Bible

Yesterday, I had lunch with a Cook Islands friend I am mentoring. We discussed together Chapter 12 of the Westminster Confession; “Of Adoption”:
All those that are justified, God vouchsafes, in and for His only Son Jesus Christ, to make partakers of the grace of adoption, by which they are taken into the number, and enjoy […]

In Chapter 2 (Skilfulness) of the Lotus Sutra, it is made plain that those who think they do not need the teaching of the Lotus Sutra (as communicated by Shakyamuni) are considered to be proud, to be chaff or trash. They have no appreciation as to how subtle and inscrutable is the knowledge that leads […]

The Lotus Sutra is one of the most venerated of Mahayana Buddhist texts. Here is a segment from Chapter 2, “Skilfulness”:  
The Lord then rose with recollection and consciousness from his meditation, and forthwith addressed the venerable Sariputra:

“The Buddha knowledge, Sariputra, is profound, difficult to understand, difficult to comprehend. It is difficult for all disciples […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was on February 21.
The next relevant passage is from Surah 20, namely 74-76 (Yusuf Ali):
74: Verily he who comes to his Lord as a sinner (at Judgment),- for him […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was on February 5.
The next relevant passage is from Surah 19, namely 58-63 (Yusuf Ali):
58: Those were some of the prophets on whom Allah did bestow His Grace,- of […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was on December 22. The next relevant passages are from Surah 18, namely 29-31, 105-108 (Yusuf Ali):
29-31:
Say, “The truth is from your Lord”: Let him who will believe, and […]

There are those who think evangelism is a task to be carried out by those who have been specially gifted for this purpose. To their minds most Christians are simply called upon to live the life and only to be ready to share their faith when called upon to do so (1 Peter 3:15). However, […]

Here we are looking at evangelism which is not exercised directly by the apostles themselves. Before we do so we need to add a word of caution concerning the way we use this term “evangelism.” If we were being technically pedantic then we might restrict the use of this term to the oral proclamation of […]

In Acts 1:8 we read:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
It is the power of the Holy Spirit that explains how it is that the apostolic witness to Jesus […]

The promise of Acts 1:8 is addressed to the apostles (see verse 2). When Jesus assures his disciples that they will be his witnesses he means that they will be witnessing to him as the risen Lord. This is made plain at the close of the chapter when Peter leads the process to find a […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was on December 1.
The next relevant passage is 16:30-32 (Yusuf Ali):
To the righteous (when) it is said, “What is it that your Lord has revealed?” they say, “All that […]

It is interesting to read in the latest issue of Philosophy Now that a Northwestern University (Chicago) study has found a correlation between the extent to which a country is individualistic and the level of depression experienced by its residents. The study identified Britain, USA, Australia and Western European nations to be the world’s most […]

In Part One we saw that by applying the language of Isaiah in identifying his apostles as his witnesses, Jesus is indicating that the witness of the apostles themselves is integral to the restoration of the kingdom to Israel. It is highly significant that while Acts begins with the restoration of the kingdom to Israel […]

In Acts 1:8 Jesus promises the following:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Here Jesus is responding to a question asked by his apostles:
“Lord, are you at this time going […]

The latest example of blatant cheating in sport is by French captain Thierry Henry, in which he clearly handled the ball, thus enabling a goal to be scored which meant that in this year’s World Cup playoffs Ireland was eliminated and France went through. Ireland’s pleas to FIFA for the game to be replayed have fallen […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was on November 22.
The next relevant passage is 15:45-49 (Yusuf Ali):
45: The righteous (will be) amid gardens and fountains (of clear-flowing water).
46: (Their greeting will be): “Enter ye here […]

A friend’s church is seeking to develop a vision statement and, as many churches have done, they are considering framing this in a way that will involve setting a numerical target. My friend asked me whether it was right for churches to do this, given that in 2 Samuel 24 David was punished for conducting a […]

This morning’s sermon in church was based on Luke 14:25-35. Kevin Murray began by noting that many have trouble with the way Jesus expresses himself in verse 26:
If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters - yes, even his own life - […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was on November 17.
The next relevant passages is 15:28-35 (Yusuf Ali’s translation):
28: Behold! thy Lord said to the angels: “I am about to create man, from sounding clay from […]

