When we are trying to communicate the Bible to people, we need to consider both sides of the bridge. Firstly, and most importantly, we need to understand the word of God well, spending time and effort in understanding what God is saying in this particular passage. And secondly, we need to understand the people being …
Preachers need to think about a lot of different things. It is hard work to interpret and explain God’s Word faithfully and well. A great deal of theological training goes into teaching the original languages, theology, Bible interpretation, and church history. All of this is critical. Yet preachers also need to consider how to connect …
Most Christians are used to listening to sermons, but how well do we really listen? I have had the privilege of growing up in church and often attended multiple services when I was younger. I have probably listened to at least a couple of thousand sermons in person, not counting conferences and online listens. On …
We all know that we should be reading our Bibles. We know it is important for us. Yet it can seem like a chore at times. Like taking medication, which we know we might need, we do it but don’t always enjoy it. It is good for us, but it is not always fun. Compare …
The Bible is a big book, and we live in an era where most people do not read big books. While the literacy rate is very high in most countries, our attention is drawn in so many directions and fractured in so many ways that focussed attention on one book seems so difficult. It’s not …
The world seems out of control right now, don’t you think? There is a war in the Ukraine that has now dragged on for a long time. The Middle East, which is often unsettled, seems more divided than ever with active war zones in different places. There are countless refugees stranded from their homes around …
It is common for people to ask: why are things so bad? Why is the world such a mess? Why is my life not the way I want it to be? For some, this is a reason to doubt God or at least to doubt God’s goodness. Yet let me propose a different question that …
We all care about justice. We innately want the world to be fair. What that usually means is that we want justice to work for us personally. We want things to work out well for us. While this is perfectly understandable, it is a very selfish and limited point of view. True justice is bigger …
The first thought most of us have when something unexpectedly bad happens is ‘why’? Why did this thing happen to me? Was it some kind of punishment for something I have done (like Job’s friends suggested in the middle of Job’s suffering)? Was it because I am a worse person than other people (as suggested …
What are you aiming for in life? What would you class as a good life, a successful life? It is important that you know what you are trying to do with your life. Then you can work out what you should be doing now in order to achieve that goal. Think of it like this. …