20th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 17:1–13 focus v1-2)


Message (Alan Burke) 


A long time ago, I had a friend who was an avid photographer. My parents thought she was an excellent photographer because apparently she managed to take a decent photo of me. Of course, I jest, for as we all know, every photo of me is a masterpiece. She came to mind because one of the things that she used to do for people was take old photos, ones where the original negative was lost, and through all kinds of analogue and digital trickery, be able to restore the photo to the glory it once displayed. Of course, these days, you just get AI to do things like that, and it spits it out in seconds and doesn’t even have six fingers anymore. You look at an old photo, and the colour has faded, it’s tatty round the edges, and you can see a glimpse of what it would have been like the day it was taken. Today, we come to a passage where Jesus takes three of his disciples up the mountain with him, and they see for a brief moment some of the fullness of the glory of the Son of God that was veiled by his humanity. 


It’s now six days after Peter had confessed that Jesus was the Christ, and Jesus had taught them about his death and resurrection, to which brought about Jesus’ rebuke of Peter (16:23). He takes Peter, James, and John, the brother of James, to a high mountain. We don’t know where; it doesn’t matter; actually, it’s best that we don’t because our hearts are idol factories, and no doubt someone would think it a good idea (it’s not a good idea, by the way) to make some kind of monument so that people can make pilgrimages there. Anyway, there, as Jesus led them up, without warning, he was transfigured before their eyes. 


Now, the Greek word here that is translated as ‘transfigured’ in English is a word that, when we hear it in the Greek, we will hopefully be able to work out what it means without too much effort. The word that is translated transfigured is literally the word μεταμορφόω, literally metamorpho, meaning metamorphosis. Jesus was metamorphosed, he was transformed, transfigured; he changed before their very eyes. Up to this point, they had only seen Jesus in human form, but they were able to see Jesus as he is, as he was transfigured, metamorphosed before them. The deity of Jesus Christ that had been veiled is now bursting forth before the eyes of Peter, James, and John. We are told v2 “There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light”. The glory that had been veiled in His humanity burst forth; even His garments became white as light.


There before them light was flowing out of Jesus, the Glory of God was being revealed to these disciples. It’s not that Jesus is mirroring the glory of God, like a reflection in the mirror, rather they were seeing what had been hidden from their eyes in His humanity. They are now able to see the deity of Jesus, for he is the incarnate God. What a sight was before them, as the radiance of the Glory of God shone around, as the radiance of Jesus was before them. They were beholding the Glory of the LORD, the Son of God. Brother and sister know that one day we will see him like he is, you and I will behold his glory, wonderful, beautiful, terrifying, and we will be like him, we will shine like the sun, our bodies will be glorified and all creation will be filled with God’s glory and there will be no more sin (1 Jn 3:2, Mt 13:43, Phil 3:20-21)


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Q17 Into what estate did the fall bring mankind?
A. The fall brought mankind into an estate of sin and misery.
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18th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read - Genesis 12


Message - Scott Woodburn


Genesis is barely over ten chapters old and already Moses has introduced us to multiple major Biblical figures. There is Adam the first man and the federal head of humanity. Quickly we meet Noah who receives the promise that never again will the Lord destroy the earth by flood.  Then by the end of chapter eleven we are introduced to another descendant of Shem called Abram.


If you are familiar with the Scriptures then you know that Abram is a major Biblical figure. Later in the book of Galatians Paul outlines his importance. Paul writes “Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.” (Galatians 3v7-9)


Did you catch that? Paul states that those who have placed their faith in Christ are spiritual descendants of Abraham. We don’t look into Genesis 12 to see Abram saving himself by works. Instead the Lord preached the Gospel to Abram saying “in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (v3) The Gospel would come first to the Jew but then it would make its way to the Gentile. In Abram all the nations of the world would be blessed because the Gospel would be declared to the ends of the earth and salvation is by faith alone. No wonder Paul calls Abraham “the man of faith.”


