It isn’t that we initially said “no” to God and then said “Yes” to God and proved that by our obedience. The point is that our works prove our faith as genuine. Words can be cheap but they are not always cheap. They are only cheap if there is no “obedience” or no “action” to […]

Church discipline is important, and love should be at its root. Not saying something to someone who is living in a way that is not in accordance with the will of God is not loving. That is akin to watching someone walking over a cliff and doing nothing to stop them. It is the duty […]

The parable presents us with an Exceptional Invitation, but also says there are Exclusions and those who make Excuses. As a truly terrible dinner guest, Jesus contrasts the earthly banquet he attends with the Pharisees to the heavenly banquet.  Many who believed they would be honoured will not.  Many who also believe they would be […]

The church has struggled and we all have struggled with the urgency of gospel proclamation. A disciple of Jesus has to be someone who is concerned for those who are not just dying physically but who are still in their sin and deserving of God’s judgement.

We can see what a mess Paul was in with all this tension with the Corinthian Christians and in fact how damaging this kind of conflict can be. Firstly, it is extraordinarily damaging for Paul himself and very costly in both time and resources. Secondly, the gospel suffers. Conflict always has a detrimental effect on […]

Every aspect of Christ’s sufferings, leading to the cross, on the cross, were designed by God to bring about our salvation. Christ’s suffering and death are immensely powerful and effective in God achieving his purposes in the world. In the same way our sufferings and even death can be used by God to his glory.

While the dishonest manager secured his short term future by the use of wealth, so too Jesus challenges us to use our wealth for the eternal future of ourselves and others.  We have to ask ourselves if our wealth will be an idol or an instrument.

Here we examine the Character of the Judge, the Character of the Widow, the Character of God and the Character of Prayer. This parable gives us a character by contrast.  On one hand an unjust, uncaring judge who eventually and reluctantly gives justice – is compared to a loving heavenly father who loves to give […]