Scott Street MB Church Podcast

" If I asked you the question – you are Mennonite brethren – what do you believe – about

1. God
2. The church
3. Baptism
4. Discipleship
5. Marriage, singleness and family
6. Work, rest and the Lord’s day.

I suspect that you would say – well pastor Rob, I believe what the bible says – that’s a good answer. Now, what does the Bible say about – God, church and these other things. It says a whole lot. Thankfully our Mennonite Brethren leaders have written a “confession of Faith” – a book that helps us understand what we believe. I want to know what I believe – I want us to be strong in our faith, and I want us to stand firm on Scripture, I want us to know what we believe. My job is to create mature, strong – faithful, brilliant Christian brothers and sisters.

So, over the coming months we will be looking at the core of our faith – We are calling it the footsteps of faith – following in the footsteps of Christ
Today we will be looking briefly at our role – humanity’s role as God’s creation.

Our MB “Confession of faith” book says. “Humans are the crowning act of creation, were are designed to live in fellowship with God and in loving and helpful relationships with each other. God created us male and female in his own image. After creating us, God gave us the mandate to rule and care for creation as a sacred trust and the freedom to obey or disobey him. Through the wilful disobedience of Adam and Eve, sin entered the world. As a result, human nature is distorted and people are alienated from God and creation. Creation is under the bondage of decay. Humans and all creation long to be set free. say “Sin, guilt, or death did not prevail. God is creating a new heaven and a new earth in which there will be no evil, suffering, and death. The first signs of this new creation are already present in those who accept God’s forgiveness through Christ. In Christ all things are being reconciled and created anew.”
But this is not the end of the story – we are set free.

We find it in Philippians 2 "Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose.

The key words are "work out" and "work in".

Work out is our part. Work in is God's part. We are to work out what God is working in.

So yes - we are people of God, he has chosen us, but we also have some work to do to live out our faith.

This doesn't say "work for" your salvation. It says "work out" your salvation . The Bible says "Salvation is not of works, lest any man should boast." The scripture in Philippians is written to Christians. And he is telling Christians to “Continue to work out your salvation”

God is saying develop what you already have. If you're born again, keep growing. Work it out. None of us are “done”. Our salvation continues to grow – if we remain alive in Christ.

What do you do in a physical workout? You do a workout not to get a body but to develop the body you already have. When you work out a puzzle, you already have all the pieces. You've just got to put it together. When we work out our salvation – we all ready are saved, we have what we need, but we are maturing, becoming stronger.

Paul says, "...work out your salvation..." Focus on the word "your". He's talking about an individual assignment. We are responsible for our growth. Our salvation, not somebody else's. Yours. Individually. God wants to work out the implications of faith in your life.

Your faith is important to God – it is your responsibility. I am your pastor and teacher, but I can’t make you grow, I can’t make your learn – it is up to you to listen – read – learn and grow.

Every person who is a born-again believer starts life as a baby in Christ. Whether the new convert is six or sixty, that person is still a new Christian and needs to grow in the Lord. A baby Christian who has been saved for forty years is a tragedy. God intends for us to grow and mature so that we can be a positive influence in the lives of others.
Take your salvation seriously; it has eternal implications. It's a life or death issue here. Nothing is more important than your own spiritual growth. Take it seriously.

"...for it is God who works in you..." That's God's part. Think about that word - "works". In the original language – Greek the word is energien. We get the word "energizer" or "energy" from this Greek word. God is the energizer for change in our lives.

He says, "I will give you the power to do what you want to do, need to do. I will empower you, energize you." God is the energizer to will and to act. He will give you the will power and the ability to grow and change.

There are three key things that God uses to change you, to energize you, Sometime these things hit us like lightning and sometimes they slowing change our nature.

The first Key is the Bible – God’s word
He uses the word of God, the Bible to change us.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 says "The whole Bible was given to us by inspiration from God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives; it straightens us out and helps us do what is right. It is God's way of making us well prepared at every point..."

1. God puts His Spirit in us. This is where the power to change comes from.

Slide 11. Romans 8:11 says "Once the Spirit lives within you, He will bring to your whole being new strength and vitality."

2. God changes us through circumstances and people

God choses to use everything in our life to teach us. Some people say that in my happiness and joy – God whispers to me – but in my struggles and pain he shouts.

