Sermons
At Open Icon Baptist Church, we value great preaching — preaching that engages deeply, humbly and honestly with Jesus, the Bible, and the pain and joy of living in the real world. And since going permanently online, we have been able to welcome great preachers from all over the world without having to wait for them to visit our shores. Click here to meet the inspirational preachers depicted in the gallery above, none of whom have preached for us!
Each sermon below opens in a new tab. Close the tab when you're done to return to this page.
-
3 November, 2002
Preacher: Garry Worete Deverell
Scripture: Matthew
Authority in the Christian community derives not from worldly status or popularity contests, but from a humble willingness to imitate Christ in his devotion to God and his service of others.
-
20 October, 2002
Preacher: Andrew Woff
Topic: Authority, Discipleship, Faithfulness, Fear, Grace
Scripture: 1 & 2 Thessalonians, Matthew
Our faith is about grace – that God comes to meet us in the truth of who we are. God is far less threatened by the darkness in our lives than we are!
-
13 October, 2002
We worship our God with words and images from the imagination of human beings, believing that God can take even what we say and do speak to us in a voice nor our own and images not our own.
-
6 October, 2002
Preacher: Nathan Nettleton
Topic: Formation, Jesus, Spiritual Disciplines, Spirituality
Scripture: Philippians
In the elusive quest to know Christ, spiritual disciplines are a valuable means, but can also easily degenerate into idols.
-
29 September, 2002
Preacher: Mark Brett
Topic: Authority, Leadership, Power, Weakness
Scripture: Exodus, Matthew, Philippians
At the deepest level of our need, we are called to rest in the love and righteousness of God, which can never be forced.
-
8 September, 2002
Preacher: Garry Worete Deverell
Topic: peace, Politics, Reconciliation, Ritual, Worship
There is no such thing as a ritual-free space, and performed well or performed badly, rituals change things, change people’s lives.
-
1 September, 2002
Many of us want the faith story to go according to our script, but the call of Jesus crashes through our dominant religious and cultural understandings and aspirations.
-
18 August, 2002
Jesus is opening our eyes and widening our focus to allow God’s ‘unbiased grace’ to break through.
-
11 August, 2002
The only thing which proves to be worth anything at all, the only thing that proves able to continually redeem our lives from the brink is faith in the crucified and risen one.
-
21 July, 2002
Preacher: Jill Manton
Topic: Discipleship, Formation, Spirituality
Darkness cannot conceal anything from God, but God who confronts us with truth and justice, and invites us to choose life and promises to help and bless us in that choice.
-
14 July, 2002
It is only by letting go of our tribal need to define who is in and who is out, that any of us shall, in the end, show forth a kingdom which is from God.
-
7 July, 2002
Preacher: Nathan Nettleton
Topic: Discipleship, Faith, Jesus, Liberation, peace
Those who insist that faith must satisfy their every ideology may miss out, while those who simply yoke themselves to Jesus will find the freedom and peace for which they yearn.

