Word of Salvation – Vol. 50 No.34 – September 2005   The Last Word Sermon by Rev John Haverland on Luke 23:46; Heidelberg Catechism LD 16 Scripture Readings:  Luke 23:39-46; Psalm 31   Brothers and Sisters in Christ. In central Dunedin in the South Island of New Zealand there is a cemetery. On one of the gravestones in that cemetery you can read this inscription: Stop, traveler, stop, ere you go by;As you are now, so once was I;As I am now, so you must be,Prepare yourself to follow me. This is a striking little poem - it reminds every one...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.30 – August 2005   It Is Finished!   Sermon by Rev John Haverland on John 19:30 Scripture Readings:  Hebrews 9:23-10:18; John 19:28-30   Congregation... There are times when you have been fully occupied with a major task that has taken all your attention. When you complete such a large job or project you can have a great sense of relief and satisfaction. Maybe you have had a big project from school that took up a lot of time - you spent many evenings on it - then finally, it is done. Perhaps you had a...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.26 – July 2005   I Am Thirsty   Sermon by Rev John Haverland on John 19:28  Scripture Readings: Psalm 69; John 19:23-37   Congregation... You have probably had the experience of being busy doing something which absorbed all your attention so that you forgot about everything else going on around you. Maybe you were busy with a difficult task at work, or an intense conversation with someone, or you were absorbed in a book, or hobby or a project. Then, having been busy with this for some time, you come to the end of it...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 50 No.22 – June 2005   Never on Your Own   Sermon by Rev John Haverland on Matthew 27:46 Scripture Readings:  Matthew 27:32-56; Psalm 22 or 42   Theme: On the cross Jesus was forsaken by God as the ultimate punishment for sin. Purpose: To show that Jesus was forsaken by God so that we would not be.   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. Children, some of you have probably been separated from your parents at some time. Maybe you were in a shopping centre or at a fair and you got lost - you...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.18 – May 2005   A Son's Farewell   Sermon by Rev John Haverland on John 19:25-27  Scripture Readings:  John 19:17-27; Luke 2:21-35, 8:19-21, 11:27-28   Congregation. When people know they are going to die in the near future they will usually try to set their house in order. They will make whatever arrangements they can to organise everything for their death. In part they will do this to make it easier for their wife or husband or family who will be left behind. They will give final instructions and communications about what they would like...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.14 – April 2005   The Promise of Paradise Sermon by Rev John Haverland on Luke 23:39-43   Scripture Readings:  Psalm 22; Luke 23:26-43   Congregation. Theme: Jesus responds to the believing prayer of the criminal with a promise of paradise. Purpose: To highlight this remarkable faith and prayer as an example to imitate and to take encouragement from Christ's promise of paradise. All of us have probably heard or read stories of 'death-bed' conversions where someone turns to the Lord in their dying moments. Sometimes that happens slowly during a long illness - say, from...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.11 – March 2005   Too Good to Be True!   Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Luke 24:37-44 Scripture Readings:  Psalm 16; 1 Corinthians 15:12-28; Luke 24:30-53   Brothers and Sisters in Christ... Sometimes you read a story that seems incredible - so much so that it seems hard to believe. You read it out to others in the family or at work, and they say, "That is amazing! How is that possible?" Some incidents seem so impossible that you can hardly believe they are true. You doubt what you read or hear. This was...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.10 – March 2005   Father, Forgive Them   Sermon by Rev John Haverland on Luke 23:34 Scripture Readings:  Luke 23:26-34; Isaiah 53   Brothers and Sister in Christ... Ernest Hemingway once told a story to illustrate the popularity of the Spanish name Paco. This same story also illustrates the deep desire many of us have for forgiveness and reconciliation. A father, he said, went on a journey to Madrid to put an ad in the local paper. The ad read: "Paco, meet me at Hotel Montana at noon Wednesday - all is forgiven." The next...

Word of Salvation – Vol.50 No.7 – February 2005   The Glory of God   Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Psalm 8 Scripture Readings:  Hebrews 2:5-18; Matthew 21:1-17   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ... At some time or other all of us think about the purpose of our lives: Why are we here? What is our goal? What is the reason for living? We follow the same routines each day - we sleep, we get up, we eat, we work or study, we eat, and sleep; and we repeat that cycle over and over. For what? What is the...

Word of Salvation – Vol 49 No 29 - August 2004   The Lord Bless You Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Numbers 6:22-27  Scripture Readings:  Psalm 67; Ephesians 1:1-14   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The theme of this sermon is: The Lord blesses His people with His grace and favour. And the purpose of preaching this sermon is to encourage and comfort us with a knowledge of God's blessing and favour on us in the year to come. At the end of every worship service the person leading the service will pronounce the benediction. "Benediction" is an old...

