Together

Here at the Pentecostals of Sydney, one of our aims is to identify and clearly communicate who we are as a Church and what we do. The answers to these questions will govern how we see ourselves and how we operate, interact and behave as God’s Church. These aspects of behaviour, habits, customs and language all contribute to develop the culture of our Church and the key to establishing and sustaining such culture is understanding our vision and mission.

Our Vision Statement is: To be a Community of Apostolic Believers who are reaching the world through the love, message and power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our Mission Statement is our response as a Church to the commands of our Lord Jesus Christ to preach the Gospel and make disciples of all nations, which we have encapsulated in 3 words/headings.  

READY – To help get people ready for Heaven-going

SET – To make disciples of all nations through fellowship, teaching and involvement

GO – To release them for service and disciple making

We believe that this was what Jesus had tasked his Church to do and it is still the answer for a lost world today. This year our theme for POS is ‘Together’ based on the inspiration of how the early church began in Acts 2 and how they sustained growth and revival. They prayed together, worked, ate, preached, and lived together. In an age and culture where individuals are becoming more and more disconnected and alienated from true community and fellowship, we must be intentional about engaging in relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Not only is this essential for our individual and spiritual growth, it is crucial in our ability to reach as many unsaved people in our community and world at large. We are stronger together than we are apart. We are greater than the sum of our parts! I sincerely believe that when we become united, and pulling our efforts and resources together, we can make an indelible mark on the world in leading the lost to Christ, seeing lives changed, hearts mended and the broken healed and made whole. Together we can realise a spiritual awakening that our nation has never seen.

And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart. Acts 2:44-46 (NASB)

A New Decade

Welcome to a new month, a new year and a new decade. What an exciting prospect that we are now entering into a new decade. This is significant because history is often defined in decades. The decade exactly a hundred years ago was known as the roaring twenties, then the turbulent thirties, flying forties, fabulous fifties, swinging sixties, etc.

The last ten years has seen many social upheavals, with terrorism dominating the headlines but also some major challenges to the very fabric of society. There has been a redefinition, by society and government, as to what constitutes a marriage, the removal of personal responsibility for offences and emotional triggers as well as the false notion that personal preference, and not biology, determines sex and gender. All of this is underpinned by the prevailing world view that truth is not objective but relative. 

What may we be expecting in the next decade? I have a feeling it will be more of the same but potentially worsening. Whilst this may intimidate some, the Church of the living God must not retreat in fear or shame but rather it is an opportunity for us to stand in the power of God’s Word and be emboldened by the Spirit of God to declare the truth of God’s Word and the hope of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I am reminded of the request Elisha made to Elijah in 2 Kings 2:9, prior to the latter’s departure from his apprentice, that he would receive a double portion of his master’s spirit. Whilst Elijah was a powerful prophet that served God’s call in Israel, what Elisha would face as a prophet in his own right would need twice of Elijah’s spirit to meet the challenge of his day. It is of profound interest to note that Elisha did not ask for a double portion of power, miracles or revelation but rather the spirit of Elijah.

Whatever challenges we face in the new decade, let’s not necessarily pursue a double portion of power or ability but let’s get more of the Spirit of Christ dwelling within us. Let 2020 be a double portion year and decade of getting so close to God and being so filled with his burden, love and compassion for the lost, that courage and power will be sure to follow.

Simply Jesus

As the year hurries to a close, for many it signals relief and a break from what may have been a tough and tiring year. It is the festive season that so many of us enjoy since it’s a time of food, gifts and in this part of the world, summer holidays. People love Christmas for these reasons because they bring happiness. Who doesn’t love honey leg ham, prawns and trifle? And who doesn’t love gifts and reconnecting with family and friends?

We know that this season is more than just these physical and material enjoyments that bring us happiness, it is the knowledge of God coming into this world to bring us into his saving grace. It is about the Christ in Christmas! As I say that however, we can be easily misunderstood as being ‘Over-saved’ or super spiritual. Others may say that we are being spiritual ‘Scrooges’.

