Luke 15:11-32 Who is easier to get into heaven – a good person or a bad person? That was my opening line for a talk given recently. The occasion was a lunchtime concert held at my church. We were halfway through a recital of Gilbert and Sullivan’s finest and I was given 5 minutes to […]
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Glen
Luke 15:11-32 The world divides into two camps – sinners and slaves. The sinners love freedom. The slaves love respect. The sinners opt out of the system to discover themselves. The slaves opt in to prove themselves. When sinners are upset they riot or hold protest rock concerts. When slaves are upset they write stern letters to […]
Luke 15:1-10 Kevin’s mother might complain to her friend: “I’m afraid since his girlfriend left him, Kevin’s been completely direction-less. A bit of a lost sheep really.” But it’s not just Kevin. The Bible puts that label on a much broader constituency. Often the people of God are called “sheep without a shepherd” (e.g. Numbers […]
Click for source Luke 14:25-35 A stammer. An irritating workmate. An infirm parent. A complaining parishioner. An unpleasant duty. A chronic illness. We might be tempted to call these things “my cross to bear.” But we shouldn’t. Jesus means something very different by the phrase. But it’s not just the world-weary grumblers who get it […]
Luke 14:7-24 Personality tests split the world into introverts and extroverts. The diagnostic is usually something about energy levels – do you energise on your own or with others? If you re-charge by yourself you’re an introvert. If you come alive around people, you’re an extrovert. I’m not sure it’s helpful to label people so […]
Click for source Luke 12:13-34 In June of last year it was reported that a 17 year old Chinese youth sold his kidney to buy an iPad2. We recognize the folly of that kind of covetousness instantly. But what about greed that is closer to home? Recently I read an excellent discussion of the much-used […]
Matthew 15:21-28 It is, perhaps, Thomas Cranmer’s most famous prayer. Known as The Prayer of Humble Access, it is said prior to receiving the Lord’s Supper: “We do not presume to come to this thy Table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in thy manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy […]
Mark 6:14-29 TS Eliot said “human kind cannot bear very much reality.” This story plumbs the violent depths of that truth. John the Baptist was a shining light. He was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. Jesus called him the greatest man born of woman (Matthew 11:11). As the summation of all the prophets […]
Matthew 13:44-52 Recently a friend emailed me with a question. He’s not yet a Christian but he’s been attending Bible studies for a while. The previous night they had used Christian-sounding language that he didn’t understand. He wrote: “They asked me if I had ever ‘given my life to God.’ I was unsure. What does […]
Matthew 13:1-17 Yesterday we encountered a mystery. Jesus declares His word publicly – that is, for all. But also He also proclaims it to a particular audience – not everyone has ears to hear. You might think that Jesus takes a laissez-faire attitude to this phenomenon. But no, He pleads “He that hath ears, let […]
