I’m about to use Yoda as a model for Christian love. If you haven’t seen the Star Wars movies, you’ll probably be mystified by what I’m about to say. This is not the article you’re looking for. (more…)
In praise of holiness
Life, Sola Panel
I’ve just read an article that I agree with, but can’t relate to. The article, by Carl Trueman, is about the problems with hagiographies (a hagiography is a ‘saint-biography’: an account of somebody’s life that treats them as a hero of holiness and leaves out the naughty bits).1 He argues that hagiographies are bad for multiple reasons: they’re not good history, they promote an unhelpful black-and-white view of the world, and they make readers feel depressed and inadequate when they don’t measure up. I think he’s right. But I just don’t feel his pain. (more…)
Making conversation with Muslims
Everyday Ministry
Recently in Sydney there has been a billboard advertising campaign, with signs carrying various messages, including “Jesus: A prophet of Islam”, placed around the city. Run by Diaa Mohamed from the Islamic organization MyPeace, it certainly got some media attention. What was more interesting was the Christian response to it. Some were positive about it, others were negative, and some even said that it was offensive. (more…)
Romans 3:21-26
Bible 101, Sola Panel
“But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
In his Bible, Martin Luther famously called this passage “the chief point, and the very central place of the Epistle, and of the whole Bible”—and with good reason. The opening words of verse 21 signal the turning point, not only of Paul’s letter but of the human race. (more…)
Deuteronomy 6:4-6
Bible 101
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.”
Occasionally at a big event, take a football match for example, you’ll see someone in the crowd holding up a placard emblazoned with something along the lines of “God loves you: John 3:16”. If you’re going to hold up a Bible verse at a sporting event, it’s a good one to choose: someone prompted by your sign to look up the reference would read of God’s gracious love, Jesus’ sacrifice, and our reconciliation with our creator. Only a few words, but it says so much! (more…)
WordWatch: Idioms begat by the Bible
Word Watch
In 2011 we’ve been celebrating the 400th birthday of the King James Bible. Bible societies across the English-speaking world organized appropriate festivities, and used the occasion to draw attention to the Bible’s sweeping social and cultural influence over the last 400 years. Language is one place where the Bible has had a powerful impact. (more…)
Kids’ culture watch spot: Facing fear
Everyday Ministry
By popular demand (two people asked), here is my next script for a culture watch spot I did with the kids at church on Sunday.
You will need two overhead visuals for this culture watch spot:
Daniel 2-7, Harry Potter and Narnia
Everyday Ministry
It’s a Sunday as I write this, and I’m speaking on Daniel 2 and 7 later this morning at a friend’s church in Lidcombe.
Daniel 2-7 is chiastic in structure; that is to say, if you have a story where the first incident is labelled A, the second incident is labelled B, the third incident is labelled C, and so on, then the overall story (if it’s chiastic) follows the pattern A B C D E (and so on, depending how long your story is) and then you get to a point and go backwards until you get to E D C B A.
A constituent on same-sex marriage
Life, Sola Panel
Last year, the Australian Parliament agreed that its Members of Parliament (MPs) should seek the views of constituents on the question of same-sex marriage.
Have you given your local MP the benefit of your view?
A tribute to John Stott
Life, Sola Panel
Friends, I’m not ashamed to say I shed a tear when I opened up my computer on Thursday morning to read that John Stott had died, aged 90, and gone to be with the Lord.
Making the most of his time
Resource Talk, Sola Panel
Do you ever wonder what you’ll be like at 80?
I sometimes have a vision of myself as a kindly old chap with white hair that people think of as that Nice Old Mr Payne. What a gent! (more…)
Love Wins
Review
Love Wins
Rob Bell
HarperCollins, London, 2011. 256pp.
Rob Bell—the founding pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids—is certainly no stranger to controversy. His groundbreaking Nooma series of short films and his first book Velvet Elvis were greeted with adulation by some, and something nearing revulsion by others. In fact, he seems to court controversy. He—or his publishers—certainly knew what they were doing when they engaged with the new media about the release of Love Wins. In a beautifully produced YouTube preview of Love Wins, Rob asks:
(more…)
Paul’s leadership essentials
Pastoral Ministry
Are you in a ministry role, teaching and caring for God’s people? Checking out the business section of the bookstore for tips? Adrian Russell encourages you to turn to Paul’s example of leadership in 2 Timothy 4. (more…)
Where is Jesus now?
Thought
Note: This is part 2 of a 3 part series on Jesus now—read part 1, ‘Who is Jesus now?’, or part 3, ‘What is Jesus doing now?‘. (more…)
Teasing the toothless tiger
Thought
The devil is our enemy, but how do we find out about him, and what can he do to us? Peter Bolt takes a walk through what the Bible says about Satan to determine what we need to know and how we are to treat him. (more…)