It’s Christmas... but... how real is God to you this Christmas?  Do you put God in the same category as elves and fairies?  Or do you accept that there’s such a being as almighty God but see him as distant, impersonal and uninvolved? It may help you this Christmas to think about some ‘mysteries’.  A mystery is something puzzling... something that keeps us guessing and wondering.  The dictionary defines mystery as something difficult or impossible to understand or explain.  Well, Christmas is a mystery.  No, I’m not talking about the jolly gent in the red suit living at the North Pole. ...

Last week in this Blog I mentioned the horrible atrocity perpetrated by Hamas in southern Israel on October 7th.  I also stated that many of us find it distressing to watch video images of such real violence.  Allow me to make a bold and daring claim: our distress, for example, at Hitler’s murder of 6 million Jews during World War II, is one of the best proofs for the existence of God. That may sound incredible to you.  One of history’s most notorious atrocities - commemorated with a Holocaust Museum and concentration camp museums such as Auschwitz - and here I...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 25 No. 26 – April 1979   Watch Your Language   Sermon by Rev. J. W. Westendorp, B.D. on Ephesians 4:29 Scripture reading: Psalm 141, James 3 Psalter Hymnal: 172:1, 4, 5; 95; 452; 462:1, 3, 6; 292:1-4   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, I wonder whether you have ever thought of the power of a word? There is really tremendous power in just a word, isn’t there? Think for example of a word from God... at creation, for instance. God spoke... and it happened. Let there be light....! Just a few words, but look...

With some reluctance I’ll admit to being a bit of a woos... a softie...!  Reluctant... because I’m a male - and while I may not be of the Alpha variety - I know it’s not cool for a male to admit to ‘woosiness’.  Why do I say this?  Well, after the movie, The Power of One came out in 1992 one of my daughters had to watch it for her high school studies.  She invited her mother and me to watch the movie with her.  I did... for about 10 minutes.  A year later when Schindler’s List came out I had...

A retired couple moved into the other half of a duplex that we now co-owned. She, apparently, was a church-goer, He wasn’t.  She had dropped into our introductory conversation that she was a Presbyterian.  I told her that she was blessed - there was a Presbyterian Church just around the corner.  Some months later I happened to speak to her again but our conversation didn’t go well.  She told me that she was never going back to that Presbyterian Church again.  Of course she justified the reason for her ban on the Presbyterians.  She complained that the preacher had had the...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 01 – October 1979   The Prince And The Pauper (A CHRISTMAS STORY)   Sermon by Rev. J. W. Westendorp on Luke 2:7 Scripture Reading: Luke 2:1–20   There is a story someone once wrote called "The Prince and the Pauper". Perhaps our boys and girls know that story. They may even have seen the film that was based on this story. It is the story of a boy born to be king. . . . a prince in a palace. And of another boy who was born and brought up in the back...

A Canadian pen-friend and I have exchanged national magazines for more than forty years. His Canadian publication arrived in the mail this week.  As usual it was brim-full of very readable articles and the kind of photography that leads one to marvel at the wonders of God’s creation. The concluding pages contained some reflections by a man who had just done some hiking in a national park in the Canadian Rockies. Having spent some days there myself some years ago I could understand the writer waxing lyrical about the beauty of the mountain trails of British Columbia. However some of what...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 42 – August 1981   Guidance (Straight Paths)   Sermon by Rev. John W. Westendorp on Proverbs 3:5,6 Scripture Reading: Acts 16:6-10, 16-34; Proverbs 3:1–12 Psalter Hymnal: 407; 463 (after the sermon);                                          249 (after the law); 452; 231   Something that every Christian sooner or later has a problem with is the whole matter of GUIDANCE... God's leading, and knowing God's will for us. We believe that God has a plan for our lives... for each one of us. We also believe that true joy and blessing comes into our lives only then......

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 41 – August 1981   Covenant Education   Sermon by Rev. John W. Westendorp on Deut. 6:7 (4-9) Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 6 Psalter Hymnal: 299: 1,2,3,4,8; 427; 419; 37; 307   This morning/evening I want to deal with the subject of Education..... CHRISTIAN education. Or better still.... COVENANT education. The instruction of covenant children. Now you may ask: Why bother dealing with that subject here in our church? We have our Christian School... and support it at great expense. We have our children there... or perhaps our grandchildren. And others of us hope to...

Coffee time at the Men’s Shed... and one of the blokes asks, “So John, you claim God made this world, what about the moon?”  “Yes, He made the moon too!”  “Well, what about all the stars... and I read recently that there are as many of them as there is sand on the seashore...?”  “Yes... God made the lot... this whole shebang universe!”  Good grief... what was the name of that book again by J.B. Phillips?  ‘Your God is too Small!’  My Men’s Shed friend sounded like one of those ancient Syrians who believed in localised gods: “Their gods are gods...