It was by faith that Abram went out from his own country (v4) and it was by faith that Abram believed that the Lord would give his descendants the land (v7). Yet we would be wrong to believe Abram to be the perfect man. As he travelled to Egypt he came up with a scheme to protect himself regardless of what trouble it might cause his wife. 


Abram’s wife Sarai was beautiful and Abram feared that the Egyptians would kill him to claim Sarai for themselves (v11-13). His solution was to urge her to pretend to be Abram’s sister rather than his wife. The scheme backfired terribly when Pharaoh took Sarai into his house believing her to be a single woman. But quickly Pharaoh understood Abram’s deceit as the Lord afflicted Pharaoh’s house with plagues (v17).


So as chapter twelve comes to a close we have received a whirlwind introduction to Abram who was both a man of faith and a man of faults. His name looms large over Genesis and indeed the whole Bible. He believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness and as Paul reminds us “if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.” (Galatians 3v29)


In response take some time tonight to stand and look at the stars. Long ago our God promised Abram he would have descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. The simple fact that you have received the Gospel and believed it shows that the Lord continues to keep His covenant promises. So tonight in gardens all across Ballynahinch let’s sing a wee song of joy…altogether now…”Father Abraham had many sons…many sons had father Abraham…I am one of them and so are you…so let’s all praise the Lord!” 


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Q16 Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first transgression? The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity; all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression.
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17th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 16:13-20 focus v19-20)


Message (Alan Burke)


If you’ve driven through the countryside recently, you can tell who the locals are and who the blow-ins are. Here is my reasoning, and I’ll not hold it against you if you disagree with me, but I think it’s been like this for a while and it’s getting worse. The locals in the countryside have gates, even cattle grates, and you know the gates are lying open, but the blow-ins, well, they have the big black automatic gates and they only get opened if they decide they like you when you press the buzzer. There was someone I called with a while back, and the buzzer connected to his phone while he was in France living it up. Jesus has said that he is building his church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. Now, gates are defensive structures, not offensive. If you were building a city or fortress in Jesus’ day, there were gates, strong and secure. Jesus is making it clear that his church, the church that he is building on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, will not be overcome because he has the victory, the dominion of Satan, and death is now on the defensive; it will be unable to overcome the church. It may look like the church is on the retreat, that in the midst of the storms and all that is going on in this world, the church is on the defensive, but that is not the case; it is the dominion of Satan and death that is on the defensive, the victory is secure, and it is already ours through Christ Jesus. 


And to the apostles and to the church, Jesus would give the keys of the kingdom of heaven. He tells them whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. The keys of the kingdom of heaven were given to the apostles on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they used the keys. To bind and loose. Think of the imagery of keys; they lock and unlock things. If you give someone the keys to your house, you are saying that they are entrusted to come and go. You give the keys to someone who has been given authority on your behalf. Well, the apostles and the church were given the keys to the kingdom of heaven. They are not magical power; the keys are the preaching of the word and church discipline. The Heidelberg Catechism gives this summary in Q83: What are the keys of the kingdom of heaven? A. The preaching of the holy gospel, and Christian discipline, or excommunication out of the Christian church; by these two, the kingdom of heaven is opened to believers, and shut against unbelievers. The church has been given authority by Jesus to preach the word and to correct those whom it cares for; it desires your best. 


As the passage closes, Jesus warns them not to tell anyone. The reason why was that the people were expecting a conquering king, not one who came to die for the salvation of all who would repent and believe. Yes, Jesus had come as a conquering king, but not the type of conquering king that they expected; he would conquer not their Roman oppressors but the devil and death, the greatest enemy of all (Heb 2:14-15). Until he had been delivered into the hands of sinful men and crucified, it was not the right time to tell of the wonder of who he is and what he came to do. It was then and only then would the disciples understand what the Christ, the Messiah, had come to do. Only then would they be equipped to share the gospel around the world. After the ascension, Peter, on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, preached to all who were before him there in Jerusalem. The time not to tell anyone had gone; it was not time to tell all who Jesus was. This Peter proclaimed to all who would listen: “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36). We are now tasked as the church to take the good news of Jesus out, and the church will not be overcome for he has given it the keys of the kingdom, it is to preach the word, correct you when you are in error, care for you and it desires your best.


