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 …
There was a major public disagreement in the church in Antioch in Galatians 2. Peter, who had previously eaten meals with the Christian Gentiles in the church, withdrew because of the opinions of a part of the Jewish church community. Paul confronted him publicly about this because it was splitting the church and not showing …
Paul often refers to the Old Testament in his letters, and he uses a key verse from Genesis at key points in his argument in both Romans and Galatians. It is Genesis 15:6. Let’s have a look at this verse in its original context: After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram …
I have heard people say that they don’t feel that they feel connected to the local church family that they go to because there is no-one there who is like them. Perhaps this could be said by a young person in a church mainly populated by middle-aged or older believers. Perhaps this could be said …
The instruction in Colossians 3:5 is a quite unusual one to our ears. We are to put what is earthly to death. When those words turn up in other places in the Bible, they usually mean what they literally say, to kill something or someone. But here the idea is not literal but is just …
For many people in the 1950s, smoking and drinking a lot of alcohol was just normal. It was what everyone did. All the celebrities smoked; all social events centred on alcohol. No-one yet knew of the risks of these behaviours and the damage they were causing to their bodies. If you were to ask someone …
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 …