In verse 10 there is a contrast between “her son”/“that slave woman’s son” and “my son Isaac.” The literary mastery of the passage is seen in the very next verse that follows: “The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son.” Sarah rejects Ishmael because he is not her son, but Abraham is greatly […]

One of the key words used in Genesis 21:1-21 is the word “see.” This was made a big thing of in Genesis 16. Notice verse 4, which literally reads: “When Hagar saw she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.” Hagar expressed her contempt through words and actions that caused Sarah to remonstrate with […]

The German philosopher Nietzsche said, “Perhaps I know best why it is man alone who laughs; he alone suffers so deeply that he had to invent laughter.” Lord Byron said, “And if I laugh at any mortal thing, ‘Tis that I may not weep.” While these statements betray a deep-seated pessimism, they reflect a key […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was back on October 17.
The next relevant passages is 14:23, :
But those who believe and work righteousness will be admitted to gardens beneath which rivers flow,- to dwell therein […]

Many great artists have painted the scene of Abraham sending Hagar and Ishmael away and have tried to capture their plight as they faced death by dehydration in the desert. These paintings and, indeed, most sermons I’ve come across on the passage, typically elicit sympathy for Hagar and seem to assume she is the victim […]

In a recent interview Dr. Krish Kandiah (Executive Director of Churches in Mission for the Evangelical Alliance, UK) explained what’s called The Square Mile project. MILE stands for Mercy, Influence, Life-Discipleship and Evangelism. The aim is to help churches and Christians connect their everyday lives with God’s work in the world. 
At one point the interviewer, […]

There is a part of the Antarctic coastline which is universally recognised as belonging to France. Why? Because on 20 January 1840 claim to this particular area was made in the name of France by a French ship commanded by Jules Dumont d’Urville.
The French sailors who made landfall plainly viewed themselves as conquering this land. After […]

Christians know that for them ethics or morality boils down to living under the Lordship of Christ. So Paul, introduces a long section on Christian morality, by urging:
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1).
This is another […]

In a recent interview Michael Horton made the point that modern evangelical Christianity often uses as a key ethical principle “What would Jesus do?” He sees this as a disturbing movement away from the Gospel’s focus on what Jesus has done for us.
My mind immediately flicked to Romans, where there is tremendous stress, often much underestimated, […]

In Romans 12: 2 Paul exhorts, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world.” The word “pattern” alerts us to the contrast, since being “transformed by the renewing of the mind” involves being “conformed to the likeness of [God’s] Son.” Indeed, Romans 12-13 forms a sub-unit and is bracketed by this emphasis on […]

The Bible teaches that all humans are descended from Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:26-2:25; 5:1ff). Paul tells the members of the Athenian Areopagus, “From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth” (Acts 17:26).
There is some possible, though far from conclusive scientific corroboration of the idea that all […]

I was chatting with Peter Currie this afternoon at the extended family event following Izzy’s baptism at Wonoona. Peter had been preaching on the Parable of Lazarus (not the brother of Mary and Martha) and the beggar (Luke 16:19-31). He made the point that in Luke’s Gospel, as in this passage, there is a tendency to […]

This morning Kevin Murray preached on 1 Corinthians 7. It was great to be reminded how this passage, concerning marriage AND SINGLENESS, follows on so naturally from what Paul has been saying in 1 Corinthians 6.
From 1 Corinthians 6:12 -7:40 Paul concerns himself with issues concerning sexual immorality. As Kevin rightly pointed out Paul’s morality is grounded in […]

As I was requested to do, I’ve been preparing a sermon on Mark 12:28-34, which I will preach to a group of Indonesian Christians on Saturday.  This, of course,  is the passage where a teacher of the law asks Jesus which is the most important of the commands and Jesus goes back to Deuteronomy 6:4, […]

Yesterday on the way to work I was listening to a podcast by atheistic philosopher, Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, based at Duke University in North Carolina. He was ridiculing the idea that you have to have a God in order to have morality. There were many aspects of his reasoning I found suspect, including the way he […]

