“I don’t know why we’re on this earth,” says Stephen. “… But if I wanted to find the answer, I would begin with how much I love you.” [Richard Osman’s 4th Thursday Murder Club Mystery] When we stop to think
Pentecost: a revolution in our Relationship with God
Have you ever dreamed of what it would be like to be one of the disciples, back when Jesus was still on earth? For nearly two thousand years, Christians have imagined seeing Jesus’ life and wished they could have been
The Ascension: Friends in High Places
I imagine that if most Christians are honest, the ascension of Jesus into heaven is one Bible story we wish hadn’t happened. After all, wouldn’t it be so much easier to convince people that Jesus had really risen from the
When the rubber hits the road
He went to the Dimona for the racing, and as the crowds gathered, he told them this parable. The drag racer drivers line up for the start. For some, the Christmas Tree lights up the Red Cherry and they are
Without Him we can do nothing!
Both our passages of Scripture this week (John 15:1-8 and Romans 11:11-24) are based on horticultural metaphors. I’m not much of a gardener myself, but both of them are really helpful for showing us the dependent nature of the Christian
What do you know?
Well, what do you know? It’s a surprisingly tricky question to answer. You could list a bunch of indisputable facts, except that even things like Grass is Green raises questions of what constitutes Grass and whether the brown grass of
God’s promises are sure (even when we’re confused!)
Romans 9-11 are probably the trickiest and most mysterious chapters in Paul’s letter. In the space of just 3 ½ pages of our pew Bibles, Paul expresses his intense sorrow that most of his contemporary countrymen rejected Jesus, then plumbs
Broken?
What do you do when something breaks? There are choices: use it even though it’s broken (my car has a small dent, and I have no plans to fix it); throw it away and buy a new one (which bizarrely
Friday Sunday
If Jesus is risen (sorry, if you’re reading this before Easter Sunday – but it is true!), why the focus on suffering of Lent and Holy Week? If it’s all good news (and it really is Good News!) does it
The Gospel: Green light for sin?
This week’s passage opens by asking an excellent question. If justification comes purely as a free gift and our good works don’t contribute to it, why can’t we just sin as much as we want? After all, if God is