CBC Podcast

Today, to mark the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church we are going to be thinking about and praying for those 1 in 7 Christians worldwide who are persecuted because of their decision to follow Jesus.

Disaster is about to strike the city - so why would God be telling Jeremiah to buy a field? And what can this incident say to us today?

Jeremiah loved a visual aid and today we're going to be looking at 5 of them and seeing how they remain relevant to us today.

There was a message of hope for the exiles - God would come and rescue his people and bring them back home. It was going to happen - just not anytime soon. But that knowledge of what was going to happen in the future should impact the way that they live and experience the present.

Being a Christian will mean that there are times when we have to go beyond doing what just makes the most sense - and therefore it is vital that we learn how to listen to God.

How much do we value the Bible and allow God to shape us through it? That's one of the questions we're going to be thinking about as we look at the ancient story of Baruch and Jeremiah this morning.

If you've ever felt despair or had questions about God, the Bible or your faith - then you're in good company. This morning we're looking at some of things that Jeremiah said when he'd reached the end of his tether and how God replied.

No one likes being told that they're doing something wrong. Jeremiah spent most of his life warning the people of Israel that they were doing it wrong and as a result God's judgement was coming. They ignored Jeremiah. How do we respond when God challenges us about our behaviour or thoughts or attitudes?

Why would I want to read or listen to talks about the Old Testament book of Jeremiah? Today's introduction to our new series will hopefully whet your appetite.

This week we're celebrating harvest and thinking about what it means to 'seek first the kingdom'.

God hasn't finished with us yet. We are all a work in progress. If you're waiting until you feel ready before serving God then you're going to be waiting a long time. Instead God wants us to step out in faith and trust him.

Join us this week for the first of our summer talks - this week exploring the theme of light in the darkness.

A special Holiday Club service - continuing our theme of looking at stories Jesus told.

As we prepare for Holiday Club we're going to be looking at the parable of the four soils today.

We cover a lot of ground this week - from Turkey to Israel, via Greece. What can we learn from Paul's work, his words and his warnings?

As we've been reading through Acts we've read about lots of people getting baptised. But why did they do it and why do we still do it?

There are many parts of Paul's story where it is obvious that he is involved in a spiritual battle. Often, in the western church, this is a part of our Christian life that we hear very little about - but for Christians in other parts of the world it is very much a part of their everyday experience. So what do we mean when we talk about spiritual warfare?

There are plenty of verses in the Bible about not being afraid because God is with us. But does that mean that I shouldn't feel afraid? Did people like the apostle Paul ever feel afraid knowing that physical persecution was a likely outcome of his actions as he approached a new city? Let's find out.

What is God like? Many of us may have ideas about what God is like - and the people of Athens had ideas about what God is like - but Paul wanted to show them, and us, what God is really like - and he wants us to know how we can know God for ourselves.

How do we know what is true? The Bereans wanted to know whether or not what Paul was saying was true - so they went away and studied the Scriptures. They didn't just reject his message out of hand because of centuries of tradition - they were open to the truth. What can we learn from their example?

Today we're taking another look at the Great Commission and thinking about what it means to 'go'.

If you want to watch the video that is included in this talk you'll find it here: https://youtu.be/WgouzNt9LbA?si=xeIYYn-wYdSzPXh-

Paul travels to Philippi and has quite an adventure involving being thrown into prison and having the prison doors opened in an earthquake. But that wasn't the best bit of the story.

As Paul and Barnabas continue their journey they see the Holy Spirit transforming lives. But we are in a spiritual battle and so they also encounter hostility, hardships and persecution. Obedience to Jesus will often make life harder - but Paul encourages us to remain faithful because it is totally worth it.

We continue to follow Paul on his travels - this week from Cyprus to Iconium. Paul experienced ups and downs - and so do we - and yet he could see what God was doing throughout it all. We have a story to tell too.

Disciples are people who make disciples. But what is a disciple and how do you make disciples. This week we're preparing to get involved in Thy Kingdom Come.

God speaks to the multi-ethnic and diverse church in Antioch as they are worshipping and fasting. What is God saying to us today through this story?

This week we start a new series looking at Paul's travels - sometimes known as Paul's missionary journeys. But we begin looking at how Paul even became a follower of Jesus. When we first meet him he is persecuting the church, so what happened?

Life is full of ups and downs - so how do we build our lives on something solid that will hold us secure in the storms of life?

Are there things that we need to 'take off' and other things that we need to 'put on' now that we are followers of Jesus?

Many people who met Jesus were trying to piece together the pieces of the puzzle - what they heard, what they'd seen, what the Scriptures said - to try and work out exactly who Jesus was. The resurrection was one piece that meant that many concluded that Jesus was who he said he was. And we can be a part of this story too.

What does this death, 2000 years ago, mean for us today?

Having just arrived in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, Jesus goes into the temple and through his actions and his words warns of God's judgement on those who worship God with their words but whose hearts are not compassionate towards the poor, the oppressed, the marginalised...

Today we're looking at Jesus' encounter with a blind man from John 9. What does John want us to 'see' about Jesus in this passage?

