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Weekly Bible Reflection

Rules . . .

“I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.” So wrote the noted 20th-century science fiction...

Easter Joy . . .

In his article, ‘The Easter Effect’ in The Wall Street Journal over Easter (March 31 – April 1, 2018), George Weigel asks, ‘How did a ragtag band of nobodies from the… edges of the Mediterranean world become such a dominant force in just two and a half centuries?’ He...

Transformation . . .

Back in August 2011, The Wall Street Journal carried an article, ‘Reversing the Decay of London Undone’ by Dr. Jonathan Sacks, then chief rabbi in Britain. Dr. Sacks stated, ‘In virtually every Western society in the 1960s there was a moral revolution, an abandonment...

Thank You . . .

Many around us seem to have lost what used to be the common courtesies of please and thank you.  Sadly, this is not just true of the wider community but is also true of many families and church members, particularly in the large urban centers. Yet, to...

Glory . . .?

There are times in life when we can feel cut off from God, sometimes because of feelings of failure or unworthiness, sometimes because of feelings of ignorance or unbelief. How important it is for us to continue to read and reflect on God’s written self-revelation –...

Alienation . . .?

Despite extraordinary advances in science and technology, we are still incapable of making a just and lasting peace for all peoples of all nations. Peace at the best of times is an uncertain affair. It seems the only way we can ensure it, is through more laws, greater...

Unity . . . ?

In his book, The Holy Trinity (P&R Publishing: 2004), Robert Letham observes that since the 1970s the western world has developed ‘a generally pessimistic view of human progress… The modern world’s reliance on reason has been replaced by a preference for emotion…...

Diversity . . . ?

The world-views of the western world have experienced dramatic shifts over the last century. For example, with Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle and Gödel’s mathematics, science and math have shown, at the extreme edges, the limitations of human logic. Further, the...

Fullness

‘Valentine’s Day’. All of us like to think that we can find a way to experience life to the full. In the minds of many, a special relationship celebrated or affirmed on Valentine’s Day is important, if not essential. Well, so the retail world marketing wants us to...

Good News

Many people reckon church is irrelevant. Indeed, recent research indicates that the majority of people who call themselves Christians think church is unimportant. In fact, they often attend church because of family, because they like the preacher or the music, or...

Tush . . .

No, I am not using the word ‘tush’ in its more recent use, as a reference to the human posterior. Rather I am speaking of a much earlier English usage of ‘tush’ developed from Middle English where it was an exclamation of disdain, dismissal or contempt. Interestingly,...

Forgiven . . . ?

Back in the ‘90s the pop singer Alanis Morissette came up with a song, ‘Forgiven’. She sings of her experience as a teenager at a religious high school where she and her friends had ‘no fun with no guilt feelings’. She wandered a long way from the religion she was...

Resurrection

It is sometimes said that the most difficult thing for the Christian church today is to get people to believe. I think the opposite is true. Most people will believe almost anything, providing that what is said is communicated with a voice of authority. GK Chesterton...

Do

Do

‘Money can’t buy life’ were reportedly the last words of the musician Bob Marley. How can we prepare for life in the hereafter – assuming such a thing exists? In a 6th Coffee Conversation let me suggest you explore with your friend(s) the question that a young...

Resolutions

Resolutions

In his article in The Weekend Australian (Dec 23-24), ‘2017: West Challenged in a Spinning World’, political commentator Paul Kelly observes, ‘People now assert their rights against established norms and institutions. They seek more control. Their distrust of...

Christmas

Christmas

‘Christmas…’ – December 20, 2017 ‘Christmas is all very nice’, people tell us. ‘We love the lights and the festivities, and even the music. But we know it isn’t true.’ In a fourth coffee conversation, and over Christmas, it’s worth praying for opportunities to take...

Goodness

Goodness

Back in the sixties, Burt Bacharach sang: “What the world needs now is love sweet love ...” The problem is, as the 60s generation discovered, it’s one thing to sing about love but quite another to live it. Yet love and its true practice lie at the very heart of...

Greatness

Greatness

Some years ago I was chatting with an acquaintance about Christianity over coffee in one of New York’s coffee shops when I noticed two women sitting in a darkened corner of the room. As the window blind had been drawn I thought it strange that one of them was wearing...