Manna-eating worms
I owe to my friend John Goulding the following observation:
In Jonah 4, God provided a plant to shield Jonah from the heat. The verb "to provide" is a key-word in Jonah - it's
Christian Life
Advent TV
It's Advent.
It's widely acknowledged that there are some TV shows that are timeless, and deserve to be watched at Christmas time. The film It's a Wonderful Life, various editions of Dickens' Christmas Carol, Raymond Briggs' The Snowman, and so on.
It is less widely appreciated that there is TV that deserves to be watched each Advent.
With a hat-tip to Ian and Peter (you know who you are), here is my suggestion
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Perhaps Ecclesiastes isn't meant to be understood.
This week, I'm wrestling with the book of Ecclesiastes, in preparation for preaching on chapter 12 this coming Sunday.
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Not long!
Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the strife will not be long;
This day the noise of battle, the next the victor’s song.
To him that overcometh a crown of life shall be;
He with the King of Glory shall reign eternally.
(Apparently, Stand up, stand up for Jesus was originally written not as a hymn, but as the conclusion in a sermon on Ephesians 6:14)
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Like a little child
Jesus said: “Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” (Luke 18:17)
There's much debate as to exactly what that means. Jesus couldn't mean that adults have to be like children in every sense, as we could never be short enough. (Well, most of us couldn't — you know who you are.) In what sense “like a child”?
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How balanced is your preaching programme?
I had a really interesting conversation this last week on the subject of what proportions of sermons here should be on which parts of Scripture. (I said that I try to aim at 1/3 each of Old Testament, Gospel, and rest of New Testament - after using some weeks for the occasional topical series).
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Of the Authority of the Church
THE Church hath power to decree rites or ceremonies and authority in controversies of faith; and yet it is not lawful for the Church to ordain anything contrary to God’s word written, neither may it so expound one place of Scripture, that it be repugnant to another. Wherefore, although the Church be a witness and a keeper of Holy Writ: yet, as it ought not to decree anything against the same, so besides the same ought it not to enforce anything to be believed for necessity of salvation.
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The words in red were not spoken to you.
Yesterday, I had two very interesting conversations after church services, which set off the following thoughts. (What follows is not something I said to either person, although it might have been helpful if I had done).
Red Letters
Many English Bibles print the words of Jesus in red.
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Why Jesus must be Lord as well as Saviour
Lots of people's discovery of the Christian faith goes something like this:
They start out thinking that it's all about being good. If we're good enough, God might just accept us.
They then discover the wonderful news the Bible calls "grace". Jesus did not come to call people to be good; he came to show us we could never be good enough, so that we can receive God's kindness as a gift we could never earn. We need Jesus as our saviour.
But then that leads to confusion: If God's grace is free and undeserved, does it matter how I live? Can't I live as I please?
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Israel becomes Egypt
Oh, the pain of leaving things out.
I'm preaching on 1 Kings 11-12 on Sunday. As is always the case with preaching, the aim is to help people to hear what that part of Scripture is saying to us today. And in order to be clear, you have to be ruthless. So often, there are all kinds of really interesting things you've learnt and discovered in the text, and they have to go on the proverbial cutting-room floor.
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