Jesus' opponents try to trap him, looking to put him between a rock and a hard place. But Jesus' compassionate response leaves his accusers silent and gives us a picture of God's attitude towards us.

Whilst our money and what we do it with it might be a topic we'd rather not talk about in church there is quite a lot on the topic in the Bible. So what are some of the principles that will help us think about money as we seek to become more like Jesus?

Two very different encounters for Jesus in today's passage - one with a woman who hopes to go unnoticed without bothering Jesus and a worried father who goes to find Jesus as he is his only hope.

Jesus' encounter with a Canaanite woman who asks for his help raises a number of questions - including, 'isn't Jesus just being rude?' So what is going on here and how is it relevant for us?

Jesus demonstrates his compassion by healing a lame man - he wasn't looking to Jesus for help, he didn't even know who Jesus was. How has Jesus shown us compassion and what does that mean for us as we seek to be more like Jesus?

Not only does Jesus criticise the disciples for stopping the little children from coming to him - he also tells them that anyone who does not become like a little child will not enter the kingdom of heaven. What is Jesus talking about?

As we continue our series of Encounters with Jesus, today we're looking at a private meeting between Jesus and one of Israel's teachers - a man called Nicodemus. Their conversation includes what is perhaps the best known verse in the Bible, John 3:16.

John's whole mission is about pointing people to Jesus and preparing the ground - so that people are ready to respond to the news that the Messiah is here. But what does fruit 'in keeping with repentance' actually look like?

We start our new series, 'Encounters with Jesus - Part 2' with one of the earliest encounters in Jesus' life. Jesus would have been a bit over a month old. But what can we learn about this encounter in the temple with Anna and Simeon?

Part of our vision here at CBC is to be more like Jesus - but we know that that is not just going to happen all by itself. We need to put things in place if that is going to happen. In this service, we think about some of the things that we can put in place this year that will help.Please note that this is an all-age service and therefore some of the more interactive parts of the service have been edited out - so the talk might jump at various points - but hopefully, you can still follow the general theme.

Do you know why we celebrate New Year on 1st January? And once you know, should Christians celebrate New Year? How can we best prepare for the year ahead?

This Christmas morning - what can we learn from the story of the Magi? What do we know actually about them? And why are these such surprising characters to find in Matthew's account of the birth of Jesus?

We'll spend our service today preparing for Christmas.

In our Carol Service we were thinking about how, at the heart of the Christmas story, there is the reality of a God who is with us in our messy and dark world - and the difference that makes for us still, today. The less Christmassy we feel - the more important this story is for us.

In the run-up to Christmas we conclude our series in Isaiah looking at some of the promises of the coming Messiah and in a dark world we thank God for the promise of Immanuel - which means 'God with us'.

If you are a Christian you probably have some sense that when it comes to decisions in your life, especially big decisions, you want to be doing what God wants. But how do we know what God wants? How do I tell the difference between God's voice and my own thoughts and desires? Keith explores this theme this morning.

Amy Bland was our speaker at this year's West of Cambridge Joint Service. As many local churches closed their own buildings and met together, Amy took the theme 'Where do I fit?' - to explore how we all have a special place in the church - each with a vital role to play.

Does the Bible tell us about what is going to happen at the 'end of the world'? We've been looking at the Old Testament book of Isaiah this term and we've seen how some of his prophecies were fulfilled in the short term, some hundreds of years later in the life and death of Jesus - but others are pointing to the end of time, and are still in our future. But what does he say, and why does it matter?

With the backdrop of all that is happening in Israel and Gaza, Richard, from Jews for Jesus shares from Isaiah 58 on God's desire for justice, peace and reconciliation. We will think about how we can pray for the situation but also our responsibility to be those who live this way.

Even a quick glance at Jesus' teaching in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) reveals that in so many areas of our lives we need a total re-work of the ways in which we think and behave.

Although written hundreds of years before Jesus' birth the book of Isaiah gives us many images of who Jesus would be, what he would do, and its significance for us.

700 years before Jesus, Isaiah predicts many details of Jesus' death - and he wants us to know that this was no accident, and that it was so that we might know peace with God.

Our news is full of stories of ashes, mourning and despair. Something that Isaiah's audience were familiar with - living through the exile. What words of hope does Isaiah have for them and for us?

As we continue our series in Isaiah God offers an invitation to the people - but will they accept?

In this episode Dr Ruth Bancewicz from The Faraday Institute explores topics related science and faith. There are a few points in Ruth's talks that will make more sense with images - so pop over to our YouTube channel for the video if you want the full effect.

What are the comforts and the challenges of knowing what God is like?

Isaiah experiences God's grace and forgiveness and immediately volunteers for a ministry that from a human perspective would be judged a failure. But Isaiah isn't interested in the human perspective - but only what God thinks.

In this series we're looking at some of the key themes in the book of Isaiah and seeing how these words, written about 2,500 years ago, can have anything to say to us today.

During our harvest thanksgiving service we were thinking about those things we want to thank God for and how we can help others locally and further away.

Bringing our summer series to a close we're looking at the story of Onesimus and Philemon.