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Q15 What was the sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created?
A. The sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created, was their eating the forbidden fruit.
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16th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Genesis 11)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


It is said that Alexander the Great wept because there were no more worlds to conquer. Yet even as tears were running down his cheeks, Alexander founded multiple cities called…wait for it…wait for it…Alexandria! Alexander the Great certainly believed that he was special and worth remembering but he wasn’t the first man who believed his own hype.


In Genesis 10 we meet someone called Nimrod who the Scriptures describe as a mighty man and a mighty hunter. Nimrod was also a builder of cities and both Nineveh and Babel could trace their roots back to Nimrod. Nimrod isn’t held up as a hero in the Bible. He is a descendent of Ham and soon the city of Babel will unite in an attempt to overthrow God.


In those ancient days the whole earth shared the same language (v1) and despite the Lord’s command for mankind to multiply across the face of the earth, humanity did the opposite. With one tongue the peoples said “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” (v4)


This was an act of rebellion and a declaration of war. Humanity was once again shaking an angry fist at the Lord and seeking His removal. Despite mankind’s arrogance the Lord brought His swift judgement to bear. Mankind would seek to use their unity to wage war against the Lord’s people and so the Lord confused their speech (v7) and scattered humanity throughout the world (v8). To this day we speak of the tower of Babel as the place where the Lord confused human speech. No one wants to be a babbler!


The Genesis 11 account of ancient humanity is bleak but the story does not end there. Many years later Jews from every nation under heaven returned to Jerusalem for the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). It was there that the Apostles began to speak and amazingly despite the multitude of languages represented, everyone heard the mighty works of God in their own tongue.


As the inhabitant’s of Nimrod’s city reached arrogantly towards heaven, the Lord confused their speech and scattered them throughout the earth. At Pentecost the curse of Babel was reversed. Humanity's  confused speech was put in order as the Spirit worked and many heard the Gospel. The prophecy of Joel 2v28-32 was being fulfilled on the day of Pentecost. The  Lord's  promise  to  gather  a  people  from  the  nations  was  being  fulfilled  and  the  Gospel  was  leaving  the  boundaries  of  national Israel. 


We  may  not  be  able  to  order  a  meal  in  Thailand  and  we  might  struggle  to  ask directions  in Peru  but  the  Gospel  is  the  same  in  every  language.  Christ  Jesus  died  for  sinners  and all  who receive  Him  will  be  saved.  Paul  tells  us  of  Pentecost's  significance  in  Ephesians. "Therefore remember  that  at  one  time  you  Gentiles  in  the  flesh,  called  'the  uncircumcision'  by  what  is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that  time  separated  from  Christ,  alienated  from  the  commonwealth  of  Israel  and  strangers  to  the  covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you  who  once  were  far  off  have  been  brought  near  by  the  blood  of  Christ."  (Ephesians 2v11-13)


In Christ your nationality is irrelevant and the language you speak is not a factor. The curse of Babel has been reversed and one day with united voice the church of Christ will sing His name forever.