Slide 13 Romans 8:28-29 "To those who love God and are called according to His plan everything that happens fits into a pattern for good. For God chose us to bear the family likeness of His Son."

3. He's more interested in our character than our comfort.

Hebrews 5:8 "Jesus learned obedience through suffering."

Please be sensitive to the work of the Holy Spirit within you. Discern what is right, and move according to the work of his Spirit in your inner being.

And lastly ask God, what are you trying to change in me through the circumstances I am experiencing. What are you saying through my pain, through my challenges, through my circumstances.

What do we believe about Humanity – about how God changes and grows us. We believe that we are God’s children and that he is changing us each and every day through his word, his Spirit and the circumstances of our lives. "

Preached on Sunday, October 14 at Scott Street Church

Inspired on Psalm 67, Pastor Rob Patterson takes us through a journey 12 thousand kilometers journey to Kenia where he served as a Pastor in Mathare.

"The church is just a shack in the Changaa district. The church is used as a school during the week. The church is made a thin wooden sheet that over time have become covered in grime. There is no ceiling but the roof is made from old metal sheets that leak whenever it rains. As the service starts people slowly drag themselves in. The church is full of street kids when you start, they just want to follow the white folks around to see what they are up to. So they follow us into the church and sooner or later loose interest and slip out.

The people come to church in whatever clothes they have. The women are usually in a dress or a wrap around piece of cloth called a Lesoo or a kanga, and the men have mismatched pants and jackets, they come looking really good, wanting to wear their best for Jesus.

They come to sing and praise. They come and are thankful for all that they have. For their children and their families. For the roof of tin or plastic that covers their homes. For their health, and for the food in their stomachs. They pray for people who have no clothes, no roof and no food in their stomachs.

These are a thankful people – they love life, they love their families, they even loved Sarah and Me. They game me a name – because they don’t have an Rob for Pastor Rob – they took a month and decided to call me Macharia – it is like curious George. They are so poor, but so rich, they have little but are so grateful for what they have.

Psalms 69:30 (NIV) says: "I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the LORD more than an ox, more than a bull with its horns and hoofs. The poor will see and be glad-- you who seek God, may your hearts live!"

As I look around I wonder how much you have to be thankful for this morning. For your children and your families. For the roof over your head, for warmth, telephones, running water, garbage pick up. For your health, and for the food in your stomachs.

So, as the scripture in Colossians 3:12 says, let's clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

As we celebrate harvest mission Sunday let us give with grateful hearts. Grateful for God’s love and care for us. May we have hearts of compassion for the needy and the poor in Canada and around the world."

Preached on Sunday, September 30 at Scott Street Church

Listen to this wonderful induction service as Rev. Bruce Burgess commissions Lead Pastor Dr. Rob Patterson and his wife Dr. Sarah Patterson into Scott Street Mennonite Brethren Church.

Celebrated at Scott St. Church on Sunday, September 23, 2018

I think within each of us there is a desire to have a stronger faith, and a deeper walk with God – and we are blessed to be able to look at the lives of others, and see what it was that enabled them to do just that
In 2 Chronicles 27, we read this about King Jotham: “So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.”

There is still a blessing today for those who will set their hearts to seek after God. Jeremiah 29:13 says “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
So we ask these questions: Do we prepare our hearts to seek the Lord?
Do we prepare our hearts for His presence?
For His house?

What is it that we do to make sure that our hearts are ready to receive the precious Word of God?
When you prepare your ways before the Lord, and you come to service ready to give of yourself to worship and the Word, what you get back in return is so much more than you could have anticipated.

Preached on Sunday September 16, 2018 at Scott Street Church

We focus on our VOCATION – the work that we do , the work of our hands. In the Old Testament the Hebrew word for work is avodah.  It is interesting that avodah also means  - worship, and service. The many usages of this Hebrew word avodah  in the old testament tell us that God’s original design and desire is that our work and our worship would be a seamless way of living. Please listen to this podcast and learn more about how important your work, and your life is to Christ.

Preached on Sunday, September 11, 2018 at Scott Street Church

Taxes. What’s the big deal, right? We might not love it, but in 21st Century Canada, we know that we pay taxes on our income, the land we own, and on things that we purchase so that our government will be able to provide things like healthcare, infrastructure, education, and social welfare. Whether we like to admit or not, we do benefit from the work of our government that is funded by the taxes we pay.

