Tribes & Tongues - International Sunday

This is our Sunday teaching from Senior Pastor, Tom Thompson. Recorded live at our Sunday Service for International Sunday in Harris Academy Purley, Croydon on Sunday 2nd November, 2025.

Below you can find the full talk audio, and a summary article.  

Want to lead a connect group session on this teaching?  The notes are here!

Talk Summary - The God of All Nations

Psalm 47 begins with a joyful invitation: “Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy!” It’s a psalm written for the Temple of David—yet it holds a vision far bigger than ancient Israel. At that time, only one nation worshipped God. But the Holy Spirit was already whispering something extraordinary: that one day, people from every nation would come together to worship the same King.

Imagine the sound—Caribbean rhythms, African drums, Asian melodies, European harmonies—all blending into one song of praise. At first, perhaps a cacophony; but as the Spirit moves, a single chorus rises: “You are our King!”

That vision looked impossible for centuries. Israel itself fell into ruin. Worship turned to weeping. Yet God was not weak—He was too strong to abandon His purpose. Through the prophet Isaiah, He promised, “I will gather all nations and tongues, and they will come and see my glory” (Isaiah 66).

Centuries later, in Acts 8, we glimpse that promise being fulfilled. An Ethiopian official—riding in his chariot—is reading Isaiah when Philip meets him and explains: the promised sign has come. Jesus is the revelation of God’s glory. That Ethiopian becomes one of the first from the nations to follow Christ—and history tells us he may have planted the world’s oldest surviving church in East Africa. God said He would do it—and He has.

Today, we see that same miracle in our own gatherings. People from many nations, languages, and stories—drawn together by one Lord. Whether we “came on horses or in wagons,” as the sermon put it, we are all called to the same table, crowned with the same status: priests and Levites in God’s kingdom.

So what do we do with this calling? We live it. We welcome it. We share it. We show the world what God’s kingdom looks like—through food, by offering hospitality that crosses cultures; through friendliness, by being genuinely interested in others; through invitation, by simply asking people to come and see Jesus; and through prayer, lifting up our neighbours and the nations before God.

Hope is not dead. God’s plan is alive—and you’re part of it. From every tribe and tongue, He is gathering His people to sing one song: Jesus is King.