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Q14 What is sin? Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.
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15th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 16:13-20 focus v17-19)


Message (Alan Burke)


I just looked out the window, blue skies, it looks lovely. I don’t see a cloud in sight, but you know I think it’s going to rain. I’ve a few visits to do today, so I’ve got my umbrella sitting in the car at the passenger seat, and I’m going to bring my raincoat and hope that between the showers I don’t get soaked. Now I’m being a little facetious. I’m sitting here writing this devotion days before it’s due to be posted, and it’s a scorcher out there, and the forecast for when this devotion is to be posted is for another scorcher. So maybe my opening didn’t work, and the forecast was wrong, and it’s lashing out there, but even so, you get the idea. If I believe it’s going to rain, it’s going to impact how I live. If you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, then it should impact your entire life. All of it, just like it impacts how you dress and what you do if it’s going to lash outside or if it’s going to be another scorcher. To Peter’s confession, Jesus responds by telling Peter he is blessed. 


Peter was blessed because the understanding of the true identity of Jesus, albeit limited, was due to divine revelation. It was the Father who had revealed who Jesus was to him. The understanding he had, along with the other disciples, had come because of God’s grace. The Father had revealed it to Peter. It is the Father who had given understanding of the truth of who Jesus was and is. None of it came from his own wisdom; his understanding came from the Father. Just as our understanding of the things of God does not come from our own wisdom, it comes from God’s work within us by the Holy Spirit. 


Jesus continues by saying: “ I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Now there is a lot going on in here, and in it there are some wonderful truths and comforts for us here as the church. For the Lord is building his church. Now there has been a lot of ink spilled on this verse to argue for the bishop of Rome. The context though helps us; it makes it clear that Jesus is speaking of the disciples as a whole; it is they whom Jesus has been speaking to even though it is Peter who has answered on their behalf. Yet the wider teaching of Scripture points us elsewhere. Christ is the foundation of His church, and the apostles together form the foundation upon which Christ builds (Eph 2:20). Peter is significant, but the focus here is not Peter's supremacy. The focus is Christ's promise: "I will build my church.”


It is Christ who builds his church. What a wonderful assurance that is for us. Who builds the church, it’s not Peter, it’s not the apostles, it’s not the minister, it isn’t the programmes we have, it is Jesus who builds his church. The same church that was founded, not at Pentecost but there in the midst of the fall, for the church is as old as Adam and Eve. The word for Church comes from the Greek literally is ecclesia, meaning assembly. The Greek word equates to the Hebrew word for “community” in the Old Testament. The existence of the Church has been the community of God’s people who live by faith throughout the ages, an assembly of God’s people that Christ is building and nothing will prevent that. This is good news and we can take great comfort in today’s day and age because even if it seems that more and more meetinghouses are lying empty, our Saviour is building his church. 


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Q13 Did our first parents continue in the estate wherein they were created?
A. Our first parents, being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God.
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14th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Genesis 9v18-10v32)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


The Lord had promised never to send a flood upon the earth again but even in the face of the grace of God humanity remained sinful. Noah had planted a vineyard and had become drunk on his homemade wine (v21). He was in such a state that he lay naked in his tent (v21). The sin of Noah was met by the sin of his son Ham. Ham saw his father’s naked disgrace and did nothing about it.


In response to hearing about their dad, Shem and Japheth walked backwards into the tent and covered their dad’s nakedness with a garment (v23). When Noah sobered up and heard what had taken place, he cursed the descendants of his son Ham saying “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.” (v25). Additionally Noah pronounced a blessing upon his other sons saying “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant. May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem, and let Canaan be his servant.” (v26-27)


This seems like a strange incident…what’s going on? Noah has acted foolishly and collapsed drunk naked in his tent. On discovering his father, Ham looked upon his father’s nakedness. This was a shameful thing in the ancient world. Ham takes no steps to honour his father and instead goes and tells his brothers. Some have argued that Ham perhaps abused his father in his drunken state but this cannot be supported by the text. Instead Ham displays sinful arrogance and by going to tell his brothers, it seems that he wants his brothers to share in the disgrace of his dad. John Calvin suggests that Ham laughs at his dad and seeks his further humiliation.


The reaction of Shem and Japheth couldn’t be more different. They seek to honour their father by walking backwards into his tent. Noah has been a fool but he still receives the honour due to him from his other two sons. They refuse to look upon Noah’s shameful state and cover their father’s body.