In the movie The Maltese Cross, Humphrey Bogart plays the role of Dashiell Hammett’s famous hard-nosed detective, Sam Spade. Hammett’s world is a godless world, ruled by chance and violence with individuals being alone in a meaningless world. Macbeth lives in a similar kind of world. Macbeth is a tragic figure. Michael Rockler sees Macbeth […]

I was lecturing on Daniel at the Presbyterian Theological Centre this morning. We were discussing how to apply Daniel 12 to our lives. As we talked I remembered the following helpful questions, which can help us to understand the relevance of a Bible passage we are reading or studying or perhaps preaching on:

Is there a […]

Yesterday Peter Currie gave an excellent devotion before our Consultancy training on Luke 8:40-56, Jesus healing of the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years while en route to heal Jairus’ daughter. Among other things Peter pointed out how God’s timing often differs from our timing.
As he shared one thing jumped out of the passage […]

Today I popped in and spent some time with Rachel and my granddaughter, Ella. Before I left I read Psalm 3 to Rachel. There is David running for his life from Absalom. He is in a seemingly hopeless situation, highly vulnerable, faced by vastly superior numbers. Many have already written him off as a has-been, […]

This blog continues the series of studies looking at references to the Garden(s) of Paradise, as depicted in the Qur’an. Our last blog on this matter was back on September 18.
The next relevant passage is 13:19-26. Here is Yusuf Ali’s translation of this passage:
19: Is then one who doth know that that which hath been […]

Bodhidharma, also known as Ta-mo in China and Daruma in Japan, is thought of as being the founder and the first patriarach of Cha’an Tsung (“inner light”) or what came to be known more familiarly as Zen Buddhism in Japan. There is little by way of substantial historical fact that is known about him. It […]

Jack Kornfield was one of the main leaders of vipassana meditation in the American Theravada Buddhist movement. He commented on his observations of Buddhist meditation:
“[I] also had an opportunity to observe the most successful group of meditators - including experienced students of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism - who had developed strong samadhi and deep insight […]

In 46:10 we meet familiar but oft misunderstood words: “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” There are a number of ways of interpreting this. Usually the words be still are taken to be an encouraging exhortation: “Calm your hearts, […]

Karl Barth’s discussion of revelation in his Church Dogmatics suffers from his failure to treat the Bible as God’s self-revelation and to merely regard it as a witness to revelation. But Barth had a tremendous respect for Luther and often quotes him, sometimes at length. In one section Barth gives a great illustration of the difference […]

I was doinig some background reading on Zen Buddhism - legends about the supposed founder of Ch’an or Zen Buddhism, namely a monk from South India called Bodhidharma.
One legend has it that Bodhidharma spent nine years of his life staring at the wall of a cave near a Shaolin temple in China. One version of […]

Last week I was in Dallas, Texas attending a Peacemakers Conference. It was very worthwhile. During the conference I attended a seminar that was ably presented on the doctrine of forgiveness and its applicability to real-life situations. It was the contention of the presenter that Christians are expected to forgive unconditionally, no matter whether there […]

God’s revelation of Jesus’ identity to Peter contrasts with the idolatrous quest of the Jewish people, as epitomized by the Pharisees and Sadducees for alternate revelation – a miraculous sign from heaven (16:17 cf. vv1-4). To the religious leaders Jesus rejoins:
A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given […]

 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
 
 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” ”But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are […]

A friend asked me to comment on a sermon he was preparing on Acts 15. The question had arisen as to whether this chapter was simply about justification by faith. I did not and do not have time immediately to give a fuller response, but in the few minutes I had to respond to his […]

11:103 speaks of the Day of Judgment, when all people will be gathered together. This Day has been delayed for a set period predetermined by Allah (11:104). When the Day does eventually come nobody will be allowed to speak unless Allah gives permission to do so (11:105a). All gathered will fall into two classes of […]

In Being and Nothingness Sartre presents his depressing view of individual freedom grounded in self-limited epistemology and drowning in a merciless sea of subjectivity:
…I can say of Pierre, who is dead: “He loved music.” In this case, the subject like the attribute is past. There is no living Pierre in terms of which this past-being […]