Israel during Jesus’ time was not a free a country, like Canada, they were had been conquered by the great Roman Empire and were a dominated and oppressed people. Part of what that meant for them was that they were heavily taxed by Rome and the taxes they paid didn’t go into a system that would ultimately benefit them and their families, it went into a system that allowed their wealthy and indulgent oppressors become more and more wealthy and indulgent while they were left living in abject poverty.

Jewish tax collectors were not very popular or well-liked by their fellow towns people because rather than fight this system of oppression, they supported it and benefited from it at the expense of their own people. They were hated and reviled for working for their Roman occupiers and for charging even more than required so they could pocket the extra.

Zacchaeus is a chief tax collector and he’s wealthy.  He is not a person we would prop up as someone to aspire to be like. He’s a traitor to his people and to his God. He’s deceitful and steals from his own oppressed people. He is wealthy and living in stolen luxury while his fellow Jews struggle in poverty. There is no way around it. Zacchaeus is not a good man. 

And yet, for all of that, Zacchaeus hears that Jesus is coming through Jericho and he wanted to see who Jesus was. We aren’t told what it is that makes Zacchaeus want to see Jesus. Maybe he’s heard that Jesus welcomes sinners and tax collectors like him. And maybe this sparks a thought inside of him that says, maybe, just maybe there’s hope for him. The Bible tells us that, "when Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.’” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. (Lk 19:5-6)

Praise God! It is the lost and the broken, the ones who have turned away, that Jesus is looking for. This gives hope to us all, because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We all need Jesus!

Maybe you gave your life to God a long, long time ago, but so much has happened since then. Maybe you’ve made choices that you knew weren’t right and that you knew weren’t what God wanted and at this point you’ve walked so far away from God that you’ve given up all hope. You could never be worthy of his attention. 

If this is you, then I hope that the story of Zaccheaus will ignite a spark of hope in your heart. Jesus didn’t come for the healthy, he came for the sick and the lost and if that’s you, then please hear me when I say, there’s hope for you. If you will have the courage to come and see, to meet with Jesus then you’ll see that it’s all true. God loves you and welcomes you. He welcomes you to come, accept his sacrifice, turn from your old ways, and follow him.

Preached on Sunday September 2, 2018 at Scott Street Church.

Throughout the book of John we see Nicodemus go from a skeptic to an open follower and disciple of Jesus. When Jesus meets with Nicodemus he explains second birth of the spirit and how to receive salvation. As Nicodemus' understanding of Jesus grew so did his courage in following him. Nicodemus means 'Victory of the People'. In that name we are reminded of what Nicodemus finally came to the understanding of: that Jesus would be resurrected conquering death and winning a victory for all people who choose to put their faith in him.

Preached on Sunday August 26, 2018 at Scott Street Church

The Roman Centurion story found in The Gospel of Luke tells that that he understood a spiritual principle that most people do not. He understood what authority was and how it operated – both in the natural and in the spiritual.

This Centurion was a Roman soldier – part of a fighting force that was ruthless and decisive – Rome ruled with a rod of iron. He would have been in charge of 100 soldiers (a century), and would have been a part of a larger group – called a legion – of 6,000 soldiers – so 60 centuries with 60 other centurions. This man, contrary to the usual idea we have of a Roman soldier, was very compassionate – he had a servant who was ill, and was very concerned about his/her well-being

As he understood that this Jesus had authority in the natural and in the spiritual, let’s remember Jesus own statemt in Matthew 28:18 – “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

This centurion realized that the power was within Jesus Himself to change the natural order of creation simply by saying the word – he realized that the power to heal was resident within this Man Jesus, and that if He spoke the word, then it would be done

Do we believe it?  Do we realize the power that is in the name of Jesus.

Preached on Sunday August 19, 2018 at Scott Street Church

Something that I’ve learned about God, is that He loves using the least likely person for His work... because it gives God all the glory! If God only ever used the bravest, smartest, most obvious leaders, then people would look at them and say: “Oh, of course you did a good job; you’re super brave!” or “It’s because you’re really smart.” But when people see someone so young, or someone really scared do amazing things, it makes them stop and think: "How did that just happen?" It is only because God is working through us that we get to be a part of such incredible stories! It’s an honour and a privilege for us to work alongside God, and I think it’s rather humbling as well.

Preached on Sunday August 12, 2018 at Scott Street Church