The result was a curse pronounced upon Ham’s descendants. Ham’s youngest son was called Canaan and the Canaanite people would time and again show that they had inherited Ham’s arrogance and depravity. Ham’s sin would be copied and repeated and magnified by the future generations.


The descendants of Shem and Japheth however would know the blessing of God. From them would come both Jew and Gentile and they would ultimately find unity through the finished work of Christ. Chapter 10 outlines the development of the nations of the world with them all finding their origins in the sons of Noah. Yet the tenth chapter is about the sovereignty of God. He extends His hand of common grace to all the people’s of the world but from the world He gathers a people for His own possession.


Luke tells us that Shem is a direct descendant of Christ (Luke 3v36) and so once more we see the seed of the woman against the seed of the enemy. The Lord is faithful to all that He has promised and those who continue to reject Him remain under the curse of God while those who have received Christ know the blessing of God. Biblical history records this very truth. Ham is the son who dishonoured his father. Jesus is the son who did all that His Father commanded. Ham’s actions resulted in a curse. Christ at the cross became a curse for us. The difference is clear and so let me ask…which side are you on? 


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Q12 What special act of providence did God exercise toward man in the estate wherein he was created? When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of perfect obedience; forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon the pain of death.

13th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 16:13-20 focus v13-16)


Message (Alan Burke) 


There is this game we play at Youth Fellowship from time to time. It’s called ‘Who am I?’ The premise of the game is quite simple, and all you need are some sticky labels and a pen. What you do is write down a whole load of names on some sticky labels and then stick a name to the back of those playing (we did it on their foreheads until we caught one or two of them looking out the window trying to read the name in their reflection). The idea then is they get to ask questions to try to figure out who they are. It’s a bit of a laugh and some of them can’t figure out who they are and that is usually my fault because I’m so removed from popular culture. Today we come to a question of who Jesus is and it’s more than a little important. It’s vitally important that we get the answer to that question right but it’s not just a matter of getting the question right it is also about how we respond to that truth. 


We pick up here and Jesus asks his disciples; “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” This title ‘Son of Man’ is used in scripture in two different ways, to speak about a descendant of Adam or of the Messiah (See Ezekiel and Daniel 7:13-14). What is Jesus asking, well he is asking who do the people say he is. Back in Matthew 8, Jesus in explaining the cost of discipleship to the crowds had used the Son of Man in reference to himself; his disciples would have understood that he was asking them, who do the people say I am? (Mt 8:20). In their response they give four different answers; “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”


What we learn from the answer of the disciples to Jesus’ question is that the people, although they had witnessed Jesus’ ministry, they had seen his power, they had heard his teaching and they had connected the ministry of Jesus to the work of the LORD in their day, but they had not understood who he was. They perceived Jesus as one sent from God; in a sense, they were close, they recognised him as one of the prophets, but they had missed the reality of who Jesus was and is. Part of their problem was that their expectation of the coming Lord’s Messiah, his Christ, was all intermingled with political and nationalistic ideals that obscured their understanding.


Just in case we missed that Jesus was referring to himself when he spoke of the Son of Man, he then turns the question on them and he asks; “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answers; he answers not only for himself but for all of the disciples, saying; “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Peter was saying that Jesus is the one whom they had been waiting for ever since the moments after the fall of humanity when the Lord Himself preached the Gospel to Satan of one who would come to bruise the head of the serpent (Gen 3:15). The disciples perceived that Jesus was the fulfilment of all of the prophecies of God, the one the people were looking forward to; to them, they believed that the true Christ had come. The one that all the Old Testament was pointing to and revealing. That Jesus was the Son of the living God. Peter didn’t understand the fullness of what he said, but the answer mattered a great deal for not only his but our eternal destiny. Who do you say that he is? But know that there is a world of difference between being able to say something, to know something, and that truth impacting your life. Who is Jesus? He is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and all who call upon his name will be saved (Rom 10:13).


