Foundation Church Belfast

Christ Our Treasure: Past, Present and Future Joy

The third message in our series The Pursuit of Joy. The Christian faith provides rich resources for a life of deep joy, resources that are unparalleled in other faith systems and philosophies.
We see in this letter that the Apostle Paul wrote from prison, he has great joy despite his circumstances. Is such joy available to us today, and if so, how do we access it?
Bible text: Philippians 1:12-26
Main points in the sermon: When Christ is our highest treasure, we can have:
Joy in past trials
Joy in present hardships
Joy in future uncertainty
And ask how we can attain this kind of joy

The Inevitability, Results and Anticipation of God’s Work in His People

St. Paul's letter to the Philippians has been known as 'the letter of joy' owing to the exuberant joy that Paul displays throughout his letter. This is particularly notable as he writes this letter to the church whilst imprisoned in jail. This new teaching series, The Pursuit of Joy, examines the source of Paul's deep and unassailable joy, and asks whether this same joy is available to us today.
Our second message in this series investigates one of the roots towards joy according to Paul - that God, who already began a good work in the church at Philippi, will bring it to completion. In other words, what God starts he finishes.
This is great news for us, especially when we see the signs of God's good work in our lives, even in the very earliest days of Christian faith and as a small church plant.
MAIN TEXT
Philippians 1:1-11
Main points:
The inevitability of God's good work in his people
The results of God's good work in his people
The anticipation of God's good work in his people
 

The Beating Heart of Easter - Humility and Exaltation

As we celebrate Easter Sunday and commence our new series The Pursuit of Joy, we examine the beating heart of Easter - and of the letter to the Philippians - the humility and exaltation of Christ in Philippians 2:5-11.
In the ancient Christian hymn quoted in our passage we have a unique insight into Easter from the subjective view of Christ himself - what Easter meant for him - and consider how we respond in light of his extraordinary humility and subsequent exaltation to the highest authority.

9 Marks: Biblical Church Leadership

In the final talk of the series, we address the subject of Biblical Church Leadership.
Main passage: 1 Peter 5:1-5.

9 Marks: Discipleship

In the penultimate talk in the series 9 Marks of a Healthy Church, David addresses the topic of Discipleship. Jesus calls his followers to take his yoke upon themselves and learn from him, but what exactly does this mean, and how does this contribute to a healthy local church?
The main points of the talk are:
What is Discipleship?
Why should we do Discipleship?
How should we do Discipleship?
Main bible text: 1 Timothy 4:6-16.

9 Marks: Church Discipline

The seventh mark of a healthy church - Church Discipline: perhaps the one mark that is most misunderstood and yet simultaneously the most neglected. However it is integrally related to the other marks and so essential for a healthy local church.
This sermon demonstrates:
What is church discipline?
Why should we do church discipline?
How are we to do church discipline?
Main text: Matthew 18:15-20.

9 Marks: Church Membership

The sixth sermon in our series 9 Marks of a Healthy Church – Church Membership.
Main text – Acts 2:37-47
The main points in this message:
What does church membership look like?
Who is church membership for?
How will church membership work at Foundation Church?
Recommended book – Church Membership by Jonathan Leeman.

9 Marks: Evangelism

In this sermon we look at the essential components of evangelism – the spreading of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Main text: Romans 10:13-17
We discuss the following points:
What is evangelism (and what it’s not)?
Why should we do evangelism (and why we don’t)?
How should we do evangelism?