On the contrary. I think that God wants us to be happy. The pursuit of happiness is at the heart of our existence and it is the motivating factor to what we do, even responding to the Gospel, is driven by a desire to discover enduring happiness. Blaise Pascal said, "All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves.”

Thus it is perfectly acceptable to pursue happiness in your life but the most profound of differences is in the object of happiness. If you look for joy only in food, fun and festivities, it may give you some temporary semblance of enjoyment but it doesn’t last. It is fleeting. I am convinced, lasting and true happiness is not found in the ‘what’ but in the ‘who’. We were created first and foremost to have a relationship with God. To know Him and to have Him is to have joy. That regardless of our material situation if we have Jesus and He has us, then happiness will persist because our joy is not based on fleeting pleasures of this world but on our eternal connection with a loving Saviour. It is SIMPLY JESUS! Praise God and Joy to the World!

"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people." Luke 2:10

Top 5 Videos of 2019

This year we had our biggest year in the 10 years that we have been on YouTube. Our Channel celebrated a couple of milestones: We reached 2,000 subscribers and our videos crossed over the 400,000 views mark with over 150,000 views just this year!

It is exciting to see how God is using this avenue of spreading the Gospel to minister to people all over the world. Make sure to subscribe to the POSydney Channel to keep up with our latest videos and weekly sermons!

5. New Name Witten Down in Glory

4. Echo (In Jesus Name) [feat. Valerie Senico]

3. Can't Stop Praising His Name // I Gotta Praise

2. Overlooked Faith - Victor Jackson

1. You Could Be What God Is Looking For - Jeff Arnold | TP 1997

Answering Questions About Tithe.ly

Over the past few months we have been transitioning our credit card giving platform from Pushpay to Tithe.ly. We had a great partnership with Pushpay for almost 5 years and cannot recommend them highly enough for other churches. So, why the switch to Tithe.ly? There are a number of reasons for this move: Tithe.ly is integrated with the new POS Church App, Tithe.ly is also integrated with our new church software that we will be unveiling in January and Tithe.ly allows us to easily accept payments for church events.

Tithe.ly does operate a bit different than Pushpay, which many of you have been using for the past few years. With Pushpay we had to download the Pushpay App in order to give but with Tithe.ly all you need is the POS Church App and you can give through that. Pushpay could only process gifts from Visa or MasterCard customers whereas Tithe.ly processes gifts from those companies as well as Amex and Apple Pay, for iPhone users.

One major difference that has led to some confusion is the option that Tithe.ly gives to Cover Fees. This has caused some users to question whether they should use this system since it charges fees but Pushpay didn’t. The reality is that Pushpay charged fees as well but it was done on the backend. All credit card processors charge fees, how else would they make money as a company? Tithe.ly gives you the option (and we stress that it is just an option) to cover the fees for your gift, if you would like. We are aware that providing this service to our members comes as a cost to us and we are more than happy to pay that for service.

With Tithe.ly we are able to list a number of areas that you can give toward: Tithe, Offering, Overseas Missions, Home Missions or Other. If you would like your gift to go towards an area not listed, please select Other and then list where you would like it to go in the Note/Memo section. We will then make sure that your gift goes to the appropriate area that you have detailed.

As with all changes, our new online giving system will take some getting used to but we are excited for all the new ways it provides for us to exercise our generosity. Please do leave a comment or email us at info@posydney.org if you have any questions or concerns.

All Nations

This month as we celebrate the diversity and multicultural make up of the Church, we are reminded that despite some of these nuances and differences between different cultures, beneath it all we are all the same race - The human race.

Act 17:26 tells that God “hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation.”

Regardless of skin colour, language, facial or bodily features, scripture declares that we are of one blood, one man and one Creator. That places us in one family with all men. Unfortunately, we live in a world that is dominated by racial divides and tribalism that segregates one from another based on some of those surface differences. Violence and wars have covered the history of mankind mainly because man has used the distinctions as a point of conflict.

However, this was never God’s intention. At the heart of man’s conflict towards his fellow man is really the sin of hatred towards his brother. This was evident in the first family with Cain murdering his own brother Abel. Ever since, man has been tainted with the same nature and the cultural and racial differences seem to be the obvious choice by which they base their hatred. It is very easy to see the difference in someone’s language, cultural traits, habits and looks, and use that to ostracise and look down on someone.