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Q11 What are God’s works of providence?
A. God’s works of providence are, his most holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing all his creatures, and all their actions.
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11th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Genesis 9v1-17)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


As the earth dried out the Lord was clear what he expected from Noah and his family. They were to multiply and the fill the earth (v1), they were to have dominion over the earth and its creatures (v2-4) and they were to take life seriously (v5-7). God had made man in His own image and so Noah and his descendants had no right to shed the blood of a fellow human. In today’s world life is cheap and under the banner of progress blood is easily shed - we would do well to remember the Lord’s word to Noah.


In Genesis we have already been introduced to the concept of covenant. The Lord God is not like us, we are not His equal and yet He willingly lowers Himself and enters into a covenant relationship with His creatures. The Lord entered into a covenant of works with Adam whereby Adam and his descendants would enjoy everlasting life on condition of Adam’s perfect obedience. As the covenant of works lay in tatters, God willingly entered into the covenant of grace whereby the seed of the woman was promised as the One who would crush the serpent’s head.


Noah understood the covenant of grace. It was by the covenant of grace that he and his family would be saved by entering the ark (Genesis 6v18). Jesus is the ark for God’s people, He is the seed of the woman and all who cling to Him will not be overcome by the flood of judgement to come.


In this chapter another covenant is introduced. This covenant made with Noah doesn’t speak about salvation like the covenant of grace. However it brings much encouragement to all the creatures of the earth. It is a universal covenant whereby God promises Noah “I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” (v11)


In these days of climate uncertainty God’s Word is of more value than the testimony of a Swedish teenager. He is clear in His promise to Noah that the world will never again be destroyed by a flood and to make His word visible the Lord places the rainbow in the sky (v13) as a sure sign that He will keep His promise (v17). This isn’t to say that we can treat the world as we so please. The world and everything in it belongs to the Lord and so we should exercise dominion carefully and wisely. Nevertheless, God has promised that we will never see a day when the land is swallowed up by the sea.


But if God’s rainbow in the clouds reminds us that He will never again flood the earth the Apostles saw something even greater in the sky. At the start of the book of Acts the disciples stood watching Jesus ascend into the clouds and soon an angel would assure them that Jesus would return in the very same manner. While the earth will never again be destroyed by a flood, Jesus is coming back and He is coming in judgement.


As children we believed that if somehow we could reach the end of the rainbow there we would find a pot of gold. I never managed such a feat and I suspect you didn’t either but a greater rainbow is here. Christ’s resurrection is a sure sign of the day of judgement (Acts 17v31) and a sure sign that those who have trusted Him will stand on the final day (1 Corinthians 15v23). Dear Christian, Jesus has never promised us silver or gold but when we reach the end of the rainbow we will discover something better by far.


“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.” (Philippians 3v20-21)


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Q10 How did God create man? God created man male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures.
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10th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 14:22-36)


Message (Philipp Jaeschke)


I’m sure many of you have been to see the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge on the North Antrim coast. I visited it for the second time not too long ago. Maybe you’ve been brave enough to cross the bridge, which isn’t necessarily all that simple if you’re a little bit afraid of heights like I am. Anyway, I’ve found that as you cross the bridge it’s best to focus just on your feet step by step as you walk across the wooden planks. As soon as you shift your focus and look down to the left or to the right at the waves and the rocks 30 metres below, that’s when people like me can easily get a bit dizzy and unsteady on their feet. Even though it’s perfectly safe with the netting and the handrail rope along the side. You have good reason to have faith that you won’t fall into the sea just like that. As I understand, what is now the rope bridge used to actually be just one piece of rope tied across and the salmon fishermen would edge their way along, clinging to the rope with their equipment and their catch tied to their backs. That’s faith on a whole other level.


