Sunday 7th April

Lawrence Kirby shares a message titled, 
'Repent or Change Your Mind'

Jesus is real & Jesus is near. 

Matthew 4:12-17 NIV
'12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— 14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
    the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan,
    Galilee of the Gentiles--
16 the people living in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
    a light has dawned.”
17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."'

The word 'repent' in Christian tradition is often related to sin - showing sorrow for actions you have done and changing your behaviour.

The word for repent in Greek is metanoia which really translates to 'change your mind' or to go above or beyond what you currently think. That's what Jesus was talking about - not turning from sin - but changing your thinking to align with the near Kingdom.

The Kingdom is near to us right now - even within us!

The idea of change is transformation through discipleship. Change can be uncomfortable, but it's something that Jesus invites us into so that we can experience all that He has for us to experience!

To the majority of us, change is a challenge. God never forces us to change - it's a beckoning and an invitation. 

"To love is to change and to love perfectly is to change many times." John Henry Newman

To love God and love people we must be willing to change. 

Luke 19:1-10
'Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”
6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”'

To change your mind you need to:

Notice
Engage
Act
Reinforce

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​You can watch the full message below: