggests four ways we can all do this - through prayer, by being devoted to other people, by earnestly desiring spiritual gifts, and by pressing on regardless of the cost, not out of duty, but out of devotion to God.

We need a touch from Jesus that enables us to see clearly with the eyes of our spirit, to discern good from evil, to distinguish the positive from the negative, the healthy from the unhealthy. The gift of discernment is so important for living and serving God in a noisy and contested world. Like the blind man in Mark 8:22-26, we may need more than one touch to be able to see everything clearly. So, ask Jesus for his touch today on your spiritual eyesight!

If you are a follower of Jesus, you have been invited to his marriage ceremony! Revelation chapter 19 tells us that a great and glorious wedding supper awaits, when his Bride (the Church) and Jesus, the heavenly Bridegroom, will be forever united on his return to earth in glory. But there is another supper mentioned in the same chapter of Revelation - and that one you do NOT want to attend!

"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost," (Luke 19:10). Jesus loves people, and wants them to be saved, restored and released into their role in preparing for the coming New Creation. Do you feel the heart of God, his compassion for people? Ask him to make it real to you, then begin to listen to people's backstory and find creative ways to "disciple" them - leading them towards the Saviour and the Good Shepherd, even before they believe in him.

More than two chapters in the book of Revelation are devoted to the fall of "Babylon". Why so much emphasis, and what does it mean for us? Learn to recognise and resist the enticing and intoxicating pull of the anti-God world, so you can praise God for his victory and join in the celebration when what currently stands against you one day comes crashing down.