As Jesus approaches their storm-tossed boat in the middle of the night, Peter is the disciple who takes a leap of faith. With Jesus’ approval he steps out of the boat and starts walking towards him on the water. But as he sees the wind he is filled with fear and begins to sink. Still, even in his despair he knows where his help is. He calls out to Jesus: “Lord, save me!” Jesus then grabs his hand and keeps him from sinking. But he has something to say to Peter: “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” (v. 31).


We might have expected that this incident would put a lasting strain on Jesus’ relationship with Peter. Peter has majorly disappointed Jesus. And he will do so again on other occasions in the future. Nonetheless, Peter has displayed active faith by stepping out onto the water. Even though his faith is ‘little’, it is still real. And Jesus acknowledges it. It is a foundation to build on. And that’s what Jesus intends to do with Peter. In fact Peter is the rock on which Jesus will build his church (Matthew 16:18). 


We shouldn’t be discouraged by this encounter between Jesus and Peter. God will not let our recurring doubts, our failures, and our weakness destroy our relationship with him. Even with our ‘little faith’ we remind ourselves constantly: “My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:2). We call on Jesus for our salvation and he responds. Just as Jesus saved Peter from sinking to the depths of the sea by grabbing his hand, Jesus also saved us from the depths of hell by dying on the cross for our sins. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. ” (Ephesians 2:8). For that we are eternally grateful.


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Q9 What is the work of creation?
A. The work of creation is, God’s making all things of nothing, by the word of his power, in the space of six days, and all very good.
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9th July 2026


Pray (ACts)


Read (Genesis 8)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


As chapter eight begins we are told that God remembered Noah (v1a). This isn’t to say that the Lord had somehow forgotten Noah but instead when we read about God’s “remembering” it means that he acts on behalf of the one he remembers and is faithful to all that He has promised. I remember happy moments in the past and do nothing. God remembered Noah and moved on his behalf, and caused the flood waters to subside (v1b). This language is anthropomorphic - it describes God using the language of man and it helps us to understand who He is. At the same time we remember that the Lord is Spirit. He doesn’t actually have body parts nor does He need to remember like us nor does He need to repent.


Eventually the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat (v4) and Noah sent out a raven to survey the land. The raven went back and forward but didn’t provide Noah with the good news he was waiting for. Later Noah sent out a dove but she wasn’t able to find any place to set her foot. The dove was sent again one week later and this time she returned with a freshly plucked olive leaf. Finally the waters were lowering! One more week passed before Noah sent out the dove once more and this time she didn’t return (v12). Soon Noah saw with his own eyes the ground was dry (v14) with the Lord telling him that it was time to leave the ark.


Scripture indicates that Noah had been on board the ark for 371 days. Can you imagine? We struggle during long car journeys and all of us complain about international flights. Noah puts us all to shame with over a year spent floating upon the flooded earth. As he leaves the ark he doesn’t look for a hot towel to wipe away the grime of travel, instead Noah’s response to God’s grace was worship.


Noah built the first altar in the Bible and offered burnt offerings to the Lord, the pleasing aroma of which delighted the Lord (v21). God then declared that He would never again flood the earth and that as long as the earth remained then so too would seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night (v22). Here we see a wonderful picture of God’s grace. Genesis quickly shows us that Noah wasn’t a perfect man yet still the Lord would not revoke His promise. The Lord will not destroy the earth again with water.


Noah left the ark and put the worship of the Lord first. Today we would do well to heed his example. We have much that Noah didn’t have. Today we require no altar for instead we look to Jesus. He is the ark for God’s people. He is the truly righteous man. He is the great high priest. His altar was the cross and He Himself was the sacrifice. Today what Christ has done is like a sweet aroma to Almighty God (Ephesians 5v2) and for as long as the earth remains, Jesus is at the right hand of the Father interceding for His own. Worship Him!


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q8 How doth God execute his decrees? God executeth his decrees in the works of creation and providence.
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