God created the universe, making humans in His image to represent Him. Sin damaged our relationship with God and each other. Israel was chosen to reflect Him but failed. Jesus came to redeem humanity through His sacrifice, forming the church. His return will complete God’s restoration: Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Final Restoration.
Resources
Bridge Christian Community
We are a diverse community of Jesus followers based in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa who strive to be Christ-centered, family-focused and mission-minded. This podcast is a collection of lessons and workshops that have been given by a number of local and international speakers.
The Gift that Keeps Giving
What if God’s grace came with “strings attached”?
The definition of grace as God’s undeserved favour, can lead to a passive understanding in which we receive grace without recognising how it should shape our lives and relationships.
Drawing on the ancient understanding of the Greek word charis, the sermon explains three stages of grace: receiving a gift, responding with deep gratitude, and demonstrating loyalty to the giver by reflecting their generosity towards others.
Using Paul’s teaching in Romans, the sermon shows that God’s grace is freely given through Jesus Christ, yet it calls for a response. Believers are urged to offer their whole selves to God, resist conformity to worldly values, and be transformed through the renewing of their minds.
This transformation is visible in practical Christian living: humility, love, service, generosity, hospitality, honouring others, pursuing peace, and loving our enemies. These qualities reflect the character of Jesus and demonstrate to the world what God is like.
The sermon particularly challenges the hyper individualism of contemporary society, which can reduce grace to something we receive for personal comfort and affirmation.
Is there anything you need to change to live under the grace of God as He wants you to?
What specific aspects of communal life is God convicting you to grow in, to more accurately demonstrate who He is?
Speaker: Neil Trollip
Scriptures: Ephesians 2:4-10; Romans 1:5-7, 3:22-24, 5:15, 8:12-14; Romans 12
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Why study the Bible?
The Bible is an ancient collection of writings that can be difficult to understand. Learn why we believe studying the Bible is so important and how we believe it can change your life.
Bible Studies
Our Purpose
We all long to know why we’re here, who we are, and where we belong. Understanding our purpose shapes our identity and sense of belonging. Though many pursue noble causes for meaning, God created us for a greater purpose: to bear His image and participate in His plan to restore and renew creation.
The Word of God
Written over 1,500 years by more than 40 diverse authors, the Bible is remarkably unified. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, it reveals God’s nature, will, purpose, and plan. As His message to humanity, Scripture is essential for salvation, spiritual growth, and faithfully applying and holding to His truth in every situation.
Discipleship
Rooted in Jewish culture, disciples followed rabbis to learn Scripture and imitate their way of life. They adopted their teacher’s purpose and character, then trained others. In the Great Commission, Jesus calls His followers to continue this pattern—making disciples by teaching and modeling life in His Kingdom.
Sin
Sin began in Eden through humanity’s free will. Any thought, attitude, or action opposing God’s will is sin. Because God is holy, sin separates us from Him, fractures human relationships, and brings death. Only God can remove our sin and its consequences, restoring the relationship He desires with us.
The Cross
Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection are central to God’s solution for sin. Crucifixion, a brutal and shameful Roman punishment, brought Him physical, emotional, and spiritual suffering as He bore humanity’s sin and separation from God. Through His sacrifice and victory, He alone offers salvation, reconciliation, and restoration in God’s image.
Repentance
Repentance, from the Greek metanoia, means changing one’s mind by embracing God’s worldview and way of life. It involves turning from self-rule to follow Jesus’ example. Essential for salvation and central to Scripture, repentance is motivated by God’s love shown on the Cross and brings true freedom and renewal.
Darkness to Light
Throughout Scripture, God uses water to save and form a people for Himself. Noah was preserved through the Flood; Israel passed through the Red Sea from slavery and the Jordan into promise. This pattern continues in baptism, where God saves, identifies, and gathers believers into His covenant community.
The Family of God
God planned to restore humanity through a chosen family, beginning with Abraham and Israel. Jesus, the true Son, fulfilled Israel’s calling through perfect obedience and revealed God to the world. He formed the church to continue this mission—a loving, united community whose obedience and unity display God and draw others to Him.