At some point in the next few weeks, the elders will be discussing sermon series at the church for the next year or so. I thought this might be a useful point at which to outline some of my thinking and convictions on how to go about this. 1. The value of consecutive exposition We […]
The last two posts have been an attempt to give a biblical basis for my contention that the Sabbath is fulfilled in Christ. In this last post I want to offer some pastoral reflections. Right at the outset I said that this was an issue where those with differing positions needed to respect each other. […]
In my first post I argued that the key question to be answered is this: How is the Sabbath fulfilled in Christ? This is the main issue- because the whole of the law is fulfilled in Him. I intend to address that question in this post before I turn to some practical and pastoral reflections […]
Those who know me well will appreciate that I don’t relish controversy. So, if I’m honest, my heart sank as I started to prepare my sermon on Isaiah 56 a couple of week ago. I was eager to talk about the inclusion of the foreigner and the eunuch in the people of God but I […]
On Saturday I (along with Peter, Alison and Anna who were doing the children’s work) had an enjoyable time with Marston Neighbourhood Church on their away day. MNC is a church that was planted from Woody Road almost nine years ago. It was great to be able to see some old friends again as well […]
Those who have listened to enough of my sermons will know that Tim Chester is a modern author I tend to quote frequently. I’ve read many of his books and have always appreciated his engagement with Scripture and challenging application to the church today. Both of these qualities are evident in his book based on […]
John Newton, the converted slave trader and author of Amazing Grace,described it as the part of Jesus’ teaching that has been most neglected by his own people. The passage he had in mind was Luke 14:12-14: “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives or […]
So far we have considered that the great theme in Luke’s Gospel is that Jesus brings in a great reversal. We’ve seen the two main ways in which people end up on the wrong side of that reversal- through religious pride and an obsession with wealth. Incidentally it seems to me that both of these […]
In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus says these words, “Blessed are you who are poor…Woe to you who are rich…” (Luke 6:20,24). Unlike the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5, there is no reference to “in spirit.” So is Jesus proclaiming blessing or woe depending purely on our financial status? Or should we […]
We’ve recently completed a brief series in Luke’s Gospel. Whilst I enjoyed working on the individual passages, I felt that we struggled to pick up some of the major themes of the Gospel. Each of the four Gospels is distinct. At the end of his Gospel, John notes that he has had to be selective […]