In the same way that God made all nations of one blood, by the blood of Jesus Christ we are brought into God’s family and the sin nature in us that gives rise to prejudices and racism can be removed and replaced with a heart of love and acceptance for all. When God gives us a new nature by virtue of his Holy Spirit, the nature of hatred and arrogance is removed and we exercise compassion and empathy. We can love like Jesus loved because his great commission is to make disciples of All Nations (Matt 28:19).

Contentment vs Drive

As we conclude our Tension Theology series, we can reflect on the sheer volume of issues and principles in life that seem to be contradictory ideas but can in actual fact be maintained in tension. Many opposing views are not mutually exclusive but with maturity through understanding God’s Word and by the help of the Holy Spirit, we can learn that they are tensions to manage and not problems to solve.

One such tension is the idea of having contentment in life, yet dissatisfied with the present or a drive to seeing more.

In 1 Timothy 6:6, Paul writes that ‘Godliness with contentment is great gain’. Too often people get it the wrong way around; they think that great gain brings contentment and so they give themselves headlong in the pursuit of wealth believing it will bring happiness. If that becomes your perspective, happiness, or contentment, will never be found because there’s never enough money. We have to find contentment today regardless of our material disposition. Joy is knowing that even though things are not ideal in our lives yet we have Jesus with us at all times and will help us through every situation. We can thank God for every good and perfect gift that comes from him!

Yet, there ought to be a desire within us to seek for more. Firstly, more of God. Regardless of how long we’ve been walking with God, there is more to God that we have yet to discover and know. Paul declares “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” Romans 11:33.

Secondly, we should continue to pursue excellence in our service to God. Let’s not be satisfied with our level of achievement for His Kingdom but keep improving in our ministries, witness, teaching abilities and leadership. Once again the great Apostle declares in Philippians 3:14, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Let us hold in tension a godly contentment and a holy dissatisfaction, so that we may find peace in our lives but also realise our God given purpose.

Photo by Matt Howard on Unsplash

Introducing the POS Church App

It has been a few weeks since we released the brand-new POS Church App. It has been exciting getting some of the feedback from those of you who have already downloaded it and are using it!

If you are yet to download the app on your phone, here are some of the features you are missing out on.

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Weekly Sermons & Livestream

In the POS Church App you have easy access to our weekly sermons. You can listen to them or watch them on your phone. If you start listening to a sermon on your phone, you can exit out of the app, or allow your phone to go to sleep, and the sermon will continue to play! You have the ability to download the sermon so you can listen to it offline and you can easily share a life changing message with your friends and family.

It is also possible to follow all our services LIVE within the app by going to the ‘POS Live’ tab!

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Events & Special Events

For years our members have relied on a weekly or monthly handout to keep informed of all the events taking place at the POS each month. Now you are able to have ready access to everything that is happening at the POS throughout the year just by visiting the ‘Events’ tab in the app! Some events even include links for further information and maps to get you to the events that are not at the Church.

You will also be able to register for Special Events like Turning Point, Mother’s Day lunch or WOW31 events through the app.

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What We’re Listening To

We have created a playlist on Spotify specifically for the POS Church App! It will be consistently updated with the songs that we are praising and worshipping to at The Pentecostals of Sydney, including any new songs that we will be introducing to the congregation. Make sure to follow the playlist and enjoy the songs you worship to, throughout the week!

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Give

Over the past 4-5 years we have offered online giving as an option for you to give to the POS and the many missions objectives we support. We partnered with a company called Pushpay and in order to give on your phone, you needed to download the Pushpay App. It is a great app and it did make giving quick and easy but now giving with your mobile device is even easier. You are now able to give through the POS Church App. The process is very simple and secure and the best part is that you don’t have to download another app to do it!

There are many other great features that we haven’t highlighted here so we encourage you to download the new POS Church App and explore. It is our prayer that this new app is just another avenue for the Gospel to be spread all across Sydney, throughout Australia and around the World!

