Where do we look for strength, for comfort, for help, for love, acceptance and joy? Where do we look for life? According to the bible, the answer is: all the wrong places. We are inveterate idolaters. That is to say, our hearts are forever being set on idols: things that are not God. The human […]
No-one likes the phrase “laying down the law.” But that’s what the unseen LORD does on mount Sinai. God the Son has brought the people to God the Father and now they learn the law of the LORD. The order is important. They’re not told in Egypt “If you obey my commands I will redeem […]
Do you need a priest to bring you to God? The Bible answers yes. But perhaps not the priest you were thinking of. Back in Exodus 3 Moses is at the burning bush and the One in the bush promises to save the people: “Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a […]
“I never knew Christ was all I needed until Christ was all I had.” I heard this saying from an African Bishop recently. But Christians the world over can attest to the truth of it. It’s the very essence of what God was teaching the Israelites in the wilderness. And it’s exactly what Christians are […]
When we hear of “fleshpots” we’ll likely think of sexual temptation. As in… flesh·pots / ˈfleshˌpäts/• pl. n. places providing luxurious or hedonistic living: he had lived the life of a roué in the fleshpots of London and Paris. But in their original biblical context, “fleshpots” are literally cauldrons of meat. They are a temptation, but there’s nothing […]
When introducing people to the cross of Jesus it’s very common to hear this objection: “Hang on! If you’re saved from judgement by Jesus’ sacrifice, won’t you just keep on wallowing in sin? Doesn’t the cross mean that Christians will be complacent about sin and go on indulging in it?” Actually the opposite is true. […]
John the Baptist was a wild and holy prophet whose whole mission in life was to prepare the way for the LORD Jesus. And when his big moment came to announce Christ onto the world stage, what did John say? “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29) […]
Hard´-heart`ed (~härt`ĕd) a. 1. Unsympathetic; inexorable; cruel; pitiless. The wisdom of Solomon gave us this proverb: Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. (Proverbs 4:23) Our lives are governed by our hearts. What we love determines who we are. Unsurprisingly philosophers might define a human being as […]
If you watch news footage of disasters in the third world you see people who know what to do. This is a sad time. The people are sad. They weep and wail and mourn. And this is entirely appropriate. But watch news footage of disasters in the west and what do you see? Not weeping […]
Moses and Aaron deliver the LORD’s message: Let my people go. But Pharaoh is singularly unimpressed. “Who is the LORD?” (Exodus 5:2) “I’ve heard of Ra, Amun, Osiris, Isis, Seth, Nephthys, these gods I know. Who is this LORD??” Pharaoh has no time for weak men preaching a weak message about an unknown God. Baffled […]
