The Semper Reformata Podcast

TableTalk - “Oh God of Bethel”Genesis 28:12-13.Table-Talk, for Tuesday 7th April 2026,Jacob is away from home - for the first time, and alone in the dark. He lay down to rest after a long arduous journey, tired and weary, down on the cold ground V11 He was sleeping on stones - hardly conducive to a good night’s sleep, never mind sweet dreams - YET, despite Jacob’s discomfort that night, he dreamed, and what a dream it was!In this episode, we shall learn:-What Jacob SawWhat Jacob HeardHow Jacob Reacted.Read the notes HERE.

The Risen Saviour John 20:19-28Recorded on the day that the church celebrates the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. We stress that we do this as a remembrance of an historical event. We believe and teach that the resurrection of Jesus is a physical, historical, bodily resurrection, In this short lesson, recorded live at Bay;lymacashon, we consider the procedures of Christ's resurrection, and think about how that will impact the future of believers in Him.Listen and Learn with us.

The Resurrection of the Body1st Corinthians 15A SPECIAL GUEST EPISODEFeaturing a sermon by Rev George Speers of Ballynahinch, and preached at Ballymacashon on Easter Sunday, 5th April 2026.Recorded Live.

Suffering and PersecutionIt is proof that you belong to Him and is a tool to develop your Christian faith! 2 Thessalonians 1:4-5, Acts 17:1 The Thessalonians are suffering greatly because of their Christian profession. Paul writes, “…we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, 5 which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; These verses are by no means easy to understand. Cf 2 Peter 3:15-16. But that’s what we are going to attempt in this study; how Christians think about times of suffering and persecution...Recorded live at Ballymacashon Church, Killinchy, Co.Down, Northern Ireland BT24 6RNRead the NOTES HERE.

A Growing Faith2nd Thessalonians 1:1-5Paul must write again to the Thessalonians. Since sending his first letter, he has received further reports about the local church at Thessalonica. It came with good news and bad. The good news was that the congregation there were continuing to grow in their faith and trust in God and in their love for Him and for one another, a cause for thanksgiving indeed. But there was a downside to the life of the church. There was cause for concern as far as doctrine and the Christian Life – the behaviour of the local saints, was concerned. This related to two particular issues:-The doctrine of the Lord’s return and the end times. The importance of working for one’s living. Listen and learn together.Read the NOTES HERE. Recorded LIVE at Ballymacashon.

Paul at ThessalonicaActs 17:1-10aWe are moving on from 1st Thessalonians to 2nd Thessalonians, - but before we do, it might be a good idea to reprise this episode from 2021, where we learn about Paul's visit to Thessalonica, the establishment of the local church there, and the reaction it provoked. This is important, because the opposition and persecution and suffering that began at that time continued, and that's what Paul deals with in 2nd Thessalonians chapter one.So, listen to this 'old gold retold' before you begin to learn about the book of 2nd Thessalonians.And you can read the NOTES HERE.Oh, and for the record, - this episode was recorded at Templepatrick Reformed Church, Carnage Road, Templepatrick, Northern Ireland, and is used here with their very kind permission.

The Great Deception. Genesis 27:1, to Genesis 28:5.We’re still looking at the life of Jacob, the son of Isaac and we’ve already considered, briefly, his birth, and his character and how he struck a deal with his brother Esau, to deprive him of what was rightly his, his birthright. But still, old Isaac, had to be persuaded to go along with the new family dynamic Jacob had just engineered. But how? That would require an act of cunning - a great deal of deceit. There were one or two factors that were in Jacob’s favour. Number one was his mother - Rebekah. Jacob was Rebekah’s golden boy and in her eyes, Jacob could do no wrong. Genesis 25:28 Mummy would help for sure. The second fortuitous circumstance was that in his latter years, old Isaac had devastating sight loss… Circumstances converged and a plot was hatched…Read the NOTES HERE.

The Nature of Our Fellowship in Christ.READ 1 Thessalonians 5:25-28Paul must bring this letter to a close, and he does so by summarising what Christian fellowship looks like:-Fellowship is SupportiveFellowship is SincereFellowship is Scipture-based,Read the NOTES here.This sermon was recorded live at Ballymacashon Old Reformed Church, (Congregational) 78 Saintfield RoadKillinchyCo Down,BT23 6RN

Who Was Jacob? #1 A Mess of PotageGenesis 25:19-34Let’s learn about Jacob. Jacob is the third of the three great Old Testament Patriarchs. - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - and the story of his life takes up a vast amount of ink on the pages of Genesis. We shall look at his life over two episodes, but even then we will only skim the surface of the narrative. In this lesson, we’ll briefly see the circumstances of his birth, his relationship with Esau and the ‘mess of potage.’ So keep your Bible open at Genesis 25 and let’s get started…Read the NOTES HERE.Can you help to keep the podcast going? We will soon have to pay our annual fees to Acast and Wordpress. Even the smallest donation can help. Respond by clicking this link:DONATE