Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Mark 10 verses 42 to 45

Dear Church Family

To make sense of Jesus' words above, it is important to think carefully about how He lived. Consider: He set the agenda. He gave orders. He told men and woman how to live. He never actually took orders, rather He defied religious authorities. He demonstrated His absolute authority over people, demons, illnesses, the weather and even death! When He did lay down His life He did so by His own authority, John 10 verse 18. In what sense then was Jesus a servant?

Simply, Jesus was a servant in how He led. He led out of perfect humility: for the glory of His Father and for good of others. He led for a pure cause: to save humanity, restoring us to God for all eternity.

What does this mean for us?

Well, first, this Easter week is the greatest expression of the servant leadership of Jesus. We are the beneficiaries of His leadership. Second, we are utterly dependent on Him to rescue us. There is no place for pride at the foot of the cross. Third, how loved and blessed we must be that in our pitiful state He would give His life to ransom us. He paid with His blood to restore you to 'very good', just as He made us in the beginning

As Lent draws to a close, reflect on these things and consider how loved you are by God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

In the love of Christ
Jonathan

Our services are now live-streamed via our online radio station Shepton LifeStream and are available to listen live on Sunday mornings and at regular times throughout the week here

The audio recordings of the reading and sermon from these services are also available to hear again. Click on the play button in the players below.

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Parish Church, Church Lane, Shepton Mallet BA4 5BW (w3w: self.outs.think)

Parish Office, Peter Street Rooms, Peter Street BA4 5BL (w3w: growth.impulses.packages)

We regret that Peter Street Rooms are not currently available for hire

Basis of Faith

We are a part of the Church of England. We uphold the biblical truths on which the Church of England was founded. These truths are described in the laws which govern the Church of England. 

'The doctrine (the truths we believe and live by) of the Church of England is grounded in the Holy Scriptures, and in such teachings of the ancient Fathers and Councils of the Church as are agreeable to the said Scriptures. In particular such doctrine is to be found in the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, The Book of Common Prayer, and the Ordinal.' 

This is canon A5 and can be found here

The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion can be found here, The Book of Common Prayer can be found here. They are both quite detailed and a bit difficult to read. The following is a faithful and true summary of the core beliefs they describe.

We believe . . .

in the one true God who lives eternally in three persons – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

in the love, grace and sovereignty of God in creating, sustaining, ruling, redeeming and judging the world.

in the divine inspiration and supreme authority of the Old and New Testament Scriptures, which are the written Word of God – fully trustworthy for faith and conduct.

in the dignity of all people, made male and female in God’s image to love, be holy and care for creation, yet corrupted by sin, which incurs divine wrath and judgement.

in the incarnation of God’s eternal Son, the Lord Jesus Christ – born of the virgin Mary; truly divine and truly human, yet without sin.

in the atoning sacrifice of Christ on the cross: dying in our place, paying the price of sin and defeating evil, so reconciling us with God.

in the bodily resurrection of Christ, the first fruits of our resurrection; his ascension to the Father, and his reign and mediation as the only Saviour of the world.

in the justification of sinners solely by the grace of God through faith in Christ.

in the ministry of God the Holy Spirit, who leads us to repentance, unites us with Christ through new birth, empowers our discipleship and enables our witness.

in the church, the body of Christ both local and universal, the priesthood of all believers — given life by the Spirit and endowed with the Spirit’s gifts to worship God and proclaim the gospel, promoting justice and love.

in the personal and visible return of Jesus Christ to fulfil the purposes of God, who will raise all people to judgement, bring eternal life to the redeemed and eternal condemnation to the lost, and establish a new heaven and new earth.

Who we are

We are learning from Jesus, that we may live for Jesus and love like Him. We believe that is what Jesus calls us to do. 

When and where

Our weekly service in Shepton Mallet is on Sunday mornings at 10:30 am in the Parish Church. To locate us precisely go here. Our village church services times are here

What to expect

We are a diverse Church family of all ages and backgrounds and who appreciate differing kinds of services. Being together is more important than having exactly what any one of us wants but we do strive to provide a breadth of styles to our services for all to engage in and enjoy. 

How long is our service?

The Sunday service in Shepton Mallet lasts for about 75 minutes. 

Other services and events

Currently we have Holy Communion three times each month - on the second and fourth Sunday at 10.30, and on the third Sunday at 5pm. On the first and third Sunday of the month we have a service of Morning Worship at 10.30.

On the second and fourth Sunday, our children and young people return from their teaching groups so that we are all present either to receive the bread and wine or to receive prayer.

We also have a monthly Revive event with guest speaker, worship and prayer. See here for details of the the next Revive event.

Prayer ministry

Prayer is offered each week during and after the service

Benefice Clergy, Readers and Staff

Shepton Mallet Standing Committee

Shepton Mallet PCC Members

Ros Baldwin

PCC Member

and Shepton PSO

Calendar

Featured events