Paul has been looking back on all he has lost to become an apostle and now a prisoner for Christ. In worldly terms he has nothing, and yet he would not trade that for the world. He says: "this one thing I do: forgetting what is behind, I strain towards what is ahead."In this Remembrance Sunday sermon on Philippians 3:12-21, Revd. Mark Fletcher explores why what we choose to remember shapes who we become, and why Paul urges us to choose better role models. Who are you measuring your life against?We carry old hurts, disappointments and regrets, and they can easily become the defining story of our lives. "If you are not defined by what you choose to remember, you will be defined by what you can't forget." But "just because they are part of your story doesn't mean it has to be the whole story."What will you choose to remember this week?Full transcript and video: https://stpeters.ch/sermons/forgetting-what-is-behind/
William Morris said we should keep nothing in our houses that we do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful. Revd. Mark Fletcher asks whether the same is true of what we spend our lives chasing. In Philippians 3:3-11, Paul lists an impressive record: a Pharisee, a persecutor of the church, "blameless" under the law. Yet looking back he writes, "whatever gains I had, I have come to regard as loss because of Christ".In this sermon, part of the series Light in the Darkness, Mark asks, "What is it for you?" Wealth, status and pleasure are not necessarily bad in themselves, but do they give fullness of life, or do they trap us? C. S. Lewis said, "We are too easily pleased." Paul's ambition was far greater: "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection". Mark finds in it an incredible dignity, that our pains and our sorrows "need not be meaningless", and a promise that death is not the end.His challenge is to cut through the clutter: "Don't settle for that which does not satisfy."What are you pursuing in life, and will it still matter in the end?Full transcript and video: https://stpeters.ch/sermons/what-really-matters-in-life/
The letter to the Philippians is full of soaring prose and memorable verses, but this passage is not one of them. In Philippians 2:19-30, Paul simply says he wants to send a friend to see them, because he wants news about them. Yet, Revd. Mark Fletcher says, hidden in this "rather prosaic interlude" is the Bible's perspective on what good leadership looks like.In this sermon, part of the series Light in the Darkness, he introduces two quiet figures. Timothy was gentle and "not an obviously impressive person", yet Paul says, "I have no one else like him who will show genuine concern for your welfare." Epaphroditus almost died caring for Paul, and was worried that the Philippians were worried about him.We tend to want leaders who are impressive and articulate. Paul prizes empathy and compassion, and leaders who "don't teach us to trust in them, but point us to God." In a world torn between individualism and autocracy, we need a clear picture of Christ-like leadership, and we were never meant to do this by ourselves.Who in your life could you trust enough to hold you accountable?Full transcript and video: https://stpeters.ch/sermons/what-makes-a-good-christian-leader/
Not far from here, just over the mountains, is a dark sky zone: a place with very little light pollution, where the sky is not dark at all. It is ablaze with stars. For most of human history, stars brought awe and wonder, and they helped people to find their way safely home.In this sermon on Philippians 2:12-18, continuing the series Light in the Darkness, Revd. Mark Fletcher shows how Paul calls us to shine like stars. His call is to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling" - not quaking in our boots, but taking it in all seriousness, by understanding our faith better and by the daily workout of prayer, Bible reading and holiness of life. We are a work in progress, and it will probably take a lifetime.We cannot do it alone, though. It is God who works in us to will and to act, and letting go of our pride and our desire to be in control, we can pray each day: "God, have mercy on me because I can't do this by myself."Where is God asking you to shine?Full transcript and video: https://stpeters.ch/sermons/work-out-your-salvation-with-fear-and-trembling/
