Every Nation Brisbane

Acts - Peter and Cornelius

This week Pastor Neli encourages us to overcome personal biases. Actively resist the urge to distance yourself from others based on social class, ethnic background, or previous mistakes. We must move past our religious and cultural prejudices to embrace the missional recalibration God desires for us.

So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. - Acts 10:34-35 (ESV)

Acts - Stephen the First Martyr

This week Pastor Neli helps us to reflect on whether our faith is visible to those around us.  Stephen from the Book of Acts is a man full of grace and power, his character shaped by his time with God.  We have complete freedom available through Christ so we must live a life formed and shaped by our beliefs for the sake of the gospel.

And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. - Acts 6:88-10 (ESV)

Acts - The Conversion of Saul

This week Pastor Neli explains the conversion of Saul, from threats against the church to believer through an encounter with Jesus and the disciple Ananias. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to illuminate the Scriptures to discover fresh purpose and a way home. Find strength in the fact that God has a specific design for our lives and that His Word serves as a constant guide for how to live with true meaning.

So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened. - Acts 9:17-19 (ESV)

Acts - Gospel On The Margins

This week Pastor Neli helps us to reflect on the question, “What prevents us from coming to God?” No matter our insecurities, past failures, or how busy and noisy our lives may be, the invitation to come to Jesus and find rest remains open to everyone who is weary and heavy-laden.  God measures your growth by your heart's obedience rather than your worldly success or visibility, and He can use your life as a light to help others find their way home to Him .

And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?”  Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. - Acts 8:34-35 (ESV)

Resurrection Sunday: Sunday's on the Way

Pastor Neli helps us understand how the resurrection determines the way we live our lives. Jesus is "the resurrection and the life," providing victory over the sting of death through His finished work at the cross and the empty tomb. The Holy Spirit is alive within you today, illuminating the Word of God and offering the greatest gift to all of humanity.

So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” - John 11:20-22 (ESV)

Good Friday: Three Three Words

Pastor Neli encourages us to take heart by reflecting on the powerful words of Jesus during the most important week of the Christian calendar. The Good News that Jesus has already overcome the world speaks of His victory as a finished work. We are never alone because Jesus endured His suffering in isolation so that we could be relationally connected to Him and to the broader body of Christ. So embrace the power of the resurrection, walking in the freedom and peace that comes from knowing Jesus is victorious.

“I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.” - John 16:25-28 (ESV)

Jesus On Mission

This week Pastor Neli explores how discovering our mission begins with following the template of Jesus Christ’s life. We are reminded that every one of us is created for a purpose, but fulfilling it requires embracing God’s wisdom - which looks different from the wisdom of the world. The entry point to truly knowing Him and experiencing His power is the willingness to take up our cross. So lean into the example of Jesus, and choose to live out a wisdom that is active and rooted in integrity

And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. - 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (ESV)

Acts - Boldness: When Obedience Turns into Courage

This week, Pastor Neli deconstructs the common misconceptions surrounding boldness, moving beyond personality traits to uncover its true biblical definition. Rather than a self-generated confidence, true boldness is a spiritual byproduct that flows from being Spirit-filled and grounded in a deep understanding of God’s character. By leaning into God's sovereignty, we find the courage to shift our posture—moving away from a desire for personal comfort and instead praying for the strength to remain faithful in all circumstances. Ultimately, boldness serves as the public evidence of a life fully surrendered to Jesus, existing solely to put the glory of God and the power of the Gospel on display for the world to see.

"And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. - Acts - 4:29-31 (ESV)

Acts - Breaking the Spell

This week Michael Coe encourages us to shift our focus from seeking a counterfeit, self-serving power to embracing the true lordship of God. The society we live in is obsessed with power - whether through physical strength, financial status, or even spiritual tools used for personal branding and control. While the world may offer temporary comfort, the gospel provides a profound relationship with a heavenly Father who offers unconditional love and forgiveness. We can move beyond treating God's grace as a transaction and instead seek His heart, finding that true greatness in His kingdom comes from a place of humility and service. So stop bargaining for benefits and instead be changed by who God is, allowing His presence to be your ultimate source of strength.

But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great. They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.”  And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed. - Acts 8:9-13 (ESV)

Acts - The Danger of Looking Surrendered

This week Pastor Neli explores the difference between truly being surrendered to God and merely looking surrendered for the sake of "optics". We should move beyond religious behaviour and performance within an environment meant for grace. God has provided each of us with a unique abilities and anointing to be His witnesses. This strength is renewed not through our own merits, but by waiting upon Him and living out of the overflow of His work in our lives. So lean into God's grace, rejecting the pressure of perfection and the trap of trying to impress others, and instead choose to strengthen and build up the community around you.

 

Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.  And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. - Acts 4:32-33 (ESV)