Word of Salvation – Vol.49 No.25 – July 2004   Rejoice Always!   Sermon by Rev J Haverland on 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Scripture Reading:  Psalm 66; Phil 4:2-13; 1 Thess 5:12-18   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ... The theme and purpose of this sermon is as follows: It is God's will that in Christ we should always rejoice, often pray and be thankful in everything. In the course of a normal day people will often ask, "How are you?" or, "How's your week been?" or, "How are you getting on?" Usually we answer briefly, "I'm fine. Things are well." But...

Word of Salvation - Vol.49 No.22 - June 2004   An All-Round Ministry Sermon by Rev J Haverland on 1 Thessalonians 5:14   Scripture Readings:  Titus 2; Psalm 86; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The theme and purpose of this sermon, based on our text, is this: To encourage all of us to minister appropriately to the needs of others. "Variety is the spice of life", we say. That's true. The changing of the seasons, eating ethnic foods, moving house, finding another job, going to different places - all these changes make life interesting and stimulating....

Word of Salvation - Vol.49 No.18 - May 2004   Be Ready Sermon by Rev J Haverland on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-10   Scripture Reading:  Matthew 24:36-51   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. This sermon is about being ready as we wait for the unexpected return of Christ and our salvation. New Zealand's most well known theologian is Dr Lloyd Geering. Whenever the media want a controversial comment on something about the Bible or Christianity, he is the man they will approach because he represents the liberal perspective of the church. He has written a book called "Christianity Without God". It...

Word of Salvation - Vol.49 No.14 - April 2004   The Dead Will Rise First Sermon by Rev J Haverland on 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18   Scripture Readings: 1 Cor 15:20-28, 50-58; 1 Thess 4:13-5:11   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. In this sermon we see that when Christ returns, God will raise the dead in Christ and rapture the living believers. And the purpose of this sermon is to encourage believers with the hope of Christ's return and the resurrection. Most of us here have attended a funeral and stood by the grave of someone who has died. We have...

Word of Salvation - Vol.49 No.9 - March 2004   Three Wishes Sermon by Rev J Haverland on 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13   Scripture Readings:  1 Corinthians 13; 1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:13   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. In this sermon we see that Paul's prayer is that he might be with them to encourage them in faith, love and holiness. And the purpose of this sermon is to urge you to grow in faith, love and holiness in expectation of Christ's return. Children, maybe some of you have seen some of the movies and videos about Alladin - a cartoon character...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 49 No.5 – February 2004   A God of Compassion   Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Jonah 4:5-11 Scripture Readings:  Mat.9:35-38, 15:21-28, 28:18-20; Jonah 4   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. This sermon is about God showing compassion to Jonah and teaching him about His own compassion for Nineveh. And the purpose of the sermon is to explain that God shows us compassion and to urge us to imitate and declare God's love. Children, most fairy tales have happy endings. The handsome prince searches the land and eventually comes to the house of Cinderella...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 49 No.1 – January 2004   The Pouting Prophet   Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Jonah 4:1-4 Scripture Readings:  Jonah 4; James 1:12-27   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. In this sermon we see that in his prayer Jonah is angry at God and sorry for himself because God spared Nineveh. And the purpose for preaching on this text is to expose our sins of anger, self-justification and exclusivism in contrast to God's love. There are times when reading the Bible can make you feel very uncomfortable. James tells us that the Bible can...

Word of Salvation – Vol.48 No.42 – November 2003   True Repentance Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Jonah 3:5-9  Scripture Readings:  Joel 2:12-17; Matthew 12:38-50   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The theme of this sermon is about the whole city of Nineveh repenting of their sin and calling urgently on God. And the purpose of the sermon is to explain what true repentance means and to call us and our nation to this in the hope of God's saving grace. On October 30, 1938, someone named Orson Welles made a radio broadcast announcing a Martian invasion of America....

Word of Salvation – Vol.48 No.38 – October 2003   Judgment is Looming Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Jonah 3:1-4   Scripture Readings:  2 Peter 2:4-10; Jonah 3:1-13   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The theme of this sermon is: God commands Jonah to bring a message of judgment to Nineveh. And the purpose of preaching this sermon is to urge all hearers to be prepared for the final judgment that is coming. All of us are shocked when we hear about senseless acts of violence and destruction inflicted on other people by evil men and women. Think back...

Word of Salvation - Vol.48 No.34 - September 2003   Practised Prayer Sermon by Rev J Haverland on Jonah 2   Scripture Readings: Psalm 86; James 5:13-20; Jonah 2   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The theme of this sermon is: Jonah draws on the Psalms to describe his near-death experience and his hope in God's salvation. And the purpose of this sermon is: To use Jonah's prayer to encourage us to pray honestly, confidently and thankfully. Towards the end of his short letter, James has some advice for Christians. He gives it in his usual practical and pithy style....