God works in mysterious ways. We know that. There are so many things that happen to us and around us that we would never have predicted and which we do not understand. Yet sometimes we are privileged to see a series of events that reveal a little of God’s unexpected kindness to us. I can …
Occasionally someone calls me a priest. I have been given all kinds of labels, from pastor to minister to teaching elder, and I can live with most of them. Yet the word ‘priest’ is not appropriate. The task of a Christian minister after the time of Jesus is not to be a priest in the …
The Old Testament says a great deal about sacrifices. The people of God had to do so many of them, some at set times, and some in response to things that happened. Sometimes they brought a lamb or a goat, sometimes a bird, sometimes grain or wine. There would have been a permanent BBQ smell …
I’ve just finished reading a thorough and very interesting historical account of China’s Great Leap Forward in 1958-62. The book is called ‘Mao’s Great Famine: The History of China’s Most Devastating Catastrophe’ by Frank Dikotter. It’s a harrowing read at times. In an attempt to bring China’s industrial output in line with the developed countries …
The local church should be a radically united group of people, the kind of community that cannot be found anywhere else. We have such unity because of Jesus that this should flow into real unity between diverse people in our churches. It is not always like this. The Galatian church was deeply divided. It was …
One of the wonderful benefits we have as Christians is to be sons of God. Trusting in Jesus is not only a matter of having our sins forgiven, though it certainly includes that. It also means that we are adopted as sons of God. We are in God’s family, loved, secure, and with a certain …
Everyone wants to express their opinion. Everyone wants to get their views across. We want to be heard and valued and noticed. All of this is perfectly natural. What has become less natural is to listen. To really listen. It is incredibly difficult to listen well to someone else. There are two broad reasons why …
The Bible has a storyline to it. It is not like a news website where you choose the articles you want to read and the order doesn’t matter. The order of the Bible does matter. It is more like a novel than a dictionary, a building storyline of God with his people that develops over …
The Jewish people have always valued the law of Moses very highly. It is seen as eternal and perfect, the guide for how we are to honour God. This appreciation for the law can logically lead people to think that simply having the rules will make us better people. After all, if we have God’s …
Easter time is often a full time for people, whether you are Christian or not. In Australia, it is the only four-day weekend on the annual calendar. It often falls near school holidays as well so those with children have a change of pace. Many have family gatherings or a weekend away, and Christian people …