Celebrating 10 years Leading the POS

The month of August this year marks ten years for my wife Sis Robyn and I in our role officially as the Senior Pastors of the Pentecostals of Sydney. It seems unbelievable to think that this much time has already passed but I can truly say that we have been so blessed to be able to serve God’s Kingdom with some of the most beautiful people we have ever known.

While I am excited about the road ahead and the learning that awaits me personally, the last ten years have taught me some very valuable lessons. Firstly, I’ve come to realise that it’s God’s Church and not anybody else’s, and certainly not even the Pastor’s. Jesus said; “I will build ‘MY’ Church….” Matt 16:18. Further to that, God’s word declares that we are not our own but we’ve been bought with a price, purchased by His own blood. This took a profound weight off my shoulders to realise that I can only do what I can and short of living other people’s lives for them, I had to learn to let go of the uncontrollable’s.

This included seeing people walk away from God and be able to continue loving others with a sense of optimism and confidence that what we are doing for God matters, even if others don’t agree. I had to learn to hold things in tension. On one end there is the sense of genuine compassion and care for others that’s borne out of a love for God but on the other, learning not to take ownership of their lives, which is not mine to live. Another is to work hard and do all I can but at the same time, knowing that it’s God that brings the increase. Living for God successfully is about learning to hold what seems to be competing ideas in tension, while trusting God with all your heart.

One of the other crucial lessons I’ve learned is the need for fellowship and partnership with God’s people. ‘No man is an island’ is a common phrase you will hear me reiterate. And for good reason. Not only has God called us into a community, or family, of like minded believers for our own growth and benefit, but if we want to fulfil the will of God in reaching the multitude of lost people, we would be more capable achieving this, working as a team. To say we are blessed is an understatement, in describing the amazing ministers, leaders and saints that we have had the privilege of working along side with. Our destinies as the People of God are inextricably connected to each other and it is incumbent upon us to love one another, that all may know we are the disciples of Christ. Jesus taught and demonstrated to us in the Gospels that discipleship is done in a group.

To God be the glory for all the things that he has done through his people and we are excited about the lives that God will continue to impact through POS, and all the lessons we will learn along the way, for the next decade and beyond…..should the Lord tarry!

Moral Values

In an age of moral relativism and confusion about so many issues from abortion to gender identity, the debate is raging particularly in light of the Israel Folau case. Inevitably, the issue has to be reduced to who determines what is morally right and wrong and where is that source to be obtained from.

Most people would acknowledge that objective moral values exist, and this must give rise to a moral law giver. The Bible makes a very strong claim that God is that moral law giver and that the scriptures are themselves God’s word and law. Most unbelievers would dispute that fact and would argue that for the Bible to make claims of its own veracity is circular reasoning and therefore illegitimate. So, can we trust the Bible and is it really the final authority, particularly on the issues of morality?

The truth is there is insurmountable evidence for the reliability of the Bible, including physical evidence of thousands of manuscript copies of the original writings of the New Testament for example, that are astoundingly accurate. There is archeological and extra Biblical, historical artefacts and documents that proves that the Bible corresponds with historical reality. There is the internal consistency and coherence of the cannon of scripture though written over a millennium and by many different writers.

Although there are other lines of reasoning to support the claim that the Bible is true, one of the most powerful is found in Jesus. If it can be shown that the four Gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, present an accurate record of the life and ministry of Jesus, then Jesus Himself becomes an argument in support of the truth of the Bible. He claimed that the holy scriptures cannot be broken. Furthermore, the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is one of the most verifiable facts in history. In this sense, making a case for the truth of the resurrection also makes a case for the truth claims of Jesus and, in turn, the reliability and truth of the Bible.

Whilst the Bible is still used in our judicial courts for people to put their hand on it, swearing to speak the truth. Yet, today people only pick and choose what they want to believe from it. We have no right to do that, but we must take the Word of God as it is and ensure that we adhere to its commands and teaching. God’s Word is the final authority and when we line up our lives to it, we can also expect to be recipients of the promises and blessings that God has proclaimed in this Holy Book.