God’s Word transforms people - and even society. The history of revivals makes that abundantly clear. The message of The Book is proclaimed and lives are changed. During the Welsh revivals pubs went out of business and the police had an easy time as crime dramatically decreased. Many Christians can testify to God shaping and moulding them through The Book. But that’s where I also have some concerns. Over recent decades surveys in various countries show that amongst churchgoers daily Bible reading is dropping at an alarming rate. I grieve when I hear of members of my own family and my...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 19 – January 1981   Young People: Remember Your Creator   Sermon by Rev. John Westendorp on Ecclesiastes 12:1 Scripture Readings: Eccles. 11:7-12:14 Psalter Hymnal: 14; 380 after law; 374; 237; 304   At a recent nationwide church conference in Melbourne a well known author made the following startling claims: Between 1966 and 1981 nearly two million Australians stopped going to church. In the same 15 year period the percentage of the population which believes in the existence of God dropped from about 95% to about 76%. In other words a drop of 19%....

Studying to become a pastor was dependent on my having — what was then known as — a Matriculation Certificate. My handicap was that I only had three years of High School. I had commenced work at 15 to help the family out of some financial difficulties. One of the subjects I took for ‘Adult Matric’ was European History (The Renaissance and The Reformation). As part of my College education I had to take Church History. One of the units was on The Reformation. I therefore thought that I had a pretty good grasp of that event that was kicked off...

An elderly church member living in an aged-care hostel was visited by a well-meaning relative.  He’s into New Age stuff and asked her whether she had yet ‘discovered her true self’.  He suggested that with time on her hands she should learn some meditation techniques and come to terms with her inner identity?  She told me about it later and remarked with some indignation, “Why should I bother with that, I know who I am!  I’m a child of the King.”  I was delighted and encouraged.  Humanly speaking this lady is close to the end of her earthly journey.  Life has...

WHO CAN PAY THAT MUCH? It is some two centuries ago that one of the Russian Tsars liked to disguise himself and then go out among his people.  His aim was to try and discover their sentiments about the nation and its leadership and simply to observe the behaviour of the common people. On a certain night he went out to a soldiers’ encampment with the idea of listening in on their conversations.  Walking past a tent, he saw a soldier sitting at a table, head on his arms, sleeping.  Carefully and softly, the Tsar went up to him.  Looking over...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 27 No. 43 – August 1982   Healing By Elders, Oil And Prayer (II)   Sermon by Rev. John Westendorp on James 5:15 Scripture Readings: James 5; 1Corinthians 12:12-31 Singing: Ps.H. 324; 250; 232; 201:1,2; 410   Introd:            For a number of Sundays we have studied the matter of healing. In 2Corinthians we heard about Paul's thorn in the flesh.             We saw that there are times when (for good reasons) God does not heal. In Mark’s Gospel we studied the healing of the paralytic.             We saw that forgiveness is more important than healing. Then...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 27 No. 43 – August 1982   Healing by Elders, Oil And Prayer (I)   Sermon by Rev. John Westendorp on James 5:14 Scripture Readings: James 5; Acts 14:1-10 Singing: Ps.H. 302; 235; 428; 347; 301   Introd: There are many, many avenues to follow when it comes to healing.   -  Modern progress in medicine often borders on the miraculous.             Many worship the healing power that comes thru science.   -  There is the religious healing associated with special places.             Lourdes.  Or a healing stream in N.Z.  Or a miracle tree in Victoria....

Word of Salvation – Vol. 27 No. 42 – August 1982   Which Is Easier – To Forgive Or To Heal?   Sermon by Rev. John Westendorp on Mark2:9 Scripture Readings: James 5; Mark 2:1-12 Psalter Hymnal: 162:1,2; 96:1,3,4; 201:1,2; 313:1   Introd:            Every so often the world sits up and takes notice of Christianity.             Especially when it is claimed that a real miracle has taken place.             And then particularly when it's a miracle of healing. Every so often reports are heard of some amazing things.             Faith healers have been interviewed on current affairs programs.             There is...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 27 No. 41 – August 1982   Healing And Paul’s Thorn In The Flesh   Sermon by Rev. John Westendorp on 2Corinthians 12:7-10 Reading: Genesis 32:22-32 Psalter Hymnal: 159; 246; 60; 172:6; 317   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, There are two reasons why we want to deal with this text today. First of all, because I want to present a series of sermons             on the subject of sickness and healing.               In doing that we want to look at this passage FIRST. By studying this passage first of all we will be...

Many of us who are a little older will still remember some of the silly ditties we sang in the schoolyard thirty, forty or more years ago.  Sometimes I find that a problem.  At my age the amount of brain memory still available must be shrinking rapidly.  So why am I remembering rubbish songs from the schoolyard?  However, this retention of songs in our memory can also be a wonderful blessing.  That was certainly the case with a man I’ll call Jim. Jim ended up in prison after committing a crime.  And it wasn’t a short term